Part 23

Cut off one-third of the butter and put the remaining two-thirds in a bowl of ice-water. Divide this into four equal parts; pat each into a thin sheet and set them away on ice. Mix and sift flour and salt; rub the reserved butter into it and make as stiff as possible with ice-water. Dust the slab with flour; turn the paste upon it; knead for one minute, then stand it on ice for five minutes. Roll the cold paste into a square sheet about one-third of an inch thick; place the cold batter in the centre and fold the paste over it, first from the sides and then the ends, keeping the shape square and folding so that the butter is completely covered and cannot escape through any cracks as it is rolled. Roll out to one-fourth inch thickness, keeping the square shape and folding as before, but without butter. Continue rolling and folding, enclosing a sheet of butter at every alternate folding until all four sheets are used. Then turn the folded side down and roll in one direction into a long narrow strip, keeping the edges as straight as possible. Fold the paste over, making three even layers. Then roll again and fold as before. Repeat the process until the dough has had six turns. Cut into the desired shapes and place on the ice for twenty minutes or longer before putting in the oven.

If during the making the paste sticks to the board or pin, remove it immediately and stand it on the ice until thoroughly chilled. Scrape the board clean; rub with a dry cloth and dust with fresh flour before trying again. Use as little flour as possible in rolling, but use enough to keep the paste dry. Roll with a light, even, long stroke in every direction, but never work the rolling-pin back and forth as that movement toughens the paste and breaks the bubbles of air.

The baking of puff paste is almost as important as the rolling, and the oven must be very hot, with the greatest heat at the bottom, so that the paste will rise before it browns. If the paste should begin to scorch, open the drafts at once and cool the temperature by placing a pan of ice-water in the oven.

FLEISCHIG PIE CRUST

For shortening; use drippings and mix with goose, duck or chicken fat. In the fall and winter, when poultry is plentiful and fat, save all drippings of poultry fat for pie-crust. If you have neither, use rendered beef fat.

Take one-half cup of shortening, one and one-half cups of flour. Sifted pastry flour is best. If you have none at hand take two tablespoons of flour off each cup after sifting; add a pinch of salt. With two knives cut the fat into the sifted flour until the shortening is in pieces as small as peas. Then pour in six or eight tablespoons of cold water; in summer use ice-water; work with the knife until well mixed (never use the hand). Flour a board or marble slab, roll the dough out thin, sprinkle with a little flour and put dabs of soft drippings here and there, fold the dough over and roll out thin again and spread with fat and sprinkle with flour, repeat this and then roll out not too thin and line a pie-plate with this dough. Always cut dough for lower crust a little larger than the upper dough and do not stretch the dough when lining pie-pan or plate.

If fruit is to be used for the filling, brush over top of the dough with white of egg slightly beaten, or sprinkle with one tablespoon of bread crumbs to prevent the dough from becoming soggy.

Put in the filling, brush over the edge of pastry with cold water, lay the second round of paste loosely over the filling; press the edges together lightly, and trim, if needed. Cut several slits in the top crust or prick it with a fork before putting it in place.

Bake from thirty-five to forty-five minutes until crust is a nice brown.

A gas stove is more satisfactory for baking pies than a coal stove as pies require the greatest heat at the bottom.

The recipe given above makes two crusts. Bake pies having a cooked filling in a quick oven and those with an uncooked filling in a moderate oven. Let pies cool upon plates on which they were made because slipping them onto cold plates develops moisture which always destroys the crispness of the lower crust.

TO MAKE AND BAKE A MERINGUE

To beat and bake a meringue have cold, fresh eggs, beat the whites until frothy; add to each white one level tablespoon of powdered sugar. Beat until so stiff that it can be cut with a knife. Spread on the pie and bake with, the oven door open until a rich golden brown. Too much sugar causes a meringue to liquefy; if not baked long enough the same effect is produced.

PIE CRUST (MERBERTEIG)

Rub one cup of butter to a cream, add four cups of sifted flour, a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of brown sugar; work these together until the flour looks like sand, then take the yolk of an egg, a wine-glass of brandy, one-half cup of ice-water and work it into the flour lightly. Do not use the hands; knead with a knife or wooden spoon, knead as little as possible. If the dough is of the right consistency no flour will be required when rolling out the dough. If it is necessary to use flour use as little as possible. Work quickly, handle dough as little as possible and bake in a hot oven. Follow directions given with Fleischig Pie Crust. Fat may be substituted for butter in the above recipe.

PARVE, COOKIE AND PIE DOUGH

Sift into a mixing-bowl one and one-half cups of flour and one-half teaspoon of baking-powder. Make a depression in the centre; into this pour a generous half cup of oil and an exact half cup of very cold (or ice) water; add pinch of salt, mix quickly with a fork, divide in two portions; do not knead, but roll on a well-floured board, spread on pans, fill and bake at once in a quick oven.

No failure is possible if the formula is accurately followed and these things observed; ingredients cold, no kneading or re-rolling; dough must not stand, but the whole process must be completed as rapidly as possible.

Do not pinch or crimp the edge of this or any other pie. To do so makes a hard edge that no one cares to eat. Instead, trim the edges in the usual way, then place the palms of the hand on opposite sides of the pie and raise the dough until the edges stand straight up. This prevents all leakage and the crust is tender to the last morsel.

TARTLETS

Roll puff paste one-eighth of an inch thick; cut it into squares; turn the points together into the middle and press slightly to make them stay. Bake until thoroughly done; place a spoonful of jam in the centre of each; cover the jam with meringue and brown the meringue in a quick oven.

By brushing the top of the paste with beaten egg, diluted with one teaspoon of water, a glazed appearance may be obtained.

BANBURY TARTS

Cut one cup of seeded muscatel raisins and one cup of nuts in small pieces, add one cup of sugar, one well-beaten egg, one tablespoon of water, the juice and grated rind of one lemon. Mix well. Line patty-pans with pie dough, fill with mixture and bake until crust is brown.

FRUIT TARTLETS

If canned fruit is used, take a large can of any kind of fruit, drain all the syrup off and put in a saucepan with an equal quantity of sugar. Cook until it forms a syrup, then pour in the fruit, which has been stoned (if necessary), and cook until the whole is a syrupy mass.

If fresh fruit is used, put on two parts of sugar to one of water and cook until syrupy, then add the fruit, which has been peeled, sliced and stoned, and cook until the whole is a thick, syrupy mass.

Line the patty cases or plain muffin rings with the puff paste. Put a spoonful or two of the fruit in each one and bake a nice brown. Peaches, white cherries, Malaga grapes, huckleberries and apples make nice tartlets.

One large can California fruit fills twelve tartlets.

APPLE FLADEN (HUNGARIAN)

Rub together on a pastry-board one-half pound of sweet butter with one pound (four cups sifted) of flour, add four tablespoons of powdered sugar, a little salt, four egg yolks and moisten with one-half cup of sour cream; cover and set aside in the ice-box for one-half hour. Take two pounds of sour apples, peel, cut fine, mix with one-half cup of light-colored raisins, sugar and cinnamon to taste. Cut the dough in two pieces, roll out one piece and place on greased baking-pan, spread over this four tablespoons of bread crumbs and the chopped sugared apples, roll out the other half of dough, place on top and spread with white of one egg, sprinkle with two tablespoons of powdered almonds. Bake in hot oven.

LINSER TART

Make a dough of one-half pound each of flour, sugar and almonds that are grated with peel on, two eggs, a little allspice, a little citron, pinch of salt. Flavor with brandy. Take a little more than half, roll it out and line a pie-pan, put strawberry jam on and then cut rest of dough in strips and cover the same as you would prune pie. Brush these strips with yolk of egg and bake in moderate oven.

MACAROON TARTS

Line a gem or muffin-pan with rich pie dough; half fill each tart with any desired preserve, and bake in a quick oven. Beat the whites of three eggs to a stiff froth and add one-half pound of powdered sugar and stir about ten minutes or until very light, and gradually one-half pound of grated almonds. Divide this macaroon paste into equal portions. Roll and shape into strips, dusting hands with powdered sugar in place of flour. Place these strips on the baked tarts in parallel rows to cross each other diagonally. Return to oven and bake in a slow oven about fifteen minutes. Let remain in pans until almost cold.

LEMON TART (FLEISCHIG)

Make a rich crust and bake in small spring form. Beat three whole eggs and yolks of three very light with one cup of sugar. Add juice of three lemons and grated rind of one, and juice of one orange. Put whole on stove and stir until it comes to a boil. Put on baked crust, spread a meringue made of the remaining three whites and three tablespoons of sugar on top, and put in oven to brown. May be used as a filling for tartlets.

VIENNA PASTRY FOR KIPFEL

Take one-half pound of pot cheese and one-half pound of butter and two cups of flour sifted four times, add a pinch of salt and work these ingredients into a dough; make thirty small balls of it and put on a platter on the ice overnight. In the morning roll each ball separately into two-inch squares. These squares may be filled with, a teaspoon of jelly put in the centre and the squares folded over like an envelop; or fill them with one-half pound of walnuts, ground; one-half cup of sugar and moisten with a little hot milk. Roll and twist into shape. Brush with beaten egg and bake in a moderately hot oven.

CHEESE STRAWS

One-half cup of flour, two tablespoons of butter, four tablespoons of grated cheese, yolk of one egg, dash of cayenne pepper, enough ice-water to moisten. Mix as little as possible. Roll out about a quarter of an inch thick and cut into long, narrow strips. Shake a little more cheese on top and bake in hot oven. This is also an excellent pie crust for one pie, omitting pepper and cheese.

Serve cheese straws with salads.

LAMPLICH

Make a mince-meat by chopping finely eight medium-sized apples, one-half pound each of raisins, currants and sugar, a little citron peel, two or three cloves and one teaspoon of powdered cinnamon.

Cut some good puff paste into little triangles and fill with the mince, turning the corners of the paste over it so as to make little puffs. Place these closely together and on a buttered baking-dish until it is full. Now mix two tablespoons of melted butter with one teacup of thick syrup flavored with essence of lemon, and pour it over the puffs. Bake until done in a rather slow oven.

MIRLITIOUS

Pound and sift six macaroons; add one tablespoon of grated chocolate and one pint of hot milk. Let stand ten minutes, and then add yolks of three eggs well beaten, one tablespoon of sugar, one teaspoon of vanilla. Line patty-tins with puff paste; fill with the mixture and bake twenty minutes.

APPLE PIE, No. 1

Pare, core and slice four apples. Line a pie-plate with plain pastry. Sprinkle with bread crumbs. Lay in the apples, sprinkle with one-half cup of sugar, flavor with cinnamon, nutmeg or lemon juice or two tablespoons of water if apples are not juicy. Cover with upper crust, slash and prick and bake in moderate oven until the crust is brown and the fruit is soft.

APPLE PIE, No. 2

Put in saucepan one-half cup of sugar and one-fourth cup of water, let it boil a few minutes, then lay in five large apples or six small ones, which have previously been peeled and quartered; cover with a lid and steam until tender but not broken. Line pie-plate with rich milchig pastry, lay on the apples, sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon and bits of butter drop a few drops of syrup over all and bake.

INDIVIDUAL APPLE DUMPLINGS

Butter six muffin rings and set them on a shallow agate pan which has been well buttered. Fill the rings with sliced apples. Make a dough of one and one-half cups of pastry flour sifted several times with one-half teaspoon of salt and three level teaspoons of baking-powder. Chop into the dry ingredients one-fourth of a cup of shortening, gradually add three-fourths of a cup of milk or water. Drop the dough on the apples on the rings. Let bake about twenty minutes. With a spatula remove each dumpling from the ring, place on dish with the crust side down. Serve with cream and sugar, hard sauce or with a fruit sauce.

WHIPPED CREAM PIE

Make a crust as rich as possible and line a deep tin. Bake quickly in a hot oven and spread it with a layer of jelly or jam. Next whip one cup of sweet cream until it is thick. Set the cream in a bowl of ice while whipping. Sweeten slightly and flavor with vanilla, spread this over the pie and put in a cool place until wanted.

GRATED APPLE PIE

Line a pie-plate with a rich puff paste. Pare and grate four or five large tart apples into a bowl into which you have stirred the yolks of two eggs with about half a cup of sugar. Add a few raisins, a few currants, a few pounded almonds, a pinch of ground cinnamon, and the grated peel of a lemon. Have no top crust. Bake in a quick oven. In the meantime, make a meringue of the whites of the eggs by beating them to a very stiff froth and add about three tablespoons of pulverized sugar. Spread this over the pie when baked and set back in the oven until brown. Eat cold.

APPLE CUSTARD PIE

Line your pie-plates with a rich crust. Slice apples thin, half fill your plates and pour over them a custard made of four eggs and two cups of milk, sweetened and seasoned to taste.

CHERRY PIE, No. 1

Line a pie-plate with rich paste, sprinkle cornstarch lightly over the bottom crust and fill with cherries and regulate the quantity of sugar you scatter over them by their sweetness. Bake with an upper crust, secure the edges well by pinching firmly together. Eat cold.

CHERRY PIE, No. 2

Pick the stems out of your cherries and put them in an earthen crock, then set them in the oven until they get hot. Take them out and seed them. Make tarts with or without tops and sugar to your taste. The heating of the fruit gives the flavor of the seed, which is very rich, but the seeding of them while hot is not a delightful job. Made this way they need no water for juice.

SNOWBALLS

Pare and core nice large baking apples, fill the holes with some preserves or jam, roil the apples in sugar and cover with a rich pie crust and bake. When done, cover with a boiled icing and set back in the oven, leaving both doors open to let the icing dry.

BLACKBERRY AND CURRANT PIE

When ready to make the pie, mix as much fruit in a bowl as required, sweeten, stirring the sugar through the berries and currants lightly with a spoon. Dust in a little flour and stir it through the fruit. Cut one of the pieces of pastry in halves, dust the pastry-board with flour and roll the lump of pastry out very thin, cover the pie-plate, a big deep one, with the pastry, trim off the edges with a knife, cutting from you. Fill the dish with the fruit, dust the surface well with flour. Roll out the other piece for the top crust, fold it over the rolling pin, cut a few gashes in it for a steam vent.

Carefully put on the top crust, trim it well about the edge of the pie-plate. Press it closely together with the end of your thumb or with a pastry knife and stand the pie in a moderate oven and bake till the surface is a delicate brown. Then remove the pie and let it stand until it is cool.

The top crust may be made lattice fashion by cutting the pastry in strips, but it will not be as good as between two closed crusts.

CUSTARD PIE

Line the pie-plate with a rich crust. Beat up four eggs light with one-half cup of sugar, a pinch of salt, one pint of milk and grated nutmeg or grated lemon peel, and pour in shell and bake in slow oven.

CREAM PIE

First line a pie-plate with puff paste and bake, and then make a cream of the yolks of four eggs, a little more than a pint of milk, one tablespoon of cornstarch and four tablespoons of sugar, and flavor with two teaspoons of vanilla. Pour on crust and bake; beat up the whites with two tablespoons of powdered sugar and half a teaspoon of cream of tartar. Spread on top of pie and set back in the oven until baked a light brown.

COCOANUT PIE

Line a pie-plate with puff paste and fill with the following custard: Butter size of an egg, creamed with one cup of granulated sugar, one tablespoon of flour, three-fourths cup of grated cocoanut, one tablespoon of milk, vanilla, pinch of salt, and the beaten whites of three eggs.

COCOANUT LEMON PIE

Beat the yolks of six eggs and one cup of sugar until very light, squeeze in the juice of three lemons and the rind of two of them, stir well, then add one-half of a cocoanut grated, and lastly add the whites of six eggs, beaten to a stiff froth. Line a deep pie-plate with rich pastry, sprinkle a little flour over it, pour in the lemon mixture and bake. This makes one pie in deep pie-plate.

LEMON PIE, No. 1

Cover the reverse side of a deep pie-plate with a rich puff paste, and bake a light brown. Remove from the oven until the filling is prepared. Take a large juicy lemon, grate and peel and squeeze out every drop of juice. Now take the lemon and put it into a cup of boiling water to extract every particle of juice. Put the cup of water on to boil with the lemon juice and grated peel, and a cup of sugar; beat up the yolks of four eggs very light and add to this gradually the boiling lemon juice. Return to the kettle and boil. Then wet a teaspoon of cornstarch with a very little cold water, and add also a teaspoon of butter and when the boiling mixture has thickened remove from the fire and let it cool. Beat up the whites of the eggs to a very stiff froth, add half of the froth to the lemon mixture and reserve the other half for the top of the pie. Bake the lemon cream in the baked pie-crust. Add a few tablespoons of powdered sugar and half a teaspoon of cream of tartar to the remaining beaten whites. If you desire to have the meringue extra thick, add the whites of one or more eggs. When the pie is baked take from the oven just long enough to spread the meringue over the top, and set back for two or three minutes, leaving the oven doors open just the least bit, so as not to have it brown too quickly.

LEMON PIE, No. 2

Line a deep pie-plate with nice crust, then prepare a filling as follows: After removing the crust from two slices of bread about two inches thick, pour over it one cup of boiling water; add one dessertspoon of butler, and beat until the bread is well soaked and smooth; then add the juice and rind of one lemon, one cup of sugar, the yolks of two eggs, well beaten, and a little salt; mix well; fill pie with mixture and bake in hot oven until firm. Beat white of two eggs to a stiff froth, add four tablespoons of powdered sugar and spread on top and brown.

MOCK MINCE PIE

Pare, core, and chop fine eight tart apples. Add one cup of seedless raisins, one-half cup of currants, one ounce of chopped citron, one-half teaspoon each of cinnamon, cloves, spice and mace, a tiny bit of salt and grated nutmeg. Pour over whole one tablespoon of brandy, and juice and rind of one lemon. Line bottom and sides of plate with crust, fill in with mixture, and put strips of dough across.

MINCE PIE

Boil two pounds lean, fresh beef. When cold, chop fine. Add one-half pound chopped suet, shredded very fine, and all gristle removed. Mix in a bowl two pounds of seeded raisins, two pounds of currants, one-half pound of citron, chopped very fine. Two tablespoons of cinnamon, two tablespoons of mace, one grated nutmeg, one tablespoon of cloves, allspice, and salt. Mix this with meat and suet. Then take two cups of white wine, two and one-half pounds of brown sugar. Let stand. Chop fine four apples, and add meat to fruits. Then mix wine with whole, stir well, and put up in small stone jars. This will keep all winter in a cool place. Let stand at least two days before using. Line pie-plates with a rich crust, fill with mince meat mixture, put a rich paste crust on top, or strips if preferred, prick slightly and bake. Serve warm, not hot.

PUMPKIN PIE

Press through a sieve one pint of stewed pumpkin, add four eggs and a scant cup of sugar. Beat yolks and sugar together until very thick and add one pint of milk to the beaten eggs. Then add the pressed pumpkin, one-half teaspoon of cinnamon, less than one-half teaspoon of mace and grated nutmeg. Stir the stiffly-beaten whites in last. Bake in a very rich crust without cover.

GRAPE PIE

Squeeze out the pulps and put them in one vessel, the skins into another. Then simmer the pulp a little and press it through a colander to separate the seeds. Then put the skins and pulps together and they are ready for the pies.

HUCKLEBERRY PIE

Line a pie-plate with rich pastry. Pick, clean and wash one pint of huckleberries, drain and lay them thickly on the crust. Sprinkle thickly with sugar, lightly with cinnamon, and drop bits of butter over the top. Bake a nice even brown.

PEACH CREAM TARTS

One cup of butter, and a little salt; cut through just enough flour to thoroughly mix, a cup of ice-water, one whole egg and the yolks of two eggs mixed with a tablespoon of brown sugar. Add to the flour in which you have previously sifted two teaspoons of baking-powder. Handle the dough as little as possible in mixing. Bake in round rings in a hot oven until a light brown. When baked, sift pulverized sugar over the top and fill the hollow centre with a compote of peaches. Heap whipped cream or ice-cream on top of each one, the latter being preferable.

MOCK CHERRY PIE

Cover the bottom of pie-plate with rich crust; reserve enough for upper crust. For filling use two cups of cranberries, cut in halves; one cup of raisins, cut in pieces; two cups of sugar, butter the size of walnut. Dredge with flour, sprinkle with water. Bake thirty minutes in a moderate oven.

PEACH CREAM PIE

Line a pie-plate with a rich crust and bake, then fill with a layer of sweetened grated peaches which have had a few pounded peach kernels added to them. Whip one cup of rich cream, sweeten and flavor and spread over the peaches. Set in ice-chest until wanted.

PEACH PIE, No. 1

Line a pie-plate with a rich pie-crust, cover thickly with peaches that have been pared and sliced fine (canned peaches may be used when others are not to be had), adding; sugar and cover with strips of dough; bake quickly.

PEACH PIE, No. 2