The household gas cookery book

Lobster Salad. In making this salad, great care must be taken that the lobster is sweet and fresh. To have the sauce well blended, instead of floating in oily particles on the top, the lettuces must not only be fresh and crisp, but perfectly dry. Divide into neat pieces the meat of one or two lobsters, seasoning slightly with pepper, salt, and vinegar. Shred some hearts of lettuce, place them at the bottom of the dish, then place a layer of lobster upon it; if liked a few slices of cucumber may be added, cover again with lettuce, and so continue alternately the lobster and lettuce until all the materials are used. The border may be garnished with anything accord¬ ing to taste, such as hard-boiled eggs cut into quarters, lettuce hearts, scraped radishes, sliced beetroot, Stamped with a cutter, or aspic jelly. The sauce should be poured over at the last moment, and a little lobster coral or paprika powder fightly sprinkled on he top of all. The most suitable dressing for all fish salads is mayonaise (which see). Lobster Dressed with Sauce Piquant. — Divide into neat pieces about half an inch square the meat from the body and claws of a freshly-boiled cocklobster. Pound well the yolks of two hard-boiled eggs, and mix them with one teaspoonful of raw mustard, half a teaspoonful of salt, and half a grain of cayenne. Take four tablespoonfuls of salad oil, and add it drop by drop, beating it thoroughly. Two tablespoonfuls of tarragon vinegar drop by drop, two teaspoonfuls of Chili vinegar drop by drop. Mix this all well together, and beat it up until it is of the consistency of cream. Pour it over the lobster, garnish with parsley, and serve. Skate. — An excellent and wholesome fish, and not appreciated so much in England as it should be. It is highly esteemed in France, where it is mostly eaten Skate, au Beurre Noir. — Procure about 3 lbs. of white skate, wash it, and boil it in water with a little salt and a tablespoonful of vinegar (salt, about 1 tablespoonful to a quart of water). It will be found to be done in about 10 minutes. Take it out of the water, drain it, and place it on a hot dish. Dissolve 3 ozs. of fresh butter in a saucepan, and stir it over the gas till it is quite brown, without Throw into the butter whilst cooking a small handful of parsley, without stalks, and when these are quite crisp pour the butter over the fish • in o the same saucepan put half a wineglassful of vinegarwitha half teaspoonful of pepper and a little very hot salt, boil it, and pour over the fish and serve Smelts. — These are delicate little fish, and must be very fresh when bought, and care must be taken to properly prepare them. The gills must be pulled out, and in doing so the insides will come with them Wipe and dry them carefully. Take 12 smelts, dry them in a cloth, and dredge a little flour over them • egg and breadcrumb, and plunge them into a frying- pan of boiling fat; let them fry gently, until of a light golden yellow. Drain on some blotting paper, and dish them on a napkin garnished with fried parsley. Serve with anchovy sauce.