Broiled Ham.
Have the ham cut into slices about 1/4 inch thick, trim off the rind and rusty edge. Broil the same as steak or chops. (This is a very nice way to serve ham with poached eggs.)
Ham may be pan-broiled as directed in former recipes.
Fried Bacon.
Cut into very thin slices, put into a very hot frying pan, and cook until clear and crisp.
Sausage.
Prick the skins with a sharp fork so as to prevent bursting; place them in a frying pan over a moderate fire and fry in their own fat until a nice brown. After taking the sausage from the pan, add 1 tbsp. of flour to the fat in the pan, add 1 cup of boiling water, stir until it boils, pour over the sausage and serve.
Liver and Bacon.
Have the bacon cut in thin slices and keep it cold until the time to cook it. Have the liver cut into slices about 1/3 of an inch thick. If it be calf or sheep's liver, wash it in cold water and let it drain; but if it be beef liver, after washing it, cover with boiling water and let it stand for 5 minutes, then drain it. Cook the bacon as directed, then take it up. Lay the slices of liver in the hot fat, cook them for 8 or 10 minutes, turning often; season with pepper and salt. Arrange the liver on a warm platter, make a gravy as directed in other recipes, pour over the liver, placing the bacon round the outside. (Always cook bacon quickly and liver slowly.)
The best chickens have soft yellow feet, short thick legs, smooth, moist skin and plump breast; the cartilage on the end of the breast bone is soft and pliable. Pin feathers always indicate a young bird and long hairs an older one. All poultry should be dressed as soon askilled. Cut off the head, and if the fowl is to be roasted, slip the skin back from the neck and cut the neck off close to the body, leaving skin enough to fold over on the back. Remove the windpipe, pull the crop away from the skin on the neck and breast, and cut off close to the opening in the body. Cut through the skin about 2 inches below the leg joint, bend the leg at the cut by pressing it on the edge of the table and break off the bone. Then pull out the tendon. If care be taken to cut only through the skin, these cords may be pulled out easily, one at a time, with the fingers; or by putting the foot of the fowl against the casing of a door, then shut the door tightly and pull on the leg. The drum stick of a roast chicken or turkey is greatly improved by removing the tendons. Cut out the oil bag in the tail, make an incision near the vent, insert two fingers, keeping the fingers up close to the breast bone until you can reach in beyond the liver and heart, and loosen on either side down toward the back. Draw everything out carefully. See that the kidneys and lungs are not left in, and be very careful not to break any of the intestines. When the fowl has been cleaned carefully it will not require much washing. Rinse out the inside quickly and wipe dry. In stuffing and trussing a fowl, place the fowl in a bowl and put the stuffing in at the neck, fill out the breast until plump. Then draw the neck skin together at the ends and sew it over on the back. Put the remainder of the stuffing into the body at the other opening and sew with coarse thread or fine twine. Draw the thighs up close to the body and tie the legs over the tail firmly with twine. Put a long skewer through the thigh into the body and out throughthe opposite thigh, turn the tips of the wings under the back of the fowl, put a long skewer through from one wing to the other. Wind a string from the tail to the skewer in the thigh, then up to the one in the wing across the back to the other wing, then down to the opposite side and tie firmly round the tail. If you have no skewers, the fowl may be kept in shape by tying carefully with twine. Clean all the giblets, cut away all that looks green near the gall bladder, open the gizzard and remove the inner lining without breaking. Put the gizzard, heart, liver, and the piece of neck which has been cut off, into cold water, wash carefully, put in a saucepan, cover with cold water, place on the back of the stove and simmer till tender. Use the liquid for making the gravy; the meat may be chopped and used for giblet soup.
Roast Chicken (or Turkey).
Singe carefully, remove the pin feathers, draw as directed above. Wipe, stuff, sew and tie or skewer into shape, dredge with flour, cover with plenty of dripping; roast in a hot oven. When the flour is brown check the heat, baste frequently with the fat, and when nearly cooked dredge with pepper and salt and again with flour. Bake a 4 lb. chicken 1-1/2 hour, or until the joints separate easily. If browning too fast, cover with paper. (Roast chicken is considered to be more wholesome and to have a better flavor when cooked without stuffing.)
Fricassee of Chicken.
The first attempt of an inexperienced cook in the preparation of a chicken should be a fricassee, as it willprovide an opportunity for her to study the anatomy of a chicken while cutting it in pieces, and also show her the position of the intestines, so that when she attempts to draw a fowl she will know just where to place her hand so as to remove them without breaking.
To prepare a chicken for a fricassee, clean and singe. Cut the chicken at the joints in pieces for serving. Place in a kettle, cover with boiling water, add 2 level tsps. of salt, a ssp. of pepper (some like a small piece of salt pork). Simmer until tender, reducing the water to a pint or less, lift the chicken, melt 1 tbsp. of butter in a saucepan, add 2 tbsps. of flour, and when well mixed pour on slowly the chicken liquor. Add more salt if needed, pepper, 1/2 tsp. of celery salt, 1 tsp. of lemon juice (an egg may be used by beating and pouring the sauce slowly on the egg, stirring well before adding it to the chicken). Pour this gravy over the chicken and serve; dumplings may be added if desired, or it may be placed in a deep dish, covered with pastry and baked for chicken pie.
(The chicken may be browned in a little hot fat as in braising meat, and cooked in the same way.)
Broiled Chicken.
Singe and split a young chicken down the back. Break the joints, clean and wipe with a wet cloth, sprinkle with pepper and salt, rub well with butter or dripping, place in a double grid-iron and broil 20 minutes over a clear fire. The chicken may be covered with fine bread crumbs or dredged with flour, allowing a plentiful supply of butter or dripping, and baked in a hot oven 1/2 hour.
Meat Souffle.
Make 1 cup of white sauce and season with chopped parsley and onion juice. Stir 1 cup of chopped meat (chicken, tongue, veal or lamb) into the sauce. When hot, add the beaten yolks of two eggs; cook 1 minute and set away to cool. When cool, stir in the whites, beat very stiff. Bake in a buttered dish about twenty minutes and serve immediately.
Croquettes.
These may be made with any kind of cooked meat, fish, rice, potatoes, etc., or from a mixture of several ingredients, when mixed with a thick white sauce, as follows: 1 pint hot milk, 2 tbsps. butter or beef dripping, 6 (l.) tbsps. flour, or 4 (l.) tbsps. cornstarch, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 ssp. white pepper, 1/2 tsp. celery salt, a speck of cayenne. Melt the butter or dripping in a saucepan, when hot add the dry cornstarch or flour. Stir till well mixed. Add 1/3 of the hot milk and stir as it boils and thickens, add the remainder of the hot milk gradually. The sauce should be very thick. Add the seasoning, and mix it while hot with the meat or fish. It is improved by adding a beaten egg just before the sauce is taken from the fire. When cold, shape into rolls or like a pear, roll lightly in beaten egg, then in bread crumbs, and fry in deep hot fat. Drain on coarse brown paper. If the mixture be too soft to handle easily stir in enough fine cracker or soft bread crumbs to stiffen it, but never flour.
Apple Pudding (baked).
Mix the dry ingredients, beat the egg and mix it with the milk, stir this into the dry mixture. Core, pare and cut the apples into quarters (if large into eighths). Place in the bottom of a pudding dish, sprinkle over them the sugar, a little nutmeg or cinnamon may be added if desired. Put the mixture over this, lifting the apples with a fork or spoon so as to let the mixture penetrate to the bottom of the pan. Bake in a moderately hot oven about 30 minutes. Serve with lemon sauce or thin custard.
Cottage Pudding.
Beat the butter and sugar to a cream, add the unbeaten egg, beat vigorously for 3 or 4 minutes, add the salt, then the flour, with which the baking powder should be mixed. Beat for a few seconds, then turn the batter into a small, buttered pudding dish, bake about 25 minutes in a moderate oven; serve with lemon sauce.
Lemon Pudding.
Mix the cornstarch with 3 tbsps. cold water; put the remainder of the water in the saucepan and set on to boil. Stir into this the mixed cornstarch and cook until clear. Take from the fire, add the salt and lemon, reserving 1/2 tsp. of the lemon. Beat the butter to a cream, gradually beat into it the sugar, the yolk of the egg, lastly the milk. Stir this mixture into the cooked ingredients, and bake in a moderate oven for 20 minutes. Beat the white of the egg to a stiff froth, beat into it 1 tbsp. of powdered sugar and the 1/2 tsp. of lemon juice. Spread this over the hot pudding and leave in the oven until slightly browned. (This pudding is better served very cold.)
Bread Pudding.
Soak the bread crumbs for 1 hour in 1 quart of milk. Beat the eggs, add the sugar and seasoning, stir all into the bread crumbs, bake 1 hour in a buttered pudding dish. (Raisins or currants may be added if desired.)
Another method for making bread pudding is to butter thin slices of stale bread, spread with a little jam or sprinkle a few currants (well washed) over each layer, lay them in a pudding dish, pour over a quart of milk,to which has been added 3 well beaten eggs, 1/2 cup sugar. Bake until the custard thickens. This pudding may be served either hot or cold.
Steamed Apple Pudding.
Put the apples, water, sugar, and nutmeg into a porcelain or granite saucepan and set on the fire. When the apples begin to boil, set back where they will cook gently. Mix the flour, salt and baking powder together. Rub the butter into this dry mixture, wet with the milk, stir quickly into a soft dough. Press or roll the dough lightly into a round piece about the size of the top of the saucepan. Lay this on the apples; put on a close cover and continue cooking gently for 30 minutes. The crust may be lifted to a plate for a moment, the apples turned into a pudding dish, then placing the crust over the top. To be served with lemon or nutmeg sauce.
Boiled Rice Pudding.
Wash the rice well. Put it on the fire in 1 pint of cold water and let it cook for 10 minutes. Drain off the water, add the salt and milk; then cook in the double boiler for 2 hours, add the raisins when about half cooked. Do not stir the rice while it is cooking.
Brown Betty.
Pare, core and slice 6 or 7 tart apples. Put a layer of stale bread crumbs in the bottom of the baking dish, then a layer of the apples, another layer of bread crumbs and apples, and so on until all are used, having the last layer crumbs. Add 1/2 cup of water to 1/2 cup molasses, stir in 2 tbsps. of brown sugar; pour it over the crumbs and bake in a moderate oven for 1 hour.
Apple Snow.
Pare, core and steam the apples until tender, then press them through a sieve and put aside to cool; when cold add the sugar and lemon juice. Beat the whites of the eggs to a very stiff froth, add the apples to them by spoonfuls, beating all the while. Heap in a glass dish and serve immediately. (This is a very delicate and wholesome pudding for an invalid.)
Scalloped Apples.
Made the same as Brown Betty, omitting the molasses, adding water and a little lemon juice instead.
Suet Pudding.
Chop the suet very fine. Stone the raisins. Add the molasses to the suet, then the milk: mix well and add the salt, flour and cinnamon. Beat vigorously for 2 or3 minutes, then add the raisins. Rub in the flour, to which has been added the baking powder; mix thoroughly, turn into a buttered mould, steam for 3 hours.
Tapioca Pudding.
Wash the tapioca carefully, then add it to the milk and soak 2 hours. Beat the eggs and sugar together, add the salt, stir into the tapioca and milk, and bake in a moderate oven at least 3/4 of an hour. Serve hot or cold.
Chocolate Pudding.
Reserve 1/2 cup milk, put the remainder on the fire in a double boiler. Mix the cold milk with the cornstarch and salt. Beat the egg well and add to the cornstarch mixture. Stir this into the boiling milk and stir well. Put the chocolate, sugar and boiling water into a small frying pan or saucepan, and set over a hot fire. Stir until the mixture is smooth and glossy; beat this into the pudding and cook for 2 minutes longer. Take from the fire and add the vanilla. Dip a mould into cold water and turn the pudding into it. Set away to cool. When cold and stiff, turn out on a flat dish and surround with whipped cream; or serve with cream and sugar or a soft custard.
Snow Pudding.
Soak the gelatine in cold water for 2 hours. Pour upon this the boiling water and stir until the gelatine is dissolved; then add the sugar and lemon juice, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Set the bowl in a pan of cold water, or broken ice. Stir frequently; when it begins to thicken, stir in the beaten whites of the eggs, pour into a mould and set away until firm. Serve with boiled custard.
Cream Pie.
Make a plain cup cake, and bake it in a shallow cake pan. When cooked and cold, split it carefully. Put 1 pint of milk on to boil in a farina boiler. Beat the yolks of 3 eggs and 1/2 cup of sugar together until light, then add the well-beaten whites, and stir them into the boiling milk; stir over the fire for about 1 minute, then take from the fire, add 1 tsp. of vanilla, and stand away to cool. When cold, and ready to serve, put a thick layer of this sauce between the layers of cake, pour the remaining sauce around the pie, and serve immediately.
Blanc Mange.
Put the milk on to boil. Moisten the cornstarch with a little cold milk, then add it to the boiling milk, and stir until it thickens; let it cook slowly for 5 minutes; add the sugar and salt, take from the fire, pour into a mould and set away to harden.
Strawberry Shortcake.
Mix the salt, flour and butter together. Sift, then add the baking powder and sift again. Add the liquid gradually, mixing and cutting with a knife until the dough is light and spongy; turn it out on a well floured board, pat into a flat cake and roll gently till 1/2 an inch thick. Bake in a spider or pie plate in a rather hot oven. Split and spread with sweetened berries and serve either hot or cold.
Plain Sauce.
Melt the butter and flour together, stir in the hot water, add the sugar and flavoring, cook until smooth and clear.
Molasses Sauce.
Mix the flour and sugar together. Pour the boiling water upon it. Add the molasses and place on the range. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the other ingredients; boil up once and serve. (Omit lemon if vinegar is used.)
Cream Sauce.
Beat the white of the egg to a stiff froth; then gradually beat into it the powdered sugar and cornstarch. Next add the yolk of the egg and beat well. Pour upon this the cupful of boiling milk and place on the fire. Stir until it boils, then add the butter and vanilla.
Lemon Sauce.
Beat the egg, add the cornstarch and sugar, stir them well together; add the boiling water gradually and stir over the fire until thick; add the butter, juice and grated rind of one lemon. Serve hot.
Vanilla Sauce.
Put the milk on to boil, beat the yolks and sugar till very light; add them to the boiling milk; stir over the fire until creamy. Have the whites beaten, pour over them the boiling mixture; beat thoroughly and serve at once.
There are practically two kinds of cake, that made with butter, and cake made without butter. When these two methods are understood, cake making becomes easy. A few simple rules must govern all cake making.
1st. Regulate the heat. Cakes without butter require a quick oven; with butter, a moderate oven. 2nd. Beat whites and yolks separately. 3rd. Beat butter and sugar to a cream. 4th. Add the whites last. 5th. Currants should be cleaned, washed and dried and floured (to which flour some of the baking powder should be added). 6th. Add the milk or water gradually. 7th. Sift the flour before measuring. 8th. 2 level tsps. of baking powder are equal to 1/2 tsp. soda and 1 tsp. cream of tartar. 9th. When looking at a cake while baking, do it quickly and without jarring the stove. 10th. To find out if it is baked, run a broom straw through the centre, if no dough adheres the cake is done. 11th. If browning too quickly, cover with brown paper and reduce the heat gradually. This is usually necessary in baking fruit cake. 12th. Mix cake in an earthen bowl, never in tin. 13th. Soda, cream of tartar, and baking powder should be crushed and sifted with the flour. Always attend to the fire before beginning to make cake. Coarse granulated sugar makes a coarse, heavy cake. If cake browns before rising the oven is too hot. When it rises in the centre and cracks open it is too stiff with flour. It should rise first round the edge, then in the middle and remain level.
Gingerbread.
Put the molasses and butter in a pan and set on the stove. When the mixture boils up add the soda and ginger, and take from the fire immediately. Add themilk, the well-beaten egg and the flour, beat well. Bake in a shallow cake pan in a rather quick oven for 20 minutes.
Spice Cake.
Beat the butter to a cream. Gradually beat into it the sugar, then the spice and lemon, next the molasses. Now dissolve the soda in one tbsp. cold water and stir it into the sour milk; add this, and the egg well beaten, to the other ingredients. Lastly add the flour, and beat briskly for 1/2 minute. Pour into a well buttered pan and bake in a moderate oven for about 50 minutes.
Sponge Cake.
Beat the yolks of the eggs and sugar until very light, now add the juice and rind of the lemon and half the flour; beat the whites to a very stiff froth, add the remainder of the flour and the whites alternately, stirring lightly, pour into a greased cake pan. Bake in a quick oven from 25 to 30 minutes.
Roll Jelly Cake.
Beat the eggs separately till very light, then beat them together, add the sugar, then the milk gradually, then the flour in which the salt and baking powder have been mixed. Spread very thin on long shallow pans. Spread with jelly while warm and roll up.
Seed Cake.
Cream the butter, add the sugar gradually, then the yolks of the eggs, then the seeds; sift the baking powder with the flour; add the flour and milk alternately a little at a time, lastly the whites which have been beaten stiff and dry; bake from 40 to 50 minutes.
Cookies (plain).
Cream the butter, add the sugar, milk, egg beaten lightly, and the baking powder mixed with two cups of flour, then enough more flour to roll out. Roll a little at a time. Cut out. Bake about 10 minutes.
Layer Cake.
Beat the butter and sugar to a cream, then add the yolks of the eggs gradually; then the flour and milkalternately (sifting the baking powder with the flour), add the well-beaten whites last. Bake in 3 tins in a moderate oven about 15 minutes. (Flavoring has been omitted in this recipe as the cake is more delicate by allowing the filling to provide the flavor.)
Plain Fruit Cake.
Mix as directed in preceding recipe, only mixing the fruit with the flour and baking powder.
Icing.
Have the material very cold. Break the eggs carefully, beat the whites until frothy (not stiff); sift the sugar in gradually, beating all the while; add the lemon juice and continue beating until fine and white, and stiff enough to stand alone. Keep in a cool place, when using, spread with a knife dipped in cold water. If used for ornamenting press through a tube. It may be divided and different colorings added.
Boiled Icing.
Boil the sugar and water together until it hangs from the spoon. Beat the egg to a stiff froth, add the cream of tartar, then pour on the syrup, beating all the while. Beat until cold and thick.
Pastry, unless light and tender, should never be eaten; even then it should be avoided by people with poor digestion. There are so many food preparations superior to pastry in both nutritive value and cost of time and material, that it will be wise to give it a very secondary place in the training of a culinary artist. However, as it is still a popular fancy with many, we may as well make the best of it. Butter is more wholesome in pastry than lard, although the latter makes a light crust. In order to secure satisfactory results in pastry making—especially puff pastry—three things should be observed: (1) have all the materials cold; (2) use as little liquid as possible; (3) handle lightly and quickly. Pastry should be very cold when it is put into the oven. Have the oven very hot.
Puff Paste.
If the butter is salty, wash it as follows: Scald a large bowl, then fill with cold water; wash the hands in hot soapy water, then rinse them in cold water, as this will prevent the butter from sticking to the hands. Turn the cold water out of the bowl; fill it with ice water, put the butter into it and work with the hands until soft and elastic. Drain the water from the butter and place on ice until hard. Sift the flour, put 1/4 of the butter into the flour, cut with a knife or chopping knife until thoroughly mixed; then gradually add ice water until it is moist enough to hold together, turn out on the board or marble slab. Press into shape, roll lightly untilabout 1/4 inch thick; cut the remainder of the butter into small pieces, and lay over this layer of dough. Fold carefully over and over, roll three times. If the dough should get soft and sticky, place it in a tin or cold plate on the ice to harden between the rollings. Always fold pastry so as to keep it in layers—even when cutting off the roll keep the layers one above the other, not turning them on their sides. For patties, or especially flaky pastry, roll five or six times, provided it is not allowed to get soft. Pastry should be rolled about as thin as the edge of a plate for tarts, etc., and about 1/3 inch thick for a cover for chicken pie.
Plain Pastry.
Add the butter to the flour, chop with a knife, add enough ice water to make a firm dough. Roll out, fold, set on ice or in a cold place for at least 1/2 hour before baking.
Paste for Meat Pies, Etc.
Mix as for biscuit or shortcake.
Shepherd's Pie.
Three cups of any kind of cold meat, 6 or 7 potatoes, 1 small onion, 1 cupful of boiling milk, salt, pepper, 1-1/2 cup gravy or stock thickened with 1 tbsp. of flour. Cutthe meat in small pieces and put in a deep earthen dish. Grate the onion into the gravy and pour over the meat. Pare, boil, and mash the potatoes. Add the salt, pepper and milk, and 1 tbsp. of butter or dripping. Cover the meat with this and bake in a moderate oven until nicely brown.
Beef Stew.
Take the bones and hard tough parts left from a roast of beef. Remove all the meat from the bones and cut it into small pieces. Cut about 1/4 of a lb. of the fat into pieces; put it in the stew-pan to fry. When it begins to brown put in 1/2 carrot, a piece of turnip and 2 small onions cut fine. Stir over the fire for 10 minutes. Take out the fat and vegetables and put the bones in the bottom of the kettle. Add the meat and cooked vegetables, but not the fat. Dredge with salt and pepper, and flour, using at least 1/2 cup flour. Add 3 pints of water and simmer gently 1 hour; pare and cut in slices 6 potatoes, simmer until the potatoes are well cooked. Draw forward where it will boil more rapidly, have dough ready for dumplings (see recipe for dumplings). Put the dumplings on the top of the stew; cover closely and cook just 10 minutes.
Stuffed Tomatoes.
Take 6 large smooth tomatoes, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 ssp. pepper, 1/2 tbsp. butter, 1/2 tbsp. sugar, 1/2 tsp. onion juice, 1/2 cupful bread crumbs. Arrange the tomatoes in a baking pan. Cut a thin slice from the smooth end of each. With a small spoon scoop out as much of the pulp and juice as possible without injuring the shape. Mix the pulp and juice with the other ingredients and fill the tomatoeswith this mixture. Put on the tops and bake slowly 3/4 of an hour. Lift the tomatoes carefully and place on a hot flat dish, garnish with parsley, and serve.
Stewed Kidneys.
Cut the kidneys in thin, round slices. Cover them with cold water and let them stand for 1/2 hour; wash them clean, and put them in a saucepan with 1 qt. of water or stock, 2 cloves, 2 tbsps. of onion juice, salt and pepper. Simmer 2 hours. Put 1 tbsp. of butter in the frying pan, and when hot add 1 of flour; stir until it is brown and smooth, and add to the kidneys. Add a little sweet herbs, and simmer 1/2 hour longer. If not seasoned enough, add a little more salt and pepper, and, if desired, 1 tbsp. of lemon juice. This dish can be prepared at any time, as it is quite as good warmed over as when it is prepared.
Creamed Eggs.
Boil 6 eggs 20 minutes. Make 1 pint of cream sauce. Have 6 slices of toast on a hot dish. Put a layer of sauce on each slice of toast, then part of the whites of the eggs, cut in thin strips, rub part of the yolks through a sieve, or a potato ricer, on to the toast. Repeat this, and finish with a third layer of sauce. Place in the oven for about 3 minutes, then serve.
Buttered Toast.
Cut the bread 1/3 of an inch thick. Turn the bread twice (so as to draw out the moisture) before browning. Have some melted butter on a plate, dip one side of the toast in this before serving.
Croutons (for soup).
Cut stale bread into 1/2 inch slices, remove the crust and cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Drop them into hot fat, which should be hot enough to brown them, while you count 40; drain and sprinkle with salt.
French Toast.
Beat the egg lightly with a fork in a shallow dish, add the salt and milk. Dip the bread in this, turn; have a griddle hot and well buttered, put the dipped bread on the hot griddle, brown, then put a little piece of butter on the top of each slice, turn and brown on the other side. To be eaten hot with jelly or with butter and sugar.
Sandwiches.
Chop very fine cold ham, corned beef or tongue, adding a little of the fat. Mix 1 tsp. of dry mustard, 1 ssp. of salt, a few drops of lemon juice with cold water to a stiff paste; add to it 1/4 cup butter creamed. Cut bread—at least 1 day old—in very thin slices, spread with the mustard and butter paste, then with the meat. Put two slices together and cut into any shape desired. (Chicken or veal sandwiches may be made by chopping the meat very fine, and adding to it a little of the cooked salad dressing or mayonnaise.)
How to Blanch Almonds.
Shell the nuts, and pour boiling water over them; let them stand in the water a minute or two and then throw them into cold water. Rub between the hands.
To Clean Currants.
Sprinkle thickly with flour, rub well until they are separated and the flour, grit, and fine stems have loosened. Throw them into a strainer and wash thoroughly in cold water; change the water often; shake well in the strainer; then drain between towels, pick over carefully, and dry them in a warm place, but not in the oven. Put away in jars, cover closely, and they are ready for use at any time.
Serving Food.
Hot food should be served hot, and on hot plates. Cold food should be served very cold. A little garnish of parsley, hard-boiled egg, sliced lemon, toast, watercress or centre of a lettuce head adds much to the attractiveness of a dish. Small rolls, a square of bread, or croutons should be served with soup. Sliced lemon with fish. Cold beets, carrots, turnips, and the whites of hard-boiled eggs, stamped out with a fancy vegetable cutter, make a pretty garnish for cold meats. Toast cut into triangles makes a suitable garnish for many dishes.
Whipped cream is the most delicate garnish for all cold, light puddings; a little coloring may be added to part of it in order to vary the decoration.
Canning and Preserving.
Canning fruit is simply sterilizing and sealing in air-tight jars. Any fresh ripe fruit may be kept in this way. By observing a few general rules any housekeeper may preserve fruit successfully. 1st. Have good fruit, ripe and fresh. 2nd. Have air-tight jars—test by filling with water and inverting. 3rd. See that the jars have been well scalded and are free from odor of any kind. 4th. Have rims and covers at hand so that the jars may be sealed immediately when the fruit is put into them. 5th. Fill the jars till they overflow. 6th. Let the syrup simmer for a few minutes before putting in the fruit. 7th. Cook the fruit slowly so as to avoid breaking; place carefully in the jars, fill up with syrup and seal at once. A good method for canning fruit is to cook the fruit in the jars, by placing them in a boiler or kettle of water with a wire frame or something underneath to avoid breaking. Fill the jar with fruit; pour over a syrup of the desired consistency, screw on the top loosely—so as to allow the gas to escape—and place in the boiler; fill the boiler with cold water up to the rim of the jar and bring slowly to boiling point. Allow small fruits to remain 10 minutes, and peaches, pears, etc., 15 minutes after the water boils. Remove the tops, fill to overflowing with boiling syrup, and seal at once. By this method fruit retains the flavor somewhat more than by cooking in an open kettle. An average syrup for canning fruit is made by adding a pound of sugar to a pint of water (see rule 6). In order to prevent fruit jars from cracking, wring a cloth out of cold water on which the jar should be placed before filling with the hot fruit, or by placing a silver spoon or fork in the jar before putting in the syrup, fruit or jelly.Always see that the tops are screwed on tightly before putting the jar away in a cool place, which should not be done until the fruit has become cold.
Preserving.
Preserving differs from canning in the amount of sugar used; otherwise the method is similar. Preserves are usually made from equal weights of sugar and fruit, and cooked at least 20 minutes.
Jellies.
Fruit jellies are made of equal parts of clear fruit juice and sugar. Crab apples, currants, and quinces are the most reliable fruits for jelly. Cook the fruit—currants may be mashed and drained without cooking—until soft. Drain over night through a flannel bag. In the morning measure 1 pint of sugar for each pint of juice. Heat the sugar in a large earthen bowl in the oven, stirring often to prevent burning. Let the juice boil 20 minutes; then add the hot sugar and boil about 5 minutes longer, or until it thickens when dropped from a spoon.
Carefully supervise the daily dietary so that a reasonable proportion of the necessary food elements may be provided. See that the proportion of proteid is one part to four of carbohydrates and fats. Adapt the dietary to the season and climate. Do not waste time and money in preparing rich puddings, entrees, cakes, etc., when fresh fruit, vegetables, salads, etc., are so much more nutritious, economical and convenient. Arrange to have a varietyof food—different kinds of meat, fish, and poultry—cooked in various ways. See that suitable food is provided for the children; especially pure milk and food containing mineral salts. Do not allow children to use tea, coffee, or other stimulants. A glass of hot milk (not boiled) is the best stimulant for a child when wearied with study or over exertion of any kind.
See that the water which has stood in the pipes over night is drawn before filling the tea-kettle for breakfast, or using the water for porridge or other purposes. Rinse the tea-kettle every morning before using. Never use water from the hot tank for cooking. See that the water used for drinking purposes is pure; if suspicious, either have it filtered or boiled before using. Do not allow soiled rags, dish cloths or towels to lie around the kitchen. Wash and scald the dish cloths and towels after each dish washing, hanging them outside to dry—if possible. Keep plenty of clean towels; some fine ones for glass and china, coarser ones for general use. Have special cloths for kitchen use. Keep a holder within reach of the oven so as to avoid burning the fingers, or using an apron. See that a kettleful of boiling water is poured down the sink pipes every day.
All boxes, jars and shelves in which food is kept, must be kept scrupulously clean and well aired. The refrigerator requires special attention; see that the drain pipe and interior of ice-box are kept thoroughly clean. A stiff wire with a piece of cloth fastened on the end may be used to clean the drain pipe at least once a week. Do not have any closet under the sink or places of concealment for dirty pots and pans. Bowls which have been used for flour mixtures should be filled with cold water if notwashed immediately after using. Never put kitchen knives and forks into the dish water, as it loosens the handles; hold them in the hand and wash with the dish cloth. Burn all refuse, both for convenience and as a sanitary measure. If a refuse pail is used, it should be scalded frequently and a solution of carbolic acid, chloride of lime or other disinfectant used. Do not put pans and kettles half filled with water on the stove to soak, as it only hardens whatever may have adhered to the kettle and makes it more difficult to clean.