Chapter 2

Put a bay-leaf and a chopped onion in two tablespoonfuls of tarragon vinegar, bring to the [Page 26] boiling point, strain and cool. Cook together two tablespoonfuls of butter and one of flour, add a half cupful of cold water, and cook until thick, stirring constantly. Take from the fire and add the yolks of two eggs beaten with the vinegar. Reheat for a moment, seasoning with salt and pepper, strain, and serve immediately. Lemon-juice may be used in place of the vinegar.

HORSERADISH SAUCE--I

Add half a cupful of freshly grated horseradish to a cupful of Drawn-Butter Sauce. Season with lemon-juice and beat until smooth.

HORSERADISH SAUCE--II

Prepare a Cream Sauce according to directions previously given, and add three tablespoonfuls of freshly grated horseradish and half a cupful of melted butter. Serve with boiled fish.

HORSERADISH SAUCE--III

To one cupful of Spanish Sauce add two tablespoonfuls of prepared horseradish, two tablespoonfuls of bread-crumbs, a teaspoonful of powdered sugar, and salt, pepper, and made mustard to season. [Page 27] Heat in a double-boiler, and just before serving add one-half cupful of whipped or cold cream. (Cow cream, not cosmetic.)

ITALIAN SAUCE

Fry in butter two tablespoonfuls of minced parsley and one tablespoonful of chopped mushrooms and shallots. Add two cupfuls of white wine and boil until reduced half. Add one cupful of Veloute Sauce and one half cupful of stock. Boil until thick, skim, and serve.

BROWN ITALIAN SAUCE

Fry in olive-oil half a cupful of chopped mushrooms, four chopped shallots, a sprig of thyme, and a bay-leaf. Add half a cupful of white wine and simmer until the liquid is reduced half. Take out the thyme and bay-leaf, add a cupful of Spanish Sauce, skim, boil, and serve.

JAPANESE SAUCE

Chop fine a shallot and two cloves of garlic. Add two tablespoonfuls each of walnut catsup, soy, and Worcestershire sauce. Season highly with paprika, add two cupfuls of tarragon vinegar, and let stand for two weeks. Strain, and serve with fish.

[Page 28] JERSEY SAUCE

Brown four tablespoonfuls of flour in butter, add two cupfuls of brown stock and cook until thick, stirring constantly. Season with salt, pepper, and Worcestershire.

LEMON SAUCE--I

Melt half a cupful of butter and add to it the juice of a large lemon. When very hot take from the fire and pour over the well-beaten yolks of two eggs.

LEMON SAUCE--II

Prepare a pint of Drawn-Butter Sauce according to directions previously given, season with salt, pepper, grated nutmeg, and lemon-juice, and add half a cupful of melted butter.

LIVOURNAISE SAUCE

Soak, bone, and pound to a pulp eight salted anchovies. Add the yolks of two eggs, well beaten. Add slowly half a cupful of olive-oil and two tablespoonfuls of vinegar. Season with pepper, grated nutmeg, and minced parsley. Serve very cold.

LOBSTER SAUCE--I

Add half a cupful of chopped cooked lobster [Page 29] meat and the pounded coral to each cupful of Drawn-Butter Sauce. Season with paprika, butter, and lemon-juice.

LOBSTER SAUCE--II

Prepare a Hollandaise Sauce and mix with finely-cut cooked lobster meat. Season with melted butter, lemon-juice, tabasco, and Worcestershire.

MAÎTRE D'HÔTEL SAUCE

Work into half a cupful of butter all the lemon-juice it will take and add a teaspoonful or more of minced parsley. Or, melt the butter without burning, take from the fire, add the juice of half a lemon and a teaspoonful of minced parsley.

MAYONNAISE

Put into an earthen bowl the yolk of a fresh egg and a pinch of salt, a dash of red pepper, and half a teaspoonful of dry mustard. Place the bowl on ice or in ice-water. Pour one cupful of olive-oil into a small pitcher from which it will drop easily. When the egg and seasoning are thoroughly mixed, begin to add the oil, using a silver teaspoon, and rubbing rather than stirring. Add the oil until a clear spot is formed upon the egg, and then mix [Page 30] until smooth. Only a few drops can be added at first, but the quantity may be gradually increased. The clear spot on the egg is an infallible test of the right quantity of oil. If too much oil is added the dressing will curdle. A few drops of lemon-juice and long beating will usually make it right again. If this fails, set the bowl directly on the ice in the refrigerator, and let stand for half an hour. If it is still curdled, begin again with the yolk of another egg and add the curdled mayonnaise by degrees to the new dressing.

When the mayonnaise is so thick that it is difficult to stir it, add the juice of half a lemon, if desired.

MILANAISE SAUCE

Melt two tablespoonfuls of butter, add two chopped mushrooms and two boned and pounded anchovies. Add two tablespoonfuls of flour and cook until the flour is brown. Add one cupful of brown stock and one tablespoonful each of sherry and vinegar drained from capers. Cook until thick, stirring constantly, seasoning with salt, cayenne, and made mustard. Simmer for twenty minutes, strain, add one tablespoonful of capers, boil for five minutes, and serve.

MUSHROOM SAUCE

Prepare a Drawn-Butter Sauce according to [Page 31] directions previously given and add to it one cupful of chopped cooked mushrooms.

NIÇOISE SAUCE

Rub through a fine sieve the yolks of three hard-boiled eggs. Put into a deep bowl, with two raw yolks, a tablespoonful of made mustard, and salt and pepper to season. Add gradually half a cupful of olive-oil and a little vinegar, finishing with two tablespoonfuls of minced fine herbs.

NONPAREIL SAUCE

Add chopped hard-boiled eggs and chopped cooked mushrooms to Hollandaise Sauce.

NORMANDY SAUCE

Add one tablespoonful of mushroom catsup to one pint of Veloute Sauce and cook for ten minutes. Add one fourth cupful of strong fish stock, bring to the boil, take from the fire and add the yolks of two eggs beaten with the juice of half a lemon. Strain, add a tablespoonful of butter, and serve.

OLIVE SAUCE

Prepare according to directions given for Jersey Sauce, adding half a dozen chopped olives instead of the Worcestershire.

[Page 32] OYSTER SAUCE--I

Prepare a Cream Sauce according to directions previously given, using the oyster liquor for part of the liquid. Add parboiled oysters cut fine, and season with paprika and lemon-juice.

OYSTER SAUCE--II

Cook two dozen oysters in their liquor with a little water, butter, white and red pepper, and grated nutmeg. Thicken with a tablespoonful each of butter and flour cooked together, take from the fire, add the yolks of two eggs well beaten, the juice of a lemon, and two tablespoonfuls of butter. Serve with boiled fish.

PARSLEY SAUCE--I

Prepare a Drawn-Butter Sauce according to directions previously given, add half a cupful of fine minced parsley, and season with lemon-juice.

PARSLEY SAUCE--II

Boil two large bunches of parsley in water to cover for five minutes. Strain the water, and thicken with a tablespoonful each of butter and flour cooked together. Season with salt, [Page 33] pepper, and grated nutmeg, take from the fire, add the yolks of two eggs beaten with a little vinegar, three tablespoonfuls of butter in small bits, and a little minced parsley.

PARSLEY AND LEMON SAUCE

Squeeze the juice out of a lemon, remove the seeds, and chop the pulp fine with a bunch of parsley. Add a little of the grated peel. Cook together one tablespoonful each of butter and flour, add the parsley and lemon and one and one half cupfuls of stock. Season with salt, pepper, and powdered mace, and boil for ten minutes. Take from the fire, add the yolks of two eggs beaten with a little cold stock, and serve.

PERSILLADE SAUCE

Put into a bowl one fourth cupful of olive-oil with a tablespoonful of made mustard, the juice of two lemons, two tablespoonfuls of minced parsley, and salt and pepper to season. Add a few drops of tarragon vinegar, mix thoroughly, and serve.

PIQUANT SAUCE--I

Cook together a teaspoonful of chopped onion, a pinch of sugar, a few drops of Worcestershire sauce, and one tablespoonful each [Page 34] of chopped capers and pickles, with two tablespoonfuls of tarragon vinegar, and salt and cayenne to season. Prepare a Spanish Sauce and add the mixture to it.

PIQUANT SAUCE--II

Mix together half a cupful of beef stock, two tablespoonfuls of tarragon vinegar, two tablespoonfuls of chopped pickle, one tablespoonful each of chopped onion, capers, and parsley, a teaspoonful each of sugar and salt, and paprika to season.

POOR MAN'S SAUCE

Brown a tablespoonful of flour in butter, add two cupfuls of stock, and cook until thick, stirring constantly. Add two tablespoonfuls of tomato catsup and one of anchovy essence. Strain and serve.

PORTUGUESE SAUCE

Put six tablespoonfuls of butter into a saucepan with the yolks of two eggs beaten with the juice of half a lemon. Season with salt and pepper and heat thoroughly but do not boil. Take from the fire, stir until thick, and serve immediately.

POULETTE SAUCE

Simmer for ten minutes a pint of White [Page 35] Sauce, seasoning with salt, pepper, and lemon-juice. Beat the yolks of three eggs light and pour the hot sauce over them slowly. Cook for two minutes in a double boiler, and serve immediately.

RAVIGOTE SAUCE

Put one cupful of stock into a saucepan with two tablespoonfuls of white wine and three tablespoonfuls of chopped chives and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for twenty minutes. Thicken with one tablespoonful each of butter and flour cooked together. Take from the fire, add the juice of half a lemon, and serve.

COLD RAVIGOTE SAUCE

Chop together a tablespoonful each of parsley, chives, chervil, tarragon, and shallot. Add to a stiff mayonnaise and tint green, if desired, with color paste.

REMOULADE SAUCE

Mix two tablespoonfuls each of capers and minced anchovies, add a tablespoonful of minced parsley, a teaspoonful of dry mustard, and salt and pepper to taste. Add one half bean of garlic, chopped very fine, and enough olive-oil to make a smooth paste. Add a few drops of vinegar and serve.

[Page 36] ROYALE SAUCE

Cook together half a cupful of butter and the beaten yolks of three eggs until the yolks begin to thicken. Take from the fire and add by degrees two tablespoonfuls of tarragon vinegar, two tablespoonfuls of Indian soy, one finely chopped small pickle, and cayenne and salt to season. Mix thoroughly and cool. Serve cold.

SARDINE SAUCE

Add skinned, boned, and mashed sardines to Mayonnaise. Beat until smooth and serve with cold fish.

SHAD ROE SAUCE

Boil, drain, skin, and mash a shad roe. Season with salt, pepper, grated onion, and powdered mace. Add half a cupful of Madeira and half a cupful or more of melted butter. Serve with shad or any other fish.

SHRIMP SAUCE

Add one cupful of chopped cooked shrimps to each pint of White Sauce. Season with lemon-juice, paprika, and tabasco sauce.

SICILIAN SAUCE

Slice four onions, fry brown and drain carefully. [Page 37] Put into a saucepan with two cupfuls of Espagnole Sauce, a wineglassful of sherry, and a pinch of cayenne pepper. Reheat, strain, and serve.

SPANISH SAUCE

Prepare according to directions given for Brown Sauce, using one cupful of highly seasoned stock for liquid.

SUPREME SAUCE

Prepare according to directions given for Drawn-Butter Sauce, using chicken stock and a little cream for liquid. Take from the fire, and add two tablespoonfuls of butter and the juice of half a lemon.

TARTAR SAUCE--I

Chop together capers, olives, parsley, and pickles. Add one half cupful of the mixture to a cupful of Mayonnaise.

TARTAR SAUCE--II

Mix together one tablespoonful each of vinegar and Worcestershire sauce, add a teaspoonful of lemon-juice and a pinch of salt. Brown half a cupful of butter and strain into the hot vinegar. Serve hot.

[Page 38] TARTAR SAUCE--III

Prepare a cupful of Drawn-Butter Sauce and add to it a teaspoonful each of made mustard, grated onion, and chopped pickle. Take from the fire, season with salt and cayenne, add the beaten yolk of an egg, and serve.

TOMATO SAUCE--I

Prepare according to directions given for Drawn-Butter Sauce, using tomato-juice or stewed and strained canned tomatoes for liquid.

TOMATO SAUCE--II

Chop together capers, pickles, onion, and olives. There should be half a cupful in all. Add one half cupful of stewed and strained tomatoes, a teaspoonful each of made mustard and sugar, and salt and cayenne to season highly. Serve very hot.

TOMATO SAUCE--III

Chop fine an onion and a clove of garlic. Fry in butter and add half a can of stewed and strained tomatoes. Thicken with butter and flour cooked together, season with salt and pepper and serve.

[Page 39] BROWN TOMATO SAUCE

Fry a tablespoonful of chopped onion in butter, add one tablespoonful of flour and one half cupful each of stock and stewed and strained tomato. Cook until thick, stirring constantly. Season with salt, pepper, and kitchen bouquet. Strain and serve.

VELOUTE SAUCE

Cook together three tablespoonfuls each of butter and flour, add one cupful of white stock and one quarter cupful of cream. Cook until thick, stirring constantly. Season with salt, cayenne, grated nutmeg, and minced parsley. Simmer for an hour, strain, and serve.

VENETIENNE SAUCE--I

Cook together for five minutes two tablespoonfuls of tarragon vinegar, six pepper-corns, a tablespoonful of chopped ham, six parsley roots, a sprig of thyme and a bay-leaf. Strain, and add to one cupful of Veloute Sauce. Reheat, add a teaspoonful of minced parsley and serve.

VENETIENNE SAUCE--II

Add minced parsley, tarragon vinegar, [Page 40] grated nutmeg, and a tablespoonful of butter to Allemande Sauce.

VINAIGRETTE SAUCE

Mix four tablespoonfuls of olive-oil with one tablespoonful of vinegar. Season with salt and paprika and add to it minced parsley, pickle, and capers.

WHIPPED CREAM SAUCE

Mix a teaspoonful of dry mustard with a tablespoonful of vinegar and two tablespoonfuls of freshly grated horseradish. Mix with one fourth cupful of Mayonnaise, and when smooth fold in carefully one cupful of whipped cream. Season with salt and red pepper and serve very cold with cold fish.

WHITE SAUCE

Cook together two tablespoonfuls each of butter and flour, add one cupful of white stock and one half cupful of cream. Cook until thick, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper. One and one half cupfuls of milk may be used instead of the stock and cream.

[Page 41] TEN WAYS TO SERVE ANCHOVIES

I

Clean, bone, and trim the fish. Arrange on a dish, alternating with quarters of hard-boiled eggs. Moisten with olive-oil, sprinkle with parsley, and serve with toasted crackers.

II

Split the anchovies, wash in white wine, and bone them. Make a paste with the yolks of eggs, equal parts of minced cooked fish, and bread-crumbs. Stuff the anchovies, dip into batter, and fry in deep fat.

III

Pound the fish in a mortar, seasoning with minced parsley, grated onion, and cayenne. Serve on small circles of fried bread, as a first course at dinner.

IV

Drain a bottle of anchovies and mash fine with enough butter to make a smooth paste. Season with lemon-juice and cayenne. Spread [Page 42] on fingers of toast and lay a whole anchovy on each piece.

V

Wash eight salted anchovies, remove the skin and bones, and soak in clear water for an hour. Drain and wipe dry. Arrange on lettuce leaves with sliced hard-boiled eggs and pour over a French dressing.

VI

Toast circles of bread, spread with butter, cover with chopped hard-boiled eggs, make a hollow in the egg, lay an anchovy upon it, and set into a hot oven for five minutes.

VII

Toast thin circles of graham bread, butter, and cover each piece with anchovies. Sprinkle with lemon-juice and paprika and put into hot oven for five minutes.

VIII

Clean and rinse the fish and dry on a cloth. Butter a small baking-dish, put in a layer of cracker crumbs, then a layer of anchovies, then sugar and crumbs. Repeat until the dish is full, having crumbs and butter on top. Beat the yolks of two eggs with half a cupful [Page 43] of cream and a little sugar. Pour over the fish and bake in the oven.

IX

Use salted Norwegian anchovies soaked for two hours in cold water. Split down the back, bone and skin, cut into strips, and arrange on a platter. Mince separately parsley, capers, boiled carrots, beets, and the whites and yolks of hard-boiled eggs. Arrange small piles of contrasting colors among the fish and pour over a French dressing.

X

Fry thin circles of bread, put a pimola in the centre, and curl an anchovy around it. Fill the remaining space with chopped hard-boiled eggs and serve as a first course at dinner or luncheon.

[Page 45] FORTY-FIVE WAYS TO COOK BASS

BAKED BASS--I

Scale, wash, and clean, leaving the head intact. Make a stuffing of two cupfuls of bread-crumbs, one cupful of butter, two eggs well beaten, and enough cold water to make a smooth paste. Season with pepper, salt, grated lemon, minced parsley, thyme, and marjoram. Split the fish, stuff, and sew up. Lay thin slices of salt pork over the fish and put into a baking-pan with a little boiling water seasoned with wine and tomato juice. Bake carefully, basting frequently. The gravy may be thickened and served with the fish.

BAKED BASS--II

Split the fish and stuff with seasoned mashed potatoes. Put a little boiling water and a tablespoonful of butter into the baking-pan, and baste frequently while cooking.

BAKED BASS--III

Rub the inside of the fish with salt, sprinkle [Page 46] the outside with pepper and salt, cover with sliced onion and salt pork. Dredge with flour and put into the baking-pan with sufficient boiling water to keep from burning. Baste frequently while cooking, remove the pork and onion, thicken the sauce with a tablespoonful each of butter and flour blended and mixed with a little tomato catsup. Pour the hot sauce over the fish and serve.

BAKED BASS--IV

Make a stuffing of one cupful of bread-crumbs, one teaspoonful each of melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, tomato catsup, minced parsley, minced onion, minced olives or pickles, lemon-juice, salt, black pepper, and paprika to taste, and sufficient cold water to moisten. Sew up the fish and bake as usual. Serve with Tartar Sauce.

BAKED BASS WITH WHITE WINE

Put a bass into a baking-dish with salt, pepper and mushroom liquor to season, and enough white wine to moisten. Cover with buttered paper and bake for fifteen minutes. Melt two tablespoonfuls of butter, add three tablespoonfuls of flour, and cook thoroughly. Add two cupfuls of white stock and cook until thick, stirring constantly. Take from the fire [Page 47] and add the yolks of three eggs beaten with a little cold water, and the juice of half a lemon. Add a tablespoonful of butter and the juice in the baking-pan. Pour over the bass and serve.

BAKED BASS WITH SHRIMP SAUCE

Marinate the cleaned fish for an hour in oil and vinegar. Put into a baking-pan with slices of salt pork underneath and on top and sufficient boiling water to keep from burning. Add a teaspoonful of butter to the water and baste two or three times during the hour of baking. Strain the gravy and set aside. Melt one tablespoonful of butter, add one tablespoonful of flour and cook until brown. Add one cupful of the liquid left in the baking-pan, making up the required quantity with boiling water if necessary. Cook until thick, stirring constantly; season with cayenne and lemon-juice, and add half a can of shrimps chopped fine. Bring to the boil, pour over the fish, and serve.

BAKED AND STUFFED BLACK BASS

Mix together one cupful of bread-crumbs, two small onions chopped, two eggs well beaten, and cold water to moisten. Season with Worcestershire, tabasco and minced parsley. Stuff a bass with this [Page 48] mixture, rub with melted butter, and bake with a little boiling water, basting as required.

BAKED BASS À LA NEWPORT

Clean the fish, gash the top, season with salt and pepper, and cover with thin slices of salt pork. Pour a little boiling water into the pan and bake slowly, basting as required. Serve with the pork. Bacon may be used instead.

BAKED BASS À LA MANHATTAN

Butter a baking-dish, put in the cleansed fish, rub with melted butter, season with salt and pepper, and cover with thin slices of bacon and bread crumbs. Add a little boiling water and bake in a very hot oven, basting as required.

BAKED BASS AND TOMATOES

Select one large black bass or two small ones; clean the head and let it remain on the fish. Slice four tomatoes and cut in halves. Make a plain bread dressing; open the fish, rub the inside lightly with salt and soft butter; lay a thick layer of tomatoes in, then a layer of the bread dressing, alternating them until the fish is well stuffed; then bind with a tape. Lard the fish with strips of salt pork. Lay in a baking-pan, add one cupful of hot water [Page 49] and one tablespoonful of butter, and bake, basting often. In fifteen minutes take the pan out of the oven and spread the fish with a layer of thinly sliced tomatoes, seasoned with a sprinkling of salt, some melted butter, and a light sprinkling of grated cheese. Bake until the tomatoes are done, then carefully remove to a platter, taking off the tape first. Garnish with parsley and serve.

BAKED BLACK BASS À LA BABETTE

Clean the fish, salt it well, and put into a baking-pan with a cupful of water. Put lumps of butter on top, and season with salt, pepper, and minced parsley. Bake for an hour, basting often. Add a wineglassful of Sherry and a little catsup to the sauce remaining in the pan. Thicken with a teaspoonful of flour, rubbed smooth with a little cold water.

BAKED FILLETS OF BASS

Cut bass into small fillets, sprinkle with salt and pepper, put into a shallow pan, cover with buttered paper and bake for twelve minutes in a hot oven. Serve with a border of boiled rice and Hollandaise Sauce.

BLACK BASS À LA MONTMORENCY

Clean, skin, and bone a bass, and cut into [Page 50] pieces. Butter a baking-dish, put in the fish, season with salt, pepper, and white wine; cover with buttered paper and set in the oven until the fish is partly cooked. Take out the fish and arrange in a baking-pan. Add to the remaining liquor a chopped onion, half a dozen mushrooms, and two sprigs of parsley finely chopped. Add a little stock and thicken with a teaspoonful of flour rubbed smooth in a little cold water. Pour this sauce over the fish, lay a large mushroom on each piece, cover with crumbs, dot with butter, and bake in the oven. Sprinkle with lemon-juice before serving.

STUFFED SEA-BASS

Clean the fish and cover it with a marinade of olive-oil and vinegar. Soak for an hour. Fill the fish with chopped salt pork and mushrooms, put into a baking-pan with slices of salt pork underneath and on top, and sufficient boiling water. Bake for forty minutes, cover with slices of tomatoes and half of a sweet green pepper chopped fine. Dot with butter and bake for twenty minutes more. Take up the fish and rub the sauce through a colander. Stir in a tablespoonful of butter rolled in flour, add one teaspoonful of sugar and two teaspoonfuls of grated onion. Dilute with boiling [Page 51] water if too thick, bring to the boil, pour over the fish, and serve.

BASS À LA BORDELAISE

Split a large sea-bass. Put into a baking-dish with a wineglassful of Claret and salt and pepper to season. Sprinkle with chopped shallot, cover with buttered paper, and cook in a moderate oven for fifteen minutes. Lay the bass on a platter, put the juice in a saucepan with half a teaspoonful of beef extract, four chopped mushrooms, and a bruised bean of garlic. Thicken with flour browned in butter, bring to the boil, pour over the fish, and serve very hot.

BOILED BASS

Clean the fish, put it into warm salted water and simmer for twenty minutes.

BOILED SEA-BASS WITH EGG SAUCE