  As making soup is a tedious process, it is best to make enough at once to last several days. Beef shank is most generally used in making nutritious soup. It is best to get this the day before using it, and soak it all night in cold, clear water. If you cannot do this, however, get it as early in the morning as you can. Break the bones, wash it, soak it a few minutes in weak salt and water, and put it in a large boiler of cold water. As soon as it begins to simmer, remove the dark scum that rises on top. Keep the boiler closely covered, and boil very slowly till an hour or two before dinner. Then, with a ladle, remove all the fat from the top, as it is this element that makes soup unwholesome. Strain and season, or, if you prefer, season just enough for one meal, reserving the rest as foundation for another sort of soup. It is well always to keep some of this stock on hand in cold weather, as by the addition of a can of tomatoes, or other ingredients, a delicious soup may be quickly made of it. Never throw away water in which any sort of meat Directions for soup making are so fully given in the following pages that it is needless for me to say anything further on the subject here. Oyster Soup. 100 oysters. 1 teaspoonful salt. 1 tablespoonful black pepper. ¼ pound butter. Yolks of 3 eggs. 1 pint rich milk, perfectly fresh. 3 tablespoonfuls flour. Separate the oysters from the liquor: put the liquor to boil, when boiled add salt, pepper and butter, then the flour, having previously made it into a batter. Stir all the time. When it comes to a boil, add the eggs well beaten, then the milk, and when the mixture reaches a boil, put in the oysters; let them also just boil, and the soup is done. Stir all the time to prevent curdling.—Mrs. Judge M. Economical Oyster Soup. 1 quart oysters. 2 quarts water. Boil with salt and pepper. Cut up one tablespoonful butter with flour and put in while boiling; beat the yolks of four eggs light, mix them with one-half pint milk. When the oysters are well cooked, pour on the milk and eggs, stirring all the time. Let it boil up, and take off quickly, and pour into the tureen, over toasted bread cut into dice—if preferred rich, leave out some of the water.—Mrs. Lt.-Gov.M. Oyster Soup. Empty the oysters into a colander and drain off all the liquor; then strain the liquor through a very coarse cloth to rid it of all scum, etc. To a whole can of oysters take a quart of milk. Put the milk, oyster liquor, one level tablespoonful flour rubbed very smooth with one heaping tablespoonful of butter, one tablespoonful salt, one-half teaspoonful pepper, all on the fire together in a farina-boiler (or put a skillet one-third filled with boiling water under the saucepan, to prevent the milk burning). When it comes to a boil, put in the oysters and let them stew for twenty minutes or till the gill of the oyster turns and begins to ruffle and crimp at the edge. Serve immediately, for if they are cooked too long, they become hard, dark and tasteless. If you put the salt in last, it will not curdle the soup. Some add one level teaspoonful whole cloves and same of mace, tied up in a net bag, but they are little improvement.—Mrs.R. PurÉe of Oysters. For fifty oysters. Put the oysters on in their own liquor—let them come to a boil—take them out and mince them; skim the liquor when nearly done. Beat well together: 1 egg. 1 dessertspoonful butter. ½ pint milk. 1 cracker sifted. Salt, pepper (mace, also, if liked). Pour this into boiling liquor and then add the minced oysters. When done, the soup is smooth. The milk must be fresh or it will curdle.—Mrs. John Walker, Alabama. Oyster Soup. Take two quarts of oysters, wash them, and add, 2 quarts water. A bundle of herbs. 1 small onion sliced. Let it boil until all the substance is out of the oysters. Strain the liquor from the ingredients and put it back in the pot. Add a large spoonful butter mixed with flour. Have ready two dozen oysters to throw in just as it is ready to be dished—at the same time stir up two yolks of eggs with a cup of cream. Cayenne pepper is an improvement.—Mrs.E.W. Turtle Soup. Kill the turtle at daylight in summer, the night before in winter, and hang it up to bleed. After breakfast, scald it well and scrape the outer skin off the shell; open it carefully, so as not to break the gall. Break both shells to pieces and put them into the pot. Lay the fins, the eggs and some of the more delicate parts by—put the rest into the pot with a quantity of water to suit the size of your family. Add two onions, parsley, thyme, salt, pepper, cloves and allspice to suit your taste. About half an hour before dinner thicken the soup with brown flour and butter rubbed together. An hour before dinner, take the parts laid by, roll them in brown flour, fry them in butter, put them and the eggs in the soup; just before dinner add a glass of claret or Madeira wine.—Mrs.N. Turtle Soup. To one turtle that will weigh from four to five pounds, after being dressed, add one-half gallon water, and boil until the turtle will drop to pieces, then add: 2 tablespoonfuls allspice. 1 tablespoonful black pepper. 2 tablespoonfuls butter, and salt to the taste. When nearly done, put in a small handful pot marjoram, thyme and parsley tied together, and two large onions; when Turtle Soup. To 2½ quarts soup add: 1 ounce mace. 1 dessertspoonful allspice. 1 teaspoonful cloves. Pepper, black and cayenne, and salt to your taste. Tie up a bunch of parsley, thyme, and onion in a cloth, and throw into soup when boiling. When nearly done, thicken with two tablespoonfuls flour. To give it a good color, take one tablespoonful brown sugar and burn it; when burnt, add a wineglass of water. Of this coloring, put two tablespoonfuls in soup, and just before serving, add half a pint Madeira wine.—Miss E.W. Mock Turtle Soup. Put on beef and boil very tender; take out, chop fine, and put back to boil. Put potatoes, mace, cloves, cinnamon, parsley, thyme, spice, celery seed, and ten hard-boiled eggs; pepper and salt to your taste. Thicken with flour and add brandy and wine.—MissE.P. Mock Terrapin Soup. Cut up two pounds roast or boiled beef in small pieces. Put one large teacup new milk, one large teacup of wine, a piece of butter size of an egg (rolled in flour), a little nutmeg, two or three spoonfuls mixed mustard—all in a stewpan, and cook ten or fifteen minutes. Good way to use up cold meats.—Mrs.S.M. Clam Soup. Boil half a peck of clams fifteen minutes; then take them from the shells, clean and wash them. Have ready the stew-kettle; Clam Soup. Open the clams and chop them up fine. To twenty clams, add: ½ gallon water. 3 good onions. 2 tablespoonfuls butter. A small bunch of parsley and thyme. Just before taking off, add one quart rich milk and thicken with flour.—Mrs.D. Crab Soup. Open, and cleanse of the deadman's fingers and sandbag, twelve small fat crabs raw. Cut the crabs into two parts. Parboil and extract the meat from the claws, and simply extract the fat from the back shells of the crabs. Scald eighteen ripe tomatoes, skin them and squeeze the pulp from the seeds through a colander. Chop them fine and pour boiling water over the seeds and juice, and strain them. Stew a short time in the soup-pot one large onion, one clove of garlic, in one spoonful butter and two spoonfuls lard, and put them in the tomatoes. After stewing a few minutes, add the meat from the claws, then the crabs, and lastly the fat from the back shells. Season with salt, cayenne and black pepper, parsley, sweet marjoram and thyme, one-half teaspoonful lemon juice, and peel of one lemon. Pour in the water with which the seeds were scalded, adding more should there not be the quantity of soup required. Boil moderately one hour. About a quarter of an hour before serving, sift in grated bread crumbs or pounded crackers as a Crab Soup. One dozen crabs to one gallon water. Take off top shell; clear body of crabs. Cut through the middle, put them into a kettle, mix with some butter, and brown them. Then add one gallon water, and simmer for half an hour. Skim slightly, and add the hock of an old ham, and strained tomato juice one pint. Boil two hours. Season with pepper, spice if liked, and half-pint wine. The claws are to be cracked and divested of the jaws. A Hampton recipe.—MissE.W. Beef Soup. Crack the bone of a shin of beef, and put it on to boil in one quart water. To every pound meat add one large teaspoonful salt to each quart water. Let it boil two hours and skim it well. Then add: 4 turnips, pared and cut into quarters. 4 onions, pared and sliced. 2 carrots, scraped and sliced. 1 root of celery, cut into small pieces. When the vegetables are tender, add a little parsley chopped fine, with salt and pepper to the taste. Serve hot.—Mrs.P. McG. Another Recipe for Beef Soup. One shin beef in one-half gallon water, put on before breakfast and boiled until dinner. Thicken with brown flour two or three hours before dinner. Put in one carrot, two turnips, one onion, thyme, cabbage, and celery-seed.—Mrs.H.P.C. To prepare a Beef's Head as Stock for Soup. Cut up the head into small pieces, and boil in a large quantity of water until it is all boiled to pieces. Take out all the bones Put into a mould to get cold. For a small family cut a thick slice, say five inches square, whenever you want soup in a hurry, adding about a quart of water. It need cook for a few minutes only, and is valuable as keeping well and being ready in times of emergency. By adding a few slices of hard-boiled egg and a gill of good cooking wine, this soup may have very nearly the flavor of mock turtle.—Mrs.A.M.D. Calf's Head Soup. Take one-half liver and the head of a mutton, veal or beef, and boil until the meat drops from the bone. Cut up fine and add one-half the brains; then: 1 onion. 1 spoonful spice. ½ spoonful cloves. 1 spoonful black pepper and a piece of mace. 3 tablespoonfuls flour. 3 tablespoonfuls flour, and salt to the taste. Put in enough water at first, as adding it makes the soup thin. Cut up three hard boiled eggs, and add, when done, one glass of wine. A little brandy and walnut catsup, with more eggs, will improve it, though it is a delightful soup as it is.—Mrs.W.A.C. Calf's Head Soup. Clean the head, laying aside the brains. Put the head in a gallon of water, with pepper and salt. Boil to pieces and take out bones; return to the pot with— 1 teacup of mushroom or tomato catsup. 1 teaspoonful allspice. 1 lemon rind, grated. 1 grated nutmeg. 1 tablespoonful butter. 1 teacup of browned flour. Fry, and add the brains when nearly ready for the table. About five minutes before serving, add: 1 teacup of wine. 1 teaspoonful cloves. 1 teaspoonful mace. When sent to the table have two hard-boiled eggs sliced and floating on top.—Mrs.J.D. Calf's Head Soup. Take a large calf's head and boil it with four gallons water and a little salt; when tender, bone and chop it fine, keeping out the brains, and put the meat back in the pot and boil down to a tureenful. Half an hour before serving the soup, add: 1 tablespoonful mustard. 1 teaspoonful black pepper. 1 teaspoonful powdered cloves. 1 teaspoonful mace. 1 teaspoonful nutmeg. Brown a cup of flour to thicken and just as the soup is dished, add one cup walnut catsup, and one cup port or claret wine. The brains must be beaten up with an egg, fried in little cakes, and dropped in the tureen.—MissN. Calf's Head Soup. Take the head, split it open and take out the brains; then put the head, brains, and haslet in salt water—let them soak one hour. Put on to boil at eight o'clock; after boiling four hours, take it up and chop up the head and haslet, removing all the bones; return to the soup, with a small pod of pepper. Thicken it with one pint browned flour with one tablespoonful butter rubbed in it. Have— 1 tablespoonful mace. 1 tablespoonful allspice. ½ doz. cloves. Beat all together and put in the tureen with, 1 teacup of tomato catsup. 1 teacup of cooking wine. Pour the soup on them. Have the brains fried, and two hard boiled eggs sliced and dropped in the soup.—Mrs.T.C. Brown Calf's Head Soup. Scald and clean the head, and put it to boil in two gallons water, with A shank of veal. 2 carrots. 3 onions. A small piece of bacon. A bunch of sweet herbs. When they have boiled half an hour, take out the head and shank, and cut all the meat off the bone in pieces two inches square. Let the soup boil half an hour longer, then strain it and put in the meat, and season with salt, black and cayenne pepper (and a few cloves, if you like them). Thicken with butter and brown flour. Let it now boil nearly an hour longer, and just before serving it, stir in one tablespoonful sugar browned in a frying-pan, and half a pint wine. A good substitute for turtle soup.—Mrs. Col.A.F. Calf's Head Soup. Have a head nicely cleaned, the brains taken out and the head put to soak. Put it on with, 1 gallon water. 1 piece of fat ham. Thyme, parsley, pepper and salt. Boil together until the flesh is tender; take out and chop—strain the water—two tablespoonfuls brown flour, four ounces butter—returning the "dismembered" fragments; let it boil till reduced to two quarts. Season with one-half pint wine, one gill catsup, nutmeg, mace, allspice. Cut up the liver, and fry; beat the brains up with an egg, pepper and salt; fry in cakes and lay in the soup when served up, and hard boiled eggs sliced up and put in.—MissB.L. Ox-tail Soup. Wash and soak three tails; pour on them one gallon cold water; let them be brought gradually to boil, throw in one and a half ounce salt, and clear off the scum carefully as soon as it forms on the surface. When it ceases to rise, add: 4 moderate sized carrots. 2 or 3 onions. 1 large bunch savory herbs. 1 head celery. 2 turnips. 6 or 8 cloves, and ½ teaspoonful peppercorns. Stew these gently from three hours to three and a half hours. If the tails be very large, lift them out, strain the liquor and strain off all the fat. Cut the meat from the tails and put it in two quarts or more of the stock. Stir in, when this begins to boil, a thickening of arrow-root or of rice flour, mixed with as much cayenne and salt as may be required to flavor the soup, and serve very hot.—Mrs.P. Chicken Soup. Put on the chickens with about three quarts water and some thin slices bacon. Let it boil well, then put in: A spoonful butter. 1 pint milk. 1 egg, well beaten. Pepper, salt, and celery or celery-seed or parsley. Let all boil up. Some dumplings made like biscuits are very nice in it.—Mrs.W. Roast Veal and Chicken-bone Soup. Boil the veal and chicken bones with vegetables, and add one handful maccaroni, broken up fine. Boil the soup half an hour. Color with a little soy or catsup.—Mrs.S. Chicken Soup. Put on the fire a pot with two gallons water and a ham bone, if you have it; if not, some slices of good bacon. Boil this two hours, then put in the chickens and boil until done: add one-half pint milk and a little thickening; pepper and salt to the taste. After taking off the soup, put in a piece of butter size of an egg. Squirrel soup is good made the same way, but takes much longer for a squirrel to boil done.—Mrs.P.W. Giblet Soup. 1 pint dried green English peas. 1 pound giblets. 1 dozen cloves. 1 small piece red pepper. Nearly 1 gallon water. Boil peas slowly seven hours. Add giblets, spices, and salt to taste, two hours before dinner. When peas are dissolved, strain through sieve; cut giblets into dice and return to soup; boil up and serve. Will be enough for six or eight persons.—Mrs.R.R. Okra Soup. 1½ gallons water. 2 quarts young okra, cut very fine. 2 quarts tomatoes. Onions, prepared as for pea soup. Pepper; salt. 1 large spoonful butter. Add the tomatoes about twelve o'clock. Put the soup on early in the morning.—Mrs.I. Gumbo Soup. 1 fried chicken. 1 quart okra, cut up. 1 onion. 1 bunch parsley. Few celery tops—fry all together. Put in one quart skinned tomatoes. 1½ gallons water, boil to ½ gallon. Teacup of wine after taking from the fire.—Mrs.R.A. Gumbo Soup. Fry two fowls, old or young, with parsley, pepper, salt, onion, lard or bacon. Put it in the pot with water sufficient for the soup. One quart sliced okra, scrap of ham or fried sausage to boil with it. Sassafras Gumbo is made in the same way, except after the fowl has boiled until the flesh has left the bone, just before taking off the fire, stir in one tablespoonful sassafras flour. Oysters are a great improvement to sassafras gumbo. Gather the sassafras leaves green, and dry in the shade, as sage; when thoroughly dry, rub through a sieve and bottle and cork tightly. It is nice in beef soup instead of okra.—Mrs.T. Fine Vegetable Soup. Put on two pounds of fresh beef, or a good-sized chicken, or ham bone if you have it, early in the morning. Put your boiler on filled with water. Keep boiling, and when boiled down, about one hour or more before dinner, add: Grated lemon peel. 6 ears corn. 1 dozen good tomatoes. Beans. 1 small head of cabbage. A few Irish potatoes. Sweet herbs, pepper and salt to the taste. A few leaves of dried sassafras rubbed up will improve the taste. Serve hot with toast, a small quantity of sugar and vinegar. Boil till thick.—Mrs. Dr.L. Vegetable Soup. Before breakfast, wash a beef shank in several waters, break the bone, and put it in a large pot of cold water. Keep it steadily boiling until one hour before dinner, when the following vegetables, previously prepared, must be added to the soup after it has been carefully skimmed of all grease, and strained. 1 quart peeled and chopped tomatoes. 1 pint lima or butter beans. 1 pint grated corn. 1 pint chopped cabbage. 1 pint sliced Irish potatoes. 1 sliced turnip. 1 carrot. A little minced onion. Parsley. 1 tablespoonful pepper sauce. 1 heaping tablespoonful flour rubbed into— 1 teacup milk. 1 teacup brown sugar. 1 teaspoonful black pepper. Boil an hour: thicken with mixed milk and flour, and serve. A piece of middling, bacon, or any other kind of meat, may be used instead of the beef shank. The best meat of the shank may be freed from gristle, chopped fine and made into a nice stew by adding 1 grated turnip. 1 mashed potato. 1 tablespoonful pepper sauce. 1 tablespoonful made mustard. 1 tablespoonful butter. 1 teaspoonful celery seed. 1 teaspoonful fruit jelly. 1 teacup milk. Minced onion and parsley. Boil up and serve.—Mrs.S.T. Tomato Soup. Take one quart ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped up, or a three-pound can of same, put in an earthenware baking dish with 1 pint grated corn (or, if in winter, 1 teacup sugar. 1 teacup grated cracker. 1 teacup butter. 1 teaspoonful black pepper. 2 teaspoonfuls salt. Set this in a hot oven with a tin plate over it to prevent browning. Have ready, in a porcelain kettle or pan, two quarts new milk boiling hot. When the tomatoes and corn are thoroughly done, stir in one large Irish potato mashed smooth, a little minced onion and parsley, and pour into the boiling milk and serve.—Mrs.S.T. Tomato Soup. A shin of beef, season to your taste with all kinds of vegetables: Tomatoes, turnips, carrots, potatoes, cabbage cut fine, corn, butter beans and celery. When nearly done, take vegetables out and mash them well, and also cut the beef up fine. It is best to season with salt and Clear Tomato Soup. 1 large can tomatoes. 1 beef shin. 1 bunch soup herbs. 1 gallon water. Boil eight hours, stir and skim several times. Strain through wire sieve, add one tablespoonful Worcester sauce and same of brown sugar. Serve with dice of toasted bread; pepper and salt to taste.—Mrs.R.R. Asparagus Soup. Cut the asparagus into small pieces and put on to boil in salt water, with slices of middling; just before dinner, taking it off, beat four eggs and stir in one pint milk or cream, a piece of butter. A piece of veal may be boiled with it, if you wish meat.—Mrs.H. Asparagus Soup. Parboil the asparagus with as much water as will cover them; then pour the water and asparagus into milk, then add butter, pepper and salt, also bread crumbs, and boil until the asparagus is done.—Mrs.S. Pea Soup. Soak one pint of split peas in water for twelve hours; drain off the water, put the peas into a saucepan with three pints cold water, one-half pound bacon, two sprigs of dried mint, a bay leaf, some parsley, an onion stuck with one or two cloves, some whole pepper, and salt to taste. Let the whole boil three hours, then pass the purÉe through a hair sieve; make it hot again and serve with dice of bread fried in butter.—Mrs.A. Green Pea Soup. Boil one quart peas in two quarts water, and two thin slices bacon. When done mash through a colander; then put back in the same water, throwing away the slices of bacon. Season with pepper, salt, spoonful butter rolled in flour. Boil well again. Toast some bread and cut in slices, and put in the tureen when the soup is served. The hulls of green peas will answer; boil them well with a few peas, then season as above and boil. Two hours will be enough to boil green pea soup.—Mrs.W. Green Pea Soup. Boil half a peck of peas in one and a half gallons water, till perfectly done. Take out, mash and strain through a colander, then pour a little of the water well boiled over them, to separate the pulp from the hull. Return it to the water they were boiled in; chop up one large or two small onions; fry them in smallest quantity of lard, not to brown them. Add this with chopped thyme, parsley, pepper and salt. Just before taking off the fire stir in one tablespoonful butter. If the soup is too thin, cream a little butter with flour to thicken.—Mrs.I. Potato Soup. Mash potatoes, pour on them one teacup cream, one large spoonful butter. Pour boiling water on them till you have the desired quantity. Boil until it thickens; season with salt, parsley, and pepper to your taste.—Mrs.R.E. Potato Soup. Pour two quarts water on six or seven large peeled potatoes, adding two or three slices of middling; boil thoroughly done. Take them out, mash the potatoes well and return all to the |
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