Boston Cooking-School Cook Book/Chapter 35

by Fannie Farmer

Chapter XXXV. RECIPES FOR THE CHAFING-DISH.

THE chafing-dish, which, within the last few years, has gained so much favor, is by no means a utensil of modern invention. It finds its place on the breakfast table, when the eggs may be cooked to suit the most fastidious; on the luncheon table, when a dainty hot dish may be prepared to serve in place of the so-oft-seen cold meat; but it is made of greatest use for the cooking of late suppers, and always seems to accompany hospitality and good cheer.

It is appreciated and enjoyed by the housekeeper who does her own work, or has but one maid, as well as by the society girl who, by its use, first gains a taste for the art of cooking. The simple tin chafing-dishes may be bought for as small a sum as ninety cents, while the elaborate silver ones command as high a price as one hundred dollars. Very attractive dishes are made of granite ware, nickel, or copper. The latest patterns have the lamp with a screw adjustment to regulate the flame, and a metal tray on which to set dish, that it may be moved if necessary while hot, without danger of burnt fingers, and that it may not injure the polished table.

A chafing-dish has two pans, the under one for holding hot water, the upper one with long handle for holding food to be cooked. A blazer differs from a chafing-dish, inasmuch as it has no hot-water pan.

Wood alcohol, which is much lower in price than high-proof spirits, is generally used in chafing-dishes.

List of dishes previously given that may be prepared on the Chafing-Dish:—

German Toast	Buttered Lobster
Dropped Eggs	Creamed Lobster
Eggs à la Finnoise	Broiled Meat Cakes
Eggs à la Suisse	Salmi of Lamb
Scrambled Eggs	Creamed Sweetbreads
Scrambled Eggs with Tomato Sauce	Sautéd Sweetbreads
	Chickens’ Livers with Madeira Sauce
Scrambled Eggs with Anchovy Toast	Chickens’ Livers with Curry
Buttered Eggs
Buttered Eggs with Tomatoes	Sautéd Chickens’ Livers
	Creamed Chicken
Curried Eggs	Chicken and Oysters à la Métropole
French Omelet
Spanish Omelet	Stewed Mushrooms
Creamed Fish	Sautéd Mushrooms
Halibut à la Rarebit	Mushrooms à la Sabine
Creamed Oysters	Soufflé au Rhum

Scrambled Eggs with Sweetbreads

4 eggs	1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt	1 sweetbread, parboiled and cut in dice
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons butter

Beat eggs slightly, using a silver folk, add salt, pepper, milk, and sweetbread. Put butter in hot chafing-dish; when melted, pour in the mixture. Cook until of creamy consistency, constantly stirring and scraping from bottom of the pan.

Scrambled Eggs with Calf’s Brains

Follow recipe for Scrambled Eggs with Sweetbreads, using calf’s brains in place of sweetbreads.

To Prepare Calf’s Brains. Soak one hour in cold water to cover. Remove membrane, and parboil twenty minutes in boiling, salted, acidulated water. Drain, put in cold water; as soon as cold, drain again, and separate in small pieces.

Cheese Omelet

2 eggs	1/8 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon melted butter	Few grains cayenne
1 tablespoon grated cheese

Beat eggs slightly, add one-half teaspoon melted butter, salt, cayenne, and cheese. Melt remaining butter, add mixture, and cook until firm, without stirring. Roll, and sprinkle with grated cheese. Serve with Graham bread sandwiches.

Eggs au Beurre Noir

Butter	Pepper
Salt	4 eggs
1 teaspoon vinegar

Put one tablespoon butter in a hot chafing-dish; when melted, slip in carefully four eggs, one at a time. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook until whites are firm. Remove to a hot platter, care being taken not to break yolks. In same dish brown two tablespoons butter, add vinegar, and pour over eggs.

Eggs à la Caracas

2 ozs. smoked dried beef	Few grains cinnamon
1 cup tomatoes	Few grains cayenne
1/4 cup grated cheese	2 tablespoons butter
Few drops onion juice	3 eggs

Pick over beef and chop finely, add tomatoes, cheese, onion juice, cinnamon, and cayenne. Melt butter, add mixture, and when heated, add eggs well beaten. Cook until eggs are of creamy consistency, stirring and scraping from bottom of pan.

Union Grill

Clean one pint of oysters and drain off all the liquor possible. Put oysters in chafing-dish, and as liquor flows from oysters, remove with a spoon, and so continue until oysters are plump. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and add two tablespoons butter. Serve on zephyrettes.

Oysters à la D’Uxelles

1 pint oysters	1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped mushrooms	1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
	Few grains cayenne
2 tablespoons butter	1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons flour	1 tablespoon Sherry wine

Clean oysters, heat to boiling-point, and drain. Reserve liquor and strain through double thickness of cheese-cloth; there should be three-fourths cup. Cook butter and mushrooms five minutes, add flour, and oyster liquor gradually; then cook three minutes. Add seasonings, oysters, egg, and Sherry wine. Serve on zephyrettes or pieces of toasted bread.

Oysters à la Thorndike

1 pint oysters	Few grains cayenne
2 tablespoons butter	Slight grating nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt	1/4 cup thin cream
Yolks 2 eggs

Clean and drain oysters. Melt butter, add oysters, and cook until oysters are plump. Then add seasonings, cream, and egg yolks slightly beaten. Cook until sauce is slightly thickened, stirring constantly. Serve on zephyrettes or pieces of toasted bread.

Jack’s Oyster Ragout

Parboil fresh honeycomb tripe, and cut in three-fourths inch pieces; there should be one cup. Add an equal quantity of small boiled onions, and twice the quantity of raw oysters which have been previously cleaned. Melt three tablespoons butter, add four tablespoons flour, and pour on gradually while stirring constantly one and one-half cups thin cream. Add tripe, onion, and oysters. When thoroughly heated add yolks two eggs slightly beaten, and season highly with salt, pepper, and paprika. Serve on pieces toasted bread.

Lobster à la Delmonico

2 lb. lobster	Few grains cayenne
1/4 cup butter	Slight grating nutmeg
3/4 tablespoons flour	1 cup thin cream
1/2 teaspoon salt	Yolks 2 eggs
2 tablespoons Sherry wine

Remove lobster meat from shell and cut in small cubes. Melt butter, add flour, seasonings, and cream gradually. Add lobster, and when heated, add egg yolks and wine.

Lobster à la Newburg

2 lb. lobster	Slight grating nutmeg
1/4 cup butter	1 tablespoon Sherry
1/2 teaspoon salt	1 tablespoon brandy
Few grains cayenne	1/3 cup thin cream
Yolks 2 eggs

Remove lobster meat from shell and cut in slices. Melt butter, add lobster, and cook three minutes. Add seasonings and wine, cook one minute, then add cream and yolks of eggs slightly beaten. Stir until thickened. Serve with toast or Puff Paste Points.

Clams à la Newburg

1 pint clams	3 tablespoons Sherry or Madeira wine
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt	1/2 cup thin cream
Few grains cayenne	Yolks 3 eggs

Clean clams, remove soft parts, and finely chop hard parts. Melt butter, add chopped clams, seasonings, and wine. Cook eight minutes, add soft part on clams, and cream. Cook two minutes, then add egg yolks slightly beaten, diluted with some of the hot sauce.

Shrimps à la Newburg

1 pint shrimps	1 teaspoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons butter	1 teaspoon flour
1/2 teaspoon salt	1/2 cup cream
Few grains cayenne	Yolks 2 eggs
2 tablespoons Sherry wine

Clean shrimps and cook three minutes in two tablespoons butter. Add salt, cayenne, and lemon juice, and cook one minute. Remove shrimps, and put remaining butter in chafing-dish, add flour and cream; when thickened, add yolks of eggs slightly beaten, shrimps, and wine. Serve with toast or Puff Paste Points.

Fish à la Provenoale

1/4 cup butter	Yolks 4 “hard-boiled” eggs
21/2 tablespoons flour	1 teaspoon Anchovy sauce
2 cups milk	2 cups cold boiled flaked fish

Make a sauce of butter, flour, and milk. Mash yolks of eggs and mix with Anchovy sauce, add to sauce, then add fish. Serve as soon as heated. Serve on pieces of toasted Graham bread.

Grilled Sardines

Drain twelve sardines and cook in a chafing-dish until heated, turning frequently. Place on small oblong pieces of dry toast, and serve with Maître d’Hôtel or Lemon Butter.

Sardines with Anchovy Sauce

Drain twelve sardines and cook in a chafing-dish until heated, turning frequently. Remove from chafing-dish. Make one cup Brown Sauce with one and one-half tablespoons sardine oil, two tablespoons flour, and one cup Brown Stock. Season with Anchovy sauce. Reheat sardines in sauce. Serve with Brown Bread Sandwiches, having a slice of cucumber marinated with French Dressing between slices of bread.

Creamed Sardines

Drain from oil one small box sardines, remove backbones from fish, then mash. Melt one-fourth cup butter, add one-fourth cup soft stale bread crumbs, and one cup cream. When thoroughly heated add two “hard-boiled” eggs finely chopped, the sardines, salt, pepper, and paprika to taste. Serve on pieces of toasted bread.

Welsh Rarebit I

1 tablespoon butter	1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon corn-starch	1/4 teaspoon mustard
1/2 cup thin cream	Few grains cayenne
1/2 lb. soft mild cheese cut in small pieces	Toast or wafer crackers

Melt butter, add corn-starch, and stir until well mixed, then add cream gradually, while stirring constantly, and cook two minutes. Add cheese, and stir until cheese is melted. Season, and serve on wafer crackers or bread toasted on one side, rarebit being poured over untoasted side. Much of the success of a rarebit depends upon the quality of the cheese. A rarebit should be smooth and of a creamy consistency, never stringy.

Welsh Rarebit II

1 tablespoon butter	1/4 teaspoon mustard
1/2 lb. soft mild cheese, cut in small pieces	Few grains cayenne
	1/3 to 1/2 cup ale or lager beer
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg

Put butter in chafing-dish, and when melted, add cheese and seasonings; as cheese melts, add ale gradually, while stirring constantly; then egg slightly beaten. Serve same as Welsh Rarebit I.

Oyster Rarebit

1 cup oysters	1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter	Few grains cayenne
1/2 lb. soft mild cheese, cut in small pieces	2 eggs

Clean, parboil, and drain oysters, reserving liquor; then remove and discard tough muscle. Melt butter, add cheese and seasonings; as cheese melts, add gradually oyster liquor, and eggs slightly beaten. As soon as mixture is smooth, add soft part of oysters. Serve on unsweetened wafer crackers or bread toasted on one side, rarebit being poured over untoasted side.

Tomato Rarebit

2 tablespoons butter	/??/ teaspoon soda
2 tablespoons flour	2 cups finely cut cheese
3/4 cup thin cream	2 eggs, slightly beaten
3/4 cup stewed and strained tomatoes	Salt
	Mustard
Cayenne

Put butter in chafing-dish; when melted, add flour. Pour on, gradually, cream, and as soon as mixture thickens add tomatoes mixed with soda; then add cheese, eggs, and seasonings to taste. Serve, as soon as cheese has melted, on Graham Toast.

English Monkey

1 cup stale bread crumbs	1/2 cup soft mild cheese, cut in small pieces
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon butter	1 egg
	1/2 teaspoon salt
Few grains cayenne

Soak bread crumbs fifteen minutes in milk. Melt butter, add cheese, and when cheese has melted, add soaked crumbs, egg slightly beaten, and seasonings. Cook three minutes, and pour over toasted crackers which have been spread sparingly with butter.

Breaded Tongue with Tomato Sauce

Cut cold boiled corned tongue in slices one-third inch thick. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, dip in egg and crumbs, and saute in butter. Serve with Tomato Sauce I.

Scotch Woodcock

4 "hard-boiled" eggs	1 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter	1/4 teaspoon salt
11/2 tablespoons flour	Few grains cayenne
Anchovy sauce

Make a thin white sauce of butter, flour, milk, and seasonings; add eggs finely chopped, and season with Anchovy sauce. Serve same as Welsh Rarebit I.

Shredded Ham with Currant Jelly Sauce

1/2 tablespoon butter	Few grains cayenne
1/3 cup currant jelly	1/4 cup Sherry wine
1 cup cold cooked ham, cut in small strips

Put butter and currant jelly into the chafing-dish. As soon as melted, add cayenne, wine, and ham; simmer five minutes.

Venison Cutlets with Apples

Wipe, core, and cut four apples in one-fourth inch slices. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, and add one-third cup Port wine; cover, and let stand thirty minutes. Drain, and sauté in butter. Cut a slice of venison one-half inch thick in cutlets. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook three or four minutes in a hot chafing-dish, using just enough butter to prevent sticking. Remove from dish; then melt three tablespoons butter, add wine drained from apples, and twelve candied cherries cut in halves. Reheat cutlets in sauce, and serve with apples.

Mutton with Currant Jelly Sauce

2 tablespoons butter	1 cup Brown Stock
2 tablespoons flour	1/3 cup currant jelly
1/4 teaspoon salt	11/2 tablespoons Sherry wine
Few grains pepper	6 slices cold cooked mutton

Brown the butter, add flour, seasonings, and stock, gradually; then add jelly, and when melted, add mutton. When meat is heated, add wine. If mutton gravy is at hand, use instead of making a Brown Sauce.

Minced Mutton

2 cups chopped cooked mutton	Salt
Yolks 6 “hard-boiled” eggs	Cayenne
3/4 teaspoon mixed mustard	1 cup of cream
1/4 cup wine

Mash the yolks, and season with mustard, salt, and cayenne. Add cream and mutton. When thoroughly heated add wine. Serve on toast.

Devilled Bones

2 tablespoons butter	Drumsticks, second joints, and wings of a cooked chicken
1 tablespoon Chili Sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce	Salt
	Pepper
1 tablespoon Walnut Catsup	Flour
1 teaspoon made mustard	Cup hot stock
Few grains cayenne	Finely chopped parsley

Melt butter, and add Chili Sauce, Worcestershire Sauce, Walnut Catsup, mustard, and cayenne. Cut four small gashes in each piece of chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, dredge with flour, and cook in the seasoned butter until well browned. Pour on stock, simmer five minutes, and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Devilled Almonds

2 ozs. blanched and shredded almonds	2 tablespoons chopped pickles
	1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
Butter
1 tablespoon Chutney	1/4 teaspoon salt
Few grains cayenne

Fry almonds until well browned, using enough butter to prevent almonds from burning. Mix remaining ingredients, pour over nuts, and serve as soon as thoroughly heated. Serve with oysters.

Devilled Chestnuts

Shell one cup chestnuts, cut in thin slices, and fry until well browned, using enough butter to prevent chestnuts from burning. Season with Tabasco Sauce or few grains paprika.

Fruit Canapés

Make German Toast in circular pieces, cover with stewed prunes, figs, or jam. Serve with Cream Sauce I.

Peach Canapés

Sauté circular pieces of sponge cake in butter until delicately browned. Drain canned peaches, sprinkle with powdered sugar, few drops lemon juice, and slight grating nutmeg. Melt one tablespoon butter, add peaches, and when heated, serve on cake.

Fig Cups

1/2 lb. washed figs	2 tablespoons sugar
Chopped salted almonds	1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup wine

Stuff figs with almonds. Put sugar, lemon juice, and wine in chafing-dish; when heated, add figs, cover, and cook until figs are tender, turning and basting often. Serve with Lady Fingers.