which potatoes have been boiled, add a small amount of cold chicken cut
in small dice, two tablespoonfuls of boiled rice, two tablespoonfuls of
cooked green peas and one truffle cut into dice, also pepper and salt,
along with one or two whole cloves. Bring to a boil, allow to simmer for
fifteen minutes, and serve.
=Eglefin à la Maître d'Hôtel.=--Cut a cleaned haddock open at the back
on each side of the bone, dust with pepper and salt, dip in flour,
place on a gridiron over a clear fire and cook for about twenty minutes,
turning carefully from time to time. Remove from the fire, place two
ounces of butter on the back of the fish, place it in the oven to melt
the butter, then, put the fish on a hot platter and sprinkle with mince
parsley and lemon juice, the latter heated.
=Pommes de Terre, Casserole.=--Boil a pound or two of potatoes, drain
and mash and make into a stiff paste by adding butter and milk together
with a little salt. Form into a casserole, put on a dish, make an
opening in the top, brown in the oven and serve.
=Salade de Tomates et Laitue.=--Split the white leaves of lettuce into
quarters and place in a bowl. Cut tomatoes into thin slices and place
over the lettuce. Season with a sauce made of one part of vinegar, two
of oil, a little salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over just before
serving.
=Canards Sauvages, Sauce Orange.=--Roast two wild ducks over a brisk
fire, having them underdone, more or less, according to taste. Baste
all the time they are cooking with butter and the juice of lemon and
serve with the following sauce. Shred finely the rind of two oranges and
parboil in a little water. Melt an ounce of butter and stir into it a
dessertspoonful of flour moistened with a little water. Stir well over
the fire and then add the juice of the two oranges, some very clear
gravy, flavor with pepper and salt and cayenne, then add the parboiled
orange rind. Let the sauce boil and keep hot till wanted.
=Soufflé au Citron.=--Put three egg yolks and three ounces of powdered
sugar into a basin with the grated rind of a lemon and a half and stir
till quite thick. Add slowly a tablespoonful of lemon juice and then,
quickly, the well beaten whites of the three eggs. Pour into a pie dish
and bake in a medium oven for twenty minutes. When the surface is a
golden brown it is done. Serve immediately.
XXI
MENU
Filets de Carrelets, Italienne
Pommes de Terre, Loulou
Cailles Rôtis
Salade des Tomates et d'Artichauts
Vol-au-Vent, Chantilly
=Filets de Carrelets, Italienne.=--Take the fillets of two firm
flounders, trim and flour each piece lightly. Dip in egg beaten with
pepper and salt, cover on both sides with stale breadcrumbs and fry in
boiling olive oil. When the fillets are a golden brown place on a sieve
in front of the fire with a soft paper beneath them that they may drain.
Serve with fried parsley and quarters of lemon.
=Pommes de Terre, Loulou.=--Chop raw potatoes fine and place them in a
saucepan with butter and a seasoning of pepper, salt, paprika and a
trace of nutmeg. Cover and cook very slowly, agitating them constantly.
When they become soft, beat well and arrange a layer on a vegetable
dish, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, put on another layer of potatoes,
then more cheese, and so on, having the top layer of cheese. Pour over
all melted butter and bake about twenty minutes in a slow oven.
=Cailles Rôtis.=--Tie a thin slice of bacon over the breast of each
quail, roast them at a clear fire for fifteen minutes, basting
frequently. Lay them on crisp buttered toast, sprinkle with minced
parsley, salt and paprika, and serve with a rich wine jelly on a
separate dish.
=Salade des Tomates et d'Artichauts.=--Cut the under part of boiled
artichokes into slices and take the same number of slices of tomato. Dip
both into a dressing made of olive oil, vinegar, tarragon, chervil, salt
and pepper, with a little mustard and arrange in a salad bowl. Pour over
the remainder of the dressing and serve.
=Vol-au-Vent, Chantilly.=--Roll a pound of puff paste to about an eighth
of an inch in thickness and cut out about thirty rounds with a fluted
cutter, about two and a half inches in diameter. Then cut out the center
of these with a cutter about an inch across. Roll out the paste taken
from the centers and cut out more rings in the same way. Brush the rings
over with egg, place one on top of another, two by two, press together
so that they will stick, place on a baking sheet, brush over with egg
and bake in a brisk oven. When almost done sprinkle with sugar and allow
to remain in the oven till they are glazed and fully done. Remove and
place on a warmed platter and fill with any sort of cream desired, or
jam or tart marmalade.
XXII
MENU
Potage Julienne
Homard Bordelaise
Canard à la Reine
Salade à la Russe
Café Bavaroise
=Potage Julienne.=--Cut carrots, onions, leeks and turnips into thin
slices or strips of equal size with a head of celery. Put all into two
ounces of butter melted in a saucepan and toss over a slow fire for a
few minutes. If desired other vegetables in season such as cauliflower,
peas or asparagus may be added. Pour clear chicken broth over the
vegetables, put in some pieces of cold chicken, allow to come to a boil,
then simmer till the vegetables are tender and pour the whole into the
tureen with sippets of toast.
=Homard Bordelaise.=--Cut a small carrot and an onion into fine pieces
and boil for five minutes in a wineglassful of red wine. Now add the
meat from two lobsters, cut in small pieces, say, about a pound and a
half. Season with a very little pepper, salt, and a trace of nutmeg,
adding, just before the lobster is cooked, about half a pint of velouté
sauce. Stew well together and serve at once.
=Canard à la Reine.=--Cut off one wing of a duck and half the breast
from the same side, remove the skin, take out the bone and fill the
place with quenelle forcemeat. Lard the breast and put it into a
braising pan over slices of leeks, carrots and onions and a little
thyme, chervil, bayleaves and lemon peel. Add sufficient stock to
prevent burning, set the pan on the fire and braise the duck, then glaze
it. Serve with a purée of beans for garnish.
=Salade à la Russe.=--Cut cold chicken and salmon into thin slices,
arrange in a salad dish and mix with finely cut cooked asparagus heads,
carrots and cauliflower, a few capers and a little caviare. The dressing
is made with three parts of oil and one of vinegar, a little mustard and
cayenne pepper and a tablespoonful of minced onion. Pour over the salad
and stand on the ice till served.
=Café Bavaroise.=--Grind half a pound of green coffee, roast in a sugar
boiler without burning it or even browning and soak a quart of milk with
it for about an hour. Now stir into a cupful of flour a teaspoonful of
castor sugar into which has been dropped a little vanilla extract, and a
little salt. Stir this all in with the strained coffee-flavored milk,
bring to a boil, remove from the fire and stir in the yolks, then the
whites of three eggs, all beaten firm. Fill paper cases with the
mixture, bake, sprinkle castor sugar over the tops and serve at once.
XXIII
MENU
Huitres à l'Américaine
Boeuf à l'Aurore
Pommes de Terre, Lyonnaise
Salade Française
Crème à la Russe
=Huitres à l'Américaine.=--Place in a sauce bowl a heaped teaspoonful of
salt, three-quarters of a teaspoonful of white pepper, a medium sized
onion, chopped, and a teaspoonful of minced parsley. Mix lightly
together along with a teaspoonful of olive oil, six drops of tobasco
sauce, a little Worcestershire sauce and a gill of vinegar. Put a
teaspoonful of this mixture on each raw oyster just before taking to the
table.
=Boeuf à l'Aurore.=--Season two steaks of about three-quarters of a pound
each (any ordinary cut will do) with salt and pepper, baste on either
side with a little oil and broil over a brisk fire for six minutes.
Place on a hot dish and serve with the following sauce poured over: Mix
in a saucepan a small glass of mushroom liquor with half a pint of
bechamel sauce, half an ounce of butter and two or three tablespoonfuls
of tomato sauce. Place on the fire, stir for ten minutes and just before
removing add whole mushrooms cut in squares.
=Salade Française.=--Chop fine a bunch of parsley, two small onions and
six anchovies. Lay them in a bowl and mix with salt and mustard to
taste, two tablespoonfuls of salad oil and a gill of vinegar. Stir all
well together and then add, one at a time, some very thin strips of cold
roasted or boiled meat, not more than three or four inches long. Shake
the slices well in the dressing. Cover the bowl closely and allow to
stand for at least three hours. Serve garnished with parsley.
=Pommes de Terre, Lyonnaise.=--Cut into round slices eight boiled
potatoes, lay them in a frying pan with an ounce and a half of butter
and the slices of a partly cooked onion. Season with salt and pepper and
cook till the potatoes become well browned, tossing all the while. Serve
with chopped parsley sprinkled over.
=Crème à la Russe.=--Put into a saucepan a pint of milk, half a pound of
lump sugar, the grated rind of two lemons and an ounce of gelatine,
previously soaked in water. Cook till the sugar dissolves over a slow
fire, then allow the mixture to cool somewhat before stirring in the
yolks of two eggs, unbeaten. Place on the fire to curdle. Strain, and
when cool add the juice of the two lemons and the whites of the eggs
beaten stiffly. Stir all well together and pour into a wet mould. Turn
out when well set.
XXIV
MENU
Potage Napolitaine
Truites à la Monbarry
Croquettes de Pommes de Terre
Celeri-rave en Salade
Pouding aux Figues
=Potage Napolitaine.=--Boil in strong bouillon small forcemeat balls
made of any left-over game or meat. Then soak croutons in the same
bouillon. Add the forcemeat balls and serve.
=Truites à la Monbarry.=--Prepare several trout and lay them in a pan
with a quarter pound of butter and some strong spices. Allow to heat
slowly in an open oven and when the butter is entirely melted, drop on
the trout two well beaten yolks of eggs. Grate cheese over this and
cover all with a quantity of fine breadcrumbs. Brown lightly in a hot
oven and serve.
=Croquettes de Pommes de Terre.=--Boil and drain about two and a half
pounds of potatoes. Add a generous quantity of butter, yolks of two
eggs, salt and pepper and the white of the eggs beaten to a snow. Beat
the whole up briskly, shape the mixture into balls and fry in a pan.
=Celeri-rave en Salade.=--Trim carefully a bunch of celery, leaving on
as much of the root as possible. Cut in half and boil in salted water
till tender. Then trim into even sticks and season it very piquantly
with French mustard, a few young onions, pepper, salt and finely chopped
parsley. Garnish with lettuce-leaves and slices of beet.
=Pouding aux Figues.=--Mix in a large bowl a cupful of breadcrumbs, half
a cup of farina, a pinch of salt, a cup of suet, cut fine, a cup of
powdered sugar, a minced carrot and a cup and a half of chopped figs.
Grease a baking mould, line it with whole figs, and empty the mixture
into it. Cook for four hours, the pan standing in water. Serve hot with
a rum sauce.
LET US EAT FISH
A FAMOUS FRENCH LUNCHEON À L'AMÉRICAINE
Only in the Latin countries has fish as an edible ever been fully
appreciated and, as is the case with most other things gastronomic, it
is in France that the food possibilities of the denizens of the water
have been brought nearest perfection.
Over here we have always seemed to regard fish as useful chiefly for
stocking aquariums or for furnishing sport for the vacationist, along
with golf, tennis and bowling. True, we have become rather well
acquainted with certain sea foods, the oysters, Blue Points and Cape
Cods; we have a nodding acquaintance with some of the clam clan,
especially the Rhode Island branch, and the Little Necks, the blue
bloods of the family. And, of course, we are familiar with the
crustaceans, the lobsters and the crabs.
And we know, too, certain succulent sea delicacies that come to us from
Palm Beach shores and California and Oregon regions, tuna and halibut,
bluefish and salmon as it comes to us variously prepared for the table.
In short, we Americans are fairly friendly with a number of the
aristocrats of the water, but on analyzing the situation we come to
realize that as for knowing the "finny tribe" as a whole well enough to
get complete gastronomic joy out of the situation, it remains that it is
only the French people who are so blessed.
Time and the hour and the high price of meat, however, render it
advisable, even absolutely necessary, that we work _all_ our resources
instead of only a part of them, to economize whenever and wherever we
can, and the waters in our midst and around us are surely one of the
most important resources not already worked to the limit.
Therefore, let us eat fish--but first let us learn of the French about
fish, even as we have learned of them concerning other foods, or as we
have learned fashions, for, verily, the turning out of a proper fish
dish for the table has ever been regarded by the French as no less an
art than the creation of a beautiful frock in one of their ateliers.
Moreover, their ways with fish are so broadly inclusive that one may
make up an entire menu from one end to the other, with only a cup of
coffee needed as a final fillip to make a perfect meal--and all of fish.
By way of furnishing inspiration to our own appetites, herewith is a
suggestion for a fish luncheon, a favorite menu of France, which its
wealth and fashion delighted to have set before it in those good old
days before the war. Substitutes are given for any fish not indigenous
to American waters; otherwise it is just as it would be served at one of
the Riviera restaurants, with the exception, of course, that on the
Riviera or at any of the noted marine restaurants, the visitor himself
was permitted to select the fish for each course from among the
different specimens swimming in the reserves, altogether unconscious of
impending fate.
No French restauranteur worthy the name ever kept dead fish in stock,
for nothing deteriorates so quickly. There is rarely over here the
natural reserve that the Riviera takes as a matter of course, although
there is, in some restaurants, the tank of running water in which the
fish are kept in condition till required.
AN ALL FISH LUNCHEON
MENU
=Hors d'OEuvres.= =Little Necks or Blue Points.=
(At Monte Carlo one would be served Clovisses.)
=Lobster with Sauce Piquante.=
(A substitute for the French langouste, which is similar to a giant
lobster minus the two long nippers. Or there might be served abroad
for this course a little gelatinous fellow called supion, or
sea-hedgehog, or perhaps nonnots, smaller and more delicate than our
own whitefish.)
=French Sardines Grilled, or Shad Planked.=
(Shad is a most satisfactory substitute for the French
restauranteur's delight--loup de mer.)
=Flounder, Sauce Meunière, or Shrimps.=
(In Dieppe sole and certain crevettes are both specialties and are
served at this juncture, but little sole is being received here and
our own flounder answers requirements admirably. Shrimps, too, will
please an American palate fully as well as the crevettes.)
=Bouillabaisse.=
(This, for which we have no nearer synonym than fish stew, which is
a libel, is the pièce de résistance of the luncheon. It is probably
the most famous fish dish of France.)
=Salade de Poisson with Aioli.=
(Aioli is a Mediterranean mayonnaise and "the dressing," the French
say, "is the soul of the salad.")
It will be noted that there is no dessert given with the above menu, but
the repast may be gracefully topped off with crackers and cheese and
café noir. Tea is never served with fish, as the tannin is said to
render fish particularly indigestible.
TO PREPARE THE LUNCHEON
The French disdain the pepper, horseradish and tomato mixtures with
which we are wont to dress raw oysters, preferring to get the full
coppery taste peculiar to their home product, but the American oyster,
even these artists of the culinary department agree, requires a dressing
to bring out the flavor. As for the clovisse, which is, by the way,
first cousin to our clam, it is eaten from the shell, each clovisse
being opened immediately before being disposed of.
Lobster as here served to take the place of the French langouste, tastes
much like deviled lobster. The sauce piquante is made as follows: Into a
saucepan put a tablespoonful of finely chopped onion with a little salt,
grated nutmeg, black pepper and an ounce of butter. When this melts and
blends add a little chopped red pepper along with three tablespoonfuls
of vinegar and a teaspoonful of mustard. Stir together well, then mix in
half an ounce of flour and half a pint of fish stock. Simmer for half an
hour, skimming occasionally and, finally add a chopped pickled gherkin.
=Sauce Meunière=, served with the sole, or, in this case with the
flounder, is made by adding a few shrimps and mussels, minced, to a pint
of white wine in a saucepan, along with a cupful of minced mushrooms, a
teaspoonful of butter, salt and pepper and three or four cloves. Simmer
for twenty minutes and pour over the fish just before serving.
=Salade de Poisson, Aioli=, is made by taking any cold fish, say salmon,
with this menu. It is flaked and marinaded in oil and vinegar seasoned
well with pepper and salt. Allow to remain for an hour or so, then
remove and arrange compactly in a salad bowl. The aioli, the
Mediterranean delicacy with which it is served, is made by whipping two
eggs, four teaspoonfuls of olive oil, a half teaspoonful of French
mustard and a half cupful of cream together till stiff, in a bowl rubbed
with garlic. Heap this on the center of the fish.
As for the =Bouillabaisse=, it is like our own Welsh Rabbit in so far as
hardly any two persons make it alike. Here are two recipes which
gastronomic authorities have accorded the meed of highest praise:
No. 1.--Cut into pieces and remove the bones from three pounds of fish;
say one pound each of cod, halibut and bluefish, though any fish of like
nature will do. To these add the cooked meat of one lobster or two
crabs, and six shrimps and put all into a casserole in half a pint or
more of olive oil to cook, adding one lemon, sliced, two tomatoes, one
onion, one sliced carrot, a bunch of saffron, a bunch of parsley, a
bayleaf and a clove of garlic--or have the casserole rubbed with the
garlic. Cook for ten minutes, stirring frequently, then add one cup of
soup stock and a glass of wine or cider. Cook for fifteen minutes
longer, remove to a hot bowl, line the casserole with slices of toast,
and pour back the bouillabaisse. Serve at once.
No. 2.--Place the pieces of fish to any desired amount in a large
saucepan, add two or three sliced onions, one or two sliced carrots,
three shallots, two cloves of garlic, a bunch of thyme and parsley,
three or four cloves, two bayleaves, half a teaspoonful of capsicum, a
wine-glass of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Pour over the
above mixture two quarts of water and boil gently for half an hour, the
pan covered. Drain and lay on a hot dish. Then mix a teaspoonful of
saffron in the liquid, pass through a strainer into a soup tureen. Serve
the soup with the fish and a plate of croutons of fried bread or sippets
of toast.
FISH À LA MARSEILLES
The French have another fish dish which, like bouillabaisse, is
practically a meal in itself and which in these days should be better
known to the American table. It is a specialty in the vicinity of
Marseilles and made there, of course, with fish peculiar to the home
waters, but M. Auguste Gay, Chef of the Yale Club, New York, who,
incidentally, has probably given more attention to the adaptation of
French cookery to American requirements than any other chef, is
authority for the statement that the following recipe produces an almost
perfect substitute for the French dish:
Chop into fine bits a small sweet Chile pepper and toss it about in a
saucepan over the fire with a third of a cupful of olive oil or butter.
When hot add a cupful of okra and the same amount of stewed fresh or
canned tomatoes. Cook fifteen minutes and add a full cupful of cooked
fresh fish--cod, haddock, etc., and a half cupful of flaked salt fish,
mackerel, for instance. Cover and cook for twenty minutes longer and
serve with water crackers.
GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
One secret of the French cook's superiority to the American in preparing
fish is that the former has almost a congenital knowledge of his
subject. To him all fish is not just fish. He differentiates sharply as
to species, tempering his treatment to varied requirements.
Roughly, there are two classes of fish: those which have dark flesh or
flesh with a pinkish tone which is streaked with fat, and those which
have white, firm flesh and are the more digestible. Best known in the
first class are shad, butterfish, bluefish, salmon, mackerel and
sturgeon, and in the second, cod, halibut, flounder, trout, rock and sea
bass, pompano, weakfish and perch.
One matter-of-course rule is that no fish of whatever kind shall be
allowed to enter the kitchen unless it is perfectly fresh. To be sure
of this see that the gills are bright and shining and the flesh firm,
not readily separating from the bones. That settled, you have an almost
endless choice of ways of cooking.
Fish may be boiled, broiled, fried, baked, planked, creamed, steamed,
cooked en casserole, jellied or pickled, but of all these ways none
produces quite the universally satisfactory results with a sizable fish
that planking does, and planking is not more difficult or expensive than
other methods.
All that is required in the way of accoutrements is a half-inch-thick
hardwood board which is heated in advance in the oven when planked fish
is to figure on the menu. Then having thoroughly cleaned the fish,
removed its head and tail, split it up the back half through the bone so
that it will open out flat, brush it with butter and season with pepper
and salt, place it skin-side down on the board.
Put it in the oven and when it is done, which can be easily ascertained
by lifting a bit of the flesh, you, being American, may garnish the
board with mashed and seasoned potatoes, set the board back in the oven
till the potatoes are browned and serve. The French, on taking the
cooked fish from the oven, merely brush it with a little oil or melted
butter, squeeze some lemon juice over, sprinkle a few bits of parsley
about, and send the fish thus to the table.
Small fish, such as perch, smelts, etc., are best fried in deep fat or
its substitute, first being dipped in egg and rolled in fine cracker or
breadcrumbs, then served with a Sauce Mousseline, mashed potatoes or
boiled new ones, and a crisp salad.
This Sauce Mousseline is made by beating two eggs in a saucepan, adding
a cupful of top milk, butter the size of a walnut and pepper and salt,
then stirring over the fire till it begins to thicken. When of the
proper consistency, add a tablespoonful of lemon juice and it is ready
for the table.
A tart sauce for boiled fish that is much favored in the south of France
but which, if it has ever crossed the water, has kept its arrival very
quiet, is quite simply made and will be much liked as a decided change.
To make it dissolve a tablespoonful of powdered mustard in a half cupful
of fish stock and add two tablespoonfuls of white wine vinegar by
preference, though other vinegar will do. Let this come to a boil, add
two or three slices of lemon and boil a few minutes longer. Take from
the fire and add two eggs that have been beaten with a teaspoonful of
water. Season with salt and pepper and heat again but do not allow to
boil.
[ Transcriber's Note:
The following is a list of corrections made to the original. The first
line is the original line, the second the corrected one.
vinegars, Worchestershire and many another flavoring designed to give a
vinegars, Worcestershire and many another flavoring designed to give a
left of the morn ng cereal except to the advantage of some later made
left of the morning cereal except to the advantage of some later made
over a moderate fire and add to it chopped parsely and chives, or
over a moderate fire and add to it chopped parsley and chives, or
a boil and mix in two or three tablespoonsfuls of grated Parmesan cheese.
a boil and mix in two or three tablespoonfuls of grated Parmesan cheese.
fish, cover in the kettle with cold water and, plenty of salt. Bring
fish, cover in the kettle with cold water and plenty of salt. Bring