Croquette

“ You may find it advisable to use a little flour in working the rice paste, but be careful not to get it too stiff, [84] in which event the croquette, of whatever composed, ceases to be a delicacy. Roll in flour, then in the beaten egg, lastly in the powdered cracker, and fry, a few at a time, in sweet lard or butter.
Rice croquettes are sometimes eaten, with powdered sugar sprinkled thickly over them, as a dessert, or sweet sauce is served with them. They are delicious when properly mixed and cooked. ”

“ Boil four potatoes, drain them, press them through a sieve, and then put them in a saucepan with an ounce of butter, a pinch of salt, pepper, nutmeg, and sugar. Heat them well, and add an egg. Let your mixture become very cold, form it into croquettes. Beat up three eggs, into which dip each croquette, and cover entirely with egg, then roll them in bread-crumbs, and fry in hot lard. ”

“ CORN-MEAL CROQUETTES.--Croquettes of any kind add variety to a meal, and because they are attractive they appeal to the appetite. To make croquettes of corn meal, mold mush as for sautéing. Then cut this into slices 1 inch thick, and cut each slice into strips 1 inch wide. Roll these in slightly beaten egg and then in crumbs, and sauté them in hot fat until they are crisp and brown. Serve these croquettes hot with either butter or sirup or both. ”

“ Then add milk, stir lightly with a fork, cover, and steam until rice is soft. Remove from fire, add egg yolks and butter; spread on a shallow plate to cool. Shape in balls, roll in crumbs, fry then shape in form of nests. Dip in egg, again in crumbs, fry in deep fat, and drain. Put a cube of jelly in each croquette. Arrange on a folded napkin, and garnish with parsley, or serve around game.
Sweet Rice Croquettes To rice croquette mixture add two tablespoons powdered sugar and grated rind one-half lemon. Shape in cylinder forms, dip in crumbs, egg, and crumbs again, fry in deep fat, and drain. ”

“ To make croquettes add a beaten egg to the purée, form it into small croquettes, roll them in egg and crumbs, and fry in hot fat.
BEETS
Wash beets well, but do not break the skin, or they will lose their color in boiling. Cook for one hour if young, for two to three hours if old. When done throw them into cold water, and remove the skins. Season with butter, salt, and pepper. Serve them whole if small; cut into slices if large. ”

“ In croquettes this crust checks the escape, into the fat, of the substances it encloses, and this is more especially the case when the croquettes contain some reduced sauce, or are composed of raw meats or fish whose juices are thereby entirely retained. A solid prepared à l’anglaise and cooked in fat should always be put into the latter when this is very hot, so as to ensure the instantaneous solidification of the egg and bread-crumbs. ”

“ Remove the croquettes and drain on paper to take up the fat.
Or bake croquettes instead of frying, if preferred. Make a stiffer texture by adding about 1⁄2 cup soft bread crumbs or mashed potatoes to the above ingredients. Mold the croquettes into flat cakes, coat with crumbs and egg as described. Bake in a greased pan in a hot oven (400° F.) until browned on the bottom; then turn the croquettes to brown them on the other side. ”

“ Finally remove the croquettes from the basket and place them on any kind of paper that will absorb the excessive fat. Serve at once or keep hot until ready to serve.
89. VEAL CROQUETTES.--Veal that remains from a roast after it has been served once can be utilized in no better way than in the making of croquettes; or, if desired, veal may be cooked especially for this purpose. When such croquettes are served with a sauce of any desirable kind, such as white sauce or tomato sauce, or with left-over gravy, no more appetizing dish can be found. ”

“ When the meat is cold, sift some flour on the board; take a lump of the mince the size of an egg or larger, roll it in the fine flour, dip it in a cup of beaten egg, drain and roll it in bread crumbs; have a quantity of boiling suet or drippings in a frying-pan, and fry the croquettes in them for a couple of minutes, till brown. Put in a colander and let the fat drain off. ”

“ When cold, shape into rolls about three inches long and 1 inch in diameter, roll in fine toasted bread or cracker crumbs, dip in beaten egg and roll again in crumbs. Bake in quick oven 10 m., or until croquettes begin to crack a little and are a delicate brown. If baked too long, or if they stand long after baking they will lose their shape. Serve plain, or with mushroom sauce, or jelly, or jellied cranberries, or with peas creamed, or seasoned with butter and salt only. Well made croquettes require no sauce. I sometimes plan to have creamed potatoes with trumese croquettes. ”

“ Chicken Croquettes.—Cut up the white meat of one cold boiled chicken, and pound it to a paste with a large boiled sweetbread, freed from sinews; add salt and pepper. Beat up one egg with a teaspoonful of flour and a wine-glassful of rich cream. Mix all together; put it in a pan, and simmer just enough to absorb part of the moisture, stirring all the time; turn it out on a flat dish, and place in ice-box to become cold and firm; then roll it into small neat cones; dip them in beaten eggs; roll in finely powdered bread crumbs; drop them in boiling fat, and fry a delicate brown. ”

“ Or, you can serve with them apple croquettes, made by stewing the apples in a little butter, with a tiny bit of sugar; when quite cold, with the aid of a few bread-crumbs, shape the apple into croquettes, roll them in crumbs and beaten egg and fry. ”

“ Now pour the preparation into a very clean, buttered tray, and butter its surface, lest a crust form thereon during the cooling.
When the preparation is quite cold, transfer it, by means of a spoon, in pieces weighing about two oz., to a flour-dusted mixing board. Make the croquettes and cutlets about the desired shape; dip them into an anglaise, and roll them in fine bread-crumbs. Definitely shape them; plunge them into very hot fat; keep them therein till they have acquired a fine golden colour; drain them, and dish them in a crown on a napkin, with a heap of fried parsley in the middle. ”

“ When bread crumbs are used for puddings or molds the quantity will vary with the kind of bread. Fewer will be required with home-made bread than with baker’s bread.
Bread, cracker or zwieback crumbs, corn meal, flour or browned flour No. 1, or a mixture of crumbs and brown or white flour may be used for rolling croquettes or cutlets, or for sprinkling the top of scallops or gratins.
Nut meal is suitable for the outside of rice croquettes and the top of many dishes.
Grated or chopped onion is apt to become bitter if prepared long before using. ”

“ Margaret's mother used to have no cereal at breakfast sometimes, and have these croquettes as a last course instead, and every one liked them very much.
Rice Croquettes
1 cup of milk. Yolk of one egg. 1/4 cup of rice. 1 large tablespoonful of powdered sugar. Small half-teaspoonful of salt. 1/2 cup of raisins and currants, mixed. 1/2 teaspoonful of vanilla. ”

“ Croquettes are made with any kind of cold meat.
In Fricassee.—Clean, prepare, and cut as directed. If the flesh is not white, blanch it. Put it in a saucepan, cover it with broth or cold water (broth is better than water) , set it on the fire, and add one onion whole, and if covered with water, add also a bunch of seasonings, composed of three stalks of parsley, one of thyme, a bay-leaf, and one clove, boil gently till done. Put about two ounces of butter in a saucepan with one tablespoonful of flour, set on the fire, stir and mix while the butter is melting ”

“ Croquettes of Game. —To be made exactly like the chicken croquettes (No. 276) , adding six hashed mushrooms and half a gill of cold fumet de gibier (No. 218) .
278. Croquettes of Foie-gras. —Mix half an ounce of cooked, smoked beef-tongue with half a pint of dry salpicon of foie-gras. Put it into a saucepan with a gill of béchamel (No. 154) , half a glassful of Madeira or sherry wine, and a tablespoonful of meat-glaze (No. 141) . Reduce for ten minutes, stirring well, then transfer to a cold, flat dish, cover with buttered paper, and put aside to cool. ”

“ They really are as good as new when treated that way. I had always supposed that croquettes had to be served immediately after they were fried, and you know frying in deep fat is really a nuisance when it has to be done at the last minute. For instance, today I had the biscuits to make, and the soup and sweet potatoes to prepare. And I believe in being leisurely when giving a luncheon, so I certainly would not serve croquettes if they had to be made that day. I tried reheating them once when Bob and I were here alone and discovered that they were delicious. ”

“ Turn them on a paper to absorb any superfluous fat, serve them on a napkin or ornamental dish paper. No more croquettes than will lie on the bottom of the basket without touching each other should be fried at once. ”

“ Watch the bread-box, and see that every bit of bread is used in some way; the unused crusts should be dried, rolled, sifted, and kept in a covered jar for stuffing, crumbing croquettes, brown bread, puddings, or other dishes in which the color is not objectionable; cold toast or cut slices should be made into croutons, or used for canapés or French toast; other pieces should be used for croustades, or made into crumbs, both coarse and fine, for use in fondues, griddle cakes, omelets, sauces, and soups. Bits of crackers should be dried, rolled, and used the same as bread crumbs. ”

“ Uncooked food requires a longer, slower frying; the cube of bread should brown in sixty seconds for such food.
Food cooked in fat tested in this way should never soak fat if one is careful to put a small enough quantity of food in at a time—not enough to cool the fat.
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How to make Croquettes
For meat croquettes, cold cooked meat should be freed from skin and gristle, and cut quite fine, then mixed with a thick sauce to as soft a consistency as it is possible to handle. Chill before shaping. For vegetable croquettes the vegetables should be boiled, then mashed and seasoned. ”

“ A grain should mash between finger and thumb. Fill up as the water boils away, and take care not to scorch. Cool uncovered, and keep cool. To cook, dip out a dishful, fry it in bubbling bacon fat as directed for corn. Or warm in a double boiler, and serve with butter and sugar or cream and sugar, as a cereal. Use also as a vegetable the same as rice or green corn. Hominy pudding, baked brown, and highly seasoned, helps out a scant dinner wonderfully, as corn is the most heating of grains, as well as one of the most nutritious. ”

“ A Rich Corn Bread.—I send you a receipt for making corn bread, such as is used at every meal at my house. I have stopped at nearly all the fashionable hotels in the Union, and never have found anything that has equalled it. It should be tried by every one who wishes to have a superior bread.
Take 1 egg well beaten, a half pint of thick cream, Indian meal sufficient to form a thick batter, a small quantity of salt; add half a teaspoonful of salæratus, dissolved in a small quantity of water; after mixing thoroughly, put it into the pans or oven, and bake immediately.—American Agriculturist. ”

“ The term “Bread” when used alone is understood in this country to apply to bread made from wheat flour or some form of wheat. If made from other cereals a prefix is used to distinguish this fact, as Indian corn bread, rye bread, etc. The term bread includes also the materials which are used necessarily therewith in the ordinary process of baking. Thus, the term bread would apply to a loaf which contains not only the wheat flour as the base and chief part of its mass but also the yeast or other leavening agent employed, together with salt, lard, or butter used in its preparation. ”

“ Unbolted flour, altogether more wholesome than the fine wheat, and when properly prepared more palatable,—rye-flour and corn-meal, each affording a thousand attractive possibilities,—each and all of these come under the general laws of bread-stuffs, and are worth a careful attention.
A peculiarity of our American table, particularly in the Southern and Western States, is the constant exhibition of various preparations of hot bread. In many families of the South and West, bread in loaves to be eaten cold is an article quite unknown. ”

“ IF you prefer bread and pudding to milk, butter, and meat, this corn will produce, on your forty rods, forty bushels, each weighing 60 lbs. at the least; and more flour, in proportion, than the best white wheat. To make bread with it you must use two-thirds wheaten, or rye, flour; but in puddings this is not necessary. The puddings at my house are all made with this flour, except meat and fruit pudding; for the corn flour is not adhesive or clinging enough to make paste, or crust. This corn is the very best for hog-fatting in the whole world. ”

“ The principal of these are wheat, oats, Indian corn, rice, rye, barley, buckwheat, millet, chestnuts, peas, beans, and lentils. They are prepared in various forms.
DIVISION I.—BREAD.
The true idea of bread is that coarse or cracked and unbolted meal, formed into a mass of dough by means of water, and immediately baked in loaves of greater or less thickness, according to the fancy.
Some use bolted meal; most raise bread by fermentation; many use salt; some saleratus, or carbonate of potash; and, in the country, many use milk instead of water to form the paste. ”