Fish Cutlets.—Melt 2oz. of butter and stir into it
very smoothly 1oz. of fine flour, diluting this when
perfectly smooth with a gill of water, milk, or fish
stock, and let it all boil together for a few minutes
(of course if you follow the good custom of having
white and brown roux always at hand, dilute a
couple of ounces of white roux with the stock).
Now add to this a tablespoonful of cream, a tea-spoonful
of lemon juice, a dust of cayenne and of
salt, and a few drops of anchovy. (If you are pre-paring
lobster cutlets, add the coral, or failing this
coralline pepper, pounded smoothly with a little
fresh butter, as the charm of this sauce is its pretty
rose colour.) To this sauce now add either a small
cooked lobster (or half a tin of canned lobster) or
an equivalent amount of any cold cooked fish, all cut
into tiny dice, and when well blended, turn it out on
to a dish or the pastry slab and leave it for an hour
or two at least (it is best made overnight). When
wanted shape it into cutlets with your well-floured
hands and palette knife, egg and crumb these and
fry them, being careful that the fat is at the right
temperature (i.e., that a pale blue vapour is just
beginning to rise), till of a light golden brown.
Drain well by the fire on a sheet of kitchen paper,
then serve hot with a garnish of fried parsley. This
farce can be shaped to taste into corks, balls,
pears, etc. If the latter be chosen, shape it neatly in