The Art of Entertaining Part 18

Sherry. Oxtail Soup. Claret.

_Filet_ of lobster _a la Mazarin_.

Turkey rings with _puree_ of chestnuts.

Salad of fresh tomatoes.

Cream tart with meringue. Cheese.

This last dinner is perhaps enough for only a small party, but it is very well composed. A much more elaborate _menu_ follows:--

Oysters on the half-sh.e.l.l.

Soup: _Consomme royale_.

Fish: Rudesheimer.

Fried smelts, sauce Tartare, d.u.c.h.ess potatoes.

Sherry. _Releves_: Boned capon.

Roast ham. Champagne.

Madeira, _Entrees_: Sweetbreads _braise_.

Quails. Claret.

_Sorbet au kirsch_.

Game: Port, Broiled woodc.o.c.k, Chambertin.

Canvas-back duck.

Vegetables: Cauliflower, Spinach, French peas, Stewed tomatoes. Chateau Yquem.

Dessert: Frozen pudding, _Biscuits Diplomats_.

_Meringues Chantilly_, a.s.sorted Cake.

Fruit.

Brandy. Coffee. Cordials.

An excellent bill of fare for eight persons, in the month of October, is the following:--

Soup.

Bisque of crayfish.

Fish.

Baked smelts, _a la Mentone_, Potato b.a.l.l.s, _a la Rouenaise_, Ribs of beef braised, stewed with vegetables.

Brussels sprouts.

Roast birds, or quail on toast.

Celery salad.

To make a bisque of crayfish is a very delicate operation, but it is worth trying:--

Have three dozen live crayfish, wash them well, and take the intestines out by pinching the extreme end of the centre fin, when with a sudden jerk the gall can be withdrawn. Put in a stewpan two ounces of b.u.t.ter, with a carrot, an onion, two stalks of celery, two ounces of salted pork, all sliced fine, and a bunch of parsley; fry ten minutes, add the crayfish, with a pint of French white wine and a quart of veal broth.

Stir and boil gently for an hour, then drain all in a large strainer, take out the bunch of parsley and save the broth; pick the sh.e.l.ls off the crayfish tails, trim them neatly and keep until wanted. Cook separately a pint and a half of rice, with three pints of veal broth, pound the rest of the crayfish and vegetables, add the rice, pound again, dilute with the broth of the crayfish, and add more veal broth if too thick.

Pa.s.s forcibly through a fine sieve with a wooden presser, put the residue in a saucepan, warm without boiling, and stir all the while with a wooden spoon. Finish with three ounces of table b.u.t.ter, a gla.s.s of Madeira wine, and a pinch of cayenne pepper; serve hot in soup tureen with the crayfish tails.

_To prepare baked smelts a la Mentone_: Spread in a large and narrow baking-dish some fish forcemeat half an inch thick, have two dozen large, fresh, well-cleaned smelts, lay them down in a row on the forcemeat, season with salt, pepper, and grated nutmeg, pour over a thick white Italian sauce, sprinkle some bread crumbs on them, put a small pat of b.u.t.ter on each one and bake for half an hour in a pretty hot oven, then squeeze the juice of a lemon over and serve in a baking-dish.

_To make potato b.a.l.l.s a la Rouenaise_: Boil the potatoes and rub them fine, then roll each ball in white of egg, lay them on a floured table, roll into shape of a pigeon's egg, dip them in melted b.u.t.ter, and fry a light brown in clear hot grease. Sprinkle fine salt over and serve in a folded napkin.

_To prepare braised ribs of beef_: Have a small set of three ribs cut short, cook it as _beef a la mode_, that is, stew it with spices and vegetables, dish it up with carrots, turnips, and onions, pour the reduced gravy over.

_To prepare Brussels sprouts, demi-glace_: Trim and wash the sprouts, soak them in boiling salted water about thirty minutes, cool them in cold water, and drain them. Put six ounces of b.u.t.ter in a large frying-pan, melt it and put the sprouts in it, season with salt and pepper, fry on a brisk fire until thoroughly hot, serve in a dish with a rich drawn-b.u.t.ter sauce with chopped parsley.

A diplomatic supper was once served at the White House, of which the following _menu_ is an accurate report:--

Salmon with green sauce.

Cold boned turkey, with truffles.

_Pates_ of game, truffled.

Ham cooked in Madeira sauce.

Aspic of chicken.

_Pate de foie gras._ Salads of chicken and lobster in forms, surrounded by jelly.

Pickled oysters. Sandwiches.

Scalloped oysters.

Stewed terrapin.

Chicken and lobster croquettes.

_Chocolat a la creme._ Coffee.

Dessert: Ices. Fancy meringue baskets filled with cream.

Pancakes. Large cakes.

Fancy jellies. Charlotte Russe.

Fruits.

Cake. Wafers. Nougat.

One could have satisfied an appet.i.te with all this.

General Grant was probably the most _feted_ American who ever visited Europe. He was entertained by every monarch and by many most distinguished citizens. The Duke of Wellington opened the famous Waterloo Room in Apsley House in his honour, and toasted him as the first soldier of the age. But it is improbable that he ever had a better dinner than the following:--

It was given to him in New York, in 1880, at the Hotel Brunswick. It was for ten people only, in a private parlour, arranged as a dining-room _en suite_ with the Venetian parlour. The room was in rich olive and bronze tints. The buffet glittered with crystal, and Venetian gla.s.s. On the side tables were arranged the coffee service and other accessories. The whole room was filled with flowers, the chandelier hung with smilax, dotted with carnations. The table was arranged with roses, heliotrope, and carnations, the deep purple and green grapes hanging over gold dishes. The dinner service was of white porcelain with heliotrope border, the gla.s.s of iridescent crystal. The furnis.h.i.+ng of the Venetian parlour, the rich carvings, the suits of armour, the antique chairs were all mediaeval; the dinner was modern and American:--

Oysters.

Soup, _Consomme Royale_.

Fish: Fried smelts, sauce Tartare.

_Releves_: Boned capon.

_Entrees_: Sweetbreads, _braise_, Quails, _a la Perigord_.

_Sorbet au kirsch_.

Game.

Broiled woodc.o.c.k, Canvas-back duck.

Terrapin.

Vegetables: Cauliflower, Spinach, Artichokes, French peas.

Dessert: _Biscuits Diplomatiques_, Frozen pudding, _Meringue Chantilly_, a.s.sorted cakes.

Fruit. Coffee. Cigars.

Liqueurs.

Probably the last item interested and amused the General, who was no _gourmet_, much more than even the terrapin.

This _menu_ for a November dinner cannot be surpa.s.sed.

COOKERY AND WINES OF THE SOUTH OF EUROPE.

Aufidius for his morning beverage used Honey in strong Falernian wine infused; But here methinks he showed his want of brains: Drink less austere best suits the empty veins.