milk, stir them together over the fire with a wooden spoon. Directly
it boils gradually add 3 oz. flour, and continue stirring until
it separates from the sides of the pan, forming a ball of paste,
then add by degrees 6 beaten eggs, ½ lb. Parmesan cheese, and ¼ lb.
Gruyère, or the whole quantity may be Parmesan if more convenient.
Season well with salt, pepper, and a very little cayenne. When
thoroughly mixed, make the paste up into little balls no larger than
a pigeon’s egg, and fry them in hot lard; it must not be boiling,
or they will be too dark a colour; they take a very short time to
fry, and should be a light golden brown. Let them drain on paper for
a minute or two before the fire, and serve in pyramid on a folded
napkin garnished with parsley. Half this quantity would be enough
for a small dish. Another way: Equal weight of eggs, butter, fresh
breadcrumbs, and grated cheese; mix the dry ingredients together,
seasoning rather highly with pepper and salt and a little cayenne.
Put them into a mortar with the butter, the yolks of all and the
whites of half the number of eggs, and pound them together until
thoroughly mixed. Make up into small balls, egg and breadcrumb them,
and fry in hot, but not boiling, lard as before. To be similarly
drained and served. Two eggs and their weight of other ingredients
make a small dish.
_Ramakins._--(_a_) 2 eggs, 2 spoonfuls flour, 2 oz. melted butter, 2
oz. grated cheese. Mix all well together, and bake for ¼ hour.
(_b_) 3 oz. toasting cheese, 4 oz. good Cheshire cheese, 2 oz.
butter, and the yolks of 3 eggs; pound altogether very fine in a
mortar; boil a fresh roll in thin cream, or good milk, only give it
one boil up, then mix the whites of the eggs with the roll, and all
the other ingredients in a basin, and beat it very well with a fork;
then put it into paper cases, or one large one, and bake in a Dutch
oven. The mixture will be good if made overnight, which is sometimes
a convenience. (F. R. A.)
(_c_) ¼ lb. Cheshire cheese, ¼ lb. Parmesan, ¼ lb. fresh butter, 4
eggs, the crumb of a small roll, pepper, salt, and mace to taste.
Boil the crumb of the roll in milk for 5 minutes, strain, and put
into a mortar; add the cheese, which should be finely scraped,
the butter, the yolks of the eggs, and seasoning, and pound these
ingredients well together. Whisk the whites of the eggs, mix them
with the paste, and put it into small saucers, half filled. Bake
10-12 minutes. (W. C. D.)
_Roasted._--Grate 3 oz. fat Cheshire cheese, mix with it the yolks
of 2 eggs, 4 oz. grated bread, and 3 oz. butter; beat the whole well
in a mortar, with 1 dessertspoonful mustard, and a little salt and
pepper. Toast some bread, cut it into proper pieces, lay the paste
as above thick upon them; put them into a Dutch oven, covered with a
dish, till hot through, remove the dish, and let the cheese brown a
little; serve as hot as possible.
_Sandwiches._--(_a_) Take 2 oz. grated cheese, 2 oz. pounded ham, 1
teaspoonful mixed mustard, a very small quantity of cayenne pepper
and salt; mix all together with the beaten-up yolk of an egg. Spread
the mixture between thin slices of bread, and fry in boiling lard or
butter.
(_b_) Cut some slices of bread a day old, ⅛ in. thick, and some
very thin slices of Gruyère cheese. Pick the leaves of a quantity
of watercress, and mince them as fine as you can, then dry them in
a cloth, mince them still more, and dry them again; then knead them
with as much fresh butter as they will take up, adding a very little
salt and white pepper; butter the slices of bread with this mixture,
put the slices of Gruyère between 2 slices of bread, press them
lightly, cut out the sandwiches into the shape of Savoy biscuits, and
serve immediately.
_Scallop._--Soak a small teacupful of stale breadcrumbs in fresh
milk; beat into this one large egg, a teaspoonful of melted butter,
and 3 oz. grated cheese, pepper and salt to taste. Strew sifted
crumbs over the top, and bake till it is of a delicate brown.
_Soufflé._--(_a_) Take 6 oz. grated cheese, 2 eggs, 1 oz. butter, a
small teacupful of milk, and beat up all together in a basin; then
put them in a small baking dish and bake a light brown. (H. E. C.)
(_b_) In a medium-sized round-bottomed saucepan, melt 1 oz. butter,
add 1 oz. flour, and ¼ pint milk, 3 oz. grated Parmesan, salt,
cayenne or pepper to taste, and boil well. Then stir in the yolks of
2 or 3 eggs, and beat the mixture thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
Whip the whites of 3 or 4 eggs to the stiffest froth, and stir very
lightly but thoroughly into the saucepan. Bake immediately in a very
hot oven for 20 minutes, and serve at once in the dish in which it is
cooked. The mixture can also be steamed for the same time or rather
longer, or it can be baked for 5 minutes in paper cases. If it is
baked as a whole, use earthenware made thoroughly hot before the
soufflé is put in. Pretty red pans can be bought quite suitable to
send to table, and as the great difficulty with soufflés is to get
them to table before they cool and sink, it is very advantageous to
have some pan that retains heat longer than the tin commonly used.
The pan or tin must be well greased. Fresh-grated Parmesan is the
best cheese for the purpose, or sometimes Gruyère for a change, but
any dry well-flavoured cheese can be used. (E. A. B.)
_Stewed._--Cut ½ lb. Cheshire and Gloucester cheese in thin slices,
put it into a stewpan with a little ale or white wine, and keep it
stirring over the fire till it is melted; then put in a spoonful of
mustard, the yolks of 2 eggs; beat up, stir it a moment over the
fire, then put it in a small deep dish or soup plate, and brown it
with a very hot iron or salamander; have ready thin toasted sippets
or fried ones, cut triangularly. Stick them all round, and in the
middle. Send it up hot and quick.
_Straws_ (Bâtons).--(_a_) Equal proportions of butter, flour, and
cheese seasoned with salt and cayenne, and just enough butter to roll
the mixture into a good paste. Cut the straws the desired size with a
paste cutter, and bake them in a quick oven till they are quite crisp
and a golden blown colour. The ordinary American cheese makes them as
well as any other.
(_b_) 4 oz. flour, 4 oz. butter, 4 oz. Parmesan or other good cheese,
grated, a little salt, and as much cayenne pepper as would cover a
sixpenny piece. First mix the dry ingredients, and then proceed as
for puff paste; cut the mixture into very narrow straws 4 in. long,
round them at the sides with a knife, and bake a pale gold colour;
serve hot. (F. C.)
(_c_) ½ lb. dried flour, ¼ lb. butter, ¼ lb. grated Parmesan or
Gruyère cheese, 1 teaspoonful flour of mustard, 1 saltspoonful
cayenne, and 1 saltspoonful salt. Rub the butter into the flour,
then mix the whole well together; beat the whites of 2 eggs with ¼
pint cold water, and stir in enough to form a firm paste; knead the
paste well, then roll it out ⅛ in. thick, and cut it into straw-like
strips about 5 in. long. Bake in a quick oven till of a pale brown
colour--about 5 minutes. Pile them on a dish prettily, and serve
either hot or cold. Must be kept in a dry place.
(_d_) ¼ lb. Parmesan cheese, ¼ lb. flour, 2 oz. butter, ½ teaspoonful
dry mustard, and a little cayenne pepper; grate the cheese, mix it
and the flour into a paste with as small a quantity of water as
possible, and the butter, which will be nearly sufficient to make the
paste without water; roll and cut as thick as straws, and mark with
the marker in stripes; bake a nice brown. This quantity will probably
last for some time, and can be kept in a tin. When required for use
re-warm before the fire, which crisps them better than re-warming in
the oven.
(_e_) ¼ lb. butter, ¼ lb. Parmesan cheese grated, ¼ lb. fine flour,
well mixed with 1 small saltspoonful cayenne pepper, 1 egg, and a
little salt. Roll it out into a thin paste, and bake a light brown.
Cut it into a neat form, and serve quite hot on a napkin.
(_f_) Make a paste with 6 oz. flour, 4 oz. butter, 3 oz. grated
Parmesan cheese, moisten with a little cream or milk, season with
salt, white pepper, and cayenne; roll it out thin, cut into narrow
strips, and bake in a moderate oven.
_Tartlets._--Make a paste with 1 oz. butter, 2 oz. flour, the yolk of
1 egg, a little water, a pinch of salt, roll it out to the thickness
of ⅛ in., and line some patty pans with it. Take 2 oz. finely grated
Parmesan cheese, beat it up in a bowl with the yolks of 2 eggs; add
pepper, salt, cayenne, and nutmeg, according to taste--very little of
the two latter; then work in 3 tablespoonfuls cream, fill each patty
pan with the mixture, and bake in a moderate oven till done.
_Tomato._--Take some tomatoes (the tinned ones do very well), chop
them finely, cut up some cheese in small pieces, mix with a little
milk, and season with pepper and salt. Have some slices of toast
ready, and when the mixture is soft pour it over the toast, and serve
very hot. Time, about 10 minutes. (E. Brace.)
_Toast_ (Rôties).--(_a_) Grate some rich cheese, add pepper to taste,
a beaten egg, and sufficient milk to make it of the consistency of
thick cream. Warm the mixture on the fire, and when quite hot pour it
over some slices of hot buttered toast; serve immediately.
(_b_) English Rarebit.--Toast a slice of bread on both sides, put it
into a cheese plate, pour a glass of red wine over it, and put it to
the fire till it soaks up the wine; then cut some cheese in very thin
slices, and put it thick on the bread; put it in a tin oven before
the fire, toast it till it is brown, and serve it up hot. Or this
way: Toast your bread, soak it in the wine, and set it before the
fire to keep hot; cut the cheese in very thin slices, rub some butter
over a pewter plate, lay the cheese on it, pour in 2-3 spoonfuls
white wine, set it over a chafing dish of coals, and cover it with
another plate for 2-3 minutes; uncover it, and stir it till it is
done and well mixed, put in a little mustard, put it on the bread,
brown it with a hot iron or salamander, and send it away hot.
(_c_) Scotch Rarebit.--Toast a piece of bread nicely on both sides,
and butter it; cut a slice of cheese nearly the size of the bread,
put it in a cheese toaster, and toast one side, then put the toasted
side on the bread, and toast the other side nicely.
(_d_) Welsh Rarebit.--Slice some rich cheese into a stewpan, pour
in a very little old ale, and set over the fire to simmer. When
the cheese is quite melted pour it on to some hot toast, and serve
quickly. Mustard and pepper should be spread on the cheese before
serving. Some use butter, but ale is far nicer.
(_e_) Ditto.--Take rather a thick slice of either Cheddar or
Gloucester cheese, cut into small pieces, put it into a small
saucepan, with 1 teaspoonful mustard, 2 tablespoonfuls ale, a very
little salt, and a small piece of butter; let it get well heated,
stir it up well till it becomes the consistency of thick cream. Pour
the mixture on a slice of toast cut into four, dredge a little pepper
on the top and serve on a table napkin, very hot.
(_f_) Ditto.--Use a small iron saucepan. Grease with butter all the
inside; then pour 3-4 tablespoonfuls good rich milk or cream into
it; then 3-4 large mustardspoonfuls of made mustard; then about ½
oz. butter in small pieces; then about a ¼ lb. good Cheddar cheese;
then dust the whole over with ground black pepper, and be not afraid
of putting on too much pepper. Set the saucepan aside. Place a dish
before the fire which is to go to table. Take a round of a loaf of
bread, cut very thick and the hard crust cut off; toast, and then
butter one side only, and put it, toasted side downwards, on the
dish before the fire. Now set the little saucepan on the fire, and
stir its contents with an iron spoon till the cheese is melted.
Immediately then pour it on the bread which is before the fire and
send to table; of course, with hot plates. (L.)
(_g_) Ditto.--Make some slices of toast about ¼ in. thick, trim off
the crusts, and spread them with butter. Slice very thinly some rich
cheese (about ¼ lb.) into a stewpan, add 1 small teaspoonful flour of
mustard, a little salt and cayenne, ½ oz. butter, and pour over it a
very little ale or porter, let it simmer until quite hot, pour it on
the toast, and serve immediately.
=Eggs= (Œufs).--Few English cooks have any idea of the number of ways
in which these nutritious articles may be dressed.
_À la Bonne Femme._--Slice an onion, fry it in butter to a light
brown, add a teaspoonful of vinegar; butter a dish, spread the onion
and vinegar over it, break the eggs into it, put the dish into the
oven; when the eggs are done strew fried breadcrumbs over them, and
serve very hot.
_À la Maître d’Hôtel._--(_a_) Make a sauce with boiling milk, rather
highly seasoned and thickened with butter and flour and an onion
chopped small; let it simmer gently for ½ hour, then add 2 oz. fresh
butter and some finely chopped parsley; next lay in 4-6 hard-boiled
eggs, cut in quarters or sliced, heat them through carefully, and
serve very hot; squeeze in the juice of a lemon just before serving.
(_b_) Take 6 eggs, boil hard, and when ready plunge them into cold
water to enable you to take off the shells easily; this must be
carefully done so as not to damage the appearance of the eggs; then
cut them into rounds--each, if properly managed, will cut 4. Have
ready a sauce made as follows: Add to ½ pint ordinary good white
sauce, a slight sprinkling of nutmeg, some very finely chopped
parsley, say a teaspoonful, and about a saltspoonful of the green
part of some shallots also very finely chopped. Put the eggs into
this, make them hot, and serve heaped high on a dish, with the sauce
poured round and over the eggs.
_À la Tartuffe._--Fry lightly some bacon; when done, lay it in a
dish that will stand the fire, pour over it 2 spoonfuls strong stock
flavoured with wine, and break in carefully 5 or 6 eggs, dusting
them with pepper and salt. Let them cook over a slow fire, and pass
a heated shovel over them to set the whites. The yolks _must not
harden_.
_And Artichokes._--Strip the green leaves from 6 artichokes, and boil
the bottoms in hard water for ½ hour, boil 3 eggs for 10-12 minutes,
cut them across, and place on each artichoke half an egg, leaving the
round end uppermost; put them each on a small round of toast, which
must be cut with a round cutter, and serve on a very hot dish, with a
little good melted butter or some rich gravy.
_And Caviar._--Cut some small slices of French rolls into rounds,
lightly butter them, then spread some very fresh Russian caviar on
them, add a sprinkle of lemon juice. Now cut some hard-boiled eggs
into rounds, and lay a round on each round of French roll.
_And Mushrooms._--(_a_) 1 lb. mushrooms, 2 raw eggs, 2 hard-boiled, 3
oz. butter, 2 tablespoonfuls mushroom ketchup, 1 of vinegar, 1 onion,
a little grated nutmeg, mashed potatoes. Peel the mushrooms and put
into a rather large stewpan, with the butter, a small onion minced
fine, a little grated nutmeg, 2 tablespoonfuls mushroom ketchup, 1
of vinegar, a little salt and pepper; let them stew about 20 minutes
with the lid on, when done, add the yolks of 2 eggs to thicken the
sauce, but do not let them boil after the eggs are in, or the sauce
will curdle. Have ready some nicely mashed potatoes and 2 hard-boiled
eggs, put a wall of the potatoes round an entrée dish, pour some of
the sauce in the centre of the dish, then arrange the mushrooms piled
high in the middle of the dish, and the remainder of the sauce over,
and ornament the dish with the eggs cut in quarters or in slices, and
serve. (E. A. Robbins.)
(_b_) Put 2 oz. butter into a stewpan; break over it 4 fresh eggs;
add 1 tablespoonful chopped mushrooms, ½ teaspoonful salt, ¼ ditto
pepper. Stir this mixture over a clear fire continually with a wooden
spoon till it is of a thickish consistency, and serve very hot,
poured over hot buttered toast.
_And Olives._--4 or 5 eggs, 4 large or 6 small olives, 1 slice ham,
cooked, ½ oz. butter, a pinch of red pepper. Boil the eggs about 8
minutes, and put into cold water, as they will peel better. Pare the
olives, and mince them, also the ham. Now take the shells off the
eggs, cut a small piece off each end to make them stand. Now cut in
halves, take out the yolks carefully, and put in the mortar with the
ham and olives; pound to a smooth paste with ½ oz. butter, season
with a little red pepper, and fill the whites of the eggs. Put a
napkin on a dish, stand the half eggs on it, having smoothed over the
top, and add some strips of toast. Or they can be served without the
napkin and a little tartar sauce poured round them. The eggs should
stand up like little cups.
_And Sorrel._--Boil a number of eggs in their shells for 3-4 minutes,
then dip them into cold water, carefully remove the shells, and place
them again in hot water to make them quite hot; drain, and serve them
on the following purée with sippets of bread fried in butter round
the dish. Pick and wash a quantity of sorrel, put it into a saucepan
with a little water and some salt, when thoroughly done drain off all
the moisture and pass the sorrel through a hair sieve. Amalgamate a
piece of butter and 1 tablespoonful flour in a saucepan on the fire,
put in the sorrel and stir well for some minutes, then add pepper and
salt to taste, and the yolk of 1 egg beaten up with a little cold
stock and strained.
_And Tomatoes._--Boil some ripe tomatoes, and pulp them through a
coarse sieve. Mix this pulp with 3 or 4 eggs (according to the size
of your dish), a little very finely chopped onion (some persons like
freshly-cut garlic rubbed across the pan instead), pepper and salt,
and fry all together lightly; a little chopped ham or cold boiled
potato may be added if liked.
_Au Gratin._--(_a_) Wash, bone, and mince finely an anchovy; mince
some parsley and chives, or shallot; mix all these well with some
fine breadcrumbs, season highly with pepper and salt, and a dash of
nutmeg; place some of this mixture and a little piece of butter in
as many small cups (that will stand the fire) as you wish to cook
eggs. Set them over a clear, gentle fire, and when this gratin is
nearly done, break an egg gently into each cup. When done, pass a hot
shovel over each to set the whites, dust over them a little salt and
pepper, and serve them in their pots, very hot. Bacon minced may be
substituted for the anchovy, but then less butter will be required;
chopped mushrooms are also a good addition.
(_b_) Cut some hard-boiled eggs in slices, and lay them on a
well-buttered dish, with grated Parmesan cheese, black pepper, and
the least bit of powdered nutmeg; sprinkle some baked breadcrumbs
over all, put the dish in the oven, and serve as soon as the contents
begin to colour.
(_c_) Slices of hard-boiled eggs laid on a dish with baked
breadcrumbs, grated Parmesan cheese, pepper and salt, the least bit
of nutmeg, and some butter; put into the oven, and serve as soon as
they begin to take colour.
(_d_) Put into a dish that will bear the oven 1 tablespoonful flour,
several yolks of eggs, a little very finely chopped parsley and
shallot, some salt, pepper, and nutmeg; mix all well together, and
put them into the oven just long enough to let the mixture attach
itself to the dish. Then take it out, put a few bits of butter on
this gratin, and break on it carefully the number of eggs you desire
to cook, seasoning them with a little pepper and salt. Let them just
simmer in the oven, and serve, while the yolks are still quite soft,
with a garnish of either fried or fresh parsley. The dish which they
are cooked in should be placed on a neatly folded napkin, and must be
thus served.
_Baked._--(_a_) Melt 1 oz. butter in a pie-dish, put the dish into
the oven just to brown the butter, break 6 eggs separately into a
cup and pour them carefully into the pie-dish; bake them for about
5 minutes or until the white is set, then sift a tablespoonful of
fine breadcrumbs, which have been previously browned, over the eggs,
through a tin strainer; warm over with a salamander and serve;
garnish the dish with parsley.
(_b_) Beat up 4 eggs well, to each egg allow 2 tablespoonfuls new
milk and ½ teaspoonful finely chopped parsley, seasoning with pepper
and salt to taste. Melt some butter in an enamelled pie-dish, pour in
the mixture, and bake quickly in a hot oven.
_Bread._--1 pint sifted meal, nearly 1 pint buttermilk, 1 egg, a lump
of lard the size of a small walnut, and 1 teaspoonful salt. Just
before baking, add 1 teaspoonful soda dissolved in 2 tablespoonfuls
warm water, and add 1 teaspoonful salt. If the milk is sweet, add 2
tablespoonfuls cream of tartar.
_Buttered._--(_a_) Make a thick square of buttered toast, buttering
it well on both sides, and cutting it into 4 or 6 pieces; let it
stand before the fire to keep hot, but not sufficiently near to dry
it up. Break 3 fresh eggs into a stewpan over the fire (both yolks
and whites), having previously melted in it a piece of butter the
size of a walnut; add a little salt, and 1 tablespoonful cream or
good milk; stir it rapidly over the fire until it begins to thicken;
then take it off and beat it until quite smooth; set it on the fire
again, and keep stirring until it is very hot and thick. With a
spoon heap this lightly up on to the square of buttered toast which
has been keeping hot before the fire, making it stand as high as
possible. Serve instantly.
(_b_) Boil 2 eggs hard. Let them get cold. Chop up yolks and whites
finely, and spread them on hot buttered toast with pepper and salt to
taste.
_Curried._--(_a_) Boil 6 eggs quite hard, and when cold cut each
into 4 pieces, so that they may stand on the dish with the points
uppermost; lay aside. Fry 2 onions, shred very fine, in butter, add 1
tablespoonful powder, 2 oz. butter rolled in flour, and by degrees ½
pint veal stock; let the whole boil up for ¼ hour, then stir in very
slowly 2 tablespoonfuls cream, simmer 5 minutes; put in the eggs and
let them heat slowly for 4-5 minutes, and serve in the sauce with
boiled rice.
(_b_) Cut an onion in very thin and very small slices; fry in butter,
flour them while doing to thicken the butter; they must not burn.
Take 1 tablespoonful curry powder, or be guided by the strength of
it; place in a bowl, squeeze the juice of ½ lemon, add a pinch of
salt, 1 teacupful rich gravy or stock, ½ teacupful milk or a little
cream, stir all together well; boil some eggs hard, take off the
shells, cut them into quarters or halves, stir your curry powder that
has been mixed as before directed; let all boil together, and when
boiling take off the fire and put in the eggs; serve in a deep dish,
with snowballs of rice round. If the eggs are required to be soft,
poach them instead of boiling hard.
(_c_) Slice 1 large or 2 small onions into rounds, and fry in a good
quantity of butter until quite brown, but not in the least black;
then add 2 tablespoonfuls good gravy, well freed from grease, and,
when that has mixed nicely with the onions and butter, add 1 small
teaspoonful good curry powder; thoroughly mix this with your gravy,
&c., and avoid lumps; let all simmer gently for 10 minutes, then
put in 6 hard-boiled eggs cut in rounds, and let them cook till
thoroughly hot, serve either with rice round, or, as some like it
better, with the rice on a separate dish. Salt to taste should, of
course, be added to the above.
(_d_) Boil 6 eggs quite hard, shell them, and cut them up into thick
rounds or pieces. Pile them in the middle of a small dish, with plain
boiled rice arranged in a ring around them. Slice 2 or 3 onions,
and fry them in a little butter, add 1-2 spoonfuls curry powder to
1 dessertspoonful flour, and with ½ pint water; pour them into the
frying-pan. When the curry is made, pour over the eggs. Garnish with
slices of lemon.
(_e_) For this dish the eggs must be boiled hard, the shells removed,
and the eggs cut in halves. A good curry sauce, made after the
proper Indian fashion, should have been prepared previously, and
then heated up again, the eggs, while still hot from boiling, being
placed with the halves upright in a hot dish, with the curry poured
round, but not over them, the dish garnished with fried rice balls
nicely browned, and plain boiled rice sent to table with it, but in a
separate dish.
(_f_) Fry 2 onions in butter, with 1 tablespoonful curry powder and
1 pint good broth. Let it all stew till tender; then mix in a cup
of cream (or milk thickened with arrowroot and a dust of sugar).
Simmer a few minutes; then lay in 6-8 hard-boiled eggs, cut in half
or quarters, and heat them through, but _do not let it boil_. If
procurable, use coconut milk instead of cream. Serve with rice.