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Oysters, Croquettes Of

Take a dozen plump juicy oysters, put them in a saucepan over a gentle fire for a minute or two to harden them, then beard them, and cut each one into six or eight pieces. Mix an ounce of butter smoothly in a stewpan with half an ounce of flour, add the juice of the oysters, a pinch of cayenne, a tea-spoonful of anchovy sauce, a grate or two of nutmeg, and a quarter of a pint of milk. Stir these ingredients over the fire until the sauce is smooth and thick, then lift the pan off the fire for a minute, add a tea-spoonful of good beef or veal gravy, the well-beaten yolks of two eggs, and a tea-spoonful of lemon-juice. Stir the sauce again over the fire until the eggs are set, then add the oysters, let them get quite hot (if this point is not attended to the croquettes will not be good), spread the mixture out upon a plate, in a layer about an inch and a half thick, and put it aside until quite cold. Strew some finely-grated bread-crumbs on a board. Divide the oyster mixture into equal-sized parts, and roll these to the shape of corks or balls; dip them in the yolk of an egg beaten up with a tea-spoonful of oil and a little salt and pepper; roll them in the bread-crumbs, and fry them in hot fat until they are crisp, and lightly browned all over. Dry them well before the fire on a cloth placed upon an inverted sieve, and serve them piled on a napkin, and garnished with fried parsley. Time to fry the croquettes, five to seven minutes. Probable cost, 2s. Sufficient for five or six persons.