A third of a pinch of nutmeg represents 13 grains, or half a teaspoonful.
SUPPLEMENT.
1358. Lobster à la Rushmore.
—Select three fine, fresh lobsters, each weighing two pounds; boil them in salted water for ten minutes, then take them out and put to cool for eighteen minutes. Pick out all the meat, leaving the main body-shells intact for further use. Mince up the tail-parts, coral, and claws into pieces a quarter of an inch thick by three quarters of an inch wide. Put a sautoire containing half an ounce of fresh butter on the hot stove; chop up very fine one good-sized, sound shallot, add it to the butter in the pan, also the minced lobster, and season with a light pinch of salt, a light saltspoonful of cayenne pepper, and half a glassful of good white wine; let the whole reduce for ten minutes, stirring it meanwhile with a wooden spoon. Add one tablespoonful of tomato sauce ([No. 205]), four tablespoonfuls of Espagnole sauce ([No. 151]), and six mushroom-stalks chopped up very fine. Let cook well for ten minutes longer, then set the sautoire on the corner of the stove to keep warm. Take the three main shells of the lobsters, split them evenly in two, lengthwise, pare the ends off neatly, wash them thoroughly, and wipe them dry. These shells should not be longer than four and a half inches. Fill the six shells with the prepared lobster, lay two mushroom heads on top of each, put them on a tin plate and pour over the remainder of the sauce in the sautoire. Set them in the hot oven to bake for five minutes, then remove and dress them on a hot dish with a folded napkin, and send to the table.
1359. Raw Hamburg Steak.
—Chop up two pounds of beef the same as for cooked Hamburg steak ([No. 526]), only selecting more tender pieces, and return it to the machine two or three times so as to have it finer. Season with one large pinch of salt, half a pinch of pepper, and the third of a pinch of nutmeg. Place the meat on a dish, divide it into six small, flattened steaks, and throw a raw egg yolk over each one; garnish with two shallots, one tablespoonful of parsley, the same quantity of capers, and three anchovies, all finely minced, and arranged in clusters around the dish.
1360. Mignons of Lamb, Sauce Béarnaise.
—Procure a fine, tender leg of lamb, bone it with a sharp knife so as to detach the meat from the knuckle, beginning from the hip-side downwards. Cut out from this six even pieces or steaks, one inch thick by two and a half in diameter, pare them nicely, and with a small, keen knife remove any sinews that are liable to adhere to the meat. Lay them on a cold dish, and season with a good pinch of salt and a light pinch of pepper, and roll them well, so that the seasoning be equally distributed. Put half an ounce of good butter in a frying-pan, set it on a brisk fire, and add the pieces, or mignons, immediately, being careful that they do not lay one on top of the other, and cook them very briskly for two and a half minutes on each side. Prepare half a pint of Béarnaise sauce ([No. 166]), pour it on a hot serving-dish, dress the six mignons nicely over, one overlapping the other, and send to the table immediately.
Any lamb that may be left over after cutting off the mignons can be utilized for minced lamb, soup, or any other purpose desired.