The handy dictionary of cookery

Secure some clean, and, if possible, freshly fallen snow, put it in a basin near the fire to melt, but do not allow it to get hot. Have in another basin four ounces of flour, one tablespoonful of fine sugar, and a pinch of salt. Use as much of the melted snow as will mix the flour into smooth batter, not thicker than good cream, beat well, and cook at once in the usual manner. {Another way.) Make a stiff batter with four ounces of flour and one gill of milk ; beat high — viz., lift as much of the batter as possible in the spoon each time that you beat, not round and round the basin — for five minutes, so that the batter becomes aerated, or charged with air. At the time of cooking, stir lightly in two tablespoonfuls of clean, freshlyfallen snow to each pancake, and cook as before described. Five minutes is the average time for cooking a pancake. Note. — A gill is a quarter of a pint. Soda Scones. Put into a bowl two pounds of flour, one ounce of cream of tartar, half an ounce of carbonate of soda, half a tablespoonful of salt, four ounces of fine sugar ; mix these all lightly with the tips of the fingers for five minutes, then rub in finely three ounces of butter. Make into a stiff paste with buttermilk, form quickly into scones and bake. Sole a la Portugaise. Get a good-sized sole, take off the black skin, remove the head and fins, clean it, and wipe it dry in a cloth ; make an incision down the centre of the back of the fish so as to form a pocket on each side of the back bone. Prepare the stuffing ; take a tablespoonful of parsley finely minced, add to this a little grated lemon rind, nutmeg, a squeeze of lemon juice, a piece of butter the size of a walnut, a grain of cayenne. Mix them all well together on a plate ; then place it in the fish pockets, squeeze over some lemon juice, cut some tomatoes in slices, lay them over the fish, sprinkle some browned bread crumbs over it, cover them with small pieces of butter, then put the fish on a greased baking sheet and bake in a moderate oven for twenty to thirty minutes according to the size of the fish. Have some sauce made ready to pour over the fish when cooked, as follows : — Melt one ounce of butter, put into it a piece of carrot, half a tin of tomatoes, let them cook till quite soft, pass through a sieve, thicken with a tablespoonful of flour of rice, or flour, pass through a sieve, add a little cayenne pepper and lemon juice ; if the sauce is not a good colour add a drop or two of cochineal. Sole au Gratin. Take for this one sole, one shallot, three tablespoonfuls of bread crumbs, the rind and juice of one lemon, and six mushrooms. Put the shallot on to parboil ; chop finely the mushrooms and lemon rind. Clean well the sole and make three cuts on the white skin ; butter a dish, sprinkle over it first some bread crumbs, a little lemon juice, then some lemon rind, mushrooms and shallot finely chopped ; place the fish over this with the incisions downwards ; sprinkle over it some more mushrooms, lemon and challot; cover with breadcrumbs. Place a few tiny pieces of butter on the top ; put into the oven to cook. It should be a nice brown. Souchet, Cold.