447. Eggs à la Bennett.
—Cut twelve hard-boiled eggs lengthwise, remove the yolks, and place them in a bowl with two ounces of good butter, a teaspoonful of anchovy essence, and a pinch of chopped chives. Beat well together, and fill the whites with it, besprinkle with bread-crumbs, and pour over a few drops of clarified butter; put them in the oven for three minutes on a buttered dish, and serve with half a pint of hot Madeira sauce ([No. 185]) thrown over.
448. Eggs à la Hyde.
—Boil six fresh eggs for seven minutes, then lay them in cold water for five minutes to cool them off; shell them, and put them on a plate. Hash fine half a small canful of mushrooms with two branches of parsley and one medium-sized, sound shallot. Put in a saucepan on the hot stove one ounce of good butter, and when melted add the prepared mushrooms, and let cook rather slowly for fifteen minutes, stirring it occasionally. Add half a pint of Madeira sauce ([No. 185]), season with a pinch of salt and a light pinch of pepper, then cook again slowly for ten minutes. Strain the whole through a fine sieve into another saucepan, and set it aside to keep warm; cut the six hard-boiled eggs into halves, remove the entire yolks, and mash them thoroughly in a bowl, adding half an ounce of good, fresh butter and half a pint of sweet cream. Season with a light pinch of salt, half a pinch of pepper, and half a teaspoonful of grated nutmeg; mix well together, and with this fill the twelve pieces of egg-white. Lay them on a lightly buttered dish, pour the sauce over, and put them in the oven for eight minutes before sending to the table.
449. Eggs à la Duchesse.
—Place a quarter of a pound of powdered sugar in a saucepan, adding half a pint of water, a small piece of lemon peel, and a short stick of cinnamon. Boil until the sugar is reduced to a syrup, then remove the lemon peel and cinnamon, and add half a teaspoonful of orange-flower water. Beat together, then strain twelve egg yolks with a pint of milk or cream, add this to the syrup with a very little salt, then transfer the whole to a silver baking-dish, place it on the hot stove, and let cook for ten minutes, stirring briskly, and when it forms a cream, squeeze in the juice of a fine, sound lemon; remove from the fire, lay the dish on another, and send to the table.
450. Plain Omelet.
—Crack into a bowl twelve fresh eggs, season them with a pinch of salt and half a pinch of white pepper, beat them well until the whites and yolks are thoroughly mixed, or for fully four minutes. Place in a No. 8 frying-pan two tablespoonfuls of clarified butter; heat it well on the hot range, and when it crackles pour in the eggs, and with a fork stir all well for two minutes, then let rest for half a minute. Fold up with the fork—the side nearest the handle first—to the centre of the omelet, then the opposite side, so that both sides will meet right in the centre; let rest for half a minute longer; have a hot dish in the left hand, take hold of the handle of the pan with the right, bring both dish and pan to a triangular shape, and with a rapid movement turn the pan right over the centre of the dish, and send to the table. (The omelet should be made on a very brisk range, without taking the lid off the stove.)
Should the pan be smaller than the above-mentioned No. 8 it will require three minutes’ stirring, one minute to rest, and half a minute to rest after having been folded.
When making an omelet for one person, for instance, use three fresh eggs, seasoned with half a teaspoonful of salt, and half a saltspoonful of white pepper. Thoroughly heat in a small frying-pan half a teaspoonful of clarified butter; after sharply beating the eggs in the bowl, pour into the pan, and gently mix for one minute on a very brisk range, let rest for a quarter of a minute, fold one side up, rest a quarter of a minute more, then turn on a small hot dish, and serve.