SHELL FISH. PICKLED OYSTERS.

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27. Take one hundred oysters out of their liquor, and add to them as much water as there was liquor. Put them over the fire, with salt to the taste, skim them, and as soon as they boil take them off. Have ready in a pan one gill of vinegar, one table spoonful of allspice, one table spoonful of pepper grains, a little cayenne pepper and mace, half a gill of pepper vinegar and half a gill of common vinegar. They should be pickled the day before they are to be eaten. After standing a few hours, if a scum should have risen on them, take out the oysters and strain the liquor. About six hours before they are to be served, slice a lemon and add to them.

FRIED OYSTERS.

28. Select the largest oysters for frying. Take them out of their liquor with a fork, and endeavor in doing so, to rinse off all the particles of shell which may adhere to them. Dry them between napkins; have ready some grated cracker, seasoned with cayenne pepper and salt. Beat the yelks only of some eggs, and to each egg add half a table spoonful of thick cream. Dip the oysters, one at a time, first in the egg then in the cracker crumbs, and fry them in plenty of hot butter, or butter and lard mixed, till they are of a light brown on both sides. Serve them hot.

STEWED OYSTERS, No. 1.

29. Take one hundred large oysters, add to them a quarter of a pound of butter, with salt, black and red pepper to the taste. Stew as fast as possible for three minutes. Serve them hot.

STEWED OYSTERS, No. 2.

30. Rinse one hundred oysters, and put them in a stew pan with the water which adheres to them; season them with salt and cayenne pepper, and a very little mace. As soon as they begin to boil pour in half a pint of cream, and stir in half an ounce of butter rolled in a little grated cracker. Let them boil once and serve them hot.

SCALLOPED OYSTERS.

31. Drain your oysters, and season them with salt and cayenne pepper; crumb some stale bread, and season it with salt and pepper. To each gill of the bread crumbs add one hard boiled egg, finely chopped; butter a deep dish, strew in a layer of egg and crumbs, then a layer of the oysters, with some lumps of butter on them, then more crumbs, and so on till all are in. Put a cover of crumbs on the top. Bake this in a tolerably quick oven and serve it hot.

OYSTER FRITTERS.

32. Drain the oysters and wipe them dry; season them with salt, if they are not salt enough; make a batter in the proportion of a pint of milk to three eggs, and flour to thicken it; beat the yelks till they are very thick, stir in the milk and as much flour as will make a batter, but not a very thick one; add a pinch of salt, beat the whole very hard, whisk the whites to a stiff dry froth and stir them in gently at the last. Put a small spoonful of the batter in a pan of boiling lard, then lay an oyster on the top, and over this put a little more batter; when they are brown on both sides, put them on a dish and send them to the table hot.

OYSTER PIE.

33. Take one hundred oysters out of their liquor, one at a time, so as to free them from any portions of the shell which might adhere to them. Drain and place them between clean napkins in order to dry them perfectly; pour off half the liquor into a stew-pan, salt it to your taste, stir in one gill of cream, one ounce and a half of butter rolled in grated cracker, and a little cayenne pepper; boil two eggs hard, chop them up, and mix them with as many bread crumbs as will cover the top of your pie; season the bread and egg with cayenne pepper and salt, make a rich paste, line the sides of your pie dish, put in the oysters, pour the hot liquor over them, strew the bread crumbs on the top, cover the whole with a lid of paste, cut an opening in the centre of the top crust, and ornament it with flowers or leaves made of the paste, bake it and serve it hot. As soon as the crust is done take the pie out of the oven.

ROASTED OYSTERS.

34. Wash the shells perfectly clean, put them in pans and set them in the oven, or place them in rows on the top of your kitchen range. Those who live in the country, and have large wood fires, may roast them nicely on their hot hearth stone. Take them up as soon as the shells begin to open, before the liquor is lost; have ready a hot vegetable dish, take out the oysters and serve immediately. Or, the upper shell may be taken off, and the oysters placed on broad dishes in the other shell. The dishes must be well heated as the oysters should be eaten hot.

Each person dresses his oysters on his plate.

OYSTER OMELETTE.

35. Eight oysters chopped fine,
Six eggs,
A wine glassful of flour,
A little milk,
Pepper and salt to the taste.

Beat the eggs very light, add the oysters and the flour, which must be mixed to a paste with a little milk; pepper and salt to the taste. Fry it in hot butter, but do not turn it; as soon as it is done slip it on a dish and serve it hot.

The above is the usual mode of preparing oyster omelette; but the better way is to put your oysters in a stew pan, set them over the fire, and the moment they begin to boil take them out, drain them and dry them in a napkin. They are not so watery when prepared in this manner, and consequently will not dilute the beaten egg as much as the former mode. When they are cold mince them and proceed as above.

STEWED CLAMS.

36. Wash the clams, put them in a pot and cover them closely; set them near the fire, and as soon as they begin to open take them out of the shell; drain them, and to a pint of clams add half a pint of water, one ounce of butter rolled in flour, cayenne pepper and salt to the taste; let them stew ten minutes. Just before they are to be dished add one gill of cream.

CLAM FRITTERS.

37. Wash your clam shells, put them in a pot with the water only which adheres to them, cover the pot closely, and as soon as they open take them out of the shell. Take out the hard part and cut the remainder in half, and season them with pepper and salt; beat the yelks of four eggs very light, add to them a pint of milk, a little salt, and flour enough to form a batter; whisk the whites very dry and add them at the last. Have ready a pan of hot lard, put in a spoonful of the batter, lay on the top two or three pieces of the clams, then cover them with a little more of the batter. Fry them on both sides and serve them hot.

The small sand clams are the best kind.

FRIED CLAMS.

38. Wash your clams before they are opened; place them in a vessel without any water. Cover the vessel closely and as soon as they open their mouths take them out of the shell. Dry them in a napkin, season them with cayenne pepper and salt if necessary, and fry them in butter. Or, they may be fried in egg and bread crumbs as oysters.

TERRAPINS.

39. Put the terrapins on in boiling water and let them boil ten minutes, take them out and with a coarse cloth rub all the skin off the head, neck, and claws, also the thin shell that may come loose. Then boil them in clean water, with a little salt in it, until the claws are perfectly soft. The time of boiling depends very much on the age of the terrapin; some take three hours. When they are soft, open them carefully, take out the sand bag, the spongy part, and the gall, which you must not break. Cut all the remainder of the terrapin in small pieces, put them in a stew pan, and to each large terrapin take a quarter of a pound of butter, one wine glass of Sherry or Madeira wine, salt, black and red pepper, and mustard, to suit the taste, also to each terrapin, the yelks of two hard boiled eggs, mashed to a paste, with a little butter. Mix the whole together, and stew fifteen minutes. Send them to the table hot.

BOILED CRABS.

40. Have a large pot of water strongly salted, let it boil hard, put in your crabs and boil them for twenty minutes. If the water should cease boiling the crabs will be watery. Take them out, break off the claws, wipe the shells very clean, also the large claws.

When cold, place them on a dish with the large claws around it. The claws should be cracked before they are sent to the table. The small ones are not generally eaten.

SOFT CRABS.

41. Prepare your crabs by removing the spongy part, and sand bag. Wipe them very clean and fry them in some hot lard and butter mixed. When they are a fine yellow brown on both sides, place them on a dish and send them to the table hot.

BOILED LOBSTER.

42. Lobsters, as well as crabs, should be boiled in strong salt and water. Have your pot of water boiling hard, put in your lobsters and boil them for half an hour, or if they are very large, a little longer. Take them out of the pot and when they have drained, open them, extract the meat carefully, and send it to the table cold.

Lobster is usually dressed at the table with mustard, hard boiled eggs, cayenne pepper, salt, vinegar and oil.

LOBSTER SALAD.

43. One large lobster,
Three table spoonsful of French mustard, or,
Two dessert spoonsful of common mixed mustard,
One gill and a half of vinegar,
One gill and a half of sweet oil,
The yelks of five hard boiled eggs,
Salt to the taste,
A small tea spoonful of cayenne pepper,
The inside leaves of two heads of cabbage lettuce.

Cut the meat and lettuce in small pieces. Boil the eggs hard, mash the yelks with a wooden or silver spoon, and oil enough to make them to a smooth paste, then add the vinegar, mustard, pepper, and salt to the taste. Mix this dressing thoroughly with the lobster and lettuce, and serve it before the salad becomes wilted.

OYSTER OMELETTE.

44. Beat four eggs very light. Cut the hard part out of eight or a dozen oysters, according to their size, wipe them dry, and cut them up in small pieces, stir them into the beaten egg and fry them in hot butter. When the under side is brown, sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the top, and fold one half over the other.

Never turn an omelette, as it makes it heavy.


                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

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