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Sole, Baked, with Fine Herbs

Take a thick sole, perfectly fresh. Cleanse, scale, and skin it, and carefully remove the backbone without spoiling the appearance of the fish. Mince separately a shallot and a small handful of picked and washed parsley-leaves. Mix these ingredients, and fry them with a tea-spoonful of powdered sweet herbs in two ounces of butter for five or six minutes. Throw in two table-spoonfuls of bread-crumbs and the well-beaten yolks of two eggs; shake all quickly together for half a minute, and turn the force-meat out to cool. Put it in the place of the bone inside the fish. Put the fish in a buttered baking-dish, sprinkle pepper and salt over it, dredge flour upon it, place little pieces of butter here and there upon it, and add the juice of a lemon and a quarter of a pint of water. Lay the fish in a hot dish, strain the sauce over it, and garnish with cut lemon and parsley. If additional sauce is required, put an ounce of butter and an ounce of flour into a saucepan. Stir these over the fire for two minutes, then add three-quarters of a pint of water and a little pepper and salt. Stir the sauce over the fire till it boils, pour the liquor from the sole into it, and stir into it a table-spoonful of the fried herbs which were used for stuffing the fish, made and preserved for the purpose. Take the sauce off the fire, stir into it until dissolved a slice of fresh butter, and it will be ready for use. Time to bake the sole, ten to fifteen minutes, according to size. Probable cost, 1s. or 1s. 6d. for one large sole. Sufficient for three or four persons.