Terrapin au Gratin

Ingredients

• two terrapins
• half a cupful of butter
• two tablespoonfuls of flour
• three eggs
• two teaspoonfuls of salt
• half a pint of the water in which the terrapins were cooked
• one-fourth of a teaspoonful of white pepper
• one-tenth of a teaspoonful of cayenne
• one-tenth of a teaspoonful of mace
• one-tenth of a teaspoonful of allspice
• one cupful of grated bread crumbs

Method

1. 1

   Put the butter on the stove in a stew-pan, and when it becomes hot, add the flour.

2. 2

   Stir until smooth and of a light brown color; then add the water and the terrapin and seasoning.

3. 3

   Simmer for a quarter of an hour.

4. 4

   Beat the eggs well, and add a tablespoonful of cold water to them.

5. 5

   Draw the stew-pan back to a cool place, and stir the eggs into its contents.

6. 6

   Have the upper shells of the terrapins carefully cleaned, and pour the mixture into them.

7. 7

   Sprinkle with bread crumbs, and place in a hot oven to brown.

8. 8

   The crumbs should acquire a rich color in about ten minutes.

As published

This recipe was extracted from Miss Parloa's kitchen companion (1887) by Maria Parloa, page 119. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

one-tenth of a teaspoonful each of cayenne, white pepper, ground mace, and allspice. Put the fine-cut terrapin in a stew-pan with the water, butter, the juices that have collected in the shells, and the salt, pepper, and spice. Simmer for fifteen minutes. Mash the yolks of the eggs very fine, and gradually mix the cream with them. Add this mixture and the sherry, terrapin, eggs, and the lemon, cut in thin slices, to the stew. Stir until the stew has become thoroughly heated, but do not let it boil. Serve at once. Small silver-plated saucepans that hold about a gill and a half are used for serving terrapin stew. One kind is shaped like a terrapin; the other is round, with a straight handle and tight-fitting cover. When terrapin is served in these miniature stew-pans, it" is, of course, sure to be hot, — a great consideration as regards this dish. Terrapin Brown Stew. Use two large terrapins, a generous half-cupful of butter, one pint of the water in which the terrapins were boiled, two heaping table-spoonfuls of flour, half a pint of wine, two teaspoonfuls of salt, one-eighth of a tea- spoonful each of cayenne, white pepper, ground mace, and allspice, half a lemon, sliced thin. Put the terrapin water and meat of the terrapins on to boil. Put the butter in a saucepan, and heat it until it begins to turn brown; then add the flour, and stir the mixture until it becomes dark brown. Take it from the fire, and when it has cooled a little, pour on it gradually the water from the terrapins. Stir the liquid over the fire until perfectly smooth; then pour it over the ter- rapins. Add the salt and pepper, and simmer for ten minutes. Now add the spice, lemon, and wine. Let the stew get very hot, without boiling; then serve without delay. FISH. 231 Terrapin au Gratin. Take two terrapins, half a cupful of butter, two table- spoonfuls of flour, three eggs, two teaspoonfuls of salt, half a pint of the water in which the terrapins were cooked, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of white pepper, one- tenth of a teaspoonful each of cayenne, mace, and all- spice, one cupful of grated bread crumbs

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.