The art of cooking

Dried Herb Omelettes. — One dessert spoonful of chopped parsley, two teaspoonfuls of dried mixed herbs, a piece of eschalot the size of a bean, eight eggs, one-half teaspoonf ul of pepper, one teaspoonful of salt, two ounces of butter. Put the eggs into a bowl, and with them the chopped parsley, dried herbs, pepper and salt. Chop the eschalot finely and throw it in also. Beat all together until the eggs are thoroughly blended, the yolks with the whites. Melt in an omelette pan, one ounce of the butter and when the blue smoke arises pour into it half of the mixture from the bowl, and stir this until the omelette begins to firm at the edges. Draw all down to one side of the pan, and when the omelette becomes firm on the under side, turn it over to the other side of the pan, and transfer it from this at once to a hot platter. Repeat this process of cooking with the remaining omelette mixture, and with as much dispatch as is possible, place the second omelette beside the first, and serve immediately. Note. — Omelettes should always be cooked over a very quick fire, and should never consume more than two minutes in the doing. r EGGS ON TOAST. 209 Eggs au Plat. — Eight eggs, eight tablespoonfuls of bread crumbs, four ounces of butter,one teaspoonful of pepper, one teaspoonful of salt. Spread half of the bread crumbs upon a platter, sprinkle over them half of the pepper and salt, and distribute over this in small pieces, two ounces of the butter. Break over this one by one the eggs, arranging them in a circle upon the bread crumbs, sprinkle over them the remaining bread crumbs, pepper and salt, also distribute over this the remainder of the butter in small pieces, and place the platter in a hot oven for ten minutes. When done the bread crumbs should show a surface of pale brown, and the eggs be cooked rare. Serve upon the same platter on which the dish is prepared. Scrambled Eggs.— Eight eggs, one and one-half gills of cream, four ounces of butter, one teaspoonful of salt, one-half teaspoonful of pepper. Put the cream and butter together in a small saucepan over the fire, and stir them until the butter melts. Take the saucepan from the fire and break into it the eggs. Sprinkle over these the pepper and salt, and returning the saucepan to the fire, stir its contents with a fork briskly, until the eggs begin to firm. When this takes place, turn all quickly out upon a hot dish and serve at once. Eggs on Toast. — Eight eggs, two slices of buttered toast, one-half teaspoonful of salt, one dessert spoonful of lemon juice. Place a shallow saucepan over the fire, fill it nearly full of boiling water, and into this throw the salt and lemon juice. Break the eggs one by one into a teacup, and pour 210 BREAKFAST DISHES, them gently from this into the water, letting each egg form before another is put in. Allow two minutes and a half to each egg, and removing them from the water with a skimmer, place them so drained, upon the slices of buttered toast. Curried Eggs. — Eight eggs, three ounces of butter, one and one-half ounces of flour, three gills of white stock, one tablespoonful of curry powder, one-half teaspoonful of salt, one-half teaspoonful of sugar, one teaspoonful of vinegar. Drop the eggs into a saucepan of boiling water, and let them boil therein for ten minutes. Throw them when boiled into a basin of cold water to cool, and while they are cooling melt the butter in a small saucepan, stir into it the dry flour and curry powder, add the stock by degrees, and when this mixture reaches the boiling point, let it continue to boil for two minutes thereafter. Throw in the salt, sugar and vinegar, and draw the saucepan aside from the fire.