ESSAYS-1 [97]
it, there may be, and doubtless there are frequently other expences besides those of freight and insurance; but, on the other hand, a very considerable part of the expences attending the importation of it may be reimbursed by the profits arising from the sale of the barrels in which it is imported, as I have been informed by a person who imports it every year, and always avails himself of that advantage.
One circumstance much in favour of the introduction of Indian Corn into common use in this country is the facility with which it may be had in any quantity. It grows in all quarters of the globe, and almost in every climate; and in hot countries two or three crops of it may be raised from the same ground in the course of a year.--It succeeds equally well in the cold regions of Canada;--in the temperate climes of the United States of America;--and in the burning heats of the tropics; and it might be had from Africa and Asia as well as from America. And were it even true,--what I never can be persuaded to believe,--that it would be impossible to introduce it as an article of Food in this country, it might at least be used as fodder for cattle, whose aversion to it, I will venture to say, would not be found to be UNCONQUERABLE.
Oats now cost near two pence the pound in this country. Indian Corn, which would cost but a little more than half as much, would certainly be much more nourishing, even for horses, as well as for horned cattle;--and as for hogs and poultry, they ought never to be fed with any other grain. Those who have tasted the pork and the poultry fatted on Indian Corn will readily give their assent to this opinion.
CHAPTER. VII.
Receipts for preparing various Kinds of cheap Food. Of MACCARONI. Of POTATOES. Approved receipts for boiling potatoes. Of potatoe puddings. Of potatoe dumplings. Of boiled potatoes with a sauce. Of potatoe salad. Of BARLEY Is much more nutritious than wheat. Barley meal, a good substitute for pearl barley, for making soups. General directions for preparing cheap soups. Receipt for the cheapest soup that can be made. Of SAMP Method of preparing it Is an excellent Substitute for Bread. Of brown Soup. Of RYE BREAD.
When I began writing the foregoing Chapter of this Essay, I had hopes of being able to procure satisfactory information respecting the manner in which the maccaroni eaten by the Poor in Italy, and particularly in the kingdom of Naples, is prepared;-- but though I have taken much pains in making these inquiries, my success in them has not been such as I could have wished:-- The process, I have often been told, is very simple; and from the very low price at which maccaroni is sold, ready cooked, to the Lazzaroni in the streets of Naples, it cannot be expensive. --There is a better kind of maccaroni which is prepared and sold by the nuns in some of the convents in Italy, which is much dearer; but this sort would in any country be too expensive to be used as Food for the Poor.--It is however not dearer than many kinds of Food used by the Poor in this country; and as it is very palatable and wholesome, and may be used in a variety of ways, a receipt for preparing it may perhaps not be unacceptable to many of my readers.
A Receipt for making that Kind of Maccaroni called in Italy TAGLIATI.
Take any number of fresh-laid eggs and break them into a bowl or tray, beat them up with a spoon, but not to a froth,--add of the finest wheat flour as much as is necessary to form a dough of the consistence of paste.--Work this paste well with a rolling-pin;-- roll it out into very thin leaves;--lay ten or twelve of these leaves one upon the other, and with a sharp knife cut them into very fine threads.--These threads (which, if the mass is of a proper consistency, will not adhere to each other) are to be laid on a clean board, or on paper, and dried in the air.
This maccaroni, (or cut paste as it is called in Germany, where it is in great repute,) may be eaten in various ways; but the most common way of using it is to eat it with
One circumstance much in favour of the introduction of Indian Corn into common use in this country is the facility with which it may be had in any quantity. It grows in all quarters of the globe, and almost in every climate; and in hot countries two or three crops of it may be raised from the same ground in the course of a year.--It succeeds equally well in the cold regions of Canada;--in the temperate climes of the United States of America;--and in the burning heats of the tropics; and it might be had from Africa and Asia as well as from America. And were it even true,--what I never can be persuaded to believe,--that it would be impossible to introduce it as an article of Food in this country, it might at least be used as fodder for cattle, whose aversion to it, I will venture to say, would not be found to be UNCONQUERABLE.
Oats now cost near two pence the pound in this country. Indian Corn, which would cost but a little more than half as much, would certainly be much more nourishing, even for horses, as well as for horned cattle;--and as for hogs and poultry, they ought never to be fed with any other grain. Those who have tasted the pork and the poultry fatted on Indian Corn will readily give their assent to this opinion.
CHAPTER. VII.
Receipts for preparing various Kinds of cheap Food. Of MACCARONI. Of POTATOES. Approved receipts for boiling potatoes. Of potatoe puddings. Of potatoe dumplings. Of boiled potatoes with a sauce. Of potatoe salad. Of BARLEY Is much more nutritious than wheat. Barley meal, a good substitute for pearl barley, for making soups. General directions for preparing cheap soups. Receipt for the cheapest soup that can be made. Of SAMP Method of preparing it Is an excellent Substitute for Bread. Of brown Soup. Of RYE BREAD.
When I began writing the foregoing Chapter of this Essay, I had hopes of being able to procure satisfactory information respecting the manner in which the maccaroni eaten by the Poor in Italy, and particularly in the kingdom of Naples, is prepared;-- but though I have taken much pains in making these inquiries, my success in them has not been such as I could have wished:-- The process, I have often been told, is very simple; and from the very low price at which maccaroni is sold, ready cooked, to the Lazzaroni in the streets of Naples, it cannot be expensive. --There is a better kind of maccaroni which is prepared and sold by the nuns in some of the convents in Italy, which is much dearer; but this sort would in any country be too expensive to be used as Food for the Poor.--It is however not dearer than many kinds of Food used by the Poor in this country; and as it is very palatable and wholesome, and may be used in a variety of ways, a receipt for preparing it may perhaps not be unacceptable to many of my readers.
A Receipt for making that Kind of Maccaroni called in Italy TAGLIATI.
Take any number of fresh-laid eggs and break them into a bowl or tray, beat them up with a spoon, but not to a froth,--add of the finest wheat flour as much as is necessary to form a dough of the consistence of paste.--Work this paste well with a rolling-pin;-- roll it out into very thin leaves;--lay ten or twelve of these leaves one upon the other, and with a sharp knife cut them into very fine threads.--These threads (which, if the mass is of a proper consistency, will not adhere to each other) are to be laid on a clean board, or on paper, and dried in the air.
This maccaroni, (or cut paste as it is called in Germany, where it is in great repute,) may be eaten in various ways; but the most common way of using it is to eat it with