re two or three little specks of batter
which have got away all by themselves in the fat. We must take them out
at once with the skimmer, or they will burn and spoil the colour of our
fat. Also we must let the fat get hot again, watching for the fume
between each relay, because the cold batter and the cold apple will make
our fat a little cool. It will heat in a moment or two, but we must have
it properly hot, or the fritters will be greasy."

"I should have thought they would have been greasy with being put into
such a quantity of fat," said Margaret.

"No fear of that, if only the fat is hot enough. If the fat is not hot,
they will be most unpleasant; but if the fat is hot the heat will cook
the outside so quickly that the grease cannot get in, while that which
is on the surface will dry instantly."

"How quickly the fritters are cooked!" said Mary. "I never saw anything
like it."

"I thing frying fritters is even more interesting than frying pancakes,"
said Margaret.

"How pretty the fritters look, and how crisp they feel when we take them
out!" said Mary.

"They will not remain crisp very long, though, not more than five
minutes," said Mrs. Herbert. "We must send them in to grandmamma as
quickly as possible, if we wish her to have them in perfection. That is
why we make so much haste in frying, for fritters have lost their
excellence when they have lost their crispness."

"I suppose when we have dried them on the kitchen paper we had better
dish them and put them in the oven to keep hot, ma'am."

"No, put them in the screen; they will keep crisper than in the oven. We
shall not need to put them anywhere for more than a minute, however, for
they are just done. Dish them in a circle, sift a little white sugar on,
and they are ready."

"I have enjoyed making apple fritters very much," said Margaret.

"That is well. The best of it is that when you have learnt to make apple
fritters you can make fritters of any kind of fruit, for all the fruit
fritters are made in the same way. Some fruits are dipped in sugar
before being put in the batter, and it needs practice to keep the batter
over them. Sometimes fruit is soaked in syrup. Then it must be dried
before being dipped in the batter."

"I suppose it would not do to fry meat in batter, would it?" said Mary.

"Certainly it would. You can try it, if you like, one day."

"I should like, very much."

"Very well. Never do anything of this sort unless I am with