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Classic
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page 159
SPICED VINEGAR.
Take one quart of cider vinegar, put into it half an ounce of celery seed,
one-third of an ounce of dried mint, one-third of an ounce of dried parsley, one
garlic, three small onions, three whole cloves, a teaspoonful of whole
peppercorns, a teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, salt to taste, and a tablespoonful
of sugar; add a tablespoonful of good brandy. Put all into a jar, and cover it
well; let it stand for three weeks, then strain and bottle it well. Useful for
flavoring salad and other dishes.
Pickles.
Pickles should never be put into vessels of brass, copper or tin, as the action
of the acid on such metals often results in poisoning the pickles. Porcelain or
granite-ware is the best for such purposes.
Vinegar that is used for pickling should be the best cider or white-wine, and
should never be boiled more than five or six minutes, as it reduces its
strength. In putting away pickles,use stone or glass jars; the glazing on common
earthen-ware is rendered injurious by the action of the vinegar. When the jar is
nearly filled with the pickles, the vinegar should completely cover them, and if
there is any appearance of their not doing well, turn off the vinegar, cover
with fresh vinegar, and spices. Alum in small quantities is useful in making
them firm and crisp. In using ground spices, tie them up in muslin bags.
To green pickles, put green grape-vine leaves or green cabbage leaves between
them when heating. Another way is to heat them in strong ginger tea. Pickles
should be kept closely covered, put into glass jars and sealed tightly.
"Turmeric" is India saffron, and is used very much in pickling as a coloring.
A piece of horse-radish put into a jar of pickles will keep the vinegar from
losing its strength, and the pickles will keep sound much longer, especially
tomato pickles.
CUCUMBER PICKLES.
Select the medium, small-sized cucumbers. For one bushel make a brine that will
bear up an egg; heat it boiling hot and pour it over the cucumbers; let them
stand twenty-four hours, then wipe them dry; heat some vinegar boiling hot, and
pour over them, standing again twenty-four hours. Now change the vinegar,
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