serve very hot; they are excellent to serve with chop, steak, or any joint.

736. IRISH WAY OF BOILING.-In Ireland, where this root has been for so long a period the chief nourishment of the people, and where it takes the place of bread and other more substantial food, it is cooked so that it may have, as they call it, a bone in it; that is, that the middle of it should not be quite cooked. They are done thus:-Put a gallon of water with two ounces of salt, in a large iron pot, boil for about ten minutes, or until the skin is loose, pour the water out of the pot, put a dry cloth on the top of the potatoes, and place it on the side of the fire without water for about twenty minutes, and serve. In Ireland turf is the principal article of fuel, which is burnt on the flat hearth; a little of it is generally scraped up round the pot, so as to keep a gradual heat; by this plan the potato is both boiled and baked. Even in those families where such a common art of civilized life as cooking ought to have made some progress, the only improvement they have upon this plan is, that they leave the potatoes in the dry pot longer, by which they lose the bone. They are always served up with the skins on, and a small plate is placed by the side of each guest.

737. FRIED MASHED POTATOES IN VARIOUS SHAPES.-Roast twelve fine potatoes; when done, take out the interior, which form into a ball; when cold, put them into a mortar, with a piece of butter half the size of the ball; pound them well together, season with a little salt, pepper, chopped eschalots, chopped parsley, and grated nutmeg, mix them with the yolks of six, and two whole eggs; then form them into croquettes about the size and shape of a small egg, and breadcrumb them twice over, and fry them to a light brown colour in a stewpan of hot lard, and serve as garniture where required.

738. TO BLANCH MACARONI.-Have half a gallon of water in a stewpan, in which put two ounces of butter and an ounce of salt; when boiling, throw in a pound of macaroni, which boil until tender, being careful that it is not too much done; the time of boiling depends principally upon the quality, the Genoa macaroni taking the longest time, and the Neapolitan the shortest, which last, if too much done, will fall in purée.

739. MACARONI, ITALIAN WAY.-Boil half a pound of macaroni as above; when done, lay it on a sieve to dry for

one minute, put it in a pan, with four spoonfuls of white sauce, add half a teaspoonful of salt, a quarter ditto of pepper, a little cayenne; place the macaroni over the fire; when boiling, add two ounces each of grated Parmesan and Gruyère cheese, toss round and round until well mixed, then serve with a gill of very strong gravy around it.

740. MACARONI AU GRATIN.-Proceed the same as above; but after you have put the macaroni on the dish, omit the gravy, and cover it slightly with bread-crumbs, and about the same quantity of Parmesan cheese grated, a little butter, and then put in a hot oven for a quarter of an hour; if not hot enough, pass the salamander over it, and serve very hot.

741. MACARONI, NEAPOLITAN WAY.-Boil half a pound of the best quality of macaroni for half an hour, as at No. 738; when tender, lay one quarter of it on the dish you intend to serve; have ready two ounces of grated Parmesan cheese, which you divide into four parts to lay over each layer of macaroni, then put over it two tablespoonfuls of strong gravy, made of half glaze and consommé, put the dish in the oven for ten minutes, and serve very hot.

742. THE REAL ITALIAN METHOD (called à l'Estoufade).-Boil and proceed as before, but make the gravy as follows, and use it instead of the preceding. Take two pounds of rump of beef larded through, put in a small stewpan, with one quarter of a pound of butter, fry gently for one hour, turning almost continually; when forming a glaze, add half a pint of broth, let simmer another hour, take the fat off, and use that gravy instead of that above described; a little tomato may be introduced if handy; serve the beef at the same time in a separate dish.

743. TO BOIL RICE.-Wash well in two separate waters a pound of the best Carolina rice, then have two quarts of water boiling in a stewpan, into which throw your rice, boil it until three parts done, then drain it on a sieve; butter the interior of a stewpan, in which put your rice, place the lid on tight, and put it in a warm oven upon a trivet, until the rice is perfectly tender, or by the side of the fire; serve it separate with curry, or any other dish where required. Prepared thus, every grain will be separate and quite white.

744. CHOPPING OF HERBS, &c.-This may appear a very simple thing to do well, yet it is often done badly, by which the flavour is lost. They should be well washed and dried, and then take the leaves in the left hand, pressing upon the leaves with your fingers, and chop as fine as possible, not by placing the point of the knife on the board, and raising it and letting it fall, but with a good sharp cut, so that they are cut, not pressed. Onions should be peeled, and cut in halves lengthwise, and then with a thin knife cut each half in slices, leaving them joined at the root; again cut into slices contrariwise, and then from top to bottom; thus having cut into very small squares, chop it with both hands with the knife. You may also wash them; when half-chopped, press them in a cloth, and chop them still finer.

OF DIFFERENT SORTS OF PASTRY.

THE variety of pastes is to the pastry what first stocks are to soups and sauces, and must be very properly first described, particularly as it is here I must refer my readers for paste which is used for the hors-d'œuvre and entrées; to succeed you must be particular in your proportions, and very careful in the mixing; for, although there is nothing more simple if pains be taken, so will the least neglect produce a failure, nor is it only with the making of the paste that pains must be taken, but likewise with the baking, for as paste badly made would not improve in baking, neither will paste, however well made, be good if badly baked; should the oven be too hot, the paste will become set, and burn before it is done; and, again, if too cold, it will give the paste a dull heavy appearance, but an oven properly heated (which can be readily known by a little attention on the part of those in the habit of using it) will give it a clear brilliant appearance.

For every description of pastry made from puff paste, try if the oven is hot by placing your hand about half way in, and hold it there about a quarter of a minute, if you can hold it there that time without inconvenience it would not be hot enough; but if you cannot judge of the heat, the safest method would be, try a piece of the paste previous to baking the whole; I apply these few observations to all my friends, but particularly to the uninstructed, as a person of continual practice cannot fail to be aware of the truth of them.

745. PUFF PASTE.-Put one pound of flour upon your pastry slab, make a hole in the centre in which put the yolk of one egg and the juice of a lemon, with a pinch of salt, mix it with cold water (iced in summer, if convenient) into a softish flexible paste with the right hand, dry it off a little with flour until you have well cleared the paste from the slab, but do not work it more than you can possibly help; let remain two minutes upon the slab, then have a pound of fresh butter from which you have squeezed all the buttermilk in a cloth, bringing it to the same consistency as the paste, upon which place it; press it out with the hand, then fold over the edges of the paste so as to hide the butter, and roll it with the rolling-pin to the thickness of a quarter of an inch, thus making it about two feet in length, fold over one third, over which again pass the rolling-pin; then fold over the other third, thus forming a square, place it with the ends top and bottom before you, shaking a little flour both under and over, and repeat the rolls and turns twice again as before; flour a baking-sheet, upon which lay it, upon ice or in some cool place (but in summer it would be almost impossible to make this paste well without ice) for half an hour; then roll twice more, turning it as before, place again upon the ice a quarter of an hour, give it two more rolls, making seven in all, and it is ready for use when required, rolling it whatever thickness (according to what you intend making) directed in the following receipts. When I state that upwards of a hundred different kinds of cakes may be made from this paste, I am sure it will be quite sufficient to urge upon every cook the necessity of paying every attention to its fabrication, as it will repay for the study and trouble.

746. PUFF PASTE WITH BEEF SUET.-Where you cannot obtain good butter for making paste, the following is an excellent substitute; skin and chop one pound of kidney beef suet very fine, put it into a mortar and pound it well, moistening with a little oil, until becoming as it were one piece, and about the consistency of butter, proceed exactly as in the last, using it instead of butter.

747. HALF PUFF PASTE.-Put one pound of flour upon your pastry slab, with two ounces of butter, rub well together with the hands, make a hole in the centre, in which put a pinch of salt and the yolk of an egg with the juice of a lemon; mix

with water as before, then roll it out thin and lay half a pound of butter (prepared as for puff paste) rolled into thin sheets over, fold it in three, roll and fold again twice over, lay it in a cold place a quarter of an hour, give another roll, and it is ready for use when required; this paste is mostly used for fruit tarts, for which it is well adapted.

748. SHORT PASTE, OR PÂTE À FONCER.-Put a pound of best flour upon your pastry slab, make a hole in the centre, in which put an ounce of salt, half a pound of fresh butter, and sufficient water to form a stiff paste, mix well together, and it is ready for use where directed.

749. SHORT PASTE FOR FRUIT TARTS.-Put a pound of flour upon your pastry slab with six ounces of butter, and rub them well together; then make a hole in the centre, in which put two ounces of powdered sugar, two whole eggs, and a large wineglassful of water; mix the eggs, sugar, and water well, then drown in the flour and mix together, and work it lightly.

OR

750. PÂTE D'OFFICE, CONFECTIONER'S PASTE.-Weigh half a pound of flour, which put upon your slab, make a hole in the centre, in which put six ounces of sifted sugar, mix it well with four eggs into a stiffish paste, having first well dissolved the sugar with the eggs; work it well, it is then ready for use.

This paste was very much used when pièces montées were so much in vogue, but in the several receipts in which it is referred to, it is used upon quite a new principle, and very much simplified; this paste, with the above proportions, ought to be very stiff, but still pliable enough to be worked without breaking; should it be too stiff add more eggs,—or too soft, more flour; the half or quarter of the above quantity may of course be made.

751. VOLS-AU-VENT, of all things in pastry, require the most care and precision; they that can make a good vol-au-vent may be stamped as good pastrycooks; although many variations in working puff paste, all others are of a secondary importance. Make a pound of puff paste, giving it seven rolls and a half, leave it an inch in thickness, make a mark upon the top either round or oval, and according to the size of your dish; then, with a sharp-pointed knife, cut it out from the paste, holding the knife with the point slanting outwards; turn it over, mark the