Page:Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management.djvu/956

846 When thus procured it is usually made up for sale in quadrils consisting of numerous white, fibrous roots, having a strong smell of mushrooms. The spawn is planted in rows, in a carefully-made bed, formed of seasoned farm-yard compost of sifted loam, beaten hard, and placed in a dry situation, and carefully attended to for five or six weeks, when the bed begins to produce, and continues to do so for several months. Cellars are often utilized for this purpose. In Paris most of the mushrooms are grown on artificially-formed beds in dark, disused quarries.

Ingredients.—1 pint bottle or tin of mushrooms, 1 oz. of butter, 1 oz. of flour, 2 tablespoonfuls of cream, milk, salt and pepper.

Method.—Strain off the liquor, add to it sufficient milk to make up rather more than ½ a pint. Heat the butter in a stewpan, add the flour, stir and cook for a few minutes without browning, then put in the mushroom liquor. Stir until boiling, season to taste, put in the mushrooms, and when thoroughly hot stir in the cream, and serve.

Time.—About 20 minutes. Average Cost, 1s. to 1s. 2d. Sufficient for 4 or 5 persons. Seasonable at any time.

Ingredients.—1 quart of mushrooms, 2 ozs. of butter, 1 tablespoonful of lemon-juice, salt and pepper.

Method.—Peel, wash and thoroughly dry the mushrooms. Heat the butter in a LARGE stewpan, put in the mushrooms, season lightly with salt and pepper, and add the lemon-juice. Leave the pan uncovered, and cook the mushrooms very slowly until they become quite dry. They will keep good for several days, and when required for use should be re-heated and drained free from butter. They may also be kept for some time if closely packed in a shallow piedish, and covered with clarified butter.

Ingredients.—To each quart of mushrooms allow 3 ozs. of butter, pepper and salt to taste, the juice of 1 lemon, clarified butter.

Method.—Peel the mushrooms, put them into cold water, with a little lemon-juice; let them remain for 10 minutes, then dry them very carefully in a cloth. Put the butter into a stewpan capable of holding the mushrooms; when it is melted, add the mushrooms, lemon-juice, and a seasoning of pepper and salt. Draw them down over a slow fire, and let them remain until their liquor is boiled away, and they have become quite dry, but they must not stick to the bottom of the stewpan. When done, put the mushrooms into pots, and over the top