ECONOMICAL AND SUBSTANTIAL SOUP FOR DISTRIBUTION TO THE POOR.

I am well aware, from my own experience, that the charitable custom of distributing wholesome and nutritious soup to poor families living in the immediate neighbourhood of noblemen and gentlemen's mansions in the country, already exists to a great extent; yet, it is certainly desirable that this excellent practice should become more generally adopted, especially during the winter months, when their scanty means of subsistence but insufficiently yield them food adequate in quantity to sustain the powers of life in a condition equal to their hard labour. To afford the industrious well-deserving poor a little assistance in this way, would call forth their gratitude to the givers, and confer a blessing on the needy. The want of knowing how to properly prepare the kind of soup best adapted to the purpose has, no doubt, in a great measure, militated against its being more generally bestowed throughout the kingdom; and it is in order to supply that deficient knowledge, that I have determined on giving easy instructions for its preparation.

No. 239. How to Prepare a Large Quantity of Good Soup for the Poor.

It is customary with most large families, while living in the country, to kill at least some portion of the meat consumed in their households; and without supposing for a moment that any portion of this is ever wasted, I may be allowed to suggest that certain parts, such as sheep's heads, plucks, shanks, and scrag-ends, might very well be spared towards making a good mess of soup for the poor. The bones left from cooked joints, first baked in a brisk oven for a quarter of an hour, and afterwards boiled in a large copper of water for six hours, would readily prepare a gelatinized foundation broth for the soup; the bones, when sufficiently boiled, to be taken out. And thus, supposing that your copper is already part filled with the broth made from bones (all the grease having been removed from the surface), add any meat you may have, cut up in pieces of about four ounces weight, garnish plentifully with carrots, celery, onions, some thyme, and ground allspice, well-soaked split peas, barley, or rice; and, as the soup boils up, skim it well occasionally, season moderately with salt, and after about four hours' gentle and continuous boiling, the soup will be ready for distribution. It was the custom in families where I have lived as cook, to allow a pint of this soup, served out with the pieces of meat in it, to as many as the recipients' families numbered; and the soup was made for distribution twice every week during winter.

No. 240. Another Method for making Economical Soup.

In households where large joints of salt beef, or pork, are cooked almost daily for the family, the liquor in which they have been boiled should be saved, all grease removed therefrom, and put into the copper with a plentiful supply of carrots, parsnips, celery, and onions, all cut in small pieces, the whole boiled and well skimmed till the vegetables are done; the soup is then to be thickened with either oatmeal, peasemeal, or Indian corn meal, seasoned with pepper and ground allspice, and stirred continuously until it boils up again; it must then be skimmed, and the best pieces of meat selected from the stock-pot should be kept in careful reserve, to be added to the soup, and allowed to boil therein for half an hour longer.

No. 241. How to make Fish Soup in Large Quantities for Distribution to the Poor.

This kind of soup, it will be easily understood, is applicable only on the sea-coast, and wherever fish is to be had very cheap. Chop fine a dozen onions, some thyme, and winter savory, and put these into a copper, or some large pot, with about six gallons of water, one pound of butter, pepper and salt enough to season; allow the whole to boil for ten minutes, then thicken the broth with about four pounds of oatmeal, peasemeal, or flour; stir the soup continuously until it boils, and then throw in about fifteen pounds of fish cut up in one-pound size pieces, and also some chopped parsley; boil all together until the fish is done, and then serve out the soup to the recipients. All kinds of fish, except sprats, herrings, and pilchards, are equally well adapted for making fish soup, but codfish, cod's heads, skate, eels, etc., and all glutinous fish, suit the purpose best.