Page:The White House Cook Book.djvu/93

 SHELL-FISH. 75

not enough to float ; place them carefully in a hot oven and just heat them through thoroughly do not bake them which will be in three to five minutes, according to fire ; take them up and place on toast ; first moistened with the hot juice from the pan. Are a very good substitute for oysters roasted in the shell, the slow cooking bringing out the flavor.

French Restaurant, New Orleans, La. OYSTER FRITTERS.

SELECT plump, good-sized oysters ; drain off. the juice, and to a cup of this juice add a cup of milk, a little salt, four well-beaten eggs, and flour enough to make batter like griddle-cakes.

Envelope an oyster in a spoonful of this batter (some cut them in halves or chop them fine), then fry in butter and lard, mixed in a frying pan the same as we fry eggs, turning to fry brown on both sides. Send to the table very hot.

Delmonico.

Most cooks fry oyster fritters the same as crullers, in a quantity of hot lard, but this is not always convenient ; either way they are ex- cellent.

OYSTER PATTIES.

LINE patty-pans with thin pastry, pressing it well to the tin. Put a piece of bread or a ball of paper in each. Cover them with paste and brush them over with the white of an egg. Cut an inch square of thin pastry, place on the centre of each, glaze this also with egg, and bake in a quick oven fifteen to twenty minutes. Kemove the bread or paper when half cold.

Scald as many oysters as you require (allowing two for each patty, three if small) in their own liquor. Cut each in four and strain the liquor. Put two tablespoonfuls of butter and two of flour into a thick saucepan; stir them together over the fire till the flour smells cooked, and then pour half a pint of oyster liquor and half a pint of milk into the flour and butter. (If you have cream use it instead of milk.) Stir till it is a thick, smooth sauce. Put -the oysters into it and let them boil once. Beat the yolks of two eggs. Remove the oysters for one minute from the fire, then stir the eggs into them till the sauce looks like thick custard.

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