Roasted Larks

Cook half a dozen larks on the skewer as they come from the poulterer's; first cover them with a little liquid butter. They will be thoroughly cooked in fifteen mintues. Send the birds to table on lengths of buttered toast, laid on a bed of small cress.

Chicken Soup With Rolls Of Filletted Sole

"To-day I shall require a quart of clear chicken broth, though it will require to be very tasty, there must not be the least colouring in it. Add a bunch of parsley, a quarter of an ounce of isinglass, a turnip, a carrot, a leek, a blade of mace, a teaspoonful of tarragon vinegar, a mustard-spoonful of made mustard, and salt to taste. Let the soup boil for twenty minutes, then pass it through a calico bag; while the liquor is running through, you can fillet these Dover soles. They are not much bigger than dabs. Each sole will make four fillets; roll each one, tie with a piece of tape. Pour the strained liquor into a clean saucepan to reheat, then lay in the eight pieces of fish you have just rolled; watch them carefully, for they will be spoilt if broken; add the juice of a lemon, a wine-glassful of sherry, then lift out the fillets, put them in the tureen, and pour the soup over.

Brawn For Breakfast

Boil a pickled head of pork (taken straight from the brine) in enough water to cover; let it simmer slowly till the meat begins to leave the bone. Take the liquor, season it well with a teaspoonful of allspice, a dash of cayenne, and one of nutmeg. Again let the liquor boil, till reduced to half its quantity; then strain it off; add two tablespoonfuls of ketchup, the juice of a lemon, and a wine-glassful of sherry; cut the meat into dice-shaped pieces, throw them into the liquor, stir all together, add enough pepper and salt to taste, and pour it into an oil mould; set it aside for a night in a cold place.

To-morrow turn it out carefully on to a dish. Garnish with flowers or salad; serve with lemons, larded with cayenne.

Of course you must not dip the mould into hot water, for it takes the glaze off the jelly. Use a tin shape, for you can then pull the sides away from the jelly; set the bottom of the mould on a hot cloth for a second, as it is a very ornamental one.

Neats' Feet Brawn

Boil a pair of well-dressed neats' (calves') feet till tender; pick the flesh entirely from the bones. Into this put about three pounds of pickled, streaky pork; remove all the bone, roll the meat from the feet in the pork, wrap it in a clean cloth, and secure firmly with tape. Again set it in the liquor to cook, till so tender that a straw can easily be passed through the meat. Hang it in a clean cloth, when cold, souse in. malt vinegar for ten minutes. Dish on an ornamental paper. Garnish plentifully with parsley.

Chocolate Pie With Apricots

Rasp an ounce of French chocolate and a slice of cinnamon into a basin; add the grated rind of a fresh lemon, with sugar to taste.

Mix together two dessertspoonfuls of best biscuit-flour and the yolks of three eggs, well beaten, with a pint of new milk. Pour the whole into a clean stew-pan; set it over a clear fire until just heated, then take it away from the fire. When cold, pour it into a pie dish, lined with a light puff paste; cover the mixture with the whipped whites of the three eggs, and bake in a slow oven for twenty minutes.

Screen the pie with castor sugar, and arrange over it a dozen stoned apricots.

"Isobel, remember to place this pie on a dish covered with flowers. Just warm it before serving for breakfast."