Put the clean grease into the dish-pan and melt it.  Put a can of Babbitt’s lye in a tin pail; add to it a quart of cold water, and stir it with a stick or wooden spoon until it is dissolved.  It will get hot when the water is added; let it stand until it cools.  Remove the melted grease from the fire, and pour in the lye slowly, stirring all the time.  Add two tablespoons of ammonia.  Stir the mixture constantly for twenty minutes or half an hour, or until the soap begins to set.

Let it stand until perfectly hard; then cut it into square cakes.  This makes a very good, white hard soap which will float on water.

ENTREES

CROQUETTES

Combine ingredients as directed in the recipe, roll the mixture lightly between the hands into a ball.  Have a plentiful supply of bread crumbs spread evenly on a board; roll the ball lightly on the crumbs into the shape of a cylinder, and flatten each end by dropping it lightly on the board; put it in the egg (to each egg add one tablespoon of water, and beat together), and with a spoon moisten the croquette completely with the egg; lift it out on a knife-blade, and again roll lightly in the crumbs.  Have every part entirely covered, so there will be no opening through which the grease may be absorbed.  Where a light yellow color is wanted, use fresh white crumbs grated from the loaf (or rubbed through a puree sieve) for the outside, and do not use the yolk of the egg.  Coarse fresh crumbs are used for fish croquettes, which are usually made in the form of chops, or half heart shape.  A small hole is pricked in the pointed end after frying, and a sprig of parsley inserted.  Have all the croquettes of perfectly uniform size and shape, and lay them aside on a dish, not touching one another, for an hour or more before frying.  This will make the crust more firm.

The white of an egg alone may be used for egging them, but not the yolk alone.  Whip the egg with the water, just enough to break it, as air-bubbles in the egg will break in frying, and let the grease penetrate.  Serve the croquettes on a platter, spread them on a napkin and garnish with sprigs of parsley.

CHICKEN CROQUETTES, No. 1

Cook one-half tablespoon of flour in one tablespoon chicken-fat, add one-half cup of soup stock gradually, and one-half teaspoon each of onion juice, lemon juice, salt, and one-quarter teaspoon of pepper, one and one-half cups of veal or chicken, chopped very fine, one pair of brains which have been boiled, mix these well, remove from the fire and add one well-beaten egg.  Turn this mixture out on a flat dish and place in ice-box to cool.  Then roll into small cones, dip in beaten egg, roll again in powdered bread or cracker crumbs and drop them into boiling fat, fry until a delicate brown.

CHICKEN CROQUETTES, No. 2