place in a stewpan with four ounces of butter, six peppercorns, a sprig of thyme, two bayleaves and a blade of mace. When the onions have become slightly brown over the moderate fire, stir in a mixture of two tablespoonfuls of flour and the same amount of curry powder, shortly afterward adding six gills of white stock and half a pint of white sauce. Season with salt and half a teaspoonful of moist sugar, boil for a quarter of an hour, adding more white stock if necessary, and stirring constantly. Put through a strainer into another saucepan, boil up again, skim, and use when required.

Fricasseed chicken takes on a new glory when it is prepared with Sauce Lyons. This is made by stirring gradually three well-beaten eggs into half a pint of plain white sauce, then placing the mixture in a jar and standing in boiling water till the sauce thickens. Just prior to pouring over the chicken add the strained juice of half a lemon.

TWENTY-FOUR LITTLE
FRENCH DINNERS

I

MENU

• Potage à la Duchesse
• Cabillaud à la Bechamel
• Pommes de Terre, Genevoise
• Salade Celeri
• Pouding à la Vanille

Potage à la Duchesse.

—Butter a baking sheet, cover with four ounces of chou paste, cook in the oven for six minutes, then cover the paste with forcemeat in small lumps, a little distance apart. Cut the paste into twelve equal sized pieces, each piece holding a lump of the forcemeat, place in a tureen, pour over a quart of piping hot consommé and serve.

Cabillaud à la Bechamel.

—Mix an ounce of flour with an ounce and a half of butter melted in a saucepan, then gradually add a pint of milk which has been allowed previously to simmer with a minced onion and carrot in it, also a bunch of sweet herbs, two or three cloves, a grating of nutmeg and pepper and salt. Bring to a boil, add two or three tablespoonfuls of cream, strain and put back into the saucepan. Now put in two or three pounds of cod, previously boiled and flaked, being thoroughly free from skin and bones. Shake all together very gently and when all is thoroughly hot, turn out onto a silver dish and garnish with sliced hard-boiled eggs.

Pommes de Terre, Genevoise.

—Shred four medium sized boiled potatoes, season with a little salt and pepper. Butter lightly half a dozen tartlet moulds, cover the bottoms with grated Parmesan cheese, arrange in each a layer of potatoes, then another sprinkling of cheese, and so on till the moulds are filled. Put a little butter on top. Place on a very hot stove or in a very hot oven for fifteen minutes to half an hour. Serve on a hot dish in the moulds.

Salade Celeri.

—Trim two or three heads of celery, cut into short shreds, wash thoroughly in cold water and drain. Place in a salad bowl, season with a little salt, a very little pepper and one or two tablespoonfuls each of oil and vinegar. Add several sprigs of pepper-grass and serve at once.

Pouding à la Vanille.

—Place a vanilla bean in a mortar together with half a pound of sugar and pound well together and sift. Separate the whites from the yolks of three eggs, beat the yolks well, stir them in with a pint of cream and mix in with the vanilla sugar. Whisk the whites of the eggs to a stiff froth and mix lightly in with the other ingredients. Butter a pudding mould, pour in the mixture and cover with a sheet of oiled paper. Stand the mould in a saucepan of boiling water and steam the pudding for half an hour. In the meantime prepare the following sauce: Pour a breakfast cupful of canned or fresh pineapple juice into a lined pan with the juice of a lemon. Put this on the fire till it boils, then pour it over a tablespoonful of arrowroot, stirring all the time. Return the sauce to the saucepan and stir till it thickens over the fire. When the pudding is cooked, turn it out onto a hot dish, strain the sauce over it and serve. Be careful that no water enters the mould containing the pudding while it is cooking, or it will be spoiled.

II

MENU

• Consommé à la Napolitaine
• Cabillaud à la Financière
• Pommes de Terre en Rubans
• Beignets à la Printemps
• Choufleur au Gratin
• Bavaroise au Café

Consommé à la Napolitaine.

—Place in a saucepan with a lump of butter equal quantities of finely minced carrots, turnips, a head of lettuce and one of endive with a little chervil. Add a quart of the water in which the cauliflower in this dinner was cooked, pepper and salt, and simmer for an hour. Just before serving stir in the beaten yolk of an egg and half a pint of milk.

Cabillaud à la Financière.

—Cook a piece of cod weighing three pounds in salted water for twenty minutes, drain a place on a serving platter covered with the following sauce: Put two glasses of Madeira wine and a small piece of meat glaze in a saucepan with a pint of Spanish sauce and a gill each of essence of mushrooms and truffles. Boil till it coats the spoon.

Pommes de Terre en Rubans.

—Take large, smooth, pared potatoes and cut round and round in spirals about an eighth of an inch thick. Keep covered with a damp napkin till all are cut, place in a frying basket and fry in very hot fat till a light straw color. Sprinkle freely with salt and serve immediately.

Beignets à la Printemps.

—Make a sauce of two ounces of butter, four ounces of flour, a tablespoonful of brandy, a pinch of salt, sufficient water to make a creamy paste. Cook and, removing from the stove, work in the whites of two eggs beaten to a stiff froth. Cut into pieces any fruit desired, dip them in the batter and fry in butter to a light golden brown. Drain well, place in a serving dish, sprinkle well with powdered sugar and serve. If the fruit is not fully ripe, parboil in syrup before using.

Choufleur au Gratin.

—Soak a cauliflower in water with plenty of salt, then boil in plenty of salted water for fifteen minutes. Remove and take away all the green leaves, lay it on a flat buttered dish, previously rubbed with an onion, and pour over it a sauce made as follows: Melt an ounce and a half of butter in a saucepan, add a dessertspoonful of flour, mix and add a cup of milk. Stir till it thickens, add pepper and salt and add two or three tablespoonfuls of grated Parmesan cheese. Mix well and after pouring over the cauliflower sprinkle all over with breadcrumbs and place the dish in the oven till nicely browned.

Bavaroise au Café.

—Mix the beaten yolks of two eggs with a pint of milk and a cup of very strong black coffee. Bring to a boil in a saucepan, remove from the fire and allow to get cold, stirring occasionally. Add the yolks of two more eggs beaten stiff with two ounces of sugar. Mix well and then add the stiffly beaten whites of the four eggs along with half an ounce of dissolved gelatin. Pour into a