Entrees made easy

added), and the stiffly whipped whites of the eggs at the last. Put this into a prepared mould or moulds ; if the latter, steam for 15 minutes, turn out and serve with a good rich sauce. If one mould is used, steam for 30 minutes. CHAPTER IV Casserole in some shape or form is becoming every day a more popular dish, and not without good reason. One of its great advantages is that it does not spoil by being kept waiting, but can be put into a cool oven just to keep hot, without allowing it to cook ; in fact, some people say it is better to let it steep like this in its own gravy. Then, again, it is an excellent way of cooking such things as rather old fowls, or game which would be too tough to eat in the ordinary way, and for the economical housewife this is a great consideration, as a “ soup ” fowl can be ordered at considerably less cost than the ordinary chicken, and the stewing, if long enough and done slowly enough, makes it quite tender and most appetising. The casserole dish itself is a fireproof, earthenware pan with a cover. Casserole of Chicken (Hot). Truss a fowl as for roasting ; put into a casserole 1| oz. of butter or clarified dripping ; let this melt, then put in the fowl with about £ lb. of ham or bacon (not too fat), cut up rather small, a bunch of herbs, a sliced carrot, 2 or 3 green onions, and a few peppercorns, and fry it all together till the fowl is nicely browned, turning it once or twice, and basting it. Pour off all superfluous fat, and put in \ gill of light white wine and 1 gill of good stock ; cover down the pan, and keep it simmering gently either in the oven or at the side of the fire for 1£ to 2 hours. Then take it out, cut up the fowl and keep it hot ; meanwhile, remove all the fat from the gravy, take out the herbs, and add another gill of stock, and if liked, 1 tablespoonful more wine ; boil it all up, put in the cut up fowl, and heat it up again thoroughly before serving. Serve in the casserole on a dish, with a napkin folded round. If liked, the fowl can first be cut into neat joints, and then cooked in exactly the same way. Rabbit is excellent treated in this way. Of course the amount of cooking this dish requires depends entirely on the age of the bird ; if a young bird is cut up raw 40 to 45 minutes will be quite sufficient. Rabbit may be cooked in exactly the same way. Duck en Casserole (Hot). Cut up the duck into neat joints, having fried these as before in clarified dripping, put them into the casserole with some good gravy made from the giblets and carcase. Cover down and simmer slowly in the oven or by the side of the fire for 1J hours altogether. When about half cooked, add in a little more gravy ; and when cooked, strain off the gravy, skim off all fat, and pour it over the duck again. Beef en Casserole (Hot). Cut up 2 lb. of beefsteak, or stewing steak, and fry it in about 1 oz. of clarified dripping or butter, till nicely browned ; take out the meat, and fry an onion, cut in slices, till nicely browned, then put in about 1 tablespoonful of flour, and pepper and salt to taste ; brown this, and pour in about 1 pint of stock. Put the beef into a casserole with a bunch of herbs, 1 carrot cut up,