My Favorite Spaghetti

Grasp half a pound of spaghetti in your hand, put the ends down in a kettle of boiling water, and as they soften, slightly press until the whole is under the water. Shake it apart with a fork, add a teaspoonful of salt, and boil rapidly for twenty minutes. Drain, throw it in cold water for fifteen minutes, and drain again. Return it to the kettle, cover with a pint of good stock to which you have added a teaspoonful of beef extract. Cook slowly for twenty minutes; add a level teaspoonful of salt, two rounding tablespoonfuls of butter, and two tablespoonfuls of tomato paste mixed with half a cupful of good cream. Stir constantly until it reaches the boiling point. Turn on a large platter, and pass with it grated parmesan.