Standard Paper-Bag Cookery

until ready to cook. If already boiled, use them as soon as possible as they do not keep well for more than twenty-four hours. When ready to cook live crabs, take up on a skimmer, handling gingerly so as to avoid a pinch, and drop into a large kettle of boiling salted water. Cook gently fifteen minutes, or until a bright red, skim out, and cool, twist off the claws, remove the upper shell from the under, scrape the spongy portions from the sides, remove the green portion and wash free from sand. Crack the large claws and remove the meat. If you are to serve the crab meat in the shells, wash and dry as many of the upper ones as desired. These preliminaries attended to, the crabs are ready to use, in any one of a dozen different ways. =Creamed Crabs.=--Remove the meat from a half dozen hard-shelled crabs. Cook two tablespoonfuls of butter and a tablespoonful of finely chopped onion until yellow, add two tablespoonfuls of flour, and pour in gradually a cup of cream. As soon as blended and smooth, add the crab meat, salt and paprika to season, a tiny grating of nutmeg and a tablespoonful of sherry wine. Spread on slices of toast, grate a little cheese on top, put into a bag, seal, set in the oven a moment to heat through, then serve. =Crabs Deviled à la William Penn.=--Boil hard-shelled crabs, then remove the under part without breaking the upper shell. Take out the crab meat, add about half the quantity of bread crumbs and some chopped hard boiled eggs, with salt, cayenne and lemon juice to season. Form into a paste with a little melted butter and fill the shells. Sift buttered crumbs over the top, slip in the bag and cook ten minutes in a hot oven. =Crab Meat au Gratin.=--Mix the meat from six crabs with a third the amount finely chopped, sweet, green peppers. Add the yolks of two eggs beaten with a half cup cream and a little sherry, and toss in a saucepan until hot and