But, to my thinking, the best of all the smoked and salted fish are
the finnan haddies. And one of the best ways of cooking them is as
per that last described for cooking herring. But the haddies are much
less salt, and require little, if any, soaking. Or, if you prefer, you
can put them in a buttered baking-pan, pour cream and bread crumbs
over them and brown in a hot oven. Give them a little more cream when
serving. And again after you and your household have partaken of this
dish and pronounced it good, hard to beat, etc., you will have
occasion to be pleased with yourself, which, being interpreted, means
of course being perfectly satisfied with all the world.
* * * * *
It is possible, nay, probable, that you, mesdames, with all the calls
that the Lenten season makes upon your spiritual selves, find little
time for ordering or arranging dinners; furthermore--and it's in no
way to your discredit--it may be that with so much of each day given
over to reflection and concentrated thought you experience a sort of
disinclination to give heed to things material. Therefore it behooves
me to be alive to my duty, which in the premises certainly seems to
prescribe that I shall think and plan a bit for you; and I herewith
submit, as the result of a goodly amount of cogitation on my part, a
menu which I hope will strike you as being a very good sort of
"working model," should you not care to follow it to the letter:--
Consommé maigre with asparagus points.
Lake trout with court bouillon.
Macaroni timbales with tomato sauce.
Casserole of fillets of sole.
Oyster soufflés.
Coffee cream glacée. Almond pudding.
You see that such a menu provides a dinner perfectly within the rule
implied by "_diner maigre_," though it can in no sense be called a
fast-day dinner. In fact, the very phrase is a contradiction. If you
are fasting, you do not dine; you simply eat to live--a very different
thing.
And now for particulars. No need to tell you how to make the soup; you
have stacks of cookery books that will give you the information
necessary for the making of a good clear consommé. As for the
asparagus points, it will be quite as well from all points of view to
buy the canned asparagus tips, and cook a little in salted water,
adding them to the soup about five minutes before it is served.