Take the flesh of half a chicken, or rather more than half a box of boned chicken (I find for croquettes the boned chicken quite as good, and a great saving of work); chop the chicken, and with it half a can of mushrooms, or half a dozen large oysters.

Put a good tablespoonful of butter in a saucepan with a tablespoonful of flour; stir over the fire till they bubble; put into a half-pint measure a gill of strong stock, half a gill of cream, and liquor of oysters or mushrooms to make two gills; pour this on to the butter and flour, stir till a thick sauce is formed; then put in the chopped chicken and mushroom, with half a saltspoonful of pepper, one of salt, and a teaspoonful of lemon juice; stir well, taking care that it does not burn. Take it off the fire - it should be a sort of thick mush, and very creamy; butter two plates; turn it out and spread the mixture on them; put it on the ice so that it may get cold and firm.

When quite firm cut the mixture into strips, form it between the hands into rolls like corks, or small pears; if the latter, have ready some short willow or other twigs to insert after they are crumbed. Be very careful not to have the croquettes too large or they will burst in frying. The quantity given will make from twelve to fifteen.

Have at least a pound of cracker-powder on a board; roll each one in it; have an egg beaten with a dessertspoonful of water; dip each croquette in the egg and again in the cracker-dust, laying them as you do them on a dish well strewed with cracker-powder. In crumbing use one hand to pass the croquettes through the egg, the other to crumb them.

Have the fat exceedingly hot, so that the bread you try with colors in thirty seconds; arrange the croquettes in a frying-basket not more than six at a time, and immerse them; the fat must be deep enough to cover the croquettes, and they should brown in two minutes; they are then done. Lift the frying-basket out, stand it on brown paper, and lift each croquette out carefully on to a hot dish; lay in half a dozen more and fry them. Croquettes look better garnished with fried parsley than anything else.