EIGHTH COURSE
GAME—SALADS—COLD SERVICE—CHEESE
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GAME
Quail, Broiled
Quail, Roasted
Squabs
SALADS
Lettuce, Plain
Lettuce Hearts
Bouquet Salad, Lettuce and Nasturtium
or Watercress
Bouquet Salad, Lettuce and Hard-boiled
Egg
Bouquet Salads, Illustrations Nos. 94, 95, 96, 97
Daisy Salad
Salad of Asparagus Tips
Salad of Artichoke Bottoms
Salad of Vegetables
Aspic of Vegetables
Cucumber and Tomato Salad
Tomato and Green Pepper Salad
Turnip Cups with Celery
Celery and Apple Salad
Individual Apple Salad
Cabbage Salad
Mashed Potato Salad
Shad Roe Salad
Chicken Salad
Chestnut Salad
Fruit Salad
COLD SERVICE
Chicken Aspic
Aspic of Pâté de Foie Gras
Chicken Mousse
Liver Loaf or Cold Timbale
Cold Cut Meats
Glazed Tongue
Boiled Ham
Boned Ham
For Buffet Luncheons or Fourth Course in Summer Service:
Cold Fish, Garnished
Jellied Cutlets
Fish in the Garden
Cold Halibut
CHEESE
Cream Cheese with Bar-le-Duc Currants
Camembert
Gorgonzola
Roquefort
Etc.
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GAME
QUAILS BROILED
Split the quails down the back, and broil them for four minutes on each
side. Spread them with butter, pepper, and salt. Serve them on toast.
QUAILS ROASTED
Lay thin slices of salt pork over well-trussed birds. Bake them in a hot
oven for fifteen to twenty minutes. Have in the baking-pan a little
water, pepper, and salt, and baste the quails frequently.
Serve on slices of toast moistened with drippings from the pan.
SQUABS
Cook the same as directed for quails.
SALADS
FRENCH DRESSING
3 tablespoonfuls of oil,
1 tablespoonful of vinegar,
½ teaspoonful of salt,
¼ teaspoonful of pepper.
Mix the salt and pepper with the oil, then add slowly the vinegar,
stirring all the time. It will become a little white and thickened.
MAYONNAISE DRESSING
To the yolk of an egg add oil very slowly until the mixture becomes very
thick, then add alternately vinegar and oil. Lastly add salt and pepper.
The proportions are one cupful of oil to one yolk, one half teaspoonful
of salt, a dash of pepper, and one and a half tablespoonfuls of vinegar
or lemon juice. More or less oil may be used, but it must be added very
slowly at first or the mixture will curdle. Have all the ingredients
cold before beginning to mix the dressing. (See “Century Cook Book,”
page 288.)
CREAM DRESSING
Add whipped cream to mayonnaise or plain cream to French dressing at the
moment of mixing them with the salad. The proportions need not be exact:
a little more or less cream can be used as convenient.
NOTE.—An onion rubbed on the dish in which lettuce is to be served
improves the salad.
PREPARING SALADS
It is essential that leaf salads and celery be dry. Oil and water do not
mix, and if the salad is wet the dressing will run off it and also lose
its flavor. They should also be crisp and clean. Divest them of
imperfect portions and wash to free them of dust and grit. Examine
lettuce for a small green insect and celery for a small white worm which
infest them, then place them in cold water to refresh and crisp them.
Dry them carefully, shaking lettuce or watercress in a wire basket, or
carefully dry each piece in a clean napkin. Celery may be drained or
wiped. The salad may be dried sometime before using it, and if kept near
the ice will retain its crispness, but the dressing must not be put on
until the moment of serving, as it wilts the leaves. The same rule
applies to vegetables used as salads: they should be dry and cold.
There need be no waste in lettuce. The imperfect and hard leaves may be
boiled and used as directed on page 55 for green eggs. The rejected
outside leaves of one head will be enough for one or two eggs, or they
may be used with other odds and ends of vegetables to give a macedoine
garnishing to a meat dish.
SALADS
Of the many articles used for salad, lettuce is preëminently first in
favor. It is the king of salads; and, whatever else is used, lettuce
usually forms part of the dish to make it complete. A plain lettuce is
always acceptable and can be served in several forms. Combined with one
or more articles equally common, a number of bouquet salads can easily
be made, giving dishes attractive both in taste and color. The bouquet
salads should be placed on flat dishes in order to show the arrangement,
color, and variety of articles used.
A variety in salads is desirable; and, as they can be eaten every day, a
little change in the combinations will give variety.
The use of nasturtium blossoms is recommended. They are not only
beautiful to look at and decorative, but have a piquant flavor.
Combinations of green such as are obtained by lettuce and watercress are
pleasing.
In the illustrations a number of combinations are given which will
suggest others.
[Illustration: NO. 89. PLAIN LETTUCE SALAD.]
No. 1. =Plain lettuce salad=. The lettuce here is arranged to resemble a
cabbage. For this a head of cabbage lettuce is used. The leaves
are taken apart, carefully washed and dried, and the stalks
flattened by cutting a little slice off the bottom to make them
stand upright. They are then put together again in the natural
form, but more spread open, and placed on a round platter. Just
before serving a French dressing is poured over them with a spoon,
to have each leaf moistened, care being taken not to disarrange
the leaves.
[Illustration: NO. 90. HEART OF CABBAGE LETTUCE.]
No. 2. =Lettuce hearts=. Divest a head of Boston cabbage lettuce of the
outer leaves down to the hard head. With a sharp knife cut the
head into quarters and arrange them on a dish with the stalk ends
toward the center. Sprinkle over them, or not, a little celery cut
into small dice. If celery is used, place a little in the center
of the dish and between the quarters. At the moment of serving
pour French dressing, using a spoon, into the lettuce hearts,
moistening them well.
The outside leaves taken from the head can be broken into small
pieces or cut into ribbons and used as shown in other
illustrations.
[Illustration: NO. 91. BOUQUET SALAD—LETTUCE AND WATERCRESS OR
NASTURTIUMS.]
No. 3. =Bouquet salad=. Break crisp lettuce leaves into pieces, arrange
them on a flat dish, and place in the center a bunch of watercress
or of nasturtium blossoms. Just before serving moisten the lettuce
with French dressing, and the watercress also if it is used.
[Illustration: NO. 92. BOUQUET SALAD. SHREDDED LETTUCE AND
HARD-BOILED EGGS.]
No. 4. =Bouquet salad=. Place a number of crisp lettuce leaves together,
and with a sharp knife cut them across into strips about a quarter
of an inch wide. Pile the ribbons in the center of the dish and
place slices of hard-boiled eggs around them. Moisten with French
dressing at the moment of serving.
[Illustration: NO. 93. BOUQUET SALAD. LETTUCE. TOMATOES. EGGS.]
[Illustration: NO. 94. BOUQUET SALAD. ARRANGED IN FIVE LINES OF COLOR.
RADISHES, CUT TO RESEMBLE ROSES, IN CENTER ON A LAYER OF CELERY CUT INTO
SMALL DICE. AROUND THE CELERY A RING OF WATERCRESS. BOILED BEETS CUT
INTO STRIPS AROUND THE WATERCRESS. LETTUCE CUT INTO RIBBONS AROUND THE
BEETS. THE WHOLE MOISTENED WITH FRENCH DRESSING.]
No. 5. =Bouquet salad=. Use a good head of cabbage lettuce. Arrange the
white leaves, in a bunch resembling the natural head, in the
center of a flat dish. Garnish with slices of tomato and
hard-boiled eggs. Just before serving cover the whole with plain
French dressing. Use a spoon and pour the dressing on carefully so
that all the parts will be moistened without being disarranged.
Mayonnaise may be used on the eggs and tomato if preferred, in
which case the dressing should be put on the eggs in the cups
under the yolks.
[Illustration: NO. 95. BOUQUET SALAD. A MOUND OF CELERY, CUT INTO DICE,
IN THE CENTER. RADISHES, CUT TO RESEMBLE ROSES, PLACED AROUND THE CELERY
AND ONE ON TOP. WATERCRESS AROUND THE WHOLE. ALL MOISTENED WITH FRENCH
DRESSING.]
[Illustration: NO. 96. BOUQUET SALAD. PILE OF CUT BEETS IN THE CENTER.
SURROUNDED BY ALTERNATE PILES OF CELERY AND WATERCRESS. A RADISH ON EACH
PILE OF CELERY. ALL MOISTENED WITH FRENCH DRESSING.]
[Illustration: NO. 97. BOUQUET SALAD. HARD-BOILED EGGS ON A BED OF
MAYONNAISE. CIRCLE OF CUT BEETS AROUND THE MAYONNAISE. LETTUCE CUT INTO
RIBBONS AROUND THE BEETS.]
[Illustration: NO. 98. SALAD OF ASPARAGUS TIPS. A PILE OF BOILED
ASPARAGUS TIPS SURROUNDED BY A WREATH OF WHITE LETTUCE LEAVES AND
RADISHES CUT TO RESEMBLE ROSES, PLACED ALTERNATELY. ALL MOISTENED WITH
FRENCH DRESSING.]
[Illustration: NO. 99. SALAD OF ARTICHOKE BOTTOMS, LETTUCE, AND PEAS,
WITH MAYONNAISE.]
=Illustrations Nos. 94, 95, 96, 97=. Bouquet salads arranged as
explained in legends under the illustrations.
No. 10. =Daisy salad=. Select tender green leaves of lettuce. Cut the
stalks so that the leaves will lie straight and keep in place. Put
a spoonful of mayonnaise in each leaf, then arrange on each one in
rosette form the white of a hard-boiled egg cut lengthwise into
strips, and place a whole yolk in the center.
No. 11. =Salad of asparagus tips=. See illustration No. 98.
No. 12. =Salad of artichoke bottoms=. Take artichoke bottoms as they
come from the can. Rinse them off with cold water. Spread each one
with mayonnaise and pile on it as many vegetables as it will hold.
Use green peas, string beans, flowerets of cauliflower, or any
mixture of vegetables that may be convenient. Place a little
mayonnaise on top of the vegetables, and place the artichoke cups
on leaves of lettuce arranged around a bed of mayonnaise. Or a
glass or cup filled with mayonnaise can be placed in the center of
the dish and the individual portions arranged around it.
No. 13. =Vegetable salad=. Mix together equal portions of cold boiled
string beans, cut in half-inch lengths, and lima beans. Pile them
on a flat dish with a surrounding border of lettuce leaves. Pour
over them slowly plenty of French dressing.
This is a good hot-weather salad to serve with cold meats on hot
days when hot dishes are not acceptable.
No. 14. =Macedoine of vegetables=. Boil small portions of as many
different kinds of vegetables as convenient, and keep them in
separate dishes. When they are cold, and shortly before serving,
moisten them with French dressing. Just before serving mix them
together, adding some mayonnaise.
Peas, string beans, lima beans, flageolets, carrots, cut into
dice, and beets cut into dice, make a good combination.
No. 15. =Aspic of vegetables en bellevue=. Fill individual timbale molds
with any or with different kinds of vegetables, then turn in
enough aspic (see page 125) to cover them, and place them in the
ice-box to set.
Use these forms on cold fish or meat dishes with mayonnaise under
them. They require a dressing, but if it were mixed with the
vegetables it would cloud the jelly.
No. 16. =Cucumber and tomato salad=. Peel the tomatoes, cut them in two,
and cover each piece with mayonnaise. Place them on one side of a
vegetable-dish, and on the other side place sliced cucumbers
moistened with French dressing. Separate the two with crisp leaves
of lettuce.
No. 17. =Tomato and green pepper salad=. Cut peeled tomatoes into slices
three eighths of an inch thick. Cover them with a thick layer of
chopped green peppers. Place them in the center of the dish with a
border of crisp lettuce leaves. Moisten the whole with French
dressing.
[Illustration: NO. 100. TURNIP CUPS HOLDING CELERY MIXED WITH
MAYONNAISE.]
No. 18. =Turnip cups with celery=. Select turnips of uniform size and
not too large. Cut off the tops to give a flat surface for the
bottom of the cups. Cut a slice about two inches thick from each
turnip. With a fluted knife pare the outside into rounding shape,
then with a potato-scoop take out the centers and form a cup.
Leave the cups in water until ready to use; they will keep
twenty-four hours or more in this way. Chop some parsley very fine
and spread it on a board. Moisten the edges of the cups and press
them on the parsley. This will give a green edge around the tops.
Fill the cups with celery mayonnaise, or with any vegetable salad.
[Illustration: NO. 101. CELERY AND APPLE WITH CREAM MAYONNAISE.]
No. 19. =Celery and apple salad=. Cut a bunch of crisp white celery into
small bits, add a chopped green pepper and a teaspoonful of
chopped pimento. Mix it with mayonnaise. Cut into dice one quarter
as much apple as you have of celery. Just before serving mix it
with the celery, and the whole with whipped cream.
Pile the salad in a mound on a flat dish and garnish it with
lettuce or other leaves and radishes. For one bunch of celery
there will be needed two apples and a half pint of cream.
The celery is quickly prepared by cutting the stalks into strips
one quarter of an inch thick, then laying them together in a pile
and cutting them all together into lengths of one quarter of an
inch or less. Tart apples of good flavor should be used. Remove
the seeds and ribs of the green pepper and cut it into fine bits.
Pimentos are Spanish red peppers and are very mild. They come in
cans and can be bought at the grocer’s.
[Illustration: NO. 102. INDIVIDUAL APPLE SALAD. CELERY AND APPLE MIXED
WITH CREAM MAYONNAISE, SERVED IN APPLES. GARNISHED WITH A WHITE LETTUCE
LEAF.]
No. 20. =Individual apple salad=. Select apples that are best both in
color and flavor. Take out the core carefully, using a pointed
knife, and make the hollow on the stem end. An apple-corer can be
used, in which case the end piece should be put back again to plug
the bottom. The wall of the apple should be half an inch thick.
Fill the hollowed out apple with creamed celery and apple mixture,
as given on page 121, omitting the green pepper and pimento. Serve
on individual plates with one white lettuce leaf at the side of
each apple.
[Illustration: NO. 103. CABBAGE SALAD. SERVED IN CABBAGE LEAVES.]
No. 21. =Cabbage salad=. Add to a cupful of cream the beaten yolks of
two eggs, one teaspoonful of mustard, one half teaspoonful each of
salt, pepper, and sugar, and half a tablespoonful of celery seeds.
Put all this in a double boiler and stir until it thickens. Let it
cool. When ready to serve add to the dressing a tablespoonful of
vinegar and mix it with cabbage chopped fine. Serve in cabbage
leaves as shown in illustration. Cold slaw may be served in the
same way.
[Illustration: NO. 104. MASHED POTATO SALAD.]
No. 22. =Mashed potato salad=. To a quart or a little more of mashed
potatoes add three tablespoonfuls of oil, a teaspoonful each of
onion juice and salt, a dash of nutmeg, one half teaspoonful of
pepper, a tablespoonful of pickled beets chopped fine, a
tablespoonful of cucumber pickle chopped fine, and a tablespoonful
of vinegar taken from the pickled-beet jar. Beat all together
until the potato is light. The beet vinegar will color it pink. If
a deeper color is wanted add a little more of the red vinegar. The
potato should be a moist purée. If the salad is too dry after the
ingredients are in add a little soup stock or water. Shape into a
mound without pressing it, and garnish it with slices of beets,
pickles, and lettuce.
[Illustration: NO. 105. SHAD ROE SALAD.]
No. 23. =Shad roe salad=. Wash the roe carefully and place it in salted
water. The water must not boil or it will break the skin. Simmer
it for twenty minutes. After cooling cut it with a sharp knife
into slices quarter of an inch thick. Place the slices,
overlapping, on a dish. Garnish with lettuce leaves. Pour over the
roe a plentiful amount of French dressing.
[Illustration: NO. 106. CHICKEN SALAD.]
No. 24. =Chicken salad=. Cut cold chicken into half-inch dice, using
both white and dark meat. Moisten it with French dressing. Cut
tender celery into small dice and mix it with the chicken, using
two thirds as much celery as there is of chicken. Mix the whole
with mayonnaise. Form it into a mound. Cover it with mayonnaise.
Decorate the mound as follows:
Begin at the top and form four lines of chopped pickled beet,
dividing the form into four sections. Follow the lines of beet
with lines of chopped white of hard-boiled eggs. This will leave
triangular spaces. Make another line of beets and fill the spaces
left with the crumbed yolks of hard-boiled eggs. Outline the small
triangular spaces with capers and finish the top with an olive and
sprigs of parsley. Place lettuce leaves and slices of hard-boiled
egg around the dish. Veal instead of chicken may be used in the
same way. Lobster salad should be mixed with lettuce instead of
celery.
No. 25. =Chestnut salad=. Mix together two cupfuls each of tart apples
cut into half-inch dice, celery cut into small pieces, and boiled
chestnuts cut into half-inch pieces.
Put in a double boiler:
2 tablespoonfuls of butter,
9 tablespoonfuls of vinegar,
½ teaspoonful of sugar,
1½ teaspoonfuls of mustard,
1 teaspoonful of salt,
¼ teaspoonful of pepper,
yolks of four eggs.
Beat all this well together and stir until thickened. After it has
cooled and just before serving add the dressing and a cupful of
whipped cream to the salad mixture.
No. 26. =Fruit salads=. Fruits are sometimes mixed with mayonnaise and
used as a salad.
The following mixtures may be used: Pineapple, oranges, and
apples. Grape-fruit, oranges, and canned pears. Pineapple and
banana. Apple and grape-fruit. Garnish with lettuce leaves.
COLD SERVICE
[Illustration: NO. 107. CHICKEN ASPIC.]
CHICKEN ASPIC
Make a chicken stock as for chicken consommé, page 46. Use a knuckle of
veal and as many quarts of water as you have pounds of meat. Remove the
breast of the fowl when it is tender. Clarify the stock, and if it has
not made a jelly firm enough to stand add a little gelatine,—a
tablespoonful of granulated gelatine to a quart of stock will perhaps be
more than enough, for the jelly must not be too hard, and the jellied
stock may need but very little extra stiffness to make it hold its shape
when molded.
Ornament the bottom of a ring-mold with slices of the white of
hard-boiled egg cut into diamond-shaped pieces. Lay the pieces, with
thin strips of egg between them, in a manner to imitate a wreath of
leaves. A long pin will be useful in arranging the pieces of egg. Put
the mold in a bowl of cracked ice, and with a spoon add a very little
liquid jelly, taking care not to use enough to float the pieces of egg.
When it has set sufficiently to hold the decoration in place add enough
more jelly to make a layer a quarter of an inch thick. When the layer
has stiffened, put in a layer of chicken breast cut into inch lengths,
so the jelly will not be torn apart when being served, but place the
pieces close together so they appear like large pieces. Add more jelly,
letting it rise a quarter of an inch above the chicken; when that has
stiffened, add another layer of chicken and fill the mold with jelly.
Let the mold be level and have a smooth layer of gelatine on top, so
when unmolded it will stand firm and even.
Fill the center of the ring with celery mayonnaise, or a macedoine
vegetable salad.
[Illustration: NO. 108. ASPIC OF PÂTÉ DE FOIE GRAS.]
ASPIC OF PÂTÉ DE FOIE GRAS
Make a chicken aspic as directed above. When a mold is used which has
projections on top, as in illustration, the jelly must be made a little
firmer than for a plain mold. Pour into the mold a layer of jelly, let
it stiffen, and then add a layer of pâté de foie gras and a little jelly
to set it. Then fill the mold with jelly. Care must be taken in
unmolding this form, for if held a moment too long in hot water the
points will fall off or lose shape.
CHICKEN MOUSSE
Put through a chopper cooked chicken, using the white or the dark meat,
or both. Grind it a second time, if necessary, to make it very fine. If
a meat-chopper is not at hand, chop it by hand, pound it to free the
meat from the fiber, and rub it through a purée sieve.
Heat a cupful of chicken stock, pour it over the beaten yolks of three
eggs, add a teaspoonful each of salt and celery salt, a dash of pepper
and of paprika. Return it to the fire and stir until it has thickened
like a boiled custard; add two tablespoonfuls of granulated gelatine
which has soaked for an hour in a quarter cupful of cold chicken stock.
When the gelatine has dissolved, remove it from the fire and add one and
one half cupfuls of the fine chicken meat. When the mixture begins to
thicken stir it perfectly smooth and fold in a half pint of cream
whipped to a stiff froth. Turn it into a brick mold. The cream must not
be added until the mixture begins to set, or the ingredients will settle
into layers.
Serve with lettuce or celery salad.
LIVER LOAF OR COLD TIMBALE
Line a pint brick mold with thin slices of larding pork. Pour in liver
timbale mixture given on page 78. Fill the mold to within a quarter of
an inch of the top. Cover it with slices of pork. Set it in a pan of
water and cook in a slow oven for one hour, or until firm to the touch.
Serve cold in slices with salad.
[Illustration: NO. 109. SLICED COLD MEATS.]
COLD SLICED MEATS
Illustration No. 109 shows an attractive way of serving cold meats. On
the right are overlapping slices of cold tongue; on the left, slices of
beef. A slice of tongue cut round is placed in the center to cover the
spot where they meet. Slices of cold chicken are placed at right angles
to the tongue and beef. Aspic jelly is placed in the four angles. The
garnishing is sliced pickled beets cut into stars and hearts, and small
pickles or gherkins sliced down to nearly the end, then spread into leaf
shapes. The stars are placed on the sliced meat, the hearts on the dish
in front of the jelly, with a slice of pickle on each side, and the
leaf-like gherkins are in the center.
The aspic used in this dish was jellied stock made a little stiffer with
gelatine.
Cold meats may also be attractively served by placing a socle made of
hominy in the center of the dish, the top of the hominy ornamented with
aspic or any garnishes, and the sliced meats laid around and against the
socle.
[Illustration: NO. 110. GLAZED TONGUE, GARNISHED WITH BUTTER.]
GLAZED TONGUE
Boil a smoked or a fresh tongue until tender, then skin and trim it.
While it is flexible skewer it into a good shape. Paint it with glaze
(page 104).
Whip some butter with a fork until it is soft and very light. Place the
whipped butter in a pastry-bag with star tube and press it through,
outlining a figure on the sides of the tongue and down the middle.
Garnish the dish with parsley and a hard-boiled egg. Cut the white of
the egg in strips lengthwise, leave the yolk whole, and arrange the
pieces so they resemble a daisy.
Keep the garnished tongue in a cold place until ready to serve, in order
to harden the butter.
[Illustration: NO. 111. BOILED HAM, NO. 1.]
BOILED HAM
Soak the ham overnight, with the rind side up. Thoroughly wash and
scrape off any bad parts. Put it in sufficient cold water to cover it
well. Add a bunch of soup vegetables and two bay-leaves. Boil it slowly,
allowing twenty minutes to the pound, counting from the time the water
begins to boil. It is done when the meat around the bone is tender.
Place it on a board, peel off the skin, and by trimming make it smooth
and shapely. Take a slice off the bottom, if necessary, to make it stand
firmly. Serve it hot or cold.
In illustration No. 111 the ham after being trimmed is covered with
cracker dust and sugar and placed in the oven to brown. The bone is
covered with a pleated paper frill, and a lemon cut to imitate a pig
(see page 16) is set on top.
[Illustration: NO. 112. BOILED HAM, NO. 2.]
In illustration No. 112 black pepper is placed in spots on the fat, and
then with the finger is rubbed into regular circles. A whole clove is
stuck in the center of each spot of pepper. If the ham is to be served
cold the parts not covered by fat can be concealed with a layer of
butter; the butter should be whipped until smooth and soft and then
spread evenly with a knife. In this way the whole ham can be made smooth
and the spots of pepper can be extended entirely over it.
The bone is covered with a paper frill (page 14). The dish is garnished
with slices of pickled beets stamped into rounds.
[Illustration: NO. 113. GLAZED BONED HAM GARNISHED WITH WATERCRESS.]
BONED HAM
Boil the ham as directed above. While it is still hot strip off the
skin, then turn it over and remove the bone. If the ham is thoroughly
cooked, the bone will come out easily. Make a cut down to and along the
bone in the center of the under side, then work the knife around and
close to the bone until the latter is loosened enough to be pulled out.
Lay the boned ham on a cloth, draw it together and sew the cloth around
it, pressing the ham firmly together, and giving it a good shape. Place
a board and heavy weights on the ham, and let it cool while under this
pressure.
Remove the cloth. Trim it again, if necessary. Cover it with a meat
glaze (see page 104). Garnish with a wreath of watercress.
[Illustration: NO. 114. COLD FISH COVERED WITH JELLIED MAYONNAISE AND
GARNISHED WITH BEETS AND OLIVES.]
COLD FISH
Garnished cold fish makes an ornamental and useful dish for buffet
luncheons, and for summer service, when cold dishes of any kind are
acceptable. Illustration No. 114 shows a bluefish boiled in upright
position, covered with jellied mayonnaise and garnished with pickled
beets, cranberries, and gherkins. It is placed on a layer of bread to
raise it on the dish. To prepare the dish, place a carrot inside the
fish to give it stability, then tie and prop it with vegetables on the
kettle-strainer, in the position desired. Boil it slowly, allowing ten
minutes to the pound. Put soup vegetables, a bay-leaf, and two
tablespoonfuls of vinegar in the water. When cooked, lift the fish out
carefully and let it get cold before removing it from the strainer.
Take off the skin and cover it with a mayonnaise made as follows: Heat a
cupful of clear beef or chicken stock, and dissolve in it one and a half
tablespoonfuls of granulated gelatine which has soaked for an hour in
half a cupful of cold water. When it has cooled add half a cupful of
oil, a tablespoonful of vinegar or of lemon juice, half a teaspoonful of
salt, a dash of pepper, and the beaten yolk of an egg. When it begins to
set spread it over the fish with a knife. It will give a smooth,
polished yellow covering. Garnish with slices of pickled beets stamped
into various shapes.
Bass, salmon, bluefish, and halibut are good varieties to serve cold.
They may be masked with the aspic mayonnaise given above, or with a
plain, thick mayonnaise, or with tartare sauce, or with maître d’hôtel
butter. The covering should be spread with a knife to make it smooth,
and the fish kept in a cool place until the time of serving. Hard-boiled
eggs, capers, pickles, lettuce, watercress, and parsley are suitable
garnishes.
JELLIED CUTLETS
Cut cold boiled sheepshead or other fish into flat, even pieces, each
piece a size suitable for one portion. Lay them in a pan, leaving spaces
between them. Place on each piece a thin slice of hard-boiled egg, then
pour over them just enough aspic jelly to cover them. The aspic should
have a little lemon juice or vinegar mixed with it to make it tart. When
the jelly is set, cut the pieces apart with a sharp knife and arrange
them on a dish with creamed horseradish sauce.
FISH IN THE GARDEN
Skin a cold boiled trout, bass, or other fish. Cover it with mayonnaise,
or with maître d’hôtel butter. Garnish it with aspic jelly and surround
it with vegetables molded in jelly as in illustration No. 6. Use peas,
beans, celery, etc.
COLD HALIBUT
Cover a thick piece of boiled halibut with mayonnaise. Sprinkle the top
with chopped capers. Garnish it with potato salad, the potatoes being
cut into balls.
CHEESE
[Illustration: NO. 115. CREAM CHEESE WITH BAR-LE-DUC CURRANTS.]
CREAM CHEESE WITH BAR-LE-DUC CURRANTS
Beat with a fork a square of Philadelphia cream cheese, or of domestic
Neufchâtel, until it is light and smooth. Whip three tablespoonfuls of
cream to a stiff froth. Mix the cheese and whipped cream together
lightly and pile the mixture on a dish in which it is to be served. Put
it in a cool place. Just before serving pour over it a glassful of
Bar-le-Duc red currants.
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