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By Root 2347 0

about 15 minutes before adding 2 lb. of tomatoes, skinned and roughly chopped. Add a little chopped garlic if you like, a pinch of dried basil, salt, and pepper if the mixture needs it. Cook until the tomatoes are almost in a pulp. Add 4 well-beaten eggs. Stir until they begin to thicken, like scrambled eggs, but take the pan from the fire before they have solidified. Serve on a heated omelette dish, with a slice of grilled or fried ham (in the Béarn this would be Jambon de Bayonne, and here gammon rashers from the middle or corner cut make a very respectable substitute) per person on the top. Or if something less substantial is needed simply surround the pipérade with a few croûtons of fried bread. The strips of green pepper should still retain something of their crispness, and be clearly distinguishable from the main mass. When green peppers are out of season they are sometimes replaced in the Béarn by peppers pickled in vinegar.

SOUFFLÉS

To some cooks the making of a soufflé appears to be perfectly effortless, to others a matter of careful measuring, clock watching and nervous anxiety. Those in the first category have certainly, perhaps even without knowing it, mastered the beating of the whites of the eggs to the precise point, and know how to fold them into the main mixture with speed and a light hand, for it is at this point that many a soufflé is foredoomed. The proceeding is as follows:

(1) Failing the special copper bowl which the professionals use for the purpose, at least one large china mixing bowl should be in every kitchen for the beating of egg whites.

(2) Any fat substance present in the whites will prevent them rising, so to start with the bowl itself and the whisk must be scrupulously clean and dry. Then if any of the yolk has slipped into the whites during the separation of the eggs, it must be carefully extracted, using a half-shell as a scoop.

(3) The whites need not be spanking fresh, so that if, say, the yolks have been used for a sauce the whites can be kept in a covered bowl in a larder for 2 or 3 days or in the refrigerator for as long as 5 or 6 days before they are used. But it is not at all advisable to keep them longer than this.

(4) Some cookery books tell you that the whites should be brought into a warm room half an hour before they are to be whipped. I find the exact opposite to be the case. They come up much better if put in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes previous to beating.

(5) For a small quantity of whites, say up to 4 or 5, 1 find a small spiral wire whisk the most satisfactory implement. For a larger quantity a fairly large double-looped wire whisk is better. These implements produce properly aerated whites rather than the too compact mass achieved by many patent whisks and by the electric mixer.

(6) The moment to stop beating is when the eggs are sufficiently stiff and creamy to stand in peaks, and to remain adhering in a point on the top of the whisk when this is held upright. If they are beaten too long they will break when you start folding them into the main mixture and the result will be a soufflé insufficiently risen and grainy in the centre.

(7) Once the whites are ready, fold them without delay into the main mixture. If they are left waiting about there is a risk that they will sink and go watery.

(8) To fold in the whites the process is as follows: The whites, half at a time if the quantity is four or more, are tipped on to the basic mixture, which should be cool or tepid, for if it is very hot the whites will start coagulating before the soufflé gets into the oven. With the left hand rotate the bowl slowly while, with a knife, palette knife or wooden spatula, the whites are gradually incorporated into the main mass, being lifted, folded, lifted and folded again, care being taken that the mixing implement reaches right to the bottom and sides of the mixture. The process should be carried out with speed and thoroughness but with as light a touch as possible. When the folding in has been completed, the whole mixture should have a spongy, almost frothy