Mrs. Roundell's Practical cookery book

use a tinned pan. Blanch the Spinach for five minutes, drain, “ refresh ” it under a tap of cold water, press out all moisture in a clean cloth, and mince the Spinach on a board as finely as possible. Melt Butter in the casserole in the proportion of one ounce to a pound of the Spinach, weighed before boiling. When the butter is quite hot put the Spinach into it over a low fire and let it absorb the butter, stirring it with a wooden spoon without ceasing. When the Spinach is quite dry finish with a tablespoonful of good bechamel sauce or cream to every pound, and at the last moment stir in half an ounce of butter. For a puree of Tomatoes fry an ounce of minced onion in a quart stewpan over a low fire in half an ounce of butter till the onion begins to turn yellow. Cut up half a pound of tomatoes into quarters, put them also into the stewpan, and stew gently till they are done. Turn out the puree on a hair sieve, and work the tomatoes through it. Put the pulp into a saucepan upon the usual roux of half an ounce of butter and half an ounce of flour. Moisten it with a gill of broth till the puree is creamy, and season with a little salt and black pepper. For Green Peas au beurre put a quaint of water on the fire in an earthenware casserole. Never use a tinned pan for green vegetables. Stir into the water a saltspoonful of salt, the same quantity of sugar, and half an ounce of green mint. When the water boils pour in a pint measure of freshly-shelled green peas, boil with no lid on the pan, drain and pick out the hunch of mint. Then dust the Peas over with the finest dusting of salt and castor sugar blended together in equal parts, stir in at the last moment just enough of the best butter to lubricate the Peas without leaving a greasy sediment, and grind a few grains of black pepper over them from the pepper-mill. For Flageolets à la Flamande cook MUTTON CUTLETS A LA NELSON half a pound of green flageolets in boiling salted water, with half an ounce of butter. When they are tender drain them, and with half a pint of their cuisson make a white sauce, using as a roux half an ounce of butter and the same quantity of flour. When the sauce is ready take it off the fire, stir in the yolk of an egg and a dessertspoonful of minced parsley. Warm up the flageolets in the sauce and serve at once. Mutton Cutlets a la Catalane. — Cook the cutlets exactly like the cutlet a la Nelson, but mask them with a thick sauce made of half a pint of thickly reduced white sauce into which a tablespoonful of grated ham, of grated Parmesan, and of minced mushroom have been mixed.