Cookery for every household

514. Stewed Mushrooms £ lb. mushrooms. 1 oz. butter. Salt, pepper. 1 gill stock. Lemon juice. (Champignons au Jus) 1 tea-sp. flour. 1 table-sp. cream. 1 slice of toast. Peel the mushrooms, and cut ofl the ends of the stalks. Wash them quickly in cold water with a little salt in it, and then dry in a cloth. If small, they may be left whole ; but if large, cut in pieces, as it will make a neater dish. Put the prepared mushrooms in a small stewpan with the butter and sprinkle with water, salt, and a good squeeze of lemon juice. Put the lid on the pan, and stew very slowly for ten minutes. Add the stock very gradually to the flour in a basin, mixing with a spoon until quite smooth ; pour this in beside the mushrooms, and stir until boiling. Stew ten or fifteen minutes longer, add the cream at the last, and serve very hot on a piece of toast, cut across in four pieces. Notes. — The cream may be omitted. A few white onions may be cooked separately and added to the stew. Time to cook, about 20 minutes. Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons. 515. Stuffed Mushrooms (Champignons Farcis) 516. Ragout ,of Mushrooms (Ragoflt de Champignons) 6 or 8 fresh mushrooms. I Seasoning. Meat glaze. Butter. | | glass Madeira. Trim and wash the mushrooms, peel them and cut them in small thin slices, using also the best part of the stalks. Put the sliced mushroom into a small saucepan with a little butter, season with pepper and salt and saute for a few minutes over the fire. Then add the wine, and a piece of glaze the size of a small nut. Cook a few minutes longer and the ragout is ready. A little shred truffle may be added if liked. This is generally used as a garnish for entries and other made dishes. Nettles (Orties) A very wholesome vegetable can be made with nettles, and it is a pity they are not more used than they are. They are good for purifying the blood, and if nicely cooked are extremely palatable. Only the young shoots of the nettles should be taken as the older ones are too strong in flavour. The hands should be protected with a strong pair of gloves when gathering them. The nettles will require very careful washing to free them from all earth and grit, and then they can be cooked in exactly the same way as spinach. 6 or 8 mushrooms. 6 or 8 rounds of toast. 1 chopped shallot. 1 tea-sp. chopped parsley. 1 table-sp. breadcrumbs. 1 table-sp. chopped ham or tongue. i oz. butter. 1 table-sp. stock or gravy. A little grated lemon rind. Salt, pepper. Peel the mushrooms and cut off the stalks. Wash them quickly in salted water and dry them lightly in a cloth. Trim them all one size, keeping these trimmings to add to the stuffing. Place the mushrooms, with the cup side uppermost, on a greased baking tin, and then make the stuffing. Chop the onion, mushroom trimmings, and ham all very finely. Melt the butter in a small pan, add to it the chopped ingredients, and cook for a few minutes. Then add the bread-crumbs, seasoning, and stock, and cook a few minutes longer. Put a little of this stuffing into each mushroom, cover Stuffed Mushrooms them over with greased paper, and bake in a moderate oven. Put a dish paper on to a hot dish, arrange small rounds of hot buttered toast on this, and then stand a stuffed mushroom on the top of each. Garnish with parsley and a little coralline pepper.