MUSTARD.—The simplicity of its manufacture probably accounts for our persistence in serving in our mustard-pots the never-varying paste of mustard and water. Yet the infinite variety of flavours which may be introduced into our table mustards should sufficiently reward us for the little trouble entailed in mixing them. As all these made mustards contain spices or herbs which lose much of their aroma by exposure to the air, they should be put into jars and securely corked directly they are made. Ordinary mustard also soon loses its piquancy if left exposed to the air. It should therefore be kept in a properly closed bottle or jar. It is best to make small quantities of ordinary mustard frequently, almost daily, as required.

To make Ordinary Mustard.—Take a bare table-spoonful of mustard, white and brown in equal parts, and mix therewith one tea-spoonful of salt, adding to the mixture, little by little, two table-spoonfuls of cold water, stirring the while. Continue stirring for a few minutes.

Mustard with Horseradish.—Boil a table-spoonful of grated horseradish in half a tea-cupful of water for ten minutes, and allow to get cold. Then mix the mustard as in the last recipe, adding the horseradish and two table-spoonfuls of the water in which it has been boiled instead of the plain water.

To make a simple French Mustard.—Proceed as in the last recipe, except that a minced shallot should be substituted for the horseradish, and that only the water, having been cleared by straining, is added to the mustard-flour. A tea-spoonful of good vinegar is to be added to the mixture and thoroughly incorporated.

To make a Spiced Mustard (Recipe 1).—Take a quarter of a pound of mustard-flour, pour over it three small tea-cupfuls of boiling vinegar, keep the mixture just below boiling-heat for about forty-five minutes, add a salt-spoonful of ground ginger, half a salt-spoonful of powdered cloves, and a salt-spoonful of grated nutmeg, and heat for five minutes longer.

To make a Spiced Mustard (Recipe 2).—Take a tumblerful of vinegar, and place therein two salt-spoonfuls of salt, a salt-spoonful of scraped horseradish, and half a salt-spoonful of powdered cloves. At the end of three days strain off the liquid and add a sufficiency of mustard-flour—about three ounces—to make a thick paste.

To make a Spiced Mustard (Recipe 3).—Mix together a tea-spoonful each of powdered mace, ground black pepper, powdered dill seeds, and powdered cinnamon, a slightly smaller quantity of powdered cloves, a table-spoonful of powdered tarragon leaves, and three pints of vinegar. Heat for an hour, strain, and then mix with about a pound of mustard-flour and a quarter of a pound of castor sugar to make a thick paste.

To make Frankfort Mustard.—Mix together a quarter of a pound of castor sugar, an ounce of allspice, half an ounce of powdered-cloves, and a pound of ground mustard—white and brown, in equal parts. Mix into a thick paste with wine vinegar.

To make Jesuits’ Mustard.—Thoroughly mix ten sardines, a quarter of a pound of ground brown mustard, three-quarters of a pound of ground white mustard, and two hundred capers. Make into a paste with about a quart of boiling vinegar.

To make Mustard as at DÜsseldorf.—Take two earthenware pans, and place in each a quart of vinegar. In one place a quarter of an ounce of thyme leaves, and in the other place three minced onions. Let them stand for forty-eight hours. Bruise half a pound of white mustard seed and half a pound of black mustard seed, and put them in a pan with a tea-spoonful of powdered cloves, a tea-spoonful of powdered coriander, half a pound of salt, and the strained vinegar. Thoroughly mix. Add a little more vinegar if the mixture is too thick, or a little more mustard if it is too thin. Parsley, celery, or other herbs may be used instead of onions to flavour the vinegar.

To make an Aromatic Mustard Powder.—In making a mixed powder of this kind, it is absolutely essential to success that each of the articles be thoroughly dry previous to being mixed. A good result is obtained by mixing a quarter of a pound of salt, a pound of mustard, half an ounce each of dried garlic, dried thyme, dried tarragon, and mixed spices—all finely powdered. The mixture should be stored in air-tight boxes or bottles.

To make a Spiced Table Vinegar.—Mix in an earthenware pan two ounces of cloves, a quarter of an ounce of mace, and the same quantity each of orange blossoms and cassia bark. Pour a quart of heated strong vinegar over the spices, and let the mixture digest in a warm place for a week. Strain, filter through filter-paper, and bottle.

To make an Aromatic Table Vinegar (Recipe 1).—Chop up one ounce each of bay leaves, leaves of rosemary, and leaves of sage, and place them in a fireproof earthenware pan; add thereto a quarter of an ounce each of cloves, zedoary root, and chillis. Pour on the mixture a quart of heated strong vinegar, and let it digest in a warm place for a week. Strain, filter, and bottle.

To make an Aromatic Table Vinegar (Recipe 2).—Chop up one ounce each of thyme leaves, basil leaves, leaves of marjoram, leaves of tarragon, and bean leaves. Add thereto half an ounce each of chopped shallots and celery. Pour on the mixture a quart of heated strong vinegar, and treat as in the last recipe.

To make an Aromatic Table Vinegar (Recipe 3).—Chop up and mix half a pound of tarragon leaves, and a quarter of a pound each of rocambole, shallots, anchovies, capers, and bay leaves. Pour over them three quarts of heated strong vinegar, and treat as in the first recipe.

To make Aromatic Table Vinegar (Recipe 4).—The leaves of any sweet herb, having been dried, may be lightly placed—not pressed—in a bottle till it is full, and vinegar poured over them and allowed to stand for six weeks. It may then be strained off and bottled.

To make Aromatic Wines.—The leaves of any sweet herb are to be treated as above, but sherry is to take the place of the vinegar.

To make Curry Powder.—Pound to a fine powder and mix thoroughly together a quarter of a pound each of coriander seed and turmeric, an ounce each of mustard, ginger, and black pepper, and half an ounce each of cardamom, cumin, and pimento.

To make Mushroom Catsup.—Wipe, but do not wash or skin, some freshly gathered, fully ripe mushrooms, and place them in a jar with layers of salt between the several layers of mushrooms and over the whole, allowing six ounces of salt to a gallon of mushrooms. Cover the jar loosely with a cloth, and place it in a warm room until the next day. Crush the mushrooms, place the whole in a cool oven for half an hour, and strain through coarse muslin. Boil the liquid with peppercorns, half an ounce to the quart; mace, a dram to the quart; cloves, a dozen to the quart; and bruised ginger, half an ounce to the quart. When the liquid has boiled down to a half, take it off the fire, allow it to cool, strain through very coarse straining cloth, and bottle in small, well-corked bottles. If these bottles are treated as the bottles of fruit in fruit-bottling are treated, the catsup will keep the better.

To make Tomato Catsup.—Boil a quart of perfectly ripe tomatoes with a table-spoonful of black pepper, a salt-spoonful of salt, a tea-spoonful each of ground cloves and allspice, and half a tea-spoonful of mustard in a pint of vinegar for three hours. Strain, and, when the mixture is cold, bottle and seal.

To make Walnut Catsup.—Boil a gross of soft, young walnuts, crushed, two ounces each of ground nutmeg and black pepper, half an ounce each of ground mace and ginger, and fifty cloves, ground, in two quarts of vinegar for forty minutes. Strain, and, when the mixture is cold, bottle and seal.

To make a Piquant Sauce (Recipe 1).—Boil half an ounce of cayenne, half an ounce of cochineal, half an ounce of mixed garlic, and half a dozen cloves in a quart of vinegar for twenty minutes. Strain, and, when the liquor is cool, add two ounces of essence of anchovies, half a pint of an equal mixture of walnut and mushroom catsup, and half a pint of good port. Thoroughly mix and bottle.

To make a Piquant Sauce (Recipe 2).—Boil a quarter of a pound of bruised cloves, a quarter of a pound of minced shallots, and half an ounce of cayenne pepper in half a gallon of vinegar for twenty minutes. Strain, and, when the liquor is cool, add half a pint of an equal mixture of walnut catsup and soy. Thoroughly mix and bottle.

To make a Piquant Sauce (Recipe 3).—Boil a quarter of a pound each of allspice, minced shallots, and minced garlic, and two ounces of salt in a quart of vinegar for twenty minutes. Strain, and, when the mixture is cool, add a gallon each of walnut catsup and mushroom catsup. Thoroughly mix and bottle.

To make Anchovy Sauce.—Heat, until it thickens, a mixture of a pint of vinegar, a pint and a quarter of water, two pounds and a half of butter, three-quarters of a pound of flour, and thirty minced anchovies. Rub the mixture through a coarse hair sieve and bottle.

To make a Salad Dressing to be stored.—Salad dressings should be mixed freshly as required; but it is sometimes thought desirable to keep a stock dressing bottled and ready for all emergencies. Thoroughly beat the yolks of three eggs, and gradually stir in half a tea-cupful of olive oil, together with a table-spoonful of mustard, a little pepper, two table-spoonfuls of salt, and half a tea-cupful of vinegar; adding, last of all, the well-beaten whites of the three eggs. Bottle in well-stoppered bottles.