French dishes for American tables

144. Farcied Oysters a TAfricaine. Take twenty very large oysters, which blanch and then drain. Also take some chicken farce (Art. 11), chopping three truffles very fine, and mix with your farce, with which cover your oysters on both sides, and dip in bread-crumbs. Then beat up four eggs, the yolks and whites together, with a little salt, pepper, and very little nutmeg added, and spread over your oysters, which dip again into bread-crumbs. Put the oysters in a buttered pan, and send to the oven for about fifteen minutes, a very little melted butter on each oyster. Take half a pint of Spanish sauce (Art. 80), add to it a glass of sherry, and, after boiling twenty minutes, chop up two truffles, put them in your sauce, and serve with your oysters. 145. Fried Oysters. Take fifty large oysters, dip them in beaten eggs, in which you have put a little salt and pepper ; then roll them in breadcrumbs, and, if your oysters should not be very large, dip them again in beaten eggs, and again roll them in bread-crumbs. Fry them in very hot lard, drain off the grease, and serve very hot. Garnish with slices of lemon. 146. Broiled Oysters. Take fifty large oysters, which drain and dip in four beaten eggs, to which you have added a little salt and pepper. Roll them in bread-crumbs, dip them again in eggs, and again roll them in bread-crumbs. Put a few drops of melted butter on each, broil them on a gridiron a light brown, and serve very hot. 147. Cromesqui of Oysters. Boil fifty oysters for about five minutes, drain them, and chop them fine. Put in a saucepan on the fire an ounce of butter, the same of flour, a pinch of salt, the same of pepper and nutmeg, and mix all well together. Add the juice of your oysters, and half a glass of milk, and stir with a wooden spoon until just before beginning to boil, then remove it from the fire ; add two yolks of eggs mixed in about a tablespoonful of water, and then your oysters. Put this mixture on ice until cold, form it into balls about the size of a small egg, and wrap up each one in a very thin piece of pork. Break three eggs in a bowl, add six ounces of flour, and a little water, so as to make a smooth and very soft paste, but sufficiently solid to adhere to your cromesqui. Then mix a teaspoonful of soda with your paste, with which cover each one, and fry in very hot lard. When a bright yellow, drain, and serve hot. 148. Oysters on Toast. Put fifty oysters in a frying-pan with their liquor, toss them on the fire for about ten minutes, and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Put the oysters on eight pieces of toast, the juice poured over them. Serve very hot. 149. Oysters a la Mosely. Take fifty oysters, the third of which put in a deep dish with a little pepper, salt, a little melted butter, and cover with bread-crumbs. Then put half of the remaining oysters on top. Proceed as above, add a third layer, pour in enough sherry to reach the top of your oysters, cover with bread-crumbs, and a little melted butter, and send to a moderate oven until colored a light brown. Serve very hot.