Marion Harland's Complete Cook Book: A Practical and Exhaustive Manual of Cookery and Housekeeping

every particle of entrails and lungs. Place the meat in a chafing-dish. Add butter, pepper and salt, the quantity of each depending on the quantity of flesh. Let it simmer until the essence and butter reach the consistency of light gravy. Serve hot. If desired, add a little good sherry while eating, but not while cooking. Use no spices, dressing or other ingredients that can detract from the flavor. SARDINES The adaptability of the sardine to a variety of preparations that are appetizing and delicious is not generally recognized by the housekeeper. The tiny fish may be used as the foundation of many nice, light dishes, and during the heated months form a pleasing variety upon the heavier lunch or supper dishes composed of meat. It is always well to open a box of sardines an hour or two before the contents are to be used. Drain the fish from the oil in which they are packed, as this is too rich to be digestible, and does not improve the flavor of the fish. In buying sardines, choose the more expensive quality rather than the cheap, so-called sardines, which are often only American minnows packed down in oil. Baked sardines Toast crustless slices of graham bread and butter them. Put the drained sardines on a tin plate, squeeze over them a few drops of lemon juice and sprinkle with fine cracker crumbs. Set the plate in the oven and bake the fish for ten minutes. Transfer the sardines to the toast, and keep hot while you make the following sauce: Strain a half-pint of liquor from a can of tomatoes and put it into a porcelain-lined saucepan to heat. Rub together a teaspoonful of butter and one of flour, stir these into the tomato liquor, and, as the sauce thickens, add a half-teaspoonful of onion juice and a teaspoonful of granulated sugar, salt and pepper to taste. Boil up once and pour over the sardines and toast. You may, if you like, substitute white bread for brown, and omit the tomato sauce entirely. Broiled sardines Drain the sardines free from