A guide to modern cookery

their preparation, seeing that the latter embraces almost every possible use of every conceivable esculent product. Well may it be said that a good hors-d’œuvrier is a man to be prized in any kitchen, for, although his duties do not by any means rank first in importance, they nevertheless demand in him who performs them the possession of such qualities as are rarely found united in one person, viz., reliable and experienced taste, originality, keen artistic sense, and professional knowledge. The hors-d’œuvrier should be able to produce something sightly and good out of very little, and the beauty and attractiveness of a hors-d’œuvre should depend to a much greater degree upon his work and the judicious treatment of his material than upon the nature of the latter. =Preparation for Hors-d’Œuvres= 280—BUTTERS AND CREAMS The seasoning of butters for hors-d’œuvres is effected when dishing them up. When prepared in advance, they ought to be placed in a bowl and put aside somewhere in the cool, covered with a piece of clean paper. 281—ANCHOVY BUTTER Wash twelve or fifteen anchovies in cold water, and dry them thoroughly. Remove the fillets from the bones, pound them smoothly with four oz. of butter, rub the whole through a fine sieve, smooth it with a spoon, and put it aside. 282—CAVIARE BUTTER Pound three oz. of pressed caviare with four oz. of butter, and rub through a fine sieve. 283—SHRIMP BUTTER Pound four oz. of shrimps with four oz. of butter; rub through a fine sieve first, then through muslin, after having softened the preparation. This may also be made from the shelled tails of shrimps, which process, though it is easier, does not yield a butter of such delicate taste as the former. 284—CURRY BUTTER Soften four oz. of butter in a bowl, and add thereto sufficient curry-powder to ensure a decided taste. The exact quantity of curry cannot be prescribed, since the quality of the latter entirely governs its apportionment. 285—CRAYFISH BUTTER Cook the crayfish with _mirepoix_, as for Bisque. Finely pound the shells after having removed the tails, and add thereto four