g-machine, as it must be
very fine. Put the consomme, meat, and vegetables into a saucepan. Stir
them briskly till just on the boiling-point. Remove the spoon, let the
soup boil up well one minute. It should now be clear. Take a clean
cloth, fix it on a soup stand or in a colander, pour boiling water
through it, to warm it thoroughly; throw the water away, and pour the
soup gently through the cloth twice; do not press or stir it. It will be
beautifully clear and of excellent color. It is now ready to serve for a
variety of soups, named according to what is served in them.

_Consomme a la Rachel._--This is consomme to which is added tiny
quenelles made in eggspoons, and colored red, green, and black.
Quenelle meat is made from the uncooked breast of chicken or game, the
backs of hares or rabbits (or it may be made for certain purposes of
fish or very white veal), first chopped, and then pounded in a mortar
until it is a perfectly smooth paste. Mere chopped meat is not what is
required; it must be fine enough to go through a sieve. For Consomme a
la Rachel, however, the breast of chicken is necessary. Take four ounces
of chicken, free from skin and sinew; pound it until quite smooth; the
more it is pounded the better it is. Mix with it thick cream, a scant
saltspoonful of salt, very little pepper, and half a beaten egg, until
it is a softish paste, yet firm enough to mould; mix thoroughly. Now try
a little by poaching in a teaspoon; that is, fill a teaspoon with the
mixture, pressing it in form, then drop it into boiling water for three
minutes. Open the quenelle and taste it; if it is creamy, light, and
well flavored, it is right, but if there is the least toughness, add a
little more cream to the mixture. Notice also the seasoning; if more
salt is needed, add it carefully, and try again, till you have the
quenelle mixture just right, that is to say, creamy, light, very tender,
yet keeping its form. At present quenelles as entrees or for soups form
such an important part of fine cooking that it is worth while to get the
mixture perfect for other purposes than the present.

Having your quenelle meat ready, proceed to vary it as follows, allowing
one quenelle of each color to each guest: For the green quenelles use
sufficient pounded tarragon to color one third the meat delicately. For
the second use sufficient lobster coral pounded to redden it. The third
must be made dark with pounded truffles. Great care must be taken t