Salad Whales

A novelty salad from the era of the decorated luncheon table: a stuffed cucumber dressed up as a fish. The filling is sound; the trimmings are the part that needs judgment.

• The pins come outBlack-headed pins pushed into food are a swallowing hazard by any current standard. If you want eyes, use whole cloves, black peppercorns pressed into the skin, or dots of olive, and remove the paper tail before anyone eats.
• Choose the cucumberA straight, thick English or field cucumber about 8 inches long hollows out best. Cut the lid lengthwise rather than across the top so the "whale" sits flat, and scoop the seed core with a teaspoon or a melon baller, leaving a wall about a quarter-inch thick.
• Drain before fillingSalt the hollowed shells lightly, invert them on a rack for 20 minutes and blot dry. Cucumber and tomato both weep, and an undrained shell turns the mayonnaise to soup within the hour.
• Tomato cubesSeed the tomato and use only the firm outer flesh, cut small, so the filling does not water down.
• Nasturtium seedsThe green seed pods of Tropaeolum majus, usually pickled in vinegar and used as a caper substitute — a familiar kitchen-garden item in the period. Capers are the direct swap if you have no nasturtiums; use them sparingly, as they are sharp against the mild cucumber.
• LobsterCooked meat, chilled and cut in pieces no larger than the tomato cubes. Claw and knuckle meat is better here than tail, which shreds. Crab or cooked shrimp stand in without argument.
• MayonnaiseBind lightly — just enough to coat, not to mask. If you are making mayonnaise from scratch with raw yolks, use pasteurized eggs, particularly since this is served cold and may sit on a buffet.
• Yield and timingOne cucumber serves one person as a luncheon course. Fill no more than an hour before serving and keep refrigerated; the shells soften and slump if held longer.