walnut, a little chervil and sorrel cut in large pieces, salt and pepper
to taste, the yolks of 2 eggs, 1 gill of cream, 1 quart of medium stock
No. 105.
_Mode_.--Pare the cucumber, quarter it, and take out the seeds; cut it
in thin slices, put these on a plate with a little salt, to draw the
water from them; drain, and put them in your stewpan, with the butter.
When they are warmed through, without being browned, pour the stock on
them. Add the sorrel, chervil, and seasoning, and boil for 40 minutes.
Mix the well-beaten yolks of the eggs with the cream, which add at the
moment of serving.
_Time_.--1 hour. _Average cost_, 1s. 2d. per quart.
_Seasonable_ from June to September.
_Sufficient_ for 4 persons.
THE CUCUMBER.--The antiquity of this fruit is very great. In the
sacred writings we find that the people of Israel regretted it,
whilst sojourning in the desert; and at the present time, the
cucumber, and other fruits of its class, form a large portion of
the food of the Egyptian people. By the Eastern nations
generally, as well as by the Greeks and Romans, it was greatly
esteemed. Like the melon, it was originally brought from Asia by
the Romans, and in the 14th century it was common in England,
although, in the time of the wars of "the Roses," it seems no
longer to have been cultivated. It is a cold food, and of
difficult digestion when eaten raw. As a preserved sweetmeat,
however, it is esteemed one of the most agreeable.
EGG SOUP.