Calf's-Feet Jelly

The Book of Household Management · Beeton, Mrs. (Isabella Mary) · 1861
Source
The Book of Household Management
Yield
2.0 1-1/2-pint moulds
Status
success · extracted 13 days ago
Not a recipe
No
Ingredients (9)
Economical version
Instructions (22)
  1. Prepare the calf's-feet stock as directed in recipe No. 1411, leaving the sediment and removing all fat from the surface.
  2. Put the stock into a saucepan, cold, without clarifying it.
  3. Add the sugar, sherry, brandy, egg shells and whites, lemon rind and juice, and isinglass.
  4. Stir all ingredients well together before placing the saucepan on the fire.
  5. Simmer the mixture gently for 1/4 hour, but do not stir after it begins to warm.
  6. Throw in a teacupful of cold water.
  7. Boil for another 5 minutes.
  8. Keep the saucepan covered by the side of the fire for about 1/2 hour, but do not let it boil again.
  9. Carefully remove any head or scum that rises during simmering.
  10. Do not stir the jelly in the slightest degree after it is heated.
  11. Add the isinglass when the jelly begins to boil to assist in clearing and firming it.
  12. Wring out a jelly-bag in hot water and fasten it on to a stand or the back of a chair.
  13. Place the jelly-bag near the fire with a basin underneath it.
  14. Run the jelly through the jelly-bag.
  15. If the jelly is not perfectly clear, repeat the process until the desired brilliancy is obtained.
  16. Soak the moulds in water, drain them, pour in the jelly, and put in a cool place to set.
  17. If using ice, surround the moulds with it to help the jelly set sooner and firmer.
  18. In summer, it is necessary to use ice to prevent the jelly from being too liquid to turn out properly, unless a great deal of isinglass is used.
  19. To serve, dip the moulds in hot water for a minute, wipe the outside with a cloth, lay a dish on top of the mould, and turn it quickly over.
  20. The jelly should slip out easily.
  21. Alternatively, serve the jelly broken into square lumps piled high in glasses.
  22. Earthenware moulds are preferable to pewter or tin for red jellies.
Original Text
CALF'S-FEET JELLY. 1416. INGREDIENTS.—1 quart of calf's-feet stock No. 1411, 1/2 lb. of sugar, 1/2 pint of sherry, 1 glass of brandy, the shells and whites of 5 eggs, the rind and juice of 2 lemons, 1/2 oz. of isinglass. Mode.—Prepare the stock as directed in recipe No. 1411, taking care to leave the sediment, and to remove all the fat from the surface. Put it into a saucepan, cold, without clarifying it; add the remaining ingredients, and stir them well together before the saucepan is placed on the fire. Then simmer the mixture gently for 1/4 hour, but do not stir it after it begins to warm. Throw in a teacupful of cold water, boil for another 5 minutes, and keep the saucepan covered by the side of the fire for about 1/2 hour, but do not let it boil again. In simmering, the head or scum may be carefully removed as it rises; but particular attention must be given to the jelly, that it be not stirred in the slightest degree after it is heated. The isinglass should be added when the jelly begins to boil: this assists to clear it, and makes it firmer for turning out. Wring out a jelly-bag in hot water; fasten it on to a stand, or the back of a chair; place it near the fire with a basin underneath it, and run the jelly through it. Should it not be perfectly clear the first time, repeat the process until the desired brilliancy is obtained. Soak the moulds in water, drain them for half a second, pour in the jelly, and put it in a cool place to set. If ice is at hand, surround the moulds with it, and the jelly will set sooner, and be firmer when turned out. In summer it is necessary to have ice in which to put the moulds, or the cook will be, very likely, disappointed, by her jellies being in too liquid a state to turn out properly, unless a great deal of isinglass is used. When wanted for table, dip the moulds in hot water for a minute, wipe the outside with a cloth, lay a dish on the top of the mould, turn it quickly over, and the jelly should slip out easily. It is sometimes served broken into square lumps, and piled high in glasses. Earthenware moulds are preferable to those of pewter or tin, for red jellies, the colour and transparency of the composition being often spoiled by using the latter. [Illustration: JELLY-MOULD.] To make this jelly more economically, raisin wine may be substituted for the sherry and brandy, and the stock made from cow-heels, instead of calf's feet. Time.—20 minutes to simmer the jelly, 1/2 hour to stand covered. Average cost, reckoning the feet at 6d. each, 3s. 6d. Sufficient to fill two 1-1/2-pint moulds. Seasonable at any time. Note.—As lemon-juice, unless carefully strained, is liable to make the jelly muddy, see that it is clear before it is added to the other ingredients. Omit the brandy when the flavour is objected to. SHERRY.—There are several kinds of sherry, as pale and brown, and there are various degrees of each. Sherry is, in general, of an amber-colour, and, when good, has a fine aromatic odour, with something of the agreeable bitterness of the peach kernel. When new, it is harsh and fiery, and requires to be mellowed in the wood for four or five years. Sherry has of late got much into fashion in England, from the idea that it is more free from acid than other wines; but some careful experiments on wines do not fully confirm this opinion.
Notes
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