2 tablespoonfuls of cream, 1 finely-chopped shallot, salt and pepper, tomato sauce (see Sauces, No. 281), grated cheese.
Method.—Prepare and cook the spinach (see Vegetables, No. 1606), drain well, and pass it through a fine sieve. Melt the butter in a stewpan, fry the shallot until lightly browned, add the flour, and cook for a few minutes, stirring meanwhile, and finally put in the spinach. Season to taste with salt, pepper and nutmeg, stir over the fire for 5 or 6 minutes, and then allow the mixture to cool. Prepare the nouille paste (No. 2984), roll it out as thinly as possible, and stamp out some rounds from 2 to 2½ inches in diameter. Place a little pile of spinach in the centre of half the rounds, wet the edges, cover each one with another round of paste, and press the edges well together. Have ready a stewpan of rapidly boiling salted water, put in the raviolis, and cook for about 15 minutes. Drain well, arrange them in a deep dish, sprinkle liberally with cheese, coat with tomato sauce, and add another sprinkling of cheese. Bake in a quick oven for a few minutes, and serve hot.
Time.—2 hours. Average Cost, 1s. 2d. Sufficient for 5 or 6 persons. Seasonable at any time.
2997.—VERMICELLI, CROQUETTES OF. (Fr.—Croquettes de Vermicelle au Fromage.)
Ingredients.—2 ozs. of vermicelli, 2 ozs. of grated cheese, 1 oz. of butter, ¾ of a pint of milk, ½ a teaspoonful of made mustard, cayenne, pepper and salt, 1 egg, breadcrumbs or vermicelli for coating.
Method.—Break the vermicelli into short pieces; put it into the milk when boiling, and cook until tender. Add the cheese, butter, mustard, a few grains of cayenne, and salt and pepper to taste, stir over the fire until well mixed, then spread to about ½ an inch in thickness on a large dish. When cold, stamp out into circles, ovals or crescents, dip them in beaten egg, and coat them with breadcrumbs or crushed vermicelli, and fry in hot fat until lightly browned. Serve on a folded serviette or dish paper garnished with crisply-fried parsley. Cold remains of macaroni cheese may also be utilized in this way.
Time.—1½ hours. Average Cost, 8d. Sufficient for 3 or 4 persons. Seasonable at any time.
