ICED CURRANTS.
ICED BOUILLON. WATER-CRESS SANDWICHES.
COLD SALMON. SAUCE TARTARE.
TONGUE IN ASPIC.
TOMATOES WITH FRENCH DRESSING.
RASPBERRY SHRUB.
PINEAPPLE SALAD. CHEESE CRACKERS.
ICE CREAM IN DRUMS. CAKES. BONBONS.
The currants are to be crushed with a silver fork, sweetened, and put on
the ice; just before serving they are put in glass cups and a spoonful
of crushed ice put on top. The bouillon is prepared the day before it is
needed, and packed in ice and salt for an hour before the luncheon. The
sandwiches passed with this are made by spreading very thin bread and
butter with chopped water-cress, rolling and tying them, and then
inserting a sprig of the cress at either end; it is not absolutely
necessary to tie them, but they keep their shape far better if it is
done.
Choose a large smoked tongue, and two days before the luncheon boil it
until tender, skin it, and lay it in a long narrow pan. Make a bouillon
of beef extract, season it highly with red pepper, salt, and lemon
juice, and herbs; simmer these together for a few minutes, then add
sufficient dissolved gelatine to set the quantity you will need, and
strain the whole over the tongue, a little more than covering it. Put
this on the ice, and the next day you will have what our grandmothers
used to call "a sightly dish." It is to be put whole on the table, and
sliced with a very sharp knife. The tomatoes served with this are to be
on the same plate, not treated as a salad.
[Illustration: ICES SERVED IN DRUMS.]
The pineapple is to be picked up in rather large bits and placed on
lettuce with mayonnaise. The ice cream is to be put into little paper
drums, which may be had at the confectioner's or possibly the toy
store; if, however, they are not to be had in the country, the cream may
be put in meringue shells and tied with ribbons.
The raspberry shrub may be served all through the meal, or made a
separate course instead of a sherbet. It is to be made some days before
it is needed; this is a simple and excellent rule: Put two and a half
ounces of tartaric acid into a quart of water, and pour over six quarts
of red raspberries. After two days stir and strain; add to each pint of
juice a pound and a half of powdered sugar, stir till dissolved, let it
stand four days, and then bottle. If this is too much trouble to
prepare, serve lemonade coloured with raspberry juice, and if you wish
to have it very nice, use vichy instead of water in making the lemonade.
A fruit sherbet may be introduced if the drink is served all through the
meal. For a hot day in summer it is a mistake to have the noon meal too
long or too heavy, so in this menu the usual pate or croquette is
omitted.
[Illustration]