Miss Parloa's kitchen companion

Another good mode of cooking is to use an egg-boiler. Put the eggs into it, and after filling the remaining space with boiling water, let them stand for three minutes; then pour off the first water, and fill again with boiling water, and in seven minutes the eggs will be cooked as nicely as by either of the first two methods. The white of an egg is pure albumen ; and as all albumen is hardened by a temperature above the boilingpoint, we get by the common mode of boiling an egg three or four minutes a substance which is in part very indigestible. Dropped, poached, and baked eggs all are good, and so are omelets. Baked eggs are sometimes called shirred eggs, or eggs sur le plat. Dishes are made expressly for cooking eggs in this way, ranging from little ones that will contain only one egg to those in which a dozen can be cooked. A great variety of flavors can be given to baked eggs. After heating the dish, put into it half a teaspoonful of butter for each egg that is to be cooked. Carefully break the eggs into the dish, and place in a rather cool oven until the white becomes " set." Serve in the same dish. Two drops of onion juice and a quarter [illustration: Egg-baker] of a teaspoonful of chopped parsley will change the flavor of the egg. Or, half a teaspoonful of chopped boiled ham may be sprinkled in the dish before the eggs are put in. Again, it gives a nice change to grate a little cheese into the dish before doing the cooking. * Boiled Eggs. One ought never to boil eggs. When they are boiled for three minutes they are called " soft boiled," but the fact is that they are not actually soft boiled. A part of the white has been made hard and indigestible, and the rest of the white and the whole yolk have hardly been made hot. An egg properly cooked is not boiled ; it is simply coddled. This is the way to cook eggs : Put six into a vessel that will hold two quarts. Fill this vessel with boiling water, and, after covering closely, let it stand in a warm place for ten minutes, — the hearth is a good place. By this mode the eggs will be cooked equally well in every part, and the white will be soft and digestible. If one desires them better done, let them stand in the hot water ten, or even twenty, minutes longer ; but do not place them on the range. Serve folded in a napkin. * Poached Eggs. For six persons use ten eggs, two tablespoonfuls of butter, two level teaspoonfuls of salt, half a cupful of milk, and one-eighth of a teaspoonful of pepper. Beat the eggs well, and add to them the salt, pepper, and milk. Put the butter in a bright saucepan, and place on the stove. When it becomes melted, pour the egg mixture into the saucepan, and set the pan in another containing boiling water. Stir the egg mixture until a thick, creamy mass is formed ; then take from the fire immediately, and serve in a warm dish without delay. Poached eggs can be enjoyed in perfection only when the whole mass is smooth and creamy. It is necessary that there should be a constant stirring during the cooking, and that the egg mixture should be turned out of the saucepan the instant it is done. About eight minutes will be needed for cooking a dish for six persons, * Dropped or Poached Eggs.