Chapter 12

Skin two chickens, and cut in small pieces as for serving. Wash, and put them in a stew-pan with enough white stock to cover, and one large onion, a clove, half a blade of mace, a bouquet of sweet herbs and half a table-spoonful of salt. Let this come to a boil; then skim carefully, and set back where it will simmer for one hour. Take up the chicken, and set the stew-pan where the stock will boil rapidly. Put three table-spoonfuls of butter in the frying-pan, and when it melts, stir in two table-spoonfuls of flour, and cook until smooth, but not brown. Stir this into the stock, of which there must be not more than a pint; add four table-spoonfuls of glaze, and boil up once. Taste to see if seasoned enough; if it is not, add more salt and pepper. Now add half a cupful of cream, and let boil up once more. Have the chicken in a deep dish. Pour this sauce on it, and set away to cool At serving time, have large slices of cold boiled sweet potatoes, fried in butter till a golden brown, handsomely arranged on a warm dish. On them place the chicken, which must be very cold. On each piece of the meat put a small teaspoonful of Tartare sauce. Heap the potatoes around the edge of the dish, garnish with parsley, and serve.

To Remove a Fillet from a Fowl or Bird.

Draw the skin off of the breast, and then run a sharp knife between the flesh and the ribs and breast-bone. You will in this way separate the two fillets from the body of the bird. The legs and wings of the largest birds and fowl can be boned, and stuffed with force-meat, and then prepared the same as, and served with, the fillet. The body of the bird can be used for soups. Fillets from all kinds of birds can be prepared the same as those from chickens.

Chicken Fillets, Larded and Breaded.

Lard the fillets, having four fine strips of pork for each one, and season with salt and pepper. Dip in beaten egg and in fine bread crumbs. Fry ten minutes in boiling fat. Serve on a hot dish with a spoonful of Tartare sauce on each.

Chicken Fillets, Braised.

Lard the fillets as for breading. For each one lay a slice of fat pork in the bottom of the braising pan, and on this a very small piece of onion. Dredge the fillets well with salt, pepper and flour, and place them on the pork and onion. Cover the pan, and set on the stove. Cook slowly half an hour; then add one pint of light stock or water and the bones of one of the chickens. Cover the pan, and place in a moderate oven for one hour, basting frequently with the gravy. If the gravy should cook away, add a little more stock or water, (there should be nearly a pint of it at the end of the hour). Take up the fillets, and drain; then cover them with soft butter, and dredge lightly with flour. Broil till a light brown. Serve on a hot dish with the sauce poured around. Or, they can be dressed on a mound of mashed potato, with a garnish of any green vegetable at the base, the sauce to be poured around it.

To make the sauce: Skim all the fat from the gravy in which the fillets were cooked. Cook one table-spoonful of butter and one heaping teaspoonful of flour together until a light brown; then add the gravy, and boil up once. Taste to see if seasoned enough, and strain.

Chicken Fillets, Sauté.

Flatten the fillets by pounding them lightly with the vegetable masher. Season with pepper and salt, and dredge well with flour. Put in the frying-pan one table-spoonful of butter for each fillet, and when hot, put the fillets in, and cook rather slowly twenty minutes. Brown on both sides. Take up, and keep hot while making the sauce. If there are six fillets, add two table-spoonfuls of butter to that remaining in the frying-pan, and when melted, stir in one table- spoonful of flour. Stir until it begins to brown slightly; then slowly add one and a half cupfuls of cold milk, stirring all the while. Let this boil one minute. Season with salt, pepper and, if you like, a little mustard. Fill the centre of a hot dish with green peas or mashed potatoes, against which rest the fillets; and pour the sauce around. Serve very hot.

Chicken Curry.

One chicken, weighing three pounds; three-fourths of a cupful of butter, two large onions, one heaping table-spoonful of curry powder, three tomatoes, or one cupful of the canned article, enough cayenne to cover a silver three-cent piece, salt, one cupful of milk. Put the butter and the onions, cut fine, on to cook. Stir all the while until brown; then put in the chicken, which has been cut in small pieces, the curry, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Stir well. Cover tightly, and let simmer one hour, stirring occasionally; then add the milk. Boil up once, and serve with boiled rice. This makes a very rich and hot curry, but for the real lover of the dish, none too much so.

Veal Curry.

Two pounds of veal, treated in the same manner, but cooked two hours. Mutton and lamb can be used in a like way.

Chicken Quenelles.

One large chicken or tender fowl, weighing about three pounds; six table-spoonfuls of butter, one table-spoonful of chopped salt pork, three eggs, one teaspoonful of onion juice, one of lemon juice, half a cupful of white stock or cream, one cupful of stale bread, one of new milk, and salt and pepper to taste. Skin the chicken, take all the flesh from the bones, and chop and pound _very_ fine. Mix the pork with it, and rub through a flour sieve. Cook the bread and milk together for ten minutes, stirring often, to get smooth. Add this to the chicken, and then add the seasoning, stock or cream, yolks of eggs, one by one, and lastly the whites, which have been beaten to a stiff froth.

Cover the sides and bottom of a frying-pan with soft butter. Take two table-spoons and a bowl of boiling water. Dip one spoon in the water, and then fill it with force-meat, heaping it; then dip the other spoon in the hot water, and turn the contents of the first into it. This gives the _quenelle_ the proper shape; and it should at once be slipped into the frying-pan. Continue the operation until all the meat is shaped. Cover the quenelles with white stock, boiling, and slightly salted, and cook gently twenty minutes. Take them up, and drain for a minute; then arrange on a border of mashed potatoes or fried bread. Pour a spoonful of either Bechamel, mushroom or olive sauce on each, and the remainder in the centre of the dish. Serve hot.

Chicken Quenelles, Stuffed.

Prepare the force-meat as for _quenelles_. Soak four table- spoonfuls of gelatine for one hour in cold water to cover. Put two table-spoonfuls of butter in a frying-pan, and when hot, add one table-spoonful of flour. Stir until smooth, but not brown; then gradually stir in one pint of cream. Add one table-spoonful of lemon juice, a speck of mace and plenty of salt and pepper. Cook for two minutes. Stir in the soaked gelatine, and remove from the fire. Into this sauce stir one pint and a half of cold chicken, cut _very_ fine. Set away to cool. Butter eighteen small egg cups, and cover the sides and bottoms with a thick layer of the force-meat. Fill the centre with the prepared force-meat, which should be quite firm. Cover with chicken. Place the cups in a steamer and cover them with sheets of thick paper. Put on the cover of the steamer, and place upon a kettle of boiling water for half an hour. Do not let the water boil too rapidly. Take up, and put away to cool. When cold, dip the _quenelles_ twice in beaten egg and in bread crumbs. Fry in boiling fat for three minutes. Serve hot with a garnish of stoned olives.

Chicken Quenelles, Breaded.

Prepare the _quenelles_ as before, and when they have been boiled, drain, and let them grow cold. Dip in beaten egg and roll in bread crumbs; place in the frying basket and plunge into boiling fat. Cook three minutes. Serve with fried parsley or any kind of brown sauce.

Veal Quenelles.

One pound of clear veal, one cupful of white sauce, six table- spoonfuls of butter, one cupful of bread crumbs, one of milk, four eggs, salt, pepper, a slight grating of nutmeg and the juice of half a lemon. Make and use the same as chicken _quenelles_.

Chicken Pilau.

Cut a chicken into pieces the size you wish to serve at the table. Wash clean, and put in a stew-pan with about one-eighth of a pound of salt pork, which has been cut in small pieces. Cover with cold water, and boil gently until the chicken begins to grow tender, which will be in about an hour, unless the chicken is old. Season rather highly with salt and pepper, add three tea-cupfuls of rice, which has been picked and washed, and let boil thirty or forty minutes longer. There should be a good quart of liquor in the stew-pan when the rice is added. Care must be taken that it does not burn. Instead of chicken any kind of meat may be used.

Chicken Soufflé.

One pint of cooked chicken, finely chopped; one pint of cream sauce, four eggs, one teaspoonful of chopped parsley, one teaspoonful of onion juice, salt, pepper. Stir the chicken and seasoning into the boiling sauce. Cook two minutes. Add the yolks of the eggs, well beaten, and set away to cool. When cold, add the whites, beaten to a stiff froth. Turn into a buttered dish, and bake half an hour. Serve with mushroom or cream sauce. This dish must be served the moment it is baked. Any kind of delicate meat can be used, the _soufflé_ taking the name of the meat of which it is made.

Fried Chicken.

Cut the chicken into six or eight pieces. Season well with salt and pepper. Dip in beaten egg and then in fine bread crumbs in which there is one teaspoonful of chopped parsley for every cupful of crumbs. Dip again in the egg and crumbs. Fry ten minutes in boiling fat. Cover the centre of a cold dish with Tartare sauce. Arrange the chicken on this, and garnish with a border of pickled beets. Or, it can be served with cream sauce.

Blanquette of Chicken.

One quart of cooked chicken, cut in delicate pieces; one large cupful of white stock, three table-spoonfuls of butter, a heaping table- spoonful of flour, one teaspoonful of lemon juice, one cupful of cream or milk, the yolks of four eggs, salt, pepper: Put the butter in the sauce-pan, and when hot, add the flour. Stir until smooth, but not brown. Add the stock, and cook two minutes; then add the seasoning and cream. As soon as this boils up, add the chicken. Cook ten minutes. Beat the yolks of the eggs with four table-spoonfuls of milk. Stir into the blanquette. Cook about half a minute longer. This can be served in a rice or potato border, in a _crôustade_, on a hot dish, or with a garnish of toasted or fried bread.

Blanquette of Veal and Ham.

Half a pint of boiled ham, one pint and a half of cooked veal, one pint of cream sauce, one teaspoonful of lemon juice, the yolks of two uncooked eggs, salt, pepper, two hard-boiled eggs. Have the veal and ham cut in delicate pieces, which add with the seasoning to the sauce. When it boils up, add the yolks, which have been beaten with four table-spoonfuls of milled Cook half a minute longer. Garnish with the hard-boiled eggs.

Salmis of Game,

Take the remains of a game dinner, say two or three grouse. Cut all the meat from the bones, in as handsome pieces as possible, and set aside. Break up the bones, and put on to boil with three pints of water and two cloves. Boil down to a pint and a half. Put three table- spoonfuls of butter and two onions, cut in slices, on to fry. Stir all the time until the onions begin to brown; then add two spoonfuls of flour, and stir until a rich dark brown. Strain the broth on this. Stir a minute, and add one teaspoonful of lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste; if you like, one table-spoonful of Leicestershire sauce, also. Add the cold game, and simmer fifteen minutes. Serve on slices of fried bread. Garnish with fried bread and parsley.

This dish can be varied by using different kinds of seasoning, and by serving sometimes with rice, and sometimes with mashed potatoes, for a border. Half a dozen mushrooms is a great addition to the dish, if added about five minutes before serving. A table-spoonful of curry powder, mixed with a little cold water, and stirred in with the other seasoning, will give a delicious curry of game. When curry is used, the rice border is the best of those mentioned above.

Game Cutlets à la Royale.

One quart of the tender parts of cold game, cut into dice; one generous pint of rich stock, one-third of a box of gelatine, one quart of any kind of force-meat, four cloves, one table-spoonful of onion juice, two of butter, one of flour, three eggs, one pint of bread or cracker crumbs, salt, pepper. Soak the gelatine for one hour in half a cupful of cold water. Put the butter in a frying-pan, and when hot, add the flour. Stir until smooth and brown, and add the stock and seasoning. Simmer ten minutes; strain upon the game, and simmer fifteen minutes longer. Beat an egg and add to the gelatine. Stir this into the game and sauce and take from the fire instantly. Place the stew-pan in a basin of cold water, and stir until it begins to cool; then turn the mixture into a shallow baking pan, having it about an inch thick. Set on the ice to harden. When hard, cut into cutlet- shaped pieces with a knife that has been dipped in hot water. When all the mixture is cut, put the pan in another of warm water for half a minute. This will loosen the cutlets from the bottom of the pan. Take them out carefully, cover every part of each cutlet with force-meat, and set on ice until near serving time. When ready to cook them, beat the two eggs with a spoon. Cover the cutlets with this and the crumbs. Place a few at a time in the frying basket, and plunge them into boiling fat. Fry two minutes. Drain, and place on brown paper until all are cooked. Arrange them in a circle on a hot dish. Pour mushroom sauce in the centre, garnish with parsley, and serve. Poultry cutlets can be prepared and served in the same way.

Cutlets à la Duchesse.

Two pounds of Lamb, mutton or veal cutlets, one large cupful of cream, one table-spoonful of onion juice, four table-Spoonfuls of butter, one of flour, two whole eggs, the yolks of four more, two table-spoonfuls of finely-chopped ham, one of lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Put two table-spoonfuls of the butter in the frying-pan. Season the cutlets with salt and pepper, and when the butter is hot, put them in it. Fry gently for five minutes, if lamb or mutton, but if veal, put a cover on the pan, and fry very slowly for fifteen minutes. Set away to cool. Put the remainder of the butter in a small frying-pan, and when hot, stir in the flour. Cook one minute, stirring all the time, and being careful not to brown. Stir in the cream. Have the ham, the yolks of eggs and the onion and lemon juice beaten together. Stir this mixture into the boiling sauce. Stir for about one minute, and remove from the fire. Season well with pepper and salt. Dip the cutlets in this sauce, being careful to cover every part, and set away to cool. When cold, dip them in beaten egg and in bread crumbs. Fry in boiling fat for one minute. Arrange them in a circle on a hot dish, and have green peas in the centre and cream sauce poured around.

Cutlets served in Papillotes.

Fold and cut half sheets of thick white paper, about the size of commercial note, so that when opened they will be heart-shaped. Dip them in melted butter and set aside. After trimming all the fat from lamb or mutton chops, season them with pepper and salt. Put three table-spoonfuls of butter in the frying pan, and when melted, lay in the chops, and cook slowly for fifteen minutes. Add one teaspoonful of finely-chopped parsley, one teaspoonful of lemon juice and one table- spoonful of Halford sauce. Dredge with one heaping table-spoonful of flour, and cook quickly five minutes longer. Take up the cutlets, and add to the sauce in the pan four table-spoonfuls of glaze and four of water. Stir until the glaze is melted, and set away to cool. When the sauce is cold, spread it on the cutlets. Now place these, one by one, on one side of the papers, having the bones turned toward the centre. Fold the papers and carefully turn in the edges. When all are done, place them in a pan, and put into a moderate oven for ten minutes; then place them in a circle, and fill the centre of the dish with thin fried, or French fried, potatoes. Serve very hot. The quantities given above are for six cutlets.

Veal Cutlets with White Sauce.

One and a half pounds of cutlets, two table-spoonfuls of butter, a slice of carrot and a small slice of onion. Put the butter and the vegetables, cut fine, in a sauce-pan. Season the cutlets with salt and pepper, and lay them on the butter and vegetables. Cover tightly, and cook slowly for half an hour; then take out, and dip in egg and bread crumbs, and fry in boiling fat till a golden brown. Or, dip the cutlets in soil butter and then in flour, and broil. Serve with white sauce poured around. Put a quart of green peas, or points of asparagus, in the centre of the dish, and arrange the cutlets around them. Pour on the sauce. This gives a handsome dish. Or, serve with olive sauce.

Mutton Cutlets, Crumbed.

Season French chops with salt and pepper, dip them in melted butter, and roll in _fine_ bread crumbs. Broil for eight minutes over a fire not too bright, as the crumbs burn easily. Serve with potato balls heaped in the centre of the dish.

Mutton Cutlets, Breaded.

Trim the cutlets, and season with salt and pepper. Dip in beaten egg and in bread crumbs, and fry in boiling fat. If three-quarters of an inch thick, they will be done rare in six minutes, and well done in ten. Arrange in the centre of a hot dish, and pour tomato sauce around them. One pint of sauce is enough for two pounds of cutlets.

Stewed Steak with Oysters.

Two pounds of rump steak, one pint of oysters, one tablespoonful of lemon juice, three of butter, one of flour, salt, pepper, one cupful of water. Wash the oysters in the water, and drain into a stew-pan. Put this liquor on to heat. As soon as it comes to a boil, skim, and set back. Put the butter in a frying-pan, and when hot, put in the steak. Cook ten minutes. Take up the steak, and stir the flour into the butter remaining in the pan. Stir until a dark brown. Add the oyster liquor, and boil one minute. Season with salt and pepper. Put back the steak, cover the pan, and simmer half an hour; then add the oysters and lemon juice. Boil one minute. Serve on a hot dish with points of toast for a garnish.

Rice Borders.

These are prepared in two ways. The first is to boil the rice as for a vegetable, and, with a spoon, heap it lightly around the edge of the fricassee, ragout, etc. The second method is a little more difficult. Put one cupful of rice on to boil in three cupfuls of cold water. When it has been boiling half an hour, add two table-spoonfuls of butter and one heaping teaspoonful of salt. Set back where it will just simmer, and cook one hour longer. Mash very fine with a spoon, add two well-beaten eggs, and stir for three minutes. Butter a plain border mould, and fill with the rice. Place in the heater for ten minutes. Turn upon a hot dish. Fill the centre with a fricassee, salmis or blanquette, and serve hot. A mould with a border two inches high and wide, and having a space in the centre five and a half inches wide and eleven long, is pretty and convenient for rice and potato borders, and also for jelly borders, with which to decorate salads, boned chicken, creams, etc.

Potato Border.

Six potatoes, three eggs, one table-spoonful of butter, one of salt, half a cupful of boiling milk. Pare, boil and mash the potatoes. When fine and light, add the butter, salt and pepper and two well-beaten eggs. Butter the border mould and pack the potato in it. Let this stand on the kitchen table ten minutes; then turn out on a dish and brush over with one well-beaten egg. Brown in the oven. Fill the centre with a curry, fricassee, salmis or blanquette.

To Make a Crôustade.

The bread for the _crôustade_ must not be too light, and should be at least three days old. If the loaf is round, it can be carved into the form of a vase, or if long, into the shape of a boat. Have a very sharp knife, and cut slowly and carefully, leaving the surface as smooth as possible. There are two methods by which it can be browned: one is to plunge it into a deep pot of boiling fat for about one minute; the other is to butter the entire surface of the bread and put it into a hot oven, being careful not to let it burn. Care must be taken that the inside is as brown as the outside; if not, the sauce will soak through the crôustade and spoil it. Creamed oysters, stewed lobster, chicken, or any kind of meat that is served in a sauce, can be served in the crôustade,

Cheese Soufflé.

Two table-spoonfuls of butter, one heaping table-spoonful of flour, half a cupful of milk, one cupful of grated cheese, three eggs, half a teaspoonful of salt, a speck of cayenne. Put the butter in a sauce- pan, and when hot, add the flour, and stir until smooth, but not browned. Add the milk and seasoning. Cook two minutes; then add the yolks of the eggs, well beaten, and the cheese. Set away to cool. When cold, add the whites, beaten to a stiff froth. Turn into a buttered dish, and bake from twenty to twenty-five minutes. Serve the moment it comes from the oven. The dish in which this is baked should hold a quart. An escalop dish is the best.

Rissoles.

Roll the trimmings from pie crust into a sheet about a sixth of an inch thick. Cut this in cakes with the largest patty cutter. Have any kind of meat or fish prepared as for croquettes. Put a heaping teaspoonful on each cake. Brush the edges of the paste with beaten egg, and then fold and press together. When all are done, dip in beaten egg and fry brown in boiling fat. They should cook about eight minutes. Serve hot.

Fritter Batter.

One pint of flour, half a pint of milk, one table-spoonful of salad oil or butter, one teaspoonful of salt, two eggs. Beat the eggs light. Add the milk and salt to them. Pour half of this mixture on the flour, and when beaten light and smooth, add the remainder and the oil. Fry in boiling fat. Sprinkle with sugar, and serve on a hot dish. This batter is nice for all kinds of fritters.

Fritter Batter, No. 2.

One pint of flour, one teaspoonful of salt, one of sugar, one of cream of tartar, half a teaspoonful of soda, one tablespoonful of oil, one egg, half a pint of milk. Mix the flour, salt, sugar, cream of tartar and soda together, and rub through a sieve. Beat the egg very light, and add the milk. Stir half of this on the flour, and when the batter is light and smooth, add the remainder, and finally the oil.

Chicken Fritters.

Cut cold roasted or boiled chicken or fowl in small pieces, and place in an earthen dish. Season well with salt, pepper and the juice of a fresh lemon. Let the meat stand one hour; then make a fritter batter, and stir the pieces into it. Drop, by the spoonful, into boiling fat, and fry till a light brown. Drain, and serve immediately. Any kind of cold meat, if tender, can be used in this way.

Apple Fritters.

Pare and core the apples, and cut in slices about one-third of an inch thick. Dip in the batter, and fry six minutes in boiling fat. Serve on a hot dish. The apples may be sprinkled with sugar and a little nutmeg, and let stand an hour before being fried. In that case, sprinkle them with sugar when you serve them.

Fruit Fritters.

Peaches, pears, pineapples, bananas, etc., either fresh or canned, are used for fritters. If you choose, when making fruit fritters, you can add two table-spoonfuls of sugar to the batter.

Oyster Fritters.