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Soups

** No useless dish our table crowds; Harmoniously ranged and consonantly just, As in a concert instruments resound, Our ordered dishes in their courses chime."

The basis of all good soups, is the broth of meat.

This may be made by boiling the cracked joints of beef, veal or mutton, and is best when cooked the day before it is to be eaten. After putting the meat into the pot, cover it well with cold water and let it come to a boil, when it should be well skimmed. Set the pot where it will simmer slowly until it is thoroughly done, keeping the pot closely covered the while. The next day, when the soup is cold, remove the fat, which will harden on the top of the soup. After this, add the vegetables and the herbs you use for seasoning, cooking all well together. Before sending to the table, the soup should be strained. A good stock for soups may be made from shreds and bits of uncooked meat and bones, poultry and the remains of game. When these are all put together and stewed down in the pot, the French term it consomme, and use it chiefly in the preparation of brown soups. Soups may be varied in many ways, chiefly in the kinds of vegetables and different seasonings used, -as in herbs, burned caramel, eggs or slices of bread fried to a crisp in butter, which impart a savoury relish.