The hearthstone; or, Life at home

Note. — Should the partridges be very large, split them in half; they will then lie in the dish more compactly. Some cooks carve the partridges into joints before placing them in the dish. This plan is commendable on account of the ease with which the pie can be helped. 446 THE hearthstone; or, life at home. Pigeons on Toast. — Split some young pigeons down the^back, wipe them, season with pepper and salt, rub with butter, sprinkle lightly with flour, and broil over a clear fire. Toast some neat, thin slices of bread, butter them quickly, and put a pigeon on each slice, arranging about them some sprigs of fine watercress. Boiled Rabbit. — For boiling, choose rabbits with smooth and sharp claws, as that denotes they are young ; should these be blunt and rugged, the ears dry and tough, the animal is old. After emptying and skinning it, wash it well in cold water, and let it soak for about one-quarter of an hour in warm water to draw out the blood. Bring the head round to the side, and fasten it there by means of a skewer run through that and the body. Put the rabbit into sufficient hot water to cover it ; let it boil very gently until tender, which will be in from one-half to three-quarters of an hour, according to its size and age. Dish it, and smother it either with onions or liversauce, or parsley and butter ; the former is, however, generally preferred to any of the last-named sauces. When liver-sauce is preferred, the liver should be boiled for a few minutes and minced very finely, or rubbed through a sieve before it is added to the sauce. A very young rabbit will require to be cooked one-half hour ; a large one three-quarters of an hour; an old one one hour or longer. Stewed Rabbit. — Cut a rabbit into small joints ; put them into a stewpan; add two large onions, sliced, six cloves, and one small teaspoonful of chopped lemon-peel. Pour in sufficient water to cover the meat, and, when the rabbit is nearly done, drop in a few forcemeat balls, to which has been added the liver, finely chopped. Thicken the gravy with flour and butter, put in a large tablespoonful of tomato or any preferred catsup; give one boil and serve. A Delicious Stuffing for any fowl, but especially for the delicately flavored chicken, or any of the small fowls, is made by taking about two dozen oysters ; chop them very fine, and mix them with two cups of fine bread crumbs, or powdered crackers. A full ounce of butter is required. A tablespoonful of chopped parsley, a little grated lemon peel, plenty of salt and black pepper, and a suspicion of cayenne pep- per; mix these thoroughly; that is half the secret of success in cooking, to have the ingredients which compose a dish so blended that it is impossible to tell precisely of what it is composed. This stuffing should be moistened with a little of the oyster liquor, and the beaten yolk of one egg. SAUCES AND GRAVIES. The preparation and appearances of sauces and gravies are of the highest consequence, and in nothing does the talent and taste of the cook more display itself. Their special adaptability to the various viands they are to accompany cannot be too much studied in order that they may harmonize and blend with them as perfectly, so to speak, as does a pianoforte accompaniment with the voice of the singer.