Cookery for every household

And finally, there should be variety in colour and decoration. Although the dishes should be made pleasing to the eye as well as to the palate, there should be no sameness and an element of refinement should mark them rather than ostentation. The Cook.— The powers of the cook and the capabilities of the kitchen range and cooking utensils should be thought of when arranging a dinner. If the cook is single-handed, do not give her many complicated dishes to prepare, especially of a kind that cannot be finished off until the moment of serving, as this would be sure to lead to confusion in the kitchen. Try rather to give her one or two dishes, among the number, that can be well advanced beforehand, and cause little trouble at the time of dinner. Above all, give the cook fair notice and explicit directions as to what will be required, if a special dinner has to be arranged for. The materials necessary should also be ordered in good time to enable her to get well ahead with her preparations, and be saved unnecessary hurry at the last minute. THE MENU What It Comprises. — The different courses of a complete menu will comprise the following : horsd’oeuvre, potage, poisson, entrees, releve, sorbet, roti, entremets, dessert, cafe. One or more of tho courses may, of course, be omitted, but the order of serving them remains the same. The number of dishes depends entirely upon the style of the dinner ; it may consist of three or four, or of eleven or twelve. For instance, the hors-d’oeuvres and sorbet are seldom given at a small dinner, and either the releve or the rôti would be omitted. One sweet might follow the last meat course, to bo followed by a cheese dish or other savoury. Ices may either be served in place of a cold sweet, or they may form a separate course after the savoury. The names of the dishes may be written on the menu cards either in French or in English, this is entirely a question of choice. French is perhaps the more fashionable of the two, especially for any dinner of importance, as it is the recognised language of the kitchen all the world over. It is well to remember that the names of standard dishes should never be altered, and although the English language is generally capable of providing a name for every dish, there are some typical French dishes the names of which are untranslatable. The following are a few noted on the different courses : Hors-d’CEuvres. — These consist of small appetising morsels usually served cold, such as oysters, olives, anchovies, caviare, smoked salmon, small salads, thin slices of sausage, &c. They may either be served plain or made up in some more elaborate style. Small plain biscuits or thin brown bread and butter may accompany the plain horsd’ceuvres. Potage (Soup). — Either one or two soups may be served. If only one, it is preferable to have it clear or of a very light character, especially if there are a number of courses to follow. If there are two soups, one may be clear and the other thick, or one brown and one white, for the sake of variety. Poisson (Fish). — This either be plainly boiled with a sauce, or dressed in a more elaborate fashion, or there may be one dish of each. A simple dish should be served before one that is more elaborate, and a hot dish before a cold.