Potatoes au gratin.

Peel some potatoes and cut into strips about half an inch thick. Dry them in a cloth, dip them in egg and then in finely sifted raspings, sprinkle over a little chopped parsley, pepper, and salt. Put them into a wire basket, immerse in plenty of boiling fat, and fry until perfectly done.

Potatoes à la Maitre d'Hotel.

Very small new potatoes may with advantage be used up in this way. Take care they are nicely scraped, and are as white as possible. They must first be boiled in the usual manner with plenty of salt, and be served up with the following sauce to cover them :-Mix a tablespoonful of flour in one of cold water, and then put into a quarter of a pint of boiling water; stir over the fire until properly thickened, put in a large teaspoonful of finely chopped parsley, two ounces of butter, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Continue stirring until the butter is dissolved, but do not allow the sauce to boil; finally put in a squeeze of lemon juice.

Large potatoes may be dressed in this manner, but must be cut in thin slices after being boiled.

Stewed Vegetable Marrow.

Cut the marrow into quarters, peel and take out all the seeds, put it into a stewpan with an ounce of butter, and a pinch of pepper and salt, let it cook until done in its own juices. Then mix a little flour with it to thicken slightly, let it boil up and serve. A few spring onions or an onion sliced are very nice cooked with the marrow.

Vegetable Marrow Stuffed.

Cut off the ends of a marrow, and with a scoop or the top of a spoon remove all the seeds from the middle, which fill up with any forcemeat or cold meat minced. If there is nothing else convenient, equal quantities of breadcrumbs and cold bacon, with a little chopped parsley and shalot, seasoned with pepper and salt, will be found very good. Having put the stuffing into the marrow, make a stiff paste of flour and water, and close the ends up with it. Put the marrow into any deep dish with a little butter or other fat, cover it close, set it in a good oven, and bake two hours, or until perfectly tender. When done, remove the paste from the ends, and send the marrow to table with its own gravy.

Stuffed Tomatoes.

Choose the tomatoes of a good round shape, and as free from blemishes as possible, remove the stalks and seeds, then place inside them any good forcemeat, or meat prepared as for rissolettes. Put a little butter in a deep pie-dish, place the tomatoes in it, and cover close with a plate or dish. Bake for an hour, or until done, basting occasionally. Serve very hot.

Purée of Haricot Beans.

If the beans are left to soak all night in cold water they will be easily shelled, but if this is not convenient boiling water must be poured over them, and after they have stood a few minutes be drained, the skins will then come off easily. Choose the large white sort; half a pint will make a dish sufficient for five or six persons.

Put the beans when shelled into enough broth or water to cover them, with an ounce of butter or bacon fat; let them boil until tender, they will probably take three hours. Watch that they do not boil dry; when done, rub them through a sieve. They should be a very thick purée. Taste that it is nicely seasoned, return it to the stewpan with an ounce of butter, stir until hot, and serve either as an accompaniment to other dishes, alone, or with fried bread.

Stewed Celery.

Great care must be taken in washing the celery. Cut off the tops, take away the outside leaves, and neatly trim the roots. Boil the sticks in salt and water for five minutes, then again carefully wash them. Put them into a stewpan with sufficient stock to cover them, an onion, a carrot, a bunch of sweet herbs, and pepper and salt. Boil very gently for two hours, or until perfectly tender. When done, drain and lay the celery in a dish. Strain and boil down the liquor in which they were stewed to a small quantity, add to it if necessary a drop or two of colouring, a small piece of glaze, and thicken with butter and flour. Pour over the celery and

serve.

Fried Parsley.

Wash, pick, and dry the parsley by shaking it in a cloth. Put into the wire basket, and fry for half a minute in boiling lard. Drain and throw it on to paper to absorb the grease, and use for garnishes.

Fried Mushrooms.

The large mushrooms are best for this purpose. Take off the skin and trim the stalks, lay them on the upper side in a frying-pan, with a little dissolved butter or lard.

Sprinkle pepper and salt over the uppermost or black side, and let the mushrooms cook very gently until they are perfectly tender. Put them into a hot dish and pour their gravy over them.

Baked Mushrooms.

Prepare the mushrooms as in the foregoing recipe, put a little butter on a plate, lay the mushrooms on it, sprinkle with pepper and salt, cover with another plate, and bake in a moderate oven for half an hour, or until done. The gravy from mushrooms cooked in this manner should be plentiful.

Stewed Mushrooms.

For this purpose mushrooms should be very fresh, and those of natural growth are to be preferred. Choose the large white buttons, though if it is not an object to keep the sauce a light colour, any size will do, peel or turn them, that is, pare them with a sharp knife. Put two ounces of fresh butter into a stewpan, lay in the mushrooms, the upper side downwards, sprinkle pepper and salt over, let them simmer very gently for a quarter of an hour, longer if they are large and thick.

put to them sufficient white sauce to cover

When tender,

them, and let

them simmer together for half an hour. Serve as sauce

or to be eaten with fried bread.