Mock Oyster Cakes

A historical recipe from The best vegetarian dishes I know, by Jeanne Jardine (1910).

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A historical recipe

The best vegetarian dishes I know, by Jeanne Jardine (1910). Project Gutenberg eBook #70164.

From an old book: a historical recipe, not current advice. Its methods, additives and storage may be unsafe by today's standards.

Ingredients 1 ingredient

Keep children and pets away from the hob and the oven, and keep oven gloves and a lid within reach.

Hot oil. Never put water on an oil fire: turn off the heat and cover the pan with a lid or a damp tea towel. Pat food dry before it goes into hot oil, and lower it in gently, away from you.
Oven and hot trays. Use dry oven gloves for trays and dishes: a hot tray looks just like a cold one. Open the oven door away from your face and let the first rush of heat out.
Boiling water and steam. Turn pan handles inward, away from the edge of the hob. Lift lids away from you, and pour hot water away from your body: steam burns too.

Some boiled salsify, mashed potato, seasoning, egg, Plasmon, breadcrumbs, white sauce.
Method.--Divide the salsify into small pieces of about the size of half an oyster and mix with half as much carefully-mashed potato;
season well with freshly-ground black pepper, cayenne, salt, and a squeeze of lemon-juice, and add sufficient stiff white sauce to slightly moisten the mixture and add a small quantity of beaten egg.
Spread the mixture out on a flat dish for an hour or two;
then take rather less than a dessertspoonful at a time and roll it into a little ball on a floured board.
Flatten the balls so that they take the form of little round cakes, dip them into beaten egg, and cover thickly with dry Plasmon powder and breadcrumbs, which have been seasoned with salt, black pepper, and cayenne;
press them lightly between the hands to make the powder and crumbs adhere, and after allowing about twenty minutes for the latter to dry, fry the cakes in deep, boiling oil or vegetable fat, and serve garnished with fried parsley and little pieces of lemon.
The potatoes should be baked in their skins, and then sieved and beaten to a stiff paste with a little cream, as the cakes would be spoilt if the potato mixture was moist and watery.