Cookery for every household

Wash the sorrel and lettuce very carefully and then shake them as dry as possible in a colander or salad basket. Cut them in fine shreds with a sharp knife, and put them in a saucepan with the butter. Cook slowly over the fire for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the potato flour and mix well, but be careful the ingredients do not discolour. Add the stock and stir until boiling, then put the lid on the pan and simmer slowly for 20 minutes. Add the milk and season to taste. Break the bread in small pieces and dry them in the oven. Put these in the soup tureen and pour the hot soup over them. Time to cook, 30 to 40 minutes. Probable cost, 8 d. to Is. Quantity, 2 pints. 76. Spinach Soup (Soupe aux Epinards) 2 lbs. spinach. 2 pts. light stock. 1 shallot. 1 oz. butter. 1 dessert-sp. cornflour. £ pt. milk. Pepper and salt. A pinch of nutmeg. Pick and wash the spinach very carefully. Put it into a saucepan with the stock, shallot cut in small pieces, and a little salt. Cook quickly until tender, from 20 to 30 minutes, and then rub as much as possible through a fine sieve. Melt the butter in a clean saucepan, stir in the cornflour and when smooth pour on the milk. Stir until boiling and cook for 10 minutes. Then add the spinach puree and season to taste. A little sap green may be added if the soup is not a good colour. Serve with croutons of fried or toasted bread, or with “ puffed ” rice crisped in the oven. Notes. — A few leaves of chervil, when it can be obtained, make a pretty garnish to this soup, and 1 or 2 table-spoonfuls of cream added at the last will be found an improvement. Time to cook, 1 to 1 hour. Probable cost, Is. Quantity, 2 pints. 77. Spring Soup (Potage Printaniere) Make in the same way as hotch potch (Recipe 12), omitting the meat. 78. Tomato Bisque 1 tin of tomatoes. 1 level tea-sp. carbonate of soda. Pepper and salt. A pinch of cayenne. 1 table-sp. cornflour. 1 qt. milk. 1 or 2 oz. butter. Stew the tomatoes in their own liquor until quite soft and then rub them through a fine sieve. Put the puree into a lined saucepan and heat it gently over the fire. Heat most of the milk in another saucepan and mix the cornflour smoothly with the remainder. Add the cornflour to the hot milk. stir over the fire until boiling and boil a few minutes until smooth and creamy. Then add the soda (dissolved in a little hot water) to the warm tomato puree, and when it has ceased to fizz add the butter in small pieces, and the thickened milk. Mix well and season to taste. Serve at once with fried croutons of bread, or a dish of plainly-boiled rice may be handed separately. Notes. — The milk must not be added to the puree until just before serving, as there is danger of the soup curdling. The soup may be made richer by adding 1 gill of cream and 1 or 2 yolks of eggs instead of the cornflour. Time to cook, 1 to 1J hours. Probable cost, Is. to Is. 2d. Quantity, 2| pints. 79. Tomato Soup (Soupe aux Tomates) 1 tin of tomatoes or 2 lbs. fresh tomatoes. 2 to 3 pts. second stock. 1 onion. £ carrot. £ turnip. 1 stick of celery. A bunch of herbs. 1 oz. butter. 2 oz. lean ham or a small ham bone. 12 black peppercorns. A small blade of mace. 1 lump of sugar. 1 oz. crushed tapioca. A squeeze of lemon juice. Salt to taste.