SIMPLE SWEETS

and when the water is quite cold take out the mould, wipe it dry, and turn out the pudding very carefully.

It is indispensable, to insure success, that the basin and the saucepan be covered while boiling as described above ; and I would advise beginners not to be disheartened if they do not succeed at first, for they will have many failures before they are able to turn out this pudding- whole. It requires great care. If you use whole eggs instead of yolks alone, you will make success certain ; this, however, will be at the expense of the delicacy of the dish. The caramel forms a kind of brown syrup which goes round the pudding ; but, by way of variety, a sweet sauce made with jam may be substituted. I ought also to mention that in making the caramel care should be taken not to make it too brown, for in that case it would impart a bitter taste to the pudding.

The next simple sweet which occurs to me is the well- known omelette sucre e, which is made by beating up eggs and sugar with a very little powdered cinnamon or any flavouring essence, cooking in the usual way, and serving with powdered sugar. If one white of egg be beaten up into a froth and well mixed with the rest, it will improve the omelet, as will also the keeping some of the whites back — mixing, say, six yolks and four whites, one of them beaten up into a froth. By holding a red- hot poker over the sugar at the moment of serving, so as to form a pattern, both the appearance and the taste of a plain sweet omelet are improved.

An omelette au RHUM is produced by pouring a certain quantity of rum over an omelet made as above, and the usual practice is to set it alight as it is about to be placed on the table. What is called an omelette aux confitures, is accomplished by inserting, at the moment of serving, in the fold of the omelet any kind of jam or jelly; but