Tomato Aspic Salad

This entry is really two recipes printed as one: an aspic and a sardine salad, with only the salad's method spelled out. The aspic instructions have to be reconstructed from the ingredient list.

• The missing methodNothing tells you what to do with the tomatoes, gelatine and seasonings. Simmer the canned tomatoes with the bay leaf, parsley, onion juice, sugar, salt and white pepper for ten minutes or so, strain, then dissolve softened gelatine in the hot liquid and chill in a mould until firm, several hours or overnight.
• "Box gelatine" is ambiguousA box of granulated gelatine in this era typically held about an ounce, divided into four envelopes of roughly a tablespoon each. At the usual rate of about a tablespoon to a pint of liquid, that is enough for two quarts of soft jelly, or a much smaller quantity set very firm. A full box against one can of tomatoes will give a stiff, sliceable aspic rather than a delicate one; scale to your liquid at about 1 tablespoon per 2 cups if you want it softer.
• One can of tomatoesA No. 2 can, common in this period, is about 2 1/2 cups. A modern 14.5 oz can is smaller, about 1 3/4 cups, so use a larger can or make up the difference, and expect to lose volume again when you strain out the pulp.
• Onion juiceGrate an onion on a fine rasp and press the pulp through a sieve, or press a cut half against a box grater. A teaspoon is a seasoning, not a flavour base; it should not read as onion in the finished aspic.
• The silver forkNot just a flourish. Silver or wooden implements were commonly specified for fish in this period, the usual explanation being that carbon-steel cutlery could impart a metallic taste. Any stainless fork does the job now; the point that survives is to break the fish in pieces rather than mash it.
• AssemblingThe salad is sardines, chopped celery, small pickles and stuffed olives bound with mayonnaise, tossed lightly. Fold rather than stir, or the sardines disappear into the dressing.
• Tomato cupsHollowed-out raw tomatoes, salted and drained upside down for a quarter of an hour before filling so they do not water down the mayonnaise. The aspic, unmoulded and cut in cubes or slices, goes alongside on the lettuce.
• YieldAssume six servings: the aspic will fill a small loaf pan or six individual moulds, and one tin of sardines with celery and pickles stretches to about that many salad portions.