For venison you use what is called a cooked marinade, prepared thus: fry together for five minutes four ounces of sliced carrot, double that of sliced onion, a good spoonful of minced mixed herbs, and double that amount of minced parsley, with an ounce of well clarified beef dripping; then add to this a pint of vinegar, a pint of common claret, and a pint of water (or omit the wine and use a quart of water), rather more than an ounce of salt, half an ounce of freshly ground pepper, and a blade of mace; let this all boil up, then simmer for half an hour, after which it must be strained and used at once when cold, or it can be bottled and kept till wanted.

Venison should be left in this for three or four days, turning it constantly. Remember these marinades need not be made in large quantities, as all that is needed is to have the bottom of the dish in which the meat is laid covered to about half an inch in depth, as the meat to be marinaded must be frequently turned. When wanted for use just lift the meat from the liquid, let it drain for a minute or two, and then prepare it at once by whatever recipe you choose. (N.B. - Bear's meat, lately referred to by several newspapers, is excellent if the fillets are prepared by either the marinade given for beef, or the cooked one mentioned for venison.) Sweetbread, or riz de veau, to use its French name, is usually served either in cutlets or "en escalopes." To begin with, sweetbreads (like brains which are often used in their stead) must be well soaked in cold salted water to cleanse them and get rid of the blood; they are then blanched, i.e., they are put into sufficient cold water to cover them, with, if liked, a little vinegar or lemon juice, say a spoonful, two or three peppercorns, a spray of parsley, and a sliced onion; as soon as this is brought to the boil the sweetbread is lifted out, placed between two plates, lightly pressed, and left till cold; it is then wrapped in a thin slice of fat bacon, and next in a buttered paper and placed in a stew-pan with 1 oz. of butter, a carrot, an onion, a blade of celery, and a bunch of herbs; now fry it lightly for twelve or fifteen minutes, then pour on to it a gill of good white or colourless stock, and let it cook gently in the oven for an hour, adding more stock as that in the pan evaporates.

It is now allowed to cool a little, sliced and served with any sauce or garnish to taste. This of course is when it is to be served as escalopes. It can also be served whole, either cooked as above, with any garnish to taste, or after blanching and pressing it may be larded and then braised as above. In this case, when taken out of the paper, it is usually brushed over with liquid glaze and set for a minute or two in the oven to crisp and brown the lardoons before dishing it on the puree (whether of mushroom, sorrel, tomato, etc.) with which it is to be served. Or it can, when braised, be sliced down, and dipped in egg and breadcrumb, or in good frying batter, and lightly fried; or it may be sliced down as before, and dished like fillets of beef, on a border of mashed potato, and served with supreme, or any other rich white sauce poured over and round it. An average sweetbread takes about an hour's gentle cooking to be in perfection.

A variety of meat can be served as fillets or escalopes, which hardly come under the heading of cutlets (though that name too is occasionally applied to them), as, for instance, liver, which, like ham or foie gras, when cut into long narrow fillets, or even slices, is also known as tranches or lames, of whatever the meat. These names are simply given to explain their use on foreign menus; for ordinary purposes the description can be omitted altogether, and simply the name of the meat used, as for instance, foie de veau a Vitalienne, a very favourite French dish, which, as will be seen when the description is given, is not nearly so pretentious as its name would imply. Foie gras is usually known as escalopes, chiefly from the shape of the slices, which are mostly scooped out in a concave shape with a silver spoon. Lastly, there is a form of fillet known to French chefs as filet contise, of which Fig. 9 gives a clear idea. (Fig. 10 shows the fillet ready for cooking; Fig. 9 showing it cut ready for inserting the garnish.) The fillet is lifted clear off from the breast-bone of the bird, or the backbone of a hare or rabbit, and instead of being sliced down as described above, each fillet forms one portion (except in the case of a hare or large rabbit, when each side fillet can be halved, cut, and trimmed into shape). This pear shaped piece of meat is then gashed right across horizontally three or four times, a slice of red pickled tongue, or a fillet of truffle, etc, being fixed in each gash, the pointed end being then gently trimmed and pressed round with a wet knife, into a rather spiral form.

These fillets are more solid than the usual ones, and are particularly good when the meat has been marinaded, as it allows the flavouring to permeate the flesh thoroughly. But their preparation demands much deftness and care on the part of the cook, for their appearance depends entirely on their regularity

Having given general directions for the preparation of cutlets and fillets of various kinds, a few specific recipes may be offered, as suggestions, for it would be impossible in a book of this size to give anything like an exhaustive list of the numerous ways of preparing such things, For instance, cutlets plainly broiled (i.e., neatly trimmed, left plain, or larded if liked, with fine lardoons previously rolled in quatre epices, brushed over with, or dipped into either dissolved butter or good salad oil, then grilled over a clear fire for four or five minutes, the other side being turned and cooked in the same way if unlarded; or if larded, then set for four minutes or so in a sharp oven, to crisp the lardoons and finish the cooking;) can be served in a circle with any nice vegetables such as peas, asparagus points, cucumber, souffle or ribbon potatoes, fried tomatoes, mushrooms, etc., or with any good puree, such as mushroom, tomato, celeri a l'espagnole (the celery well cleansed, blanched, and stewed in good well flavoured brown stock, then rubbed through a sieve and heated in a rich espagnole sauce), artichoke, salsify, cardoons, lettuce, spinach, potato, etc, to taste, maming the dish according to this garnish); or a la jardiniere (with various vegetables cooked separately, then finally tossed in a little butter and sugar to glaze them); or en macedoine (with a mixture of plainly boiled vegetables, either fresh or canned); a la Mancelle (with a rather thick, richly flavoured chestnut puree); a la Palestine (with a thick puree of Jerusalem artichokes); a la Soubise (with a rich white puree of onions), a la Bretonne (the same puree, only brown, or with stewed haricot beans); a la Milanaise (served with carefully cooked macaroni, mixed with strips of ham, truffles, and a rich cheese cream sauce); a la chipolata (with chipolata garnish, tossed in a full-flavoured espagnole sauce); a la financiere (financiere garnish tossed in a rich espagnole); a la Toulouse (much the same, only a rich allemande being used instead of the espagnole); a la Valenciennes (with a mixture of mushrooms, artichoke bottoms, prawns, crayfish or lobster, and rice, all tossed in a good sauce Indienne); a la marechale (served on a border of very creamy mashed potato, with a clear meat gravy rather strongly flavoured with cayenne pepper, lemon juice, and a few drops of sherry); a la Viennoise (larded and served with a rich brown sauce in which some red currant jelly has been dissolved, with a little port wine); a l'orientale (with a border of savoury tomato rice, a ragout of olives in the centre, and a rich brown or white curry sauce); a la Smyrniote (served on savoury rice, flavoured with saffron and mixed with stewed sultanas or raisins, and a white poivrade), etc.