The Decadent Cookbook (30 page)

Rasp on a lump of sugar the rind of a ripe yellow Seville orange, dry this sugar at the mouth of the oven, pound and sift it, add other sugar to make with this the weight of eight ounces; whip six whites of eggs in a basin, and when very firm add the sugar by a little at a time, stirring it into the whites with a whisk; when worked enough, which is perceptible by its separating easily from the spoon, in moulding the meringues, form them on strips of paper, disposed according to the size required; they are generally shaped like an egg cut in half, so that when two are joined, they should be of an egg shape; when they are moulded, throw sugar over them, not too finely pounded, and when the sugar has remained some minutes, blow off the overplus from them; take the paper by the two ends, and lay it on a small board, an inch thick; put them in a slow oven until of a fine red tint, and covered with small pearls; then raise them from the paper, and with a teaspoon press down the softer part in the inside; lay them again on a baking-sheet, with this side upwards, and replace them in the oven, until they take an even colour when cold: these meringues will keep for a month in a dry place: fill them with whipt cream seasoned with the rind of a Seville orange, but do not put the cream in until the instant they are going to table, as the cream softens them greatly; the cream may be flavoured with marasquin or any other flavour commonly used.

Skin three-quarters of a pound of filberts, separate each in two pieces, lay them on a baking-sheet in a slow oven, observe and turn them from time to time, that they may become of an even colour; when lightly browned, bring them to the mouth of the oven; boil six ounces of sugar to caramel, and the moment it is at the proper point, stir the kernels in gently with a wooden spoon (not to break them), covering them equally with the sugar; the nougat should be of a fine light-red tint, then turn it out upon a baking-sheet slightly buttered, spread it quickly, and strew upon it sugar in grains, and pistachios cut in fillets, and dried at the mouth of the oven; from the
nougat
eight inches long, and six inches wide, and, above all, of an equal thickness (do not handle it too much, lest you break the grained sugar); when sufficiently cold to resist the knife, yet not so cold as to cause it to fly in pieces, trim it round the edges, cut it in two equal lengths, and divide each into fifteen pieces of the same width; these
nougats
may be made with almonds, and garnished with currants, red or white aniseed, or sugar in grains.

Perfectly crush eight ounces of bitter macaroons, and sift them, put them into eight ounces of flour and make a hollow in it, adding six ounces of sugar, three yolks of eggs, three ounces of fresh butter, and a grain of salt, work the whole together as usual; form the
croquignoles
of the size of an olive, and having slightly egged them, put them into a gentle oven to bake of a light brown colour; filbert macaroons, or sweet macaroons flavoured with the rind of cedrata, lemon, &c, or with vanille, candied orange flowers, or aniseed, may thus be used.

These come from Carême too. They’re much less daunting to prepare than the Gros Meringue, but still luxurious and possibly even more dangerous to the cardio-vascular system.

Set a quart of double cream in a basin on pounded ice for two hours, mixing it with a pinch of gum tragacanth in powder; then whip it with a whisk for fifteen minutes, when the cream should be light and stiff; when perfectly drained (upon a sieve) mix it in a basin with six ounces of pounded sugar: the whole well-mingled, and at the moment of serving add the third part of a half pint of marasquin; serve the cream in a crust of tart paste, or a
vol-au-vent
glazed with a sultan over it, or in almond paste cups, a silver stewpan, or bowl; rum may be thus employed.

Melt four ounces of chocolate in a teacupful of boiling water; when cold mix it with the cream with four ounces of pounded sugar.

Chop half a stick of good vanille very fine, pound it with two ounces of sugar and sift it through a silk sieve, add four ounces of pounded sugar to it, and with it flavour the whipt cream as above.

Pound half an ounce of candied orange-flowers, which mix with six ounces of pounded sugar in the whipt cream as directed; or the cream may be seasoned with a spoonful of double orange-flower water.