Consommé

Consommé

6 Pounds of Lean Beef.
2 Large Sized Onions.
2 Carrots. 2 Stalks Celery.
1 Piece of Cabbage.
Salt and Cayenne to Taste.

A Consommé is a clear soup.

Select six pounds of lean beef, rump of beef and some bones, and cut the meat into small pieces, the bones also being mashed.

Put this on in about six quarts of cold water, and, when it comes to a boil, skim well.
Add a teaspoonful of salt to help the scum rise more thoroughly, and skim as it  rises.

Take two large-sized onions, two carrots, a piece of cabbage and two pieces of celery; chop fine and add to the soup, and let it boil six hours, or until the broth Is reduced about one-half the quantity.

By this time the meat should be cooked into rags. Pass all through a colander and then strain through a coarse flannel cloth.

Season highly with cayenne pepper and salt to taste.

If the meat is good, the soup will be perfectly clear. If it is cloudy or muddy before straining, crush the shells of two eggs and put them into the soup and let it come to a good boil. Set it back about ten minutes and then strain. Add vermicelli, or macaroni, or pates, according to taste. This soup will require no artificial coloring.