e and a gill of stock,
with a bay-leaf and a sprig of thyme; cook very gently ten minutes,
remove the thyme and bay-leaf, and add a dessertspoonful of chopped
pickled cucumber, a teaspoonful of capers, and a dessertspoonful of
_finely_ chopped parsley. Simmer very slowly ten minutes more; then add
enough cayenne to lay on the tip of a penknife blade.

_Poivrade_ resembles piquante sauce very closely, differing from it,
however, by the addition of wine and higher flavoring. To make it, fry
an onion and a small carrot cut fine, a tomato sliced, and an ounce of
lean ham in two ounces of butter; let them brown slightly; then add to
them half a pint of claret, a bouquet of herbs, two cloves, and six
peppercorns; let them simmer till the wine is reduced one half; then add
half a pint of good Spanish sauce, boil gently ten minutes, strain, and
serve very hot. A true French poivrade has a _soupcon_ of garlic,
obtained by rubbing a crust on a clove of it, and simmering it in the
sauce before straining it; but although many would like the scarcely
perceptible zest imparted by this cautious use of garlic, no one should
try the experiment unless sure of her company.

A "bouquet of herbs" always means two sprigs of parsley, one of thyme,
one of marjoram, and a bay-leaf, so rolled together (the bay-leaf in the
middle) and tied that there is no difficulty in removing it from any
dish which is not to be strained.

The well-known _Bordelaise sauce_ is simply Spanish sauce with the
addition of white wine and shallots. Scald a tablespoonful of chopped
shallots; put them to half a pint of Chablis, Sauterne, or any similar
white wine; let the wine reduce to one gill; then mix with it half a
pint of Spanish sauce and the sixth part of a saltspoonful of pepper.
Strain and serve.

_Robert sauce_, that excellent adjunct to beefsteak, varies again from
Bordelaise, vinegar and mustard and fried onions taking the place of the
wine and shallot. Chop three medium-sized onions quite fine; fry them in
a tablespoonful of butter until they are a clear yellowish-brown,
stirring them constantly as they fry; drain them, and put them to a
half-pint of Spanish sauce, to which you add a wineglass of stock (to
allow for boiling away); simmer gently twenty minutes; add a pinch of
pepper; strain; then mix a teaspoonful of vinegar in a cup with a
teaspoonful of mustard; stir this into the sauce.

_Sauce a la Normande_ is one of the most delicious sauces for