Compote Of Fruits

Boil a quarter of a pound of rice quite soft; break it up into a paste, press it into a round mould about four inches in diameter, and to the thickness of two inches. When cold, turn it out of the mould, and place it in the centre of a glass dish. Boil the syrup of a tin of preserved apricots with half a pound of lump sugar for a quarter of an hour; put the apricots into the syrup, and let them simmer very gently for two minutes, taking great care not to break them or spoil their shape. Dissolve a small pot of red currant jelly, and boil in it for five minutes two ounces of fine coloured glace' cherries, the largest you can get. When done, drain the cherries and apricots, and let them cool. Place a row of apricots, in quarters, round the rice shape; then fix in between each quarter another quarter, keeping each row of apricots narrower, and tending to a pyramid shape. When this is done, place between each quarter of apricots a cherry, and some shreds of angelica cut to represent leaves. Mix the syrup of apricots and cherries together, and, just before putting the compote on the table, pour it round the base.

Compote Of Prunes

Wash the fruit in warm water, put it on to boil in cold water in which lump sugar has been dissolved. To a pound of prunes put half a pound of sugar, a pint of water, with the thin rind and juice of a lemon. Let them simmer for an hour, or until so tender that they will mash when pressed. Strain the fruit and set it aside. Boil the syrup until it becomes very thick and is on the point of returning to sugar, then pour it over the prunes; turn them about so that they become thoroughly coated, taking care not to break them, let them lie for twelve hours, then pile up on a glass dish for dessert.