GARNISHES FOR SOUPS

ROYALE

A CUSTARD TO SERVE WITH CONSOMMÉ

• 2 yolks.
• 1 entire egg.
• ? teaspoonful of salt.
• Dash of cayenne.
• ½ cupful of beef stock.

Beat the eggs well, but not to a froth. Add one third of a teaspoonful of salt and one half cupful of clear beef stock. Pour the mixture into a small pan or flat dish, so it will be about one half inch deep. Set the pan into another one containing hot water and place them in a very moderate oven, so that the custard will set without bubbles and without browning on top. Let the custard become perfectly cold. Without removing it from the pan, cut it into cubes one half inch square, or into fancy forms, with vegetable cutters.

These pieces should be placed carefully in the consommÉ after it is in the tureen, allowing three or four pieces to each portion of soup.

FORCE-MEAT BALLS

Chop any cooked meat very fine, season highly with salt, pepper, thyme, onion juice, lemon juice, and herbs if desired; add enough yolk of egg to moisten and bind the meat. Mold into balls one half inch in diameter, roll the balls in flour, and poach them in boiling water, or they may be fried in butter.

Force-meat balls may also be made of raw meat prepared as for timbale paste (see page 297).

Rub to a paste, with a wooden spoon, the yolks of hard-boiled eggs; season with salt, pepper, and butter; add enough raw yolk to bind the paste; form it into balls one half the size of a natural yolk; roll them in white of egg and then in flour, and poach the balls in boiling water for a few minutes.

Three yolks will make five balls. One ball is enough to allow to each portion of soup.

NOODLES

Several dishes may be made from noodles.

To three eggs (slightly beaten) mixed with two tablespoonfuls of water and a little salt, add enough flour to make a stiff dough; work it well for fifteen or twenty minutes, adding flour when necessary. When it is smooth and elastic, cut off a small piece at a time and roll it as thin as a wafer. It can be rolled very thin by placing a cloth under it. Sprinkle the thin sheet with flour, and roll it into a rather tight roll. With a sharp knife cut it, from the end,—into threads, if for soup; if to use as a vegetable, into ribbons one quarter inch wide. Let them dry an hour or more. They will keep the same as macaroni.

NOODLES SERVED AS A VEGETABLE

Throw a few noodles at a time into boiling, salted water; boil them until they are done, separating them carefully with a fork to prevent their matting together. Skim them out when done, and keep them on a warm dish on the hot shelf until enough are cooked. Season with butter. Put them in the dish in which they are to be served, and sprinkle over them bread crumbs browned in hot butter to a golden color. This dish may be served with fish, with meat, or as a course by itself. Noodles may also be cooked like macaroni, with cheese.

NOODLE BALLS

Take some of the noodle paste made as directed above. Roll it as thin as possible, then place it on a floured napkin and roll until it is as thin as paper; fold it double, and cut it into circles one quarter inch in diameter, using a small vegetable cutter or pastry bag tube. Fry them in smoking hot fat, tossing them in the frying basket so that they will color evenly. They will puff into balls and color in one minute. Drain and place them on paper on the hot shelf. Sprinkle them on the soup after it is in the tureen, or better pass them, as they soften very quickly.

MARROW BALLS

Melt a tablespoonful of marrow and strain it through a cloth, or fine sieve, into a bowl; beat it till creamy, then add an egg and beat again thoroughly. Season with pepper, salt, and a little nutmeg. Add to this mixture as much soft bread as it will moisten. Roll it into small balls and poach in boiling water. Place them in the soup just before serving.

SWEET POTATO BALLS

Mash some cooked sweet potatoes, season with butter, salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and a little grated cheese. Moisten with beaten egg; roll into small balls and poach in boiling water. Put the balls into the soup the last thing before serving.

GREEN PEA TIMBALE FOR SOUP

Mix one half cupful of mashed green peas with one tablespoonful of soup stock and three whites of eggs; season with salt, pepper, and a little nutmeg. Beat well together and place in a small mold or flat tin. Set the mold into hot water and place in slow oven until the mixture is set. When it is firm, unmold, cut into small cubes, and put them in the soup just before serving.

HARLEQUIN SLICES

Cut into small squares some cooked carrots, turnips, and string beans. Arrange them in timbale cups, mixing the vegetables together; fill the cups up with royale mixture. (See above.) Set them into hot water and cook in slow oven until the custard is firm. Unmold when cold, and cut with a sharp knife into slices one eighth of an inch thick. Place these in the soup just before serving.

BROTHS

CHICKEN BROTH

• 1 fowl.
• 4 quarts of cold water.
• ½ cupful of rice.
• Salt and pepper.

Clean the fowl carefully; wash it with a wet cloth; cut it into pieces and remove the fat. Place the joints in a saucepan with a quart of water to each pound of fowl. Let it simmer until the meat is tender; then remove the breast; after four hours take it off and strain it through a sieve. Let the soup stand until the grease rises; then carefully remove it, and put the soup again in the saucepan; add the breast of the chicken, cut into dice, and the half cupful of rice; salt and pepper to taste, and cook until the rice is tender.

CLAM BROTH

• 12 large hard-shelled clams for 1 pint of broth.

Boil the clams and juice for twenty minutes; strain and let it stand to settle; strain it again carefully into a saucepan, and let it boil up once; season with butter and pepper—no salt—and serve in cups with whipped cream on top.

To open the clams and obtain the juice, place the clams, after they have been carefully washed with a brush and clear water, in a saucepan; add two tablespoonfuls of hot water; cover and let them steam until the shells open; then strain off the liquor.

MUTTON BROTH

The neck or shoulder-pieces may be used for broth. The meat should be cut into pieces and the fat removed. To each pound of meat add one quart of cold water; simmer for four or five hours; strain it into an earthen bowl; when ready to serve, remove the grease, and add to each quart of stock one stick of celery, two tablespoonfuls of rice, salt and pepper to taste, and boil until the rice is soft.

The water in which a leg of mutton has been boiled will make a good mutton soup, but is not rich enough for a broth to be served to an invalid.Broth Made Quickly for Invalids. Broth may be made quickly by chopping lean meat to a fine mince. To a pound of meat add one pint of cold water; let soak for fifteen minutes; then let slowly boil for half an hour; season and strain.

SOUPS

BOUILLON

(3 PINTS. TIME, 5 HOURS)

• 3 lbs. of beef cut from under side of round and chopped to a mince.
• 3 quarts of cold water.
• 1 onion.
• ½ carrot.
• 1 sprig of parsley.
• 2 sticks of celery.
• 1 bay-leaf.
• 2 cloves.
• 6 peppercorns.
• 1 teaspoonful of salt added just before taking the soup off the fire.

Take three pounds of beef cut from the lower part of round, remove all the fat, and chop the meat to a fine mince. Place the chopped meat in a saucepan with three quarts of cold water, and let it stand one hour; then put it on the fire, cover, and let it come slowly to the boiling-point, taking off any scum that rises. Then place it where it will only simmer. After it has simmered for four hours add the vegetables cut into dice, and the spices, and let it simmer one hour longer. Strain into an earthen bowl and let it cool without covering. This stock will not jelly, as no bones are boiled with it.

When ready to use remove grease, season, if necessary, with pepper and salt, and put into saucepan with three fourths of a pound of lean meat chopped fine, and the white of one egg. Stir until it boils; let it boil for fifteen minutes. Lay a fine cloth on a sieve and strain through it the bouillon without pressing. It should be perfectly clear and of the color of amber. It can be served in cups. A little sherry may be added, if liked, when served at afternoon teas.

CONSOMMÉ98-*

• 4 lbs. lower part round of beef.
• 4 lbs. knuckle of veal.
• 2 tablespoonfuls of butter.
• 6 quarts of cold water.
• 1 large onion.
• ½ carrot.
• 3 stalks of celery.
• 1 tablespoonful of salt.
• 2 sprigs of parsley.
• 15 peppercorns.
• 3 cloves.
• 1 inch square of cinnamon.
• A little thyme.
• A little marjoram.
• A little summer savory.
• 2 bay-leaves.

Cut the beef into pieces one inch square. Remove the veal from the bone, and cut it also into small pieces. Put one tablespoonful of butter into a very clean soup-pot with the pieces of meat, and stir over a hot fire until the meat is browned, care being taken that it does not burn; then add one quart of water, and let it cook until a glaze has formed on the bottom of the kettle, which will take about one hour. Then add five quarts of cold water and let it come slowly to the boiling-point. Set the soup-pot back on the fire and let the soup simmer for six hours. Remove the scum from time to time as it rises. One hour before the time for removing the soup add to it the vegetables, which have been cut fine and browned in one tablespoonful of butter. Add also the herbs and spices, and one tablespoonful of salt. When it has simmered six hours, strain it through a fine cloth, laid on a sieve, into an earthen bowl, and let it cool without covering. A fowl added to this receipt will give the soup a more delicate flavor. If used it should be put in the pot at the time the five quarts of water are added. The veal-bone may also go in at this time; but the soup will not be so clear if the bone is used. If a chicken is used it may be removed from the stock when tender and used for other purposes.

OX-TAIL SOUP

• 2 ox-tails.
• 1 onion.
• 1 tablespoonful of drippings or of salt pork.
• 4 quarts of cold water.
• 1 stick of celery.
• 1 root of parsley.
• 3 cloves.
• 6 peppercorns.
• 1 tablespoonful of salt.

Cut the ox-tails into pieces, separating them at the joints. SautÉ the onion and the ox-tails in the drippings to a delicate brown. Put the meat in the soup-pot with four quarts of cold water. Let it come to the boiling-point; add the vegetables and spices, and simmer for four hours, then add the salt. Strain, take off the grease. Select some of the pieces of ox-tail, one piece for each portion, and place them in the tureen with the soup. Ox-tails are gelatinous and make a smooth soup.

WHITE STOCK

• 1 knuckle of veal.
• 1 fowl.
• Bouquet of herbs.
• 1 onion.
• 2 stalks of celery.
• 1 small turnip cut into dice.
• 1 small carrot cut into dice.

Cut the meat from the bone. Wash the skin of the fowl (see page 180). Allow one quart of cold water to each pound of meat and bone. Place all in a kettle. Cover and let simmer four or five hours. Strain into an earthen bowl, and let cool uncovered.

White stock may be made of veal alone. If a fowl is used, the breast and second joints may be removed when tender, and used for other dishes (croquettes, soufflÉ, imperiale, etc.). A part of the veal may also be removed, and used for veal loaf (see page 171).

WHITE SOUP

• 1 pint of white stock.
• 1 pint of milk or cream.
• 1 tablespoonful of butter.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Chicken, veal, or celery (cut into small dice), or rice.
• 1 tablespoonful of flour.

Put one pint of milk or cream into a double boiler; add to it one pint of white stock, and a white roux made of one tablespoonful of butter and one tablespoonful of flour cooked together, but not browned. Dilute the roux to smoothness with a little of the cold milk before adding it to the soup. Let it come to the boiling-point. Season to taste, and strain into the tureen; then add one tablespoonful or more of chicken breast, veal, or celery (cut into small dice), or rice. If desired, two or more of these may be used, and the yolk of a hard-boiled egg, pressed through a sieve, sprinkled over the top. This quantity gives but one quart of soup; enough to serve to four people.

CHICKEN CONSOMMÉ, OR STOCK

Place a fowl, cut into pieces, in four quarts of cold water; let come slowly to the boiling-point; then draw it to the side of range and simmer for three hours. At the end of this time add one slice of onion, two sticks of celery, one tablespoonful of salt, one saltspoonful of pepper, and simmer one or two hours longer; strain into earthen bowl, and let cool without covering.

This stock may be cleared the same as beef stock, and served in cups for luncheon. It may also be mixed with gelatine, cleared, and used for aspic, in Russian salads, jellied chicken, etc. (see page 323).

The meat from the breast and second joints may be removed from the stock-pot, when tender, and reserved for timbales, croquettes, patties, etc.

If this soup is not rich enough, it can be reduced by opening the lid of the pot, after it has simmered the required time, and allowed to boil uncovered until as rich as desired.

PLAIN CHICKEN SOUP

• 1 fowl.
• 4 quarts of water.
• 1 cupful of rice.
• 1 slice of onion.
• 2 sticks of celery.
• 1 sprig of parsley.

Place the fowl, cut into pieces, in a saucepan with four quarts of cold water; when it comes to the boiling-point, draw it aside and let it simmer for three hours; then add one thick slice of onion, two sticks of celery, one sprig of parsley, and one cupful of rice, and simmer for another hour; strain and let the soup stand until the grease can be taken off the top. Remove the meat, bones, and vegetables from the strainer, and press the rice through the sieve; stir this into the soup; season with salt and pepper, and heat again before serving; a little cream may also be added. This soup is also good thickened with a little roux or with corn-starch. For the latter, take two tablespoonfuls of the cold stock; stir into it one tablespoonful of corn-starch; then stir it into the soup, and let cook for ten minutes to take away the raw taste of the starch, and to make it clear. Pieces of the breast cut into dice may also be added.

VEGETABLE SOUP

To one quart of common stock add one pint of parboiled mixed vegetables cut into small dice. Simmer until the vegetables are tender but not pasty. Season with salt, pepper, and one teaspoonful of sugar.

Serve without straining.

TOMATO PURÉE

Put into a granite-ware saucepan a quart of canned or of fresh tomatoes; add a pint of water or of stock;—the soup will be better if stock is used;—add also one bay-leaf, a sprig of parsley, a stick of celery, six peppercorns, and a teaspoonful of sugar; simmer until the tomato is thoroughly soft. In another saucepan put a tablespoonful of butter; when it is hot add a sliced onion, and fry, but not brown it; then add a tablespoonful of flour, and cook, but not brown the flour. To this roux add enough of the tomato to dilute it, and then mix it well with the rest of the tomato, and season with salt. Pass the whole through a fine sieve or strainer. Heat it again before serving, and sprinkle over the top small croÛtons.

SPLIT-PEA OR BEAN SOUP

• 1 cupful of split peas, or
• 1 cupful of dried beans.
• 1 tablespoonful of butter.
• 2 quarts of water.
• ½ teaspoonful of sugar.
• 1 tablespoonful of flour.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Let the peas or beans soak over night in three quarts of cold water. Put the soaked peas or beans into a saucepan with two quarts of water and a ham-bone, if you have it, otherwise it may be omitted. Let simmer for four or five hours, or until the peas or beans are perfectly soft. (Add more water from time to time, if necessary.) Then pass them through a sieve; add to the pulp enough stock, or milk, or water to make a soup of the consistency of cream. Put it again into a saucepan on the fire; season, and add a roux made of one tablespoonful of butter and one tablespoonful of flour cooked together; dilute the roux to smoothness with a little of the soup before adding it to the pot.

The roux will hold the particles of peas or beans in suspension. Without it they are liable to precipitate.

An onion may be boiled with the peas or beans if desired.

Serve croÛtons on the soup, or pass them.

BLACK-BEAN SOUP

• 2 cupfuls of black beans.
• Brown stock.
• Brown roux.
• Bouquet of herbs, made of a sprig of parsley, a sprig of thyme, one clove.
• 4 peppercorns, 1 onion.
• Egg balls.
• Thin slices of lemon.
• Force-meat balls.
• White of hard-boiled egg.
• ¼ cupful of sherry or red wine.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Soak two cupfuls of black beans over night. Put the soaked beans into a saucepan with a bouquet of herbs, and cover them with cold water. Let them boil slowly until tender, which will take several hours, adding more water if necessary. When the beans are very soft remove the bouquet, drain off the water, and pass the beans through a purÉe sieve. Add to the pulp enough brown stock to make a soup of the consistency of thin cream. Place it again on the fire and add a brown roux made of one tablespoonful of butter and one tablespoonful of flour, cooked together until brown; dilute it to smoothness before adding and cook it with the soup for five minutes. This will prevent the soup from separating. Season with salt and pepper. Strain it through a sieve into the tureen; then add thin slices of lemon, egg balls, and force-meat balls, allowing one of each to each portion of soup; add also the white of one hard-boiled egg cut into small dice, and one quarter of a cupful of sherry or red wine.

This resembles mock-turtle soup.

CALF’S-HEAD OR MOCK-TURTLE SOUP

Make a brown roux by putting in a saucepan one tablespoonful of butter, let it brown, add two tablespoonfuls of flour, and let that brown; then add, slowly at first, one and a half or two quarts of water in which a calf’s head has been boiled, white wine instead of vinegar being used in the boiling (see boiled calf’s head, page 175). Add three or four strained tomatoes and simmer for one half hour. Skim off any fat and season with salt and pepper. Add some pieces of boiled calf’s head cut in pieces one half inch square, a few egg balls, two or three tablespoonfuls of sherry, and a few very thin slices of lemon.

FISH STOCK

Put into the soup-pot a tablespoonful of butter or of drippings. Add a tablespoonful each of chopped onion, carrot, and turnip. Fry them without browning, then add fish-bones, head, and trimmings, a stalk of celery, sprigs of parsley and of thyme, a bay-leaf, a tomato or a slice of lemon. Cover with water, and simmer them for an hour or more. Season with salt and pepper. Strain.When this stock is used for soup, make a roux of one tablespoonful each of butter and flour, add a cupful of milk or cream, and add this amount to each pint of the fish stock.

OYSTER SOUP

Scald a quart, or twenty-five, oysters in their own liquor. As soon as they are plump, or the gills curl, remove them (oysters harden if boiled). Add to the liquor a cupful of water. Make a roux of one tablespoonful each of butter and flour, dilute it with the liquor, and when it is smooth add a cupful of scalded milk or cream. Season with pepper, salt, if necessary, and a dash of cayenne or paprica; then add the oysters, and as soon as they are heated serve at once. In oyster houses finely shredded cabbage with a French dressing is served with oyster soup, and is a good accompaniment when served for luncheon. Oysters should be carefully examined, and the liquor passed through a fine sieve before being cooked, in order to remove any pieces of shell there may be in them.

CLAM SOUP

Remove the clams from the shells as soon as they have opened (see clam broth, page 95). Put them in a warm place, until the juice is prepared. Add a cupful of hot milk to a quart of juice, and thicken it with a roux made of one tablespoonful of butter and one tablespoonful of flour; then add the clams, chopped fine, season, and bring the soup again to the boiling-point and serve. Two spoonfuls of whipped cream served on each plateful of soup is an improvement to the dish.

CREAM SOUPS

ONION SOUP

(A VERY SIMPLE SOUP QUICKLY MADE)

Slice two or three large onions; fry them in a tablespoonful of butter or drippings until they are soft and red, then add three tablespoonfuls of flour, and stir until it is a little cooked. To this add slowly a pint of boiling water, stirring all the time, so it will be smooth.

Boil and mash three good-sized potatoes. Add to them slowly a quart of scalded milk, stirring well so it will be smooth. Add the potato and milk mixture to the onion mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Let it get very hot, and pass it through a strainer into the tureen. Sprinkle over the top a little parsley chopped very fine, and a few croÛtons. The soup will be better if stock is used instead of water to dilute the onion mixture.

POTATO SOUP

Boil and mash three or four potatoes.

Make a roux of one tablespoonful of butter, one half tablespoonful of flour, and one teaspoonful of chopped onion, letting the onion cook in the butter a few minutes before adding the flour. When the roux is cooked add to it a pint of milk, making a thin, white sauce. Add this to the mashed potato and pass the whole through a strainer. Return it to the fire for a few minutes to heat and blend it. Season it with salt and pepper.

Sprinkle on the soup, when it is in the tureen, a teaspoonful of chopped parsley and a few croÛtons.If the soup is too thick, add a little more milk or a little hot water. The roux prevents the milk and potato from separating, and also gives it smoothness. The soup can be made richer by using more milk, and stirring into it, just before serving, the beaten yolks of two eggs. This soup may also be made of sweet potatoes.

TOMATO BISQUE

• ½ can of tomatoes.
• 1 quart of milk.
• 2 tablespoonfuls of butter.
• 1 tablespoonful of corn-starch.
• 1 teaspoonful of salt.
• ½ saltspoonful of pepper.
• 1 saltspoonful of soda.
• Dash of cayenne.

Stew the tomatoes until very soft; then pass them through a fine sieve or strainer. Put the strained tomatoes into a granite-ware saucepan, and add one saltspoonful of soda; when it has ceased foaming add the butter, a small piece at a time; if put in all at once it will show an oily line; add salt, pepper, and cayenne.

Put the milk into a double boiler, and stir into it a tablespoonful of corn-starch which has been mixed with a little of the cold milk, to make it smooth; let it scald for ten minutes, or long enough to cook the corn-starch; then pour the milk into the tomatoes, beat well together, and serve at once.

It is better not to add the milk to the tomatoes until just ready to serve, for fear of curdling.

CREAM OF ASPARAGUS; CREAM OF GREEN PEAS; CREAM OF STRING BEANS; CREAM OR SPINACH; CREAM OF CORN; CREAM OF CELERY

These soups are very delicate, and are much esteemed. They are all made in the same way. The vegetable is boiled until soft, and is then pressed through a sieve. A pint of the vegetable pulp is diluted with a quart of stock (the stock may be veal, beef, or chicken broth). It is thickened with a roux made of one tablespoonful of butter and two tablespoonfuls of flour, seasoned with pepper and salt, and is then strained again, so it will be perfectly smooth. It is replaced on the fire, a cupful or a half cupful of cream added, and the whole beaten with an egg-whip to make it light, and is served at once very hot. The French thicken cream soups with egg-yolks. In this case two yolks would be used for the above quantity. The beaten yolks are diluted with the cream, and cooked only just long enough to set the egg. It would curdle if allowed to boil. Butter is needed for seasoning, and where eggs are used it should be added in small bits before the cream and eggs. Where roux is used for thickening, there is enough butter in the roux.

CREAM OF CLAMS

• 25 large clams.
• 2 tablespoonfuls of butter.
• 2 tablespoonfuls of flour.
• 1½ pints of milk.
• Small slice of onion.
• Dash of nutmeg.
• Salt and pepper.
• ½ pint of cream.

Wash the clam shells thoroughly with a brush and clear water.

Put them into a pot on the fire with one half cup of boiling water; cover and let steam until the shells open; take out the clams and let the liquor settle; then strain it carefully, and set aside; remove the clams from the shells; chop them, pound them in a mortar, and press as much of them as possible through a purÉe sieve. Put the milk into a double boiler with the slice of onion. Put the butter into a frying-pan, and when it bubbles, stir into it the flour, and let it cook a few minutes, but not brown; add enough of the milk slowly to make the roux liquid; then add it to the milk in the double boiler, first having removed the slice of onion; add a dash of nutmeg and of pepper, then the cream; when ready to serve, stir in the clam pulp and one pint of the clam liquor; taste to see if salt will be needed. After the clams are added to the milk, leave it on the fire only long enough to get well heated; if boiled, the milk will curdle. Beat a moment with an egg-whisk to make foamy. If the mixture is too thick, it may be diluted with milk or cream.

This is good for luncheon, served in small cups, the top covered with a spoonful of whipped cream.

CREAM OF OYSTERS

Scald a quart of oysters in their own liquor. Remove the oysters; chop and pound them in a mortar, then press as much of them as possible through a purÉe sieve.

Make a roux of one tablespoonful of butter and a heaping tablespoonful of flour. Dilute it with the oyster juice. Add the oyster pulp; season it with pepper, salt, and paprica, and keep it hot until ready to serve. Just before serving add a half pint of whipped cream, and beat it well into the soup.108-*

SOUP À LA REINE

Put a chicken into three quarts of water. Simmer it slowly for two hours, or until the chicken is very tender. A half hour before removing it add a half pound of rice and a bouquet containing one root of parsley, one sprig of thyme, a thin slice of onion, and a stick of celery. Boil it until the rice is soft, then strain through a colander. Let the broth cool and remove the grease. Remove the white meat from the bones of the chicken, put it with the rice in a mortar, and pound both to a pulp. Pass the pulp through a purÉe sieve, moistening it with a little stock to make it pass through easier. When ready to serve, add the purÉe to the stock, season with salt and pepper, and heat it thoroughly without boiling. Just before sending it to the table add a half pint of hot cream.

If desired the soup can be thickened with a little roux, or with fifteen blanched almonds chopped and pounded to a paste, using a little cream to prevent the almonds from oiling.

BISQUE OF LOBSTER

Put into a mortar equal parts of boiled lobster meat and boiled rice; pound them to a pulp; then add enough broth to dilute it; season with salt and paprica. Pass it through a sieve. Heat it without boiling, and then add enough BÉchamel sauce to make it the consistency of cream soup; lastly, add to each quart of soup a quarter of a pound of lobster butter, adding a little at a time, and stirring until the butter is melted. Instead of the lobster butter, plain butter may be used, and the coral of the lobster, dried and pounded to a powder, stirred in at the same time. Serve croÛtons with the bisque.

LOBSTER BUTTER

After the meat is removed from the lobster, take all the rest (except the lady, woolly gills and intestine), including the shell, and put it into a mortar with twice its weight of butter. Pound it to a pulp; then place it in a saucepan on the fire, and cook until the butter is melted. Strain it through a cloth. Beat the strained butter until it is cold. If not a deep enough color, add a very little cochineal.

CHOWDERS

POTATO CHOWDER

• 6 good-sized potatoes.
• ¼ lb. salt pork.
• 1 onion.
• 1 tablespoonful butter.
• 1 tablespoonful flour.
• 1 pint milk or cream.
• 1 pint water.
• 1 tablesp’ful chopped parsley.
• 1 teaspoonful salt.
• ½ teaspoonful pepper.

Cut the potatoes into dice, cut the pork into small pieces, and put it with the sliced onion into a frying pan, and fry until a light brown.

Put into a kettle a layer of potatoes, then a layer of onions and pork, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and chopped parsley. Repeat this until all the potatoes, pork, onions, and parsley are in. Pour over them the grease from the pan in which the pork and onions were fried. Add one pint of water, cover, and let simmer twenty minutes. Scald the milk in a double boiler, and add it to a roux made of the flour and butter. Add this to the pot when the potatoes are tender, and stir carefully together, so as not to break the potatoes. Taste to see if the seasoning is right. Serve very hot.

This is a good dish for luncheon, or for supper in the country.

FISH CHOWDER

• 3 lbs. fresh fish.
• 3 large potatoes.
• 1 large onion.
• ½ lb. salt pork.
• 1 pint milk.
• 3 ship crackers.
• Pepper and salt.

Cut the fish, the potatoes, and the onion into slices. Cut the pork into half-inch dice. Put the pork and the onion into a pan and sautÉ them a light brown. Place in alternate layers in a large saucepan first potatoes, then fish, then pork and onion; dust with salt and pepper, and continue in this order until all the materials are used. Cover the whole with boiling water and let the mixture simmer for twenty minutes. Scald a pint of milk or of cream, take it off the fire and add one and a half tablespoonfuls of butter and three broken ship crackers or the same quantity of water biscuits. Arrange the fish mixture in a mound on a dish, cover it with the softened crackers, and pour over the whole the hot milk.

CLAM CHOWDER

• 50 clams.
• 1 medium-sized onion.
• 6 oz. salt pork.
• 3 large potatoes.
• 1 teaspoonful salt.
• ½ teaspoonful pepper.
• 1 tablespoonful butter.
• 2 tablespoonfuls flour.
• 1 pint of milk or cream.
• 1 saltspoonful of mace.
• 1 saltspoonful of thyme.
• 3 ship crackers.

Put the clams, with their own liquor, into a saucepan on the fire. When they have boiled three minutes, remove the clams and return the liquor to the fire. Cut the pork into slices. Chop an onion and fry it with the pork until both are browned. Then stir in two tablespoonfuls of flour. When the flour is cooked, add slowly the clam liquor, a dash of mace and thyme, and salt, if necessary; then add three parboiled potatoes cut into dice, and cook until the potatoes are tender. When ready to serve add a pint of milk or cream, the clams cut into pieces, and a quarter of a pound of broken ship crackers or any hard water cracker.

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