534. Apple Pie

Wipe the outside of some apples, pare, and core them; boil the parings and cores in a little water till it tastes well; strain, and put a bit of bruised lemon, a little sugar and cinnamon, and simmer again. Put a paste round the edge of the dish; place the apples in it; when one layer is made, sprinkle half the sugar, shred lemon peel, and squeeze some juice, or a glass of cider. Put in the liquor that you have boiled. Cover with paste. Add butter when cut, if hot. To flavour the pie you may add quince, marmalade, orange paste, or cloves, to flavour.

535. Cherry Pie should have a mixture of currants or raspberries, or both.

536. Currant Pie

With or without raspberries.

537. Mince Pies

Of scraped beef or tongue, free from skin and string, two pounds, four pounds of beef suet chopped fine, two pounds of jar raisins stoned and chopped, six pounds of currants nicely cleaned, perfectly dry, of chopped apples three pounds, the peel and. juice of two lemons, a pint of sweet wine, a quarter of a pint of brandy, a nutmeg, a quarter of an ounce of cloves, the same of mace, the same of pimento, in fine powders. Press the whole into a deep pan when well mixed, and keep it covered in a cool place. Have orange, and lemon peel, and citron, ready, and put some of each in the pies when made. Half, or a quarter of the quantity may be made, unless for a very large family.

538. Tarte De Moie

Put a light paste into a dish, then layers of all kinds of sweetmeat?, biscuits, marrow, and butter. Add a moderately rich custard, not very sweet, and seasoned with orange flower water; give it a scald, and pour over the whole. It will take half an hour to bake. Turn it out. It is good hot or cold.

539. Rhubarb Tart

Take the skin off the rhubarb, and cut the stalks in lengths of four or five inches. Make a syrup for a quart basin. Take a pound of common lump sugar; boil it in nearly half a pint of water to a thin syrup; skim it, and put in the rhubarb, and as it simmers shake the pan over the fire. It will turn yellow at first, but keep it very gently simmering till it greens, and then take it off. When cold, put in a tart dish, with as much syrup as will make it very moist. Put a light crust over, and when that is done, the tart will be sufficiently baked. Quarter the crust, and fill the dish with custard or cream.

540. To Prepare Cranberries For Tarts

Simmer them in moist sugar, without breaking, twenty minutes; and let them become cold before used; a pint will require nearly three ounces of sugar. The Russian and American sorts are larger and better flavoured than those of England. The juice, when pressed from the baked fruit and sweetened, makes a fine drink in fevers. Stewed with sugar, they eat exceedingly nice with bread.

541. Lemon Tart

Take the rind of four lemons, pared rather thick, boil it in water till tender, and beat fine. Add to it four ounce3 of lump sugar, four ounces of blanched almonds cut thin, the juice of the lemon, and a little grated peel. Simmer to a syrup; when cold turn it into a shallow tin, lined with a thin rich puff paste, and lay bars of the same over. As soon as the paste is baked, take it out.