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Garbure with Cucumbers

Peel two large and rather green cucumbers, cut in quarters, remove the seeds, then cut in one-inch-long strips and plunge in boiling water for three minutes. Drain, heat one and a half tablespoons melted butter in a frying pan, add cucumbers, sprinkle a teaspoon sugar over and brown a light colour, lightly stirring meanwhile. Moisten with two quarts broth and a pint of water, add an onion with two cloves stuck in it. Tie in a bunch one leek, two branches celery, two branches parsley and one branch chervil; add to the soup. Season with a level tablespoon salt and half teaspoon pepper, slowly boil one hour, then remove the herbs and onions. Cut six slices from a loaf of French bread, place them on a tin. Skim fat from surface of soup, pour over the slices of bread and set them in oven until a nice golden colour. Remove, place the slices in a hot soup tureen, pour the soup over and serve with two ounces of Parmesan cheese, separately.

RACK OF VEAL BRAISE WITH GLAZED ONIONS Neatly trim off the spinal bone from a three-pound tender white rack of veal. Arrange a mirepoix at bottom of a braising pan, lay veal over, season with teaspoon salt, half teaspoon pepper and saltspoon grated nutmeg; pour in a tablespoon of melted butter at bottom of the pan. Cover pan, set on fire ten minutes, add a quarter pint white wine and let reduce to a third of the quantity, then pour in one and a half gills demi-glace and one gill tomato sauce. Cover pan, set in oven fifty minutes. Remove, place veal on a large dish, arrange a glazed onion garnishing around veal. Skim fat from sauce. Reduce the sauce ten minutes on range, then strain it through a Chinese strainer over the veal and serve.