The Skilful Cook Part 70

Boil quickly--with the lid off the saucepan--for half an hour, or more, until tender.

Drain well in a colander before serving.

Broad Beans.

Put them, when sh.e.l.led, into boiling water, to which salt should be added in the proportion of a tablespoonful to every two quarts of water.

Boil gently, from fifteen minutes to half an hour, according to their size and age.

When tender, pour the water away, and shake them in the saucepan over the fire, with a little b.u.t.ter or dripping, pepper, and salt.

Tomatoes.

These are better baked than boiled: boiling destroys their flavour.

Put them on a baking-tin, greased with b.u.t.ter or dripping.

Sprinkle over them a little pepper and salt, and cover them with a greased paper.

Put them in a moderate oven, for about ten minutes or a quarter of an hour.

Seakale.

Tie it in bundles, and put into boiling water, with a little b.u.t.ter, and also some salt, in the proportion of a tablespoonful to every two quarts of water.

Boil, with the lid off the saucepan, until the seakale is tender.

Drain, and serve on toast. French or white sauce may be poured over it.

Seakale is sometimes boiled in milk, which should afterwards be used to make the sauce.

Mushrooms.

Peel the mushrooms; rinse them to remove any grit, and cut off the ends of the stalks.

Put them on a greased baking-tin, with the stalks upwards, and put some little bits of b.u.t.ter on each mushroom, with a little pepper and salt.

Cover them with b.u.t.tered paper, and bake them in a moderate oven from ten to twenty minutes, until tender.

Serve on a hot dish, with the gravy poured over them.

Stewed Mushrooms.

Peel and rinse the mushrooms, and cut off the ends of the stalks.

Stew them gently in water, stock, or milk, until quite tender, adding pepper and salt to taste.

Then thicken the gravy with a little flour, and let it cook well, stirring carefully.

Before serving, stir in a little cream or b.u.t.ter.

Fried Potatoes.

Take thin peelings of potatoes, and twist into fancy shapes, or cut the potatoes into thin slices.

Dry them well in a cloth, and drop them into hot fat (_see_ French Frying) until quite crisp, and of a light brown colour.

Remove them with a fish-slice or colander-spoon, and drain them on kitchen paper.

Tomato Farni.

_Ingredients_--6 or 8 ripe tomatoes.

1 oz. of b.u.t.ter.

oz. of flour.

1 gill of stock or milk.

1 dessertspoonful of chopped parsley.

1 dessertspoonful of chopped cooked ham.

1 dessertspoonful of grated Parmesan cheese.

A few b.u.t.ton mushrooms, chopped.

A few drops of lemon juice.

Some white and browned bread-crumbs.

Pepper and salt.

_Method._--Melt the b.u.t.ter in a small stewpan.

Mix in the flour smoothly.

Then add the stock or milk; stir and cook well.

Then mix in sufficient white bread-crumbs to make the mixture stiff.

Add the parsley, mushrooms, cheese, ham, lemon-juice, pepper, and salt.

Scoop out the top of each tomato.

Pile a little of the stuffing on each, and sprinkle a few browned bread-crumbs over.

Put them on a greased baking-sheet, and cook them in a moderate oven for about a quarter of an hour.

Cauliflower au gratin.