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PRIZE RECIPES FOR COOKING. 
Siveet Potato Beer. —Pick your potatoes carefully, 
wash them, and cut off all bad parts and strings. 
Measure one bushel of them, and bake without peel¬ 
ing. Have a half-barrel, or large stone water jar, in 
which to make the beer. Mash the potatoes well, with¬ 
out peeling; put them in the jar or barrel, add one pint 
of yeast, one handful of bruised ginger, and ten gallons 
of water. Cover the vessel carefully, and let it stand 
till the beer ferments. When ready for use, the pota¬ 
toes will sink to the bottom of the vessel. When 
drawn off for use, add brown sugar to the taste, and 
some toasted bread, broken up. It is best to keep two 
vessels of it, one in preparation, while the other is 
being used. In moderate weather, this beer is fit for 
use in four or five days. In very cold weather, a week 
or ten days. 
Liquid Yeast. —Take eight or ten fresh peach leaves 
(or dried ones for winter use), two good-sized potatoes 
—either sweet or Irish—and one quart of water. Peel 
the potatoes and boil till thoroughly done ; then mash 
them through a sieve, and add four heaping table¬ 
spoonfuls of white sugar, and four even tablespoonfuls 
of salt. Stir these ingredients well, and strain into 
them the water in which the potatoes and leaves were 
boiled. When lukewarm, add one-half cup of old 
yeast, and cover the vessel with a cloth till it ferments. 
This yeast never spoils during the summer; it does not 
foam, but simply bubbles, and when the latter are ap¬ 
parent, is fit for use. If peach leaves are not to be 
had, a pinch of pressed hops will answer the purpose 
equally. In the South, this yeast can be used in a 
few hours after it is made. 
Hard Ginger Cakes. —Two quarts of flour, yolks of 
two eggs, one teaspoonful of soda or baking-powder, 
three-quarters of a pound of lard, one cup of brown 
sugar, half a teacup of ground Jamaica or rose ginger, 
and the whole mixed with molasses. Roll thin, and 
cut out with fancy tins. 
Orange Cake. —Make a sponge cake—twelve eggs, 
weight of half of the eggs in flour, and full weight in 
white sugar. Season with lemon, and bake in thin 
molds, as for jelly cake. For fifteen eggs made into 
cake, make up the following : two and a half pounds 
of sugar, juice of four oranges, grated rind of two 
oranges, and juice of three lemons. Stir these well, 
and spread on the cake when cold. Two layers are 
enough for each cake. 
Queen of Puddings. —-The yolks of six eggs, one 
and a half teacups of white sugar, the same quantity 
of bread crumbs, rubbed very fine, and a tablespoon¬ 
ful of butter—well mixed. Then add the grated peel 
of one lemon, and three pints of sweet milk. Put in 
a baking-dish, and bake like custard. When done, 
and cool, cover with some acid preserve, and on top of 
that put a meringue, made of the whites of the eggs, 
and six tablespoonfuls of sugar, powdered very fine, 
and seasoned with the juice of the lemon ; whip very 
light, cover the pudding with it, and set it in the oven 
until it gets brown. To be eaten cold ; with cream, 
if preferred. 
Sweetmeat Pudding. —Five eggs—whites and yolks 
beaten separately—one cup of sugar, one cup of pre¬ 
serves, one-half cup of melted butter, a little nutmeg, 
mix. Butter a baking-dish, pour in, and bake quickly. 
Cherry Bounce. —To one gallon of beaten cherries, 
add a half gallon of rum. Let it stand three or four 
weeks, shake it every day, and strain and sweeten to 
your taste. 
Fairfax Muffins. — One quart flour, one teaspoonful 
soda, two teaspoonfuls cream-tartar—sifted together 
three times— two eggs, one quart of milk, one table¬ 
spoonful of lutter, and rather more salt than usual for 
that quantity of flour. 
Virginia Biscuit. —One quart flour, one teaspoonful 
salt, two tablespoonfuls (or nearly a quarter pound) of 
lard. Rub the lard well into the flour, and mix into 
a stiff dough with equal parts of sweet milk and 
water—if no milk convenient, water alone will answer. 
Work the dough till smooth, then pound it for ten or 
fifteen minutes with the rolling-pin, or work with a 
patent bread-worker. Roil out till less than a quarter 
inch thick, cut with a biscuit-cutter, and bake quickly. 
These biscuit are unsurpassed, when properly made, 
and particularly good for invalids. 
Virginia Wafer Biscuit. —One quart flour, one tea¬ 
spoonful salt, rather more than a quarter pound of lard 
rubbed into the flour, and mixed with milk and water; 
the dough must not be stiff, as for the above. Work 
till smooth, but do not beat. Then flour your bread, 
board, and roller well, and cutting off a small piece of 
dough— as for pie-crust — roll as thin as possible— 
almost to transparency — and cut into shapes; bake 
quickly. This receipt is excellent for tea. To make 
a more ornamental dish they may be baked in wafer- 
irons. Let the dough be soft as pie-crust, and be sure 
to roll very thin. 
Cinnamon Cakes. —Two pounds flour, one pound 
sugar, one pound butter, yolks of six eggs. Knead 
them 'well, and roll in very thin cakes. When done, 
ice them with an icing of the whites of four eggs, 
powdered sugar, and powdered cinnamon, beaten to a 
froth. Before the icing is hard, you may sift a little 
powdered sugar over them. But the prettiest way is 
to trace patterns or names, in.white icing, after the 
cinnamon icing becomes hard. 
Blackberry Cordial. —Take the ripest blackberries, 
mash, and put them in a linen bag to squeeze out the 
juice. To one quart of juice, allow one pound sugar. 
Put the sugar in your kettle, pour the juice on it, and 
when all is melted, boil till it becomes a jelly. When 
cold, to one quart of juice or jelly, allow one quart of 
brandy ; stir well together and bottle for use. 
Peach Cordial. —Take ripe cling-stone peaches, 
wipe off the down, cut them to the stone in several 
places, put them in a cask. When filled with peaches, 
pour on as much peach brandy as the cask will hold ; 
let it stand eight weeks and then draw it off, and add 
water till reduced to the strength of wine. To one 
gallon of this, allow one pound of brown sugar. 
Dissolve it, and pour into a cask just large enough 
to hold it. When clear, it is ready for use. 
Potato Pumpkin. —Take one of good size and color, 
cut a piece off the top, remove all the seed ; wash and 
wipe the cavity; pare off the rind, and fill the cavity 
with good force meat. Put the top on, and set it in a 
pan to protect the sides ; bake it in a moderate oven. 
Put it carefully in a dish without breaking, and it will 
look like a handsome mould. 
Spanish Toast. —Beat well together one-half pound 
sugar, three or four eggs, and one pint sweet milk. 
Dip into the mixture slices of stale bread, and fry in 
lard or butter till a good brown. 
Green Tomato Pickle. —One peck of green toma¬ 
toes, twelve large white onions; slice them, and lay 
them alternately in deep dishes, sprinkling each layer 
with salt. Set them aside for twenty-four hours ; then 
drain them through a sieve, till all the water is out; 
put them in a jar, and cover them with cold vinegar, 
and let them remain twenty-four hours. Then drain 
the vinegar off, and put them in a brass kettle, or 
anything but iron, in layers, with spices sprinkled be¬ 
tween each layer. Cover the whole with strong vine¬ 
gar, and let them simmer, or boil gently, till they look 
clear, .which will generally take an hour or so. Spices 
for the above : one ounce cloves, one ounce allspice, 
one ounce mace, one ounce black pepper, one ounce 
celery seed, quarter pound white mustard seed, bruised, 
one teacupful of grated horseradish ; brown sugar to 
the taste. The spices must be beaten fine or ground 
.-in the spice mill, and the pickle must be frequently 
stirred, while on the fire, to prevent burning. 
French Way of Cooking Peas. —Put in a pot one 
tablespoonful of laid; when perfectly hot, add two 
good sized onions, sliced very thin, at same time stir 
in one tablespoonful of flour, stirring occasionally to 
prevent burning. When the onions and flour are 
slightly browned, add a little parsley and thyme, pep¬ 
per and salt; then three pints of water, letting the 
whole boil fifteen minutes before adding the peas. 
Have a peck of peas shelled for this quantity of ingre¬ 
dients. A slice of good old bacon wull be an improve¬ 
ment. Begin this dish two hours before your dinner 
hour. 
Boiled Icing. —One pound loaf sugar, half a tumbler 
of water, half the juice of one lemon, or half teaspoon¬ 
ful of cream-tartar. Let it boil until it becomes a 
thick syrup; then pour into an earthen bowl, and 
v'hen cold enough add the whites of three eggs. Beat 
till wdiite and smooth. 
White Cake. —One pound flour, a little over half a 
pound butter, one pound sugar, wdiites of fourteen eggs 
w'ell beaten, and lastly, six teaspoonfuls of Price’s bak- 
1 hig powder. Cream the butter well, then add the 
flour, mixing the wdiites and sugar alternately. After 
mixing the ingredients, and flavoring u'ith almond, 
stir the yeast powder in lightly. 
! Russian Cream. —One quart milk, three eggs, one 
cup sugar, half package Cox’s gelatin vanilla or lemon 
flavoring; if cinnamon is preferred, boil a few 1 sticks 
in the milk. Dissolve the gelatin in half a pint tepid 
I water; bring it to a warm temperature, but not scald- 
; ing. Beat the yolks of the eggs and sugar together. 
Bring the milk to a boil ; then add the dissolved gela¬ 
tin, eggs and sugar, and let it just come to a boiling 
point, but no more, or it will be too stiff. Beat the 
w’hites, and, removing the mixture from the stove, add 
them to it, flavor, and pour into moulds. If wanted 
for dinner, prepare the day before, as it requires to 
stand longer than wine jelly. 
| Maryland Bread. —One quart flour, four eggs, one 
cup of butter, half a cup yeast, one teaspoonful sugar, 
four medium-sized potatoes, and salt. Mix and work 
well, about eleven o’clock if for supper. It will be too 
soft to work after it has risen ; bake in muffin tins, or 
drop with a spoon in cakes on the biscuit pan. Let it 
rise the second time before baking. 
i Salad Dressing for Lettuce or Cole slatv. —One tea - 
j spoonful salt; one and a half teaspoonfuls mustard ; 
two teaspoonfuls sugar, three eggs well beaten, add 
one cup of vinegar, one tablespoonful butter, and cook 
like boiled custard. Remove from fire, add Worces¬ 
tershire sauce or celery salt, and use either cold or hot. 
