the khaki kook book a collection of a hundred cheap and practical recipes mostly from hindustan. _by_ mary kennedy core bareilly, india. printed for the author by the abingdon press copyright, , by mary kennedy core. preface. why this little book. about ten years ago the idea of writing a little cook book had its birth. we were in almora that summer. almora is a station far up in the himalayas, a clean little bazaar nestles at the foot of enclosing mountains. dotting the deodar-covered slopes of these mountains are the picturesque bungalows of the european residents, while towering above and over all are the glistening peaks of the eternal snows. [illustration] we love to think of this particular summer, for lilavate singh was with us. the thought of her always brings help and inspiration. one day she prepared for the crowd of us a tiffin of delicious hindustani food. that afternoon while we were sitting under the shade and fragrance of the deodar trees, we praised the tiffin. before we knew it we were planning a cook book. it was to be a joint affair of hindustani and english dishes, and miss singh was to be responsible for the hindustani part of it. our enthusiasm grew. for three or four days we talked of nothing else. we experimented, we planned; we dreamed, we wrote. but alas! other things soon thrust themselves upon us, and our unfinished cook book was pigeon-holed for years and years. and it is not now what it would have been if finished then. many of the recipes, however, are those that miss singh gave us then. some of them she might not recognize, for they have become quite americanized, but they are hers nevertheless, and i hope that you will not only try them and enjoy them, but that they will help you to solve some of the problems of living and giving which are confronting us all these days. i have told this story before, but it fits in well here. a lady in india once had an ayah, who from morning until night sang the same sad song as she would wheel the baby in its little go-cart up and down the mandal or driveway; as she would energetically jump it up and down; as she would lazily pat it to sleep, always and ever she could be heard chanting plaintively, "ky a ke waste, ky a ke waste, pet ke waste, pet ke waste." the lady's curiosity was aroused. the words were simple enough, but they had no sense: "for why? for why? for why? for stomach! for stomach! for stomach!" wailed the ayah. desiring to know what was for why, and what was for stomach one day, the lady called the ayah to her and sought the interpretation thereof. "this is the meaning, oh mem sahiba," said the ayah: "why do we live? what is the meaning of our existence? to fill our stomachs, to fill our stomachs." you may smile at this and feel sorry for the poor benighted hindu, who has such a low ideal of the meaning of life, but after all we cannot ignore the fact that we must eat, and that much as we dislike to acknowledge it, we are compelled to think a great deal about filling our stomachs. this is especially true these days, when prices have soared and soared and taken along with them, far out of the reach of many of us, certain articles of food which we heretofore have always felt were quite necessary to us. the missionary on furlough is naturally regarded as a bureau of information regarding the land where he has lived and worked. many are the questions asked. these questions are inclusive of life and experience in general, but in particular they are regarding the food. "what do you eat there? do you get meat there? what kind of vegetables grow there? what about the fruit of india? why don't missionaries do their own cooking? do the cooks there cook well? aren't you always glad to get back to the food in america?" these and similar questions are sure to be asked the missionary and others who have lived in foreign countries. feeling sure that everybody wants to know these very things about india, it might be well just here to answer some of these questions. in regard to the meat in india: the hindus are vegetarians, but the mohammedans are great meat eaters. so are the english. meat can be had almost every place. the kind of meat differs much in locality. chickens can be obtained anywhere. the indian cock is small of head and long of leg, shrill of voice and bold in spirit. the indian hen is shy and wild, but gives plenty of small, delicately-flavored eggs. on the whole, aside from a few idiosyncrasies, the indian fowl is very satisfactory. in large cities like bombay, calcutta, lucknow, madras, etc., where there is a large english population, any kind of meat may be obtained. in other places only goat meat can be obtained. this is especially true in many hill stations. even in small places, if there happens to be a large mohammedan population, good beef and mutton can be obtained in the cold weather, and in many larger places where there are few mohammedans no meat of any kind is to be found excepting chicken, and one usually has to raise them himself. meat is cheap in india. indeed, in some places beef can be bought for two cents a pound. however, it is not so good as is the beef in america. in the hot weather, as it has to be eaten almost as soon as it is killed, it is tough and tasteless. vegetables differ, too, according to the locality. if mrs. a, returned missionary from india, pathetically states that year in and year out she never gets _any_ home vegetables, and thereby causes everybody to pity her, and if mrs. b, returned missionary from india, boasts that she gets plenty of home vegetables, even better than she could get in america, and thereby causes everybody to envy her, don't think that either mrs. a or mrs. b have fibbed. mrs. b lives up north and mrs. a lives south, and both speak truthfully. the same is true in regard to fruits. certain fruits, such as the citrus fruits, the unexcelled mango, bananas, etc., are found all over india; but in certain sections there are not only these, but all the home fruits. this section is to the north and northwest. pears, apples, peaches, plums--in fact, any fruit that can be grown any place in the world can be grown successfully in this favored section of india. "why don't missionary ladies do their own cooking?" the idea seems to be abroad that the reason that missionaries in india do not do more manual labor is because they have a certain dignity that they must maintain; that they would lose caste and influence should they do menial work of any kind. this is quite a mistaken idea. one of the things that a missionary stands for is serving, serving by hands and feet as well as by brain and spirit. the simple reason is that missionaries are employed by the missionary society to do other things. it isn't a question of giving eight hours a day to mission work, but it's a question of giving all the time. but suppose she hadn't her hands so full of mission work, even then she could not do her own cooking. perhaps she might do some of it if she had an up-to-date little kitchen, with linoleum on the floor, if there were a sink and a gas range, and all sorts of lovely pots and pans, but alas! in india there is not even a kitchen. it is a cook-house, and is quite detached from the rest of the house. if she cooked there, the missionary lady would have to keep running back and forth in the hot sun or in the pouring rain of the monsoon. there is no linoleum--only a damp, uneven stone floor, and there is no sink--all the work requiring water is done on the floor by a drain-pipe, and sometimes if the screen gets broken over the mouth of the drain-pipe, toads come hopping in, and sometimes even cobras come squirming through. the indian cook-house is always dark and smoky. there is no little gas range; just a primitive cooking place made of bricks plastered together. this contains a number of holes in which are inserted grates. charcoal fires are burning in these little grates. charcoal has to be fanned and fanned with a black and grimy fan to get it into the glowing stage. of course a clean fan would do as well, but one never sees a clean fan in an indian cook-house. however, do not suppose for a minute that the missionary lady has no responsibility regarding the cooking. she has. she cooks with her nerves and brains. she has to train up the cook in the way he should go, and after he has gotten into the way, she has to walk along by his side, for she must be brains for him for ever and ever. she has to see that he walks in paths of truth and uprightness. she has to keep everything under lock and key, and is apt to lose her keys when she is in the biggest hurry. she is also apt to lose her temper, and feels worse over this than she does when she loses her keys. she has to argue over prices; to fuss over the quality of charcoal consumed. she has to keep her poise when, after ordering something especially nice for dinner, the cook proudly passes around something quite different and not at all nice. she dare not even visit her own cook-house without coughing and making a noise, for fear that she will have a case of discipline on hands that may leave her without a cook. verily, she is not deceived by the fact that when she enters the cook-house the cook and half a dozen other men who have been playing cards and smoking are respectively standing around like little tin soldiers. she _sees_ the hooka or big water pipe standing behind the door, and she _knows_ that the bearer has a deck of cards up his sleeves. but even knowing this, all she can do is to meekly transact her business with the cook and go out without saying a word. however, in spite of all this, the indian cook is a great comfort. he grows on one. it is surprising how equal he is to emergencies and what really fine things he can make with very few conveniences and often a very stinted allowance of material. there are very few of them who do not take pride in their cooking, and they are never happier than when there are guests in the home and they are having a chance to show off. nor are they uncleanly, as is often supposed, but they keep their kitchen in such mild disorder that things really appear much worse than they really are. and now for the last question. often and often we are asked, "aren't you glad to get back to the food in america?" my answer is, "rather," and it is to be spoken with a rising inflection. we love the american people, and we enjoy the american food, but we think that when it comes to making nice tasty somethings out of almost nothing, america is not in it at all. nearly every nation in the world can do better. i hope these recipes will help. contents. page chapter i. curry . curry powder. . beef curry. . chicken curry. . curry with curds. . meat curry with pastry. . meat curry with cabbage. . meat and split pea curry. . massala fry. . hamburg steak curry. . cold meat curry. . buffath, or curry with vegetables. . buffath of cold meat and vegetables. . fish curry. . curry from tinned salmon, sardines, or tuna. . salt fish curry. . massala fry of fish. . egg curry. . poached egg curry. . eggplant curry. . curried stuffed eggplant. . stuffed curried mango peppers. . mixed vegetable curry. . split pea curry. . edible leaves curry. chapter ii. savory dishes from other countries . mulligatawney soup. . tamales (mexican). . koorma (arabian). . spiced beef. . irish stew (old english). . mesopotamia stew. . french stew. . turkish stew. . all blaze. . country captain. . toad in hole. . minced meat patties. . hamburg cutlets. . potato patties with fish or meat. . beef olives. . bird nests. . eggplant patties. . spanish steak. . spanish welsh rarebit. . kabobs. . char-chiz. . spanish eggs. chapter iii. split peas or dal . split pea soup. . dal soup with milk. . kidgeri. . armenian kidgeri. . dal bhat. chapter iv. rice . plain boiled rice. . pesh-pash. . pullao. . beef or mutton pullao. . spanish rice. . pea pullao. . cocoanut rice. . meat and rice hash. . rice cutlets. . fried rice (parsi). chapter v. bujeas . potato bujea. . banana bujea. . summer squash bujea. . cabbage bujea. . radish bujea. . tomato bujea. chapter vi. breads . chupatties. . chupatties (americanized). . prahatas. . potato puris. . white flour puris. . sweet potato puris. chapter vii. pickles and chutneys . kausaundi pickle (americanized). chapter viii. chutney . lemon chutney. . apple chutney. . rhubarb chutney. . carrot pickle. . mixed vegetable pickle. chapter ix. most everything . puff paste. . cheese cakes. . banana stew with cocoanut. . roselle jelly. . roselle sauce. . tipparee jam. . orange marmalade. . orange jelly. . candied grapefruit peel. . banana cheese. . carrot cheese. . fruit cheese. . fools. . jellabies. . gulab jamans. . malpuas. . crow's nest fritters. . hulwa. . bombay hulwa. . turkish delight. . frosted bananas. . sujee puffs. . breadcrumb balls. . sujee biscuits. the khaki kook book. i. curry. many regard curry as one of the new things in cookery. this is a mistake. curry is an old, old method of preparing meats and vegetables. nor is it an east indian method exclusively. in all oriental and tropical countries foods are highly seasoned, and although the spices may differ, and although the methods of preparation may not be the same, nevertheless, generally speaking, the people of all oriental countries freely indulge in curried food. [illustration: making chupatties] however, in india curry reaches its perfection. the people of india since vedic times have eaten curry and always will. they eat it very, very hot, and europeans who live in india soon find themselves falling into the habit of eating very hot and spicy foods. whether it is good for one to eat as much hot stuff as one is expected to eat in india is a disputed point. in moderation, however, curry is not harmful, and is a very satisfactory and appetizing way of preparing scrappy and inexpensive meats. if carefully prepared, everybody is sure to like it. do not introduce it, however, to your family as a mustard-colored stew of curry powder, onions, and cold meat served in the center of a platter with a wall of gummy rice enclosing it. most of the family would hate it, and it would be difficult to get them to the point of even tasting it again. curry, as usually made in india, is not made with curry powder at all. every indian cook-house is provided with a smooth black stone about a foot and a half long and a foot wide. there is also a small stone roller. on this large stone, by means of the small stone, daily are crushed or ground the spices used in making curry. the usual ingredients are coriander seeds and leaves, dried hot chilies or peppers, caraway seeds, turmeric, onions, garlic, green ginger, and black pepper grains. all these are first crushed a little and then ground to a paste, with the addition from time to time of a little water. now of course no american housewife would want to squat on the floor and grind up curry stuff on a stone, as do the women of india. so i hasten to say that very good curry may be made from curry powder. curry powder may be obtained from almost any grocer. the best in the market is cross & blackwell's. a good plan, however, would be to make your own curry powder. it is better, much cheaper, and is very little trouble to make. the following formula is excellent: . curry powder. ounces of coriander seed; teaspoon of caraway seed; teaspoon of black pepper; teaspoon of red pepper; teaspoons of turmeric; tablespoons of flour; teaspoon of cloves; teaspoons of cinnamon; seeds of six cardamons. the coriander and turmeric may have to be purchased at a drug store. buy as many of the spices ground as you can, and grind the others in a small hand-mill or coffee-mill. sift together three or four times and dry thoroughly in an expiring oven. put in air-tight bottles. a pound of meat will require about two teaspoons of this mixture. if not hot enough add more red pepper. _coriander._--you will note that coriander is the chief ingredient of curry powder. coriander is used extensively in flavoring throughout the east. it can be grown any place, however. the seed can be obtained from any large florist. it grows rank like a weed. the leaves are delicious as a flavoring for meats and vegetables. a patch of this in your vegetable garden will repay you, as many a bit of left-over can be made very tasty by using a little of the finely minced leaf. the seeds are useful in many ways. _fresh cocoanut_ is another ingredient frequently used in making curries. this gives a delicious flavor and also adds greatly to the nutritive value. a cocoanut paste is prepared by a very elaborate process in the indian cook-house, but in this country we are not only confronted by the problem of living on our so many dollars a month, but also by the equally great one of living on twenty-four hours a day. so we will pass the method of preparing cocoanut by with the suggestion that you buy your prepared cocoanut. baker puts up an excellent preparation of fresh cocoanut with the milk. this comes in small tins at ten cents a tin. making curry is a very elastic method. much depends upon the taste of the individual. some think a teaspoonful of prepared mustard or worcestershire sauce a great improvement. _always get cheap cuts of meat for curry._ the hock or heel of beef makes perhaps as fine curry as any other cut. there are many different kinds of curries. some are so hot that the consumer thereof may feel that he is the possessor of an internal fiery furnace. some are mustard-colored, some are almost black, some are thin and watery, some are thick, some are greasy, and some would be quite impossible for america. onions are always used in making curry, but do not let this discourage any one who does not like onions. one reason that onions are so unpopular is that so often they are improperly cooked. in making curry onions should be cooked until they are perfectly soft. indeed they should be reduced to a pulp. this pulp helps thicken the curry gravy, and many people who claim that they cannot eat onions really enjoy them without realizing what they are eating. the recipes which follow are all practical, inexpensive, delicious, and thoroughly reliable. . beef curry. cut a pound of fresh beef into bits. any cheap cut does well for this. slice an onion very thinly, and fry together in a dessert-spoonful of fat of any kind, the meat, onion, and two teaspoonfuls of curry powder. when they are nicely browned add several cups of water and simmer gently until the meat is very tender and the onion has become a pulp, thereby thickening the curry gravy. this requires long, slow cooking. more water may be added from time to time. if one has a fireless cooker, it should always be used in curry making. serve with rice prepared according to taste. in india, curry and rice are always served in separate dishes. the rice is served first and the curry taken out and put over it. usually chutney (chapter viii) is eaten with curry and rice. . chicken curry. cut a chicken up any way you like and fry it with one thinly-sliced onion and the curry powder. the amount of curry powder will of course depend on the size of the chicken. fry together until the chicken is nicely browned, then add water and simmer until chicken is tender. remember always to reduce the gravy by slow cooking until it is somewhat thickened by the onion pulp. a couple of sliced tomatoes fried with the chicken, onion, and curry powder is much liked by some--not only in chicken curry, but in all curries. . curry with curds. this curry is prepared a little differently. place in a deep dish one pound of beef or mutton or any kind of meat. cover with thick curds of milk. these curds should not be too sour. also add a green mango pepper thinly sliced, and if desired a clove of garlic, finely minced. let stand in the curds for a couple of hours. in the meantime fry an onion and two teaspoonfuls of curry powder together. when nicely browned add the curd mixture. cook over a slow fire until meat is tender. cold sliced meat is very good prepared this way. in this case cook the onions thoroughly before adding the curd mixture. the meat should be cut in small pieces. . meat curry with pastry. prepare the curry as in no. , adding the dumplings after the meat is tender. for the dumplings, mix half a cup of flour into a stiff dough with water. add a little salt, and roll out very thin. cut in two-inch squares. some like a little fresh cocoanut and cocoanut milk added to this curry. . meat curry with cabbage. half a pound of meat is plenty for this very hearty and inexpensive dish. fry the onion, curry powder, and meat together in the usual way. when nicely browned, add several cups of thinly-shredded or sliced cabbage. cover with water and simmer slowly until all are tender. just before serving acidulate. in india, tamarind juice is always used for this purpose, but lemon or lime does very nicely. carrots or turnips may be used the same way and are excellent. eat with or without rice. usually this curry is eaten with chupatties (no. ). . meat and split pea curry. cut a half pound of beef or mutton into small bits and fry as usual with onions and curry powder. when nicely browned add a cup of split peas which have been soaking for several hours. simmer all together in plenty of water until the meat and peas are tender. serve with rice. . massala fry. this is not really a curry, but is an excellent way of preparing tough round steak. mix two teaspoonfuls of curry powder into a half cup of flour, and pound by means of a saucer into a pound of round steak. fry the steak with a sliced onion until quite brown. then add a little water and simmer until the meat is tender. the gravy should be little and rich. do not cut the meat. this is a fine casserole dish. . hamburg steak curry. fry together a pound of hamburg steak, a cup of minced onions, and two teaspoonfuls of curry powder. when these are quite brown simmer with a little water until onions are soft. this can either be served rather dry or with plenty of gravy. in the latter case, serve with rice or kidgeri (no. ). a teaspoonful of worcestershire sauce is a help to this curry. this curry is very nice and is quickly made. made dry, a little jar of it taken to a picnic or on a trip will be found very useful, as it keeps for days. indeed, all curried meats keep longer than meats prepared in other ways. hamburg steak curry makes fine sandwiches. . cold meat curry. any kind of cold meat may be made into curry. fry onions and curry powder together until nicely browned. then add enough flour to thicken, as in making gravy. then add water or cocoanut milk. when gravy has thickened, add cold meat. simmer slowly for a while. this curry is not so tasty as those made from fresh meat, and it is well to add a teaspoonful of worcestershire sauce. . buffath, or curry with vegetables. fry one-half pound of meat, finely diced, with onion and curry powder. add a little water from time to time, so that the meat will be tender and the onions soft. then add two teacupfuls of water. as soon as water boils add a cupful of sliced radishes, potatoes, carrots, or any vegetables that will not mash. cook slowly together until vegetables are soft. in india this curry is always acidulated, but that is not necessary. it is a good plan, however, to always serve sliced lemon with all curries, as some prefer them sour. . buffath of cold meat and vegetables. prepare a sauce or gravy, as in no. . add cold meat and any left-over cold vegetable. simmer gently together for a little while. do not have too much sauce. . fish curry. fish curry is usually made with cocoanut milk instead of water, but this is not necessary. it should always be acidulated. prepare a sauce, as in no. , using, if preferred, cocoanut milk instead of water. also add a little finely-minced garlic and green peppers. put the raw fish in this and simmer together until the fish is cooked. serve with rice. spanish rice is excellent with fish curry. (no. .) . curry from tinned salmon, sardines, or tuna. prepare a sauce as in no. , using cocoanut milk and a little grated cocoanut. also add a tiny bit of thinly-sliced green ginger, garlic, and chili pepper. pour over the fish, and serve with rice and sliced lemon. . salt fish curry. cut the salt fish into rather small pieces, and soak until no longer very salty. while it is soaking, fry in plenty of oil or crisco one bunch of green onions, cut up tops and all, a teaspoonful of curry powder, and three half-ripe tomatoes. the tomatoes may be dipped in batter or crumbs. when these are fried add the salt fish. simmer together for a while. serve with rice. eggplant is excellent in this curry instead of tomatoes. . massala fry of fish. make a paste of flour and water and two teaspoons of curry powder and a little salt. dip the fish in this curried paste, and then dip again in bread or cracker crumbs. fry in the usual way. this is a delicious way of preparing any kind of cutlets or chops. in fact, any kind of meat may be fried in the same way. . egg curry. fry a sliced onion with a teaspoonful of curry powder; then add a little flour for the gravy. when this is mixed quite smooth, add a teacup of water or milk or cocoanut milk. cook until it thickens, then add six hard-boiled eggs. cut in halves lengthwise. serve with rice. . poached egg curry. prepare the curry as for no. . when gravy begins to simmer, poach the eggs in it. . eggplant curry. cut round slices of eggplant. remove the outer rind, dip each slice in batter and fry. make the curry sauce in the usual way. when it thickens, carefully put in the eggplant; simmer gently together until the vegetables are well cooked. this is excellent made with half-ripe tomatoes. in each case it is a fine meat substitute. always serve with rice. . curried stuffed eggplant. make a curry mince as for no. . see that when the meat is cooked there is plenty of liquid. thicken this mince and gravy with bread crumbs and let stand. cut the eggplant in half lengthwise, and steam or bake in a very slow oven. when about half cooked, scoop out the center of about each half. be careful to save the vegetable that you scoop out and mix it with the curry and breadcrumb mixture. stuff the eggplant shell with this mixture, cover the top with crumbs, and bake. excellent either hot or cold. a half pound of meat is enough to nicely stuff one eggplant. . stuffed curried mango peppers. to prepare the mango peppers for stuffing, cut off the tops and remove the seeds. let stand in salt water until required. then prepare plenty of rice according to no. . keep in a warm place until required. fry hamburg steak with onion and curry powder according to no. . a pound of steak will be plenty for a nice big dish of peppers. use no water in this mince, but when the meat and onions are partially fried add a cupful of the boiled rice, and mix all together. stuff the peppers with this mixture of rice and meat. put in a roaster and cover with tomato sauce. this sauce may be made from any tinned tomato soup, diluted and more highly seasoned, or it may be made from stewed tomatoes from which the seeds and skins have been removed. make sauce a little thick. bake very slowly or steam. serve with the remainder of the rice. this is such a hearty dish that one needs prepare nothing else to be served with it. . mixed vegetable curry. all vegetables such as peas, beans, potatoes, carrots, etc., make excellent curry. they may be either freshly prepared or left-overs. fry them all together with plenty of onions in a little crisco; add as much curry powder as is desired. if tomatoes are not used, acidulate a combination of tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers. makes a fine curry. these vegetable curries are usually eaten with chupatties (no. ). . split pea curry. soak the peas for two or three hours. fry in the usual way the onion and curry powder. a teaspoonful of curry powder is enough for a cupful of soaked peas. mix the peas with the fried mixture. add plenty of water and cook until the peas are soft enough to mash up into a pulp. serve with rice. an acid is desired with this curry. . edible leaves curry. this may not sound especially inviting, but in a pinch one might want to try it. the hindus make curries from many things that we would throw away. turnip tops, beet tops, radish tops, the young and tender leaves of many jungle plants, also the leaves of many trees; all these are used in making excellent curries. dandelion greens, spinach, swiss chard, may all be used in the same way. prepare the onion and curry powder in the usual way; then add the greens. it is a good plan to add a few potatoes to give body to the curry. use very little water in cooking. serve with puris or chupatties. (nos. , ). [illustration: taj mahal agra] ii. savory dishes from other countries. one of the economies in cooking is in the proper seasoning of foods. this is the secret of many an attractive dish made from left-overs, or cheap meats. every garden should contain a little patch of mint, parsley, sage, coriander, while those who have no garden could easily grow these in window boxes or pots. it is not an extravagance to have on hand plenty of pepper sauce, worcestershire sauce, kitchen bouquet, and condiments of various kinds. a little of these goes a long way in seasoning, and many a dish which would be very flat and unattractive, by their judicious use is made savory and satisfying. garlic is also another seasoning which we use but little, but which is used most extensively throughout the orient. if properly used it gives a delightful flavor to food. very little is required. indeed, often one needs to just rub the sides and bottom of the cooking vessel with the garlic before putting it on the fire. the salad dish may be treated the same way. however, very few would object to a little finely-minced garlic in almost any meat dish, and much in flavor is often gained thereby. most of the recipes which follow are quite new to americans. . mulligatawney soup. this is a very famous soup which has been associated with india since the beginning of the english regime. in india it is usually made with chicken, but beef or mutton do very nicely. stew a pound of mutton. scrappy mutton, such as neck or ribs, does very nicely. when meat is tender remove from soup. fry an onion with a teaspoonful of curry powder. when nicely browned stir into it a tablespoonful of peanut butter; also about a half cup of fresh cocoanut. mix these up together to a smooth paste and add to the mutton broth. also pick the mutton from the bones and add to the soup. if the peanut butter does not thicken it sufficiently, thicken with a little flour. serve with rice. sometimes the rice is boiled with the mutton, but usually it is boiled separately (no. ). lemon juice is usually served with this soup. . tamales (mexican). take a pound of meat. mutton, chicken, or beef may be used. it must be cut in bits. if the meat has not sufficient fat, add crisco or butter, or whatever one uses. stew until meat is very tender. into this soup add a cup of tomato sauce or a cup of boiled and strained tomatoes highly seasoned. then stir in enough cornmeal to thicken it as for mush. cook for a few minutes and then turn all into a rice boiler or steamer, and cook until the cornmeal loses its raw taste. when a little cool, add a few raisins, ripe olives, almonds, or peanuts, the latter cut up fine. make pretty hot with cayenne, and also add a little pimento. mold into little rolls, and wrap each roll up in corn husks, tying each end, so that the mixture will not escape. just before eating, steam up again, and serve hot. if one is in a hurry, a dish can be lined with corn husks, the mixture piled in, and corn husks placed over the top of the dish. this is called "tamale pie." if corn husks are not available, it is very good without them. the mixture can either be steamed in a bowl and turned out or it can be sliced cold and fried like mush. it is not necessary to add the raisins, olives, and nuts unless one wants to be rather luxurious. at the table open up the rolls, remove the husks, and eat with tomato sauce. a good sauce for tamales is made by stewing tomatoes with a little onion and green pepper, straining and highly seasoning. worcestershire sauce is always good in tamale sauce. this tamale mixture is fine for stuffing green mango peppers. indeed, it makes a fine forcemeat for most anything. . koorma (arabian). koorma is usually made from mutton or veal. mince an onion, a little green ginger, and a tiny bit of garlic and add to a cup of buttermilk. cover a pound of mutton with this and allow to stand for a while. the mutton may either be fresh or left-over. while the mixture is standing, fry a minced onion; add to it a little turmeric. turn the buttermilk mixture into this. if the meat is uncooked, also add a little water, so that it may become tender; but this is unnecessary if cold mutton is used. simmer slowly together until the meat gets tender and the curds dry. at the last a little cocoanut may be added, but this is not necessary. the gravy must be very little and very rich. . spiced beef. this is a very nice way of keeping beef if the weather is hot and one has no ice. cut the meat up, salt a little, turn it into a bowl, and just cover with vinegar. sprinkle well with mixed spices. when ready to use, fry with tomatoes and onions. this may be kept for several days without ice, even in the hottest weather. . irish stew (old english). equal parts of meat and potatoes. half a pound of meat and half a pound of potatoes makes quite a good-sized dish. cook the meat with a sliced onion in plenty of water until it is almost tender. then add the potatoes; also a little mint or parsley, a tiny bit of green ginger, and a sprinkle of cinnamon, salt and plenty of pepper. cook together until all are sufficiently cooked. at the last, if mutton has been used, add half a cup of milk. thicken a little if desired, only perhaps it is best to cook it until potatoes begin to break, thickening it in that way. . mesopotamia stew. equal parts of meat and string beans. fry together with or without an onion. when quite brown but not hard, season well in any way liked. in mesopotamia, of course it is made very hot. cover with water and cook slowly until beans are soft and meat is tender. less meat may be used. beans and meat should both be cut up fine for this stew. . french stew. take a pound of beef cut in small pieces and fry it until brown. remove and fry in the same pan the following vegetables: three small radishes, three small carrots, three small onions, half a dozen potatoes, a little green ginger, a green chili or two, and three or four mint leaves. the ginger, chili, and mint leaves should be finely minced, but slice the other vegetables. when the vegetables are nicely browned, remove, make a little gravy in the pan; pour this gravy over the meat, add the vegetables, and cook very slowly together until the meat is tender. if liked, it may be made with only potatoes and onions and meat. . turkish stew. fry a pound of meat cut in small pieces. remove from the pan. in the same pan fry eggplant, thinly sliced and rolled in batter and crumbs. season as desired. put a layer of the fried eggplant and a layer of the fried meat in a cooking vessel. add a little water, and cook very slowly until meat is tender. . all blaze. this is an old english dish, and is fine for the fireless cooker. mutton is best for this dish. one pound of mutton, cut in bits, one-half pound of potatoes (quartered), peas, beans, onions, carrots, or any vegetables one may have on hand. put a layer of potatoes at bottom of the pan, then a layer of meat, then a layer of mixed vegetables. repeat this, sprinkling salt and pepper over each layer and a little drippings. put in a vessel with a very tight-fitting lid, so that no steam will escape, and steam or bake slowly for three or four hours. . country captain. this is another english dish, and is a great favorite with the indian cooks. chicken is always used in india, but veal or mutton will do nicely. cut up the meat, slice four or five onions in rings, and set aside. fry the chicken quickly over a hot fire, then fry the onions. with the onions fry some green chilies and a little green ginger; add a cup or two of water and stew until chicken is tender. do not thicken the gravy to this. sprinkle fried onions over the platter when it is ready to serve. . toad in hole. make a batter just as you would for pancakes. melt some butter or crisco in a baking dish and pour in half the batter. on this place a mixture of meat, potatoes, and onions prepared as for no. . pour over this the remainder of the batter and bake or steam. . minced meat patties. prepare the mince according to no. . make a piecrust, not too rich. roll out paste, cut out in circles about three inches in diameter. put in each of these circles a tablespoonful of the curried mince, and turn over, pressing the edges closely together. fry or bake. . hamburg cutlets. take a pound of hamburg steak, a minced onion, a minced mango pepper, a leaf or two of mint or coriander, a little salt and pepper, and very few bread or cracker crumbs. mix all together, mold in little oblong cakes, dip in a thin batter made of flour and water, and then in crumbs. fry in fat or oil. . potato patties with fish or meat. take equal parts of cold mashed potatoes and flour. work together into a paste and roll out in circles about four inches in diameter. place in each of circles a spoonful of salmon or tuna; season rather highly, press edges together, and fry. fine way to use cold mashed potatoes. curried mincemeat may also be used for the filling. . beef olives. have the butcher cut a very thin round steak either of beef or veal. cut this in pieces about three inches square, and pound with a saucer about a dessert-spoonful of flour into each of these pieces. make a highly-seasoned forcemeat of breadcrumbs and onions and a little minced bacon. place a spoonful of the stuffing on each square of meat, and roll in the form of a sausage. wrap each roll with cord and tie. fry the rolls, then remove and make a gravy in the pan. when gravy is made, add the rolls and stew gently until the rolls are tender. . bird nests. stew a pound of boiling meat with two sliced onions until the meat is tender. remove the meat and onions, and when cold pass through the meat grinder. season rather highly, add egg and breadcrumbs, and work all together as though for cutlets. if flour is worked well into it, no egg or crumbs will be required. boil six eggs until quite hard. when cold, remove the shells. enclose each egg in the meat mixture. roll in a thin batter, then in crumbs, and fry. when nicely browned, cut with a sharp knife through the center of each egg. place on a platter, and pour over all a gravy made from the broth in which the meat was boiled. this makes twelve birds' nests. a very attractive and delicious salad can be made by using veal or chicken instead of beef. the yolks of the eggs may be removed and deviled or highly seasoned. serve with mayonnaise dressing instead of gravy. . eggplant patties. take two medium-sized eggplants, steam or bake until tender; then cut lengthwise into halves. scoop out the pulp, cut the pulp in small bits and set aside. keep the skins for the patties. mince an onion, brown it in oil or crisco. when nicely browned, add a quarter of a pound of either cold or raw minced meat, a little green mango pepper, and the pulp which was removed from the eggplant. a little worcestershire sauce or piccalilli improves this considerably. fill the empty shells with this mixture. cover with crumbs and bake. large ripe cucumbers are good prepared the same way. only they should be peeled before steaming, and the seeds should be carefully removed. if a gravy could be made of stock and poured over the patties it would be liked by many. . spanish steak. pound thoroughly by means of a saucer a half cup of flour with a pound of round steak. then over a hot fire quickly fry the steak and remove. in the same pan fry two good-sized onions, thinly sliced, and half a dozen good-sized tomatoes and one large mango pepper. if the pepper is mild, add cayenne pepper. when the onions begin to get soft and the tomatoes to dry, add the meat. cook very slowly until meat is tender. one can use canned tomatoes very nicely for this. cook onions and tomatoes and peppers together, with plenty of oil or crisco until they begin to thicken. then add the meat. this is also a very satisfactory way of reserving cold steak or any kind of cold meat. after the tomato and onion mixture is well cooked, add the cold meat and heat up all together. . spanish welsh rarebit. fry in plenty of oil or butter or crisco a large sliced onion. when onion is partly done, add a tin of tomato soup or a cupful of stewed strained tomatoes. cook for a little while together, then add half a pound of sharp cheese, three or four pimentos, and a small tin of mushrooms; also add a tablespoonful of worcestershire sauce. cook all together slowly for a while, then pour over toast or crackers. this is also called "rinktum ditty." . kabobs. this is a very popular dish among the mohammedans. kabobs are usually cooked by the roadside and served piping hot to pedestrians. they are also cooked on the platform of railway stations and handed out to passengers on the train. season a pound of minced meat with pepper and salt or any desired spices. mix with a little flour to hold together. make in the form of sausages by pressing around iron pins. roast over a hot fire. these are delicious cooked at picnics. one can easily purchase the iron pins or have them made. they are usually about a foot long and a quarter of an inch thick. if the meat is fat they easily slip from the pins; if it is lean, it is best to grease the pins first. . char-chiz. fry together a cup of hamburg steak, a cup of sliced tomatoes, a cup of minced onions, and a cup of minced peppers. after they have fried until dry, add a cup of water and simmer all together for a while. make quite hot and serve with boiled rice. . spanish eggs. fry the desired number of eggs very lightly in bacon fat. just before removing from the pan pour over them a sauce made by adding a tablespoonful of worcestershire sauce to any good catsup. heat hastily together and serve. this is a fine meat substitute. [illustration: straining starch] [illustration: bullock cart--delhi] iii. split peas or dal. split peas, or "dal," as they are called in india, belong to the lentil family. there are three kinds--the green, which very much resembles an ordinary dried pea; the yellow, and the red. in this country we only see two kinds--the green and the yellow. the red are more frequently seen in india, and have a more delicate flavor. lentils are an old, old food. we read of esau selling his birthright for a mess of red pottage, or a mess of red dal. then later we read of the hebrew children refusing to eat the king's meat, and growing rosy and fat on their daily portion of lentils. lentils are rich in protein. about twenty-five per cent of their food value is protein. they are richer in protein than beans, and are more digestible. during lent in the early days of the roman church, lentils were the chief article of food, because of meat being forbidden. because of this the name lentil was given to them. split peas are used universally throughout india. several recipes have already been given (nos. and ), but a few others will be noted. . split pea soup. soak a cup of peas over night and boil in three cups of water. cook until peas are soft, then mash them quite smoothly. then dilute with stock. this stock may be made from bones and cold meat or fresh meat. fry an onion and add to the soup, and when ready to serve add minced mint leaves and little squares of toast, fried very crisp. . dal soup with milk. prepare the dal as above, except instead of diluting with stock dilute with milk. . kidgeri. first soak a cup of split peas for about three hours. then put them on to stew with two whole onions. when about half done add a cup of rice. the water must be about two inches above the split peas and rice. cook until rice and peas are soft and the water is absorbed. pour over all some melted butter or crisco. usually kidgeri is served with poached eggs. sometimes eggs are hard-boiled and sliced over the kidgeri after it is dished. . armenian kidgeri. soak a cup of split peas for several hours, then fry with two thinly-sliced onions and a cup of rice. when slightly brown, cover with water and boil. the water should be three inches above the peas and rice; also add a little bag of mixed spices. fry some meat in a separate pan. it may be either beefsteak, hamburg, or mutton. when rice and peas are soft, place a layer of meat in a dish and cover with a layer of the rice and peas. repeat until all are used, being careful to have the rice and peas on top. steam together and serve with cocoanut and fried onions sprinkled over the top. . dal bhat. dal bhat is the universal breakfast dish all over india. prepare as for split pea curry (no. ), but omit the curry powder, if desired. often it is prepared by frying minced meat with the onions before the peas are added. no food known gives as much real value for the cost as do lentils. the green and yellow ones can be obtained very easily at any large grocery, and we urge all to give them a trial. iv. rice. as a rule rice is badly cooked in the average american home. for this reason last winter when there was a good deal of talk of rice as a substitute for potatoes, very little enthusiasm was felt on the subject, and indeed when one thinks of the tasteless, gummy mess which is so often put before the family, this lack of enthusiasm is not strange. however, rice properly prepared proves quite a formidable rival of the beloved potato, and there are endless ways of preparing it if one only knows how. [illustration: pounding rice] in the first place, very few know how to cook just plain boiled rice. many know that there is a way of preparing it so that when done it will be a fluffy mass of separate grains, but they have no idea how to go about making it look like this. the process is very simple. always use the unpolished rice. rice with a creamy tinge is better than rice with a pearly white tinge, and the long grain is better than the short. . plain boiled rice. for every cup of rice have about eight cups of water. do not add the rice until the water is boiling briskly. then throw in the rice, and give it an occasional stir until the water begins to boil again. after that it need not be stirred. cook until a grain feels soft when rubbed between the thumb and finger, then turn into a colander. drain off the water and pour over the rice several cups of cold water. drain that off, too, and place the rice where it can have moist heat for a while before serving. a good plan is just to leave it in the colander and place it over a pan of boiling water; or a steamer may be used for keeping it warm, or a double-boiler. by this method every grain is separate. rice served with curry is always prepared in this way. it may be served in place of potatoes with meat, and may also be used as a basis for many inexpensive and attractive dishes, just as macaroni and spaghetti are. there is one objection, however, to rice prepared in this way. a good deal of the nutritive value is lost down the sink-drain. in india this is not the case, for every ounce of rice water is there carefully saved. it is used in various ways. usually it is fed to the babies and weaker children. often it is given to ducks and fowl to fatten them, and sometimes it is put into the curry pot. there is another method of preparing rice which is almost as satisfactory, and by which all the nutrition is retained. that is by cooking it in a regular rice boiler. put just enough water over the rice to well cover it. after the water in the lower vessel has boiled a while, if the rice seems a little dry, add more water. cook until the rice is soft, then turn the fire very low, so that the water in the lower vessel does not boil but retains its heat. let stand for a while before serving, and the rice will be almost as fluffy and white as though blanched by the cold water process. . baby's pesh-pash. this is the first solid food that babies of english or american parents in india are allowed. take about a quarter of a pound of lean mutton and cook until it is perfectly soft. shred it finely and return to the broth. cook a tablespoonful of rice in this broth and shredded mutton. cook slowly and let every grain swell to its utmost. "babies cry for it, and the doctors pronounce it harmless." it is also very good for the convalescent. . pullao. pullao is the most festive dish in india. it stands for all that roast turkey does in this country. at weddings, feasts, and holidays it is the chief dish. among the hindustani christians it is the christmas dinner. sometimes it is served with rivers of hot curry flowing over it, but often it is eaten without the curry. in india it is usually made with chicken, but any kind of meat does nicely. for chicken pullao, take a good fat hen, not too old, cut up and stew until almost tender. put a little bag of "mixed spices," such as are used in making pickles, on to cook with the fowl. while the fowl is cooking take about a pound of rice and fry it with a few sliced onions and a little butter or crisco. when the chicken is nearly done, add the fried rice and onions to the chicken and chicken broth. put all in a rice boiler if you have it and cook slowly until the rice is done. retain the spices. if rice boiler is used there should be at least two inches of broth above the mixture. if you have no rice boiler, but must boil it on the stove, more broth will be required. in the latter case do not cook until it becomes soggy. cook until the broth is absorbed, then steam. while the rice is cooking fry a few more onions with a handful of almonds and raisins. when the pullao is ready to be served, pile on a platter, then strew thickly over the pullao the fried onions, almonds, and raisins. last of all, sprinkle generously with cocoanut. . beef or mutton pullao. very delicious pullao may be made from the cheapest cuts of beef and mutton. get about two pounds of beef or mutton, cut in bits. cook until it is very tender. boil with this a little bag of mixed spices and two onions. unless the meat has a good deal of fat, use crisco, or oil. two cups of rice will be the right amount to use with two pounds of meat. use the same method that is used in making chicken pullao. fresh cocoanut is always delicious strewn over pullao, and if curry is used with it, have cocoanut in the curry. . spanish rice. fry onions, tomatoes, peppers or pimentos together. they must all be cut into small bits. in another pan fry a cup of rice in a very little oil or crisco. after the rice has browned a little, add the two together, turn into a rice boiler or steamer and cook until rice is tender. a half cupful of grated or diced cheese is an improvement to this dish. in case tomatoes are not in season, a can of tomatoes, or, better, a large-sized can of tomato soup will do nicely. in that case fry the onions and peppers and rice together. then add the cheese and tomatoes. . pea pullao. take two cups of cold boiled rice, add to it two cups of freshly shelled peas. pour over the mixture a half cupful of milk or cream; add a tablespoonful of butter or crisco, and cook in a rice boiler or steamer until the peas are nicely done. a few bay leaves and black pepper grains are an improvement to this dish. . cocoanut rice. take a cup of rice, mix it into half a grated cocoanut. a ten-cent tin of baker's cocoanut does very nicely if one doesn't care to prepare the fresh cocoanut. boil the rice and cocoanut together, being sure to add to the water the cocoanut milk. there should be about three inches of liquid above the rice. color the liquid yellow with a little turmeric; add salt, six cloves, two cardamon seeds, and twelve pepper berries. cook in a rice boiler or steamer until done. . meat and rice hash. a very nice way of making hash is to use rice instead of potatoes. take cold meat and gravy and stew together with onion. when the onion is nearly done, add to the broth the rice. a quarter as much uncooked rice as there is meat is a good proportion. cook all together until rice is thoroughly done. be sure and have plenty of liquid to start with. this is much better than meat and potato hash. . rice cutlets. left-over pullao or kidgeri or meat and rice hash make fine cutlets. mold, roll in crumbs, and fry in the usual way. . fried rice (parsi). (a fine dish for a missionary tea.) fry a cup of uncooked rice and a cup of brown sugar in a tablespoonful of butter or crisco. cook until the sugar melts and begins to bubble; then quickly add two cups of boiling water. simmer over a slow fire, or, better still, in a rice boiler until rice is thoroughly cooked. it can hardly be cooked too much. remove from the fire, pour over all a half ounce of rose water and stir well. press in plates and sprinkle well with minced almonds, or any kind of nuts will do. also add a few cardamon seeds. when cold, cut into squares and serve like fudge. this is a very satisfactory little sweetmeat when one wants a foreign dish. it is easily prepared and very inexpensive. [illustration] v. bujeas. bujeas are always made from vegetables. they are usually eaten with the native bread instead of rice. here again the everlasting onion is in evidence, for bujeas are always fried with onions. they are made from any kind of vegetables or green tops of vegetables. potato bujea is one of the most popular. [illustration: an indian prince] . potato bujea. to a pound of potatoes take two medium sized onions and one green mango pepper. if the pepper cannot be had, use the tops of onions and a little cayenne. fry the onions, and when nicely browned add the potatoes and peppers. if potatoes are medium-sized, cut each potato in four pieces. add four tablespoonfuls of water and if hot food is liked, a good sprinkle of cayenne. if more water is needed, add a couple of tablespoonfuls more. cook very slowly. use plenty of oil or crisco in frying the onions. this is good with old potatoes, but is best with new ones. tiny new potatoes are fine cooked in this way. they do not need to be scraped. just washed thoroughly and cooked whole. . banana bujea. take half a dozen not too ripe bananas, cut them in pieces, and allow them to lie in weak salt water for a while. slice two green mango peppers and half an inch of green ginger; also cut in tiny bits a clove of garlic. brown a sliced onion in butter or crisco. then add the bananas, peppers, etc. when the fruit softens stir in half a cup of cocoanut; any unsweetened kind will do. cook a few minutes longer. . summer squash bujea. first peel the summer squash. then cut in very thin slices. fry an onion and sliced green pepper together; then add the summer squash. add very little water. simmer until done. . cabbage bujea. cabbage bujea is made just as other bujeas are, excepting it is usually acidulated. sometimes fresh cocoanut is cooked with the cabbage and sometimes a little shredded salt fish is added. . radish bujea. in india radishes are cooked just as other vegetables, and radish bujea is very popular. peppers are not used in making this, but the young tender leaves of the radish plant are used instead. while the onion is frying, parboil the leaves, drain them, and add them to the sliced radishes and onions. . tomato bujea. this is a fine bujea. one never cares for meat when this is served. fry a large sliced onion and a mango pepper together until nicely browned. remove from the pan and fry in the same pan six sliced not too ripe tomatoes. these should be dipped in batter and then breadcrumbs before frying. when tomatoes are nicely browned add onions and peppers. do not add any water to this bujea. heat very slowly until well blended. eggplant, okra, pumpkin, string beans, cauliflower, in fact most any vegetable may be cooked in this way. one general rule will suffice: fry the onions first in plenty of crisco or oil. if desired, fry also top of onions. then add prepared vegetables and a little water. in most bujeas, peppers or pimentos are used. cook slowly. vegetables like eggplant had better be soaked in weak salt water before cooking. [illustration: grinding wheat] vi. breads. bujeas are always eaten with native bread. for these breads the flour is always ground in the home. the mill used is exceedingly primitive. it consists of two large circular stones, one fitting into the socket of the other. by revolving the upper stone over the lower the grain which is poured between the stones is crushed. it is the women of india who do the grinding, and "two women grinding at a mill" is a familiar sight everywhere throughout the land. the bread made from this home-made flour differs very much from the bread we know. it is not made into loaves, but into little flat cakes, which are baked over coals on a griddle. no yeast is used. although india is one of the greatest wheat countries in all the world, the great majority of people in india do not eat wheat bread. they are too poor for that. they eat bread made from the flour of coarser grains. some of these grains, such as millet and rye, we are familiar with; others are quite unknown to us. corn and oats are but little used in india. the bread made from these coarse grains is hard to digest. it is made by simply mixing the flour with water. the dough is then patted into little cakes. the bread made from wheat, however, is much finer, and europeans living in india soon grow to be very fond of it. some of the varieties would not be practical in this country. however, a few forms of hindustani bread are quite easily managed here, and will well be worth a trial. . chupatties. take a pound of whole wheat and mix it with water until a soft dough is formed. knead this well. put a damp cloth over it, and let it stand an hour or so. then knead again. make out into balls, each ball about as big as a walnut. then roll each ball into a flat cake about as big around as a saucer. bake these cakes one at a time over a very thick iron griddle that has been well heated. keep turning them over and over while they are baking. fold them up in a napkin as they are baked and keep in a warm place. the inside pan of a double boiler is a good place for them. to be properly made these cakes should be patted into shape instead of rolled, and the hindustani women always do it that way. these chupatties are eaten with bujeas and curries. . chupatties (americanized). make a dough from a pound of whole wheat flour, a half teaspoonful of baking powder, and a little salt. knead well and let stand. when ready to bake them, divide into balls as big as a walnut. roll each out, spread a little oil or crisco over it; fold up and roll again. grease an iron griddle and bake, turning from side to side. these are not actually fried, but the crisco in them and the greased griddle prevents them from getting hard, as they are apt to do if made according to no. . . prahatas. this is a very rich and satisfying form of native bread. take a pound of whole wheat and make a dough according to no. . divide the dough into eight equal parts and make each part into a ball. flatten each ball a little and spread with crisco. double it up and repeat this three or four times; then roll thin and fry. use as little grease in frying as is possible. puris. puris are similar in appearance to chupatties, except they are fried instead of baked. . potato puris. equal parts of mashed potatoes and flour, mixed to a paste and rolled very thin. make each puri about as large as a saucer. fry as you would fritters. these sound rather expensive, and they do take a good deal of fat; but they are to be eaten without butter. eat with curry. nothing else will be needed at a meal where these puris and curry are served, for they are very satisfying. . white flour puris. knead for ten minutes a dough made from a pound of fine white flour and water. let stand four or five hours. divide into little balls and roll until they are as thin as paper. fry as you would fritters. . sweet potato puris. take equal parts of mashed sweet potatoes and whole wheat. work together into a soft dough. roll out into cakes, but not too thin. fry in as little grease as possible. vii. pickles and chutneys. . kausaundi pickle (americanized). this is a very sour pickle. in india it is always made with sliced green mango, but in this country very sour green apples and lemons do very nicely. [illustration: the snake charmer] slice thinly four lemons. sprinkle well with salt. cover with vinegar, and let stand for about a month. slice thinly four very tart apples, two onions, six large sour cucumber pickles, and three large red peppers. after they are sliced mix intimately, then add two tablespoonfuls of ground mustard seed, a little salt, and, if the peppers are mild, a little cayenne pepper; also add two tablespoonfuls of thinly-sliced green ginger and one tablespoonful of finely-minced garlic. drain the salt and vinegar from the lemons and add them to the rest of the mixture. roast two tablespoonfuls of turmeric until the raw taste is taken away, then mix with it two tablespoonfuls of ground mustard; add to this a cup of salad and a cup of vinegar. mix well together and pour over the pickles. if there is not enough oil and vinegar to cover it, add equal parts of each until the pickle is well covered. this pickle is not to be cooked, but it is best to let it stand in the sun for a number of days. if there is no sun, the warming oven would do. it keeps indefinitely, and is very appetizing. it is fine for sandwiches. a little in spanish steak or curry adds much to the flavor. [illustration: carrying timber in rangoon] viii. chutney. chutney is a sort of a combination pickle and preserve. it is usually made rather sweetly and very hot, and is eaten with curry and rice. it is, however, a fine relish with all kinds of meats. in india it is usually made of the sliced green mango; but of course we haven't mangoes here, so we have to use what we can get. any tart fruit makes good chutney. . lemon chutney. cut a pound of lemons in twelve bits each, and cook in vinegar and a very little salt until the rinds are perfectly tender. drain. dissolve a pound of sugar in a quart of vinegar; put in the lemons and cook until the mixture becomes thick like jam. then add a teaspoonful of cayenne pepper (or less), two tablespoonfuls of minced ginger, two tablespoonfuls of mustard seed, and a pound of raisins. mix all together and boil ten minutes longer. . apple chutney. boil together three pounds of sliced apples, two pounds of sugar, and a quart of strong vinegar. when this begins to get like jam, add half a pound of raisins, four teaspoonfuls of finely-minced garlic, two tablespoonfuls of thinly-sliced green ginger, one teaspoonful of red pepper, and one ounce of mustard seed. let simmer a while, then bottle and expose to the sun. apricot chutney is delicious made the same way, with the addition of several ounces of apricot pits, blanched and minced. . rhubarb chutney. make just like apple chutney, only use less vinegar. in addition to the raisins and other ingredients, add a teacupful of finely-minced and blanched almonds. this is worth trying. less red pepper might be used. . carrot pickle. cut the carrots any way that is desired. if they are very small they need not be cut at all. sprinkle them well with salt and dry them in the sun for three days, being careful not to forget to bring them in at night. for a pound of carrots take a tablespoonful of mustard seed, half a dozen peppers (sliced), two tablespoonfuls of green ginger (sliced), and two garlics (finely-minced). cover with vinegar. these are excellent. . mixed vegetable pickle. eggplant, radishes, onions, carrots, peppers, all are largely used in making pickles in india. they are chopped, sprinkled with salt, and dried for several days in the hot sunshine. mustard seed, turmeric, and minced garlic are usually added. after several days of sunning they are bottled, covered with vinegar which has been boiled, but which has been cooled. ix. most everything. many of the cooks in india make a very simple puff paste. [illustration: a fakir of bombay] . puff paste. make a dough out of a pound of flour and sufficient water. knead for fifteen minutes. roll in a damp cloth and set aside. after an hour or so knead again. then add a spoonful of shortening at a time until the dough begins to crack and looks rough. roll out in a sheet, cut in four pieces, place one upon the other, roll again, cut in four pieces again. repeat this four times, then roll it into a sheet, spread it with shortening of some kind, cut in four pieces, and place one over the other. then roll for the last time. the advantage of this method is that it takes comparatively little shortening and is always light and flaky. it makes a delicious pastry for cheese cakes. . cheese cakes. place two cups of pure milk over the fire and when the milk begins to boil squeeze the juice of a lemon into it. the milk will at once curdle. drain off the curds. to these curds add the yolks of two eggs, a tablespoonful of butter, a small cup of sugar, and a small cup of ground almonds. walnuts, pecans, or any other nuts would do all right. mix all together smoothly. line little patty pans with the paste (no. ), and fill with the curds. dust powdered sugar over the top and decorate with crossbars of pastry. bake very slowly. these cheese cakes are always much in evidence at afternoon teas, garden parties, and all social functions in india. . banana stew with cocoanut. boil six bananas. to boil bananas do not remove the skins. just pour enough boiling water over them to cover them. add a little salt to the water. as soon as the skins crack they are done. remove and cool. when cool, take off the skins, scrape the bananas a little and split them. make a syrup of one cup of sugar and half a cup of fresh cocoanut and half a cup of water. pour this over the boiled bananas and serve. this dish is much appreciated by the children. roselles. roselles are a fruit belonging to the sorrel family. the seed is sown in the vegetable garden every year when other seeds are sown. the plants have a vigorous growth. they grow as tall or a little taller than currant bushes. long before the season is over the bushes are vivid with wine-red flowers. from the waxen petals of these flowers very delicious sauces, jams, chutneys, and jellies are made. roselles can be grown any place as easily as tomatoes or cabbage or any vegetable. it would certainly pay any one to make the experiment. the fruit is very rich in pectin, and not only gives a beautiful color when combined with any other fruit, but also adds much to the flavor. combined with peaches or strawberries, cherries or guavas, or any other fruit that is deficient in pectin, the roselle has very satisfactory results. when used by themselves a fine jelly is made which is far superior to currant jelly. i am sure any one will feel repaid who gives it a trial. the seeds can be purchased from any large dealer. . roselle jelly. remove the petals of the flower from the seed; then mince finely by running through the meat grinder. to every cup of minced petals add three cups of water. boil quickly as the color is much better if it does not stand around. after boiling about five minutes it will be ready to strain. strain and make as any other jelly. in flavor and appearance this jelly can not be surpassed. . roselle sauce. remove petals from the seed, and for every cup of petals take two cups of water. stew gently for a few minutes, then add a cup of sugar for every cup of fruit. these two things must be remembered if one wishes to get the best results from the fruit. it must be well diluted and it must be cooked quickly, as it is apt to lose its bright color if it stands around. tipparees. tipparees, or cape gooseberries, are also another fruit which is much neglected in this country. to many they are familiarly known as ground cherries. these are much prized in india, and they really are a fine fruit, which can be grown any place and will more than repay the little time spent in their cultivation. in india the seeds are sown annually. i think in this country it seeds itself for a few years at least, but i am sure better results would be brought about if the seeds were planted every spring. this berry is unequaled for making jam. if any doubt it, buy ten cents' worth of seed next spring, plant it in your garden. let the plants grow and spread and in the early fall make jam according to the following: . tipparee jam. husk the fruit and prick each berry. do not add too much water, as the fruit is very juicy. cook until fruit is tender, but not broken. for every cup of fruit allow a cup of sugar. cook rapidly and not too much at a time. it finishes up very quickly. a good plan is to cook only partially, turn onto platters, and expose to the sun as one does any other sun preserve. tipparees are fine for making pies and tarts. . orange marmalade. this marmalade can be made from oranges or lemons or grapefruit, or by combining the three, or by combining any two of them. either slice the fruit very thinly or run it through a meat grinder. for every cup of fruit take three cups of water. let it stand for twenty-four hours. then boil it in the same water until the rinds are soft. let stand another twenty-four hours in the same water. then measure again and for every cup of mixture take a cup of sugar. the best results are obtained if not over four cupfuls are boiled at a time. boil rapidly. if citrus fruits are boiled slowly they are apt to grow dark and strong. if oranges are used alone for this marmalade they must be sour. a good combination is four oranges, two lemons, and half a grapefruit. . orange jelly. mince the oranges, rind and all. for every cup of oranges take three of water. let stand in water for twenty-four hours. boil until fruit is soft and let stand again for another twenty-four hours. up to this point the process is exactly like no. . now drain the juice from the fruit. acidulate with lemon juice. if six oranges have been used, add the juice of two lemons. to each cup of juice take a cup of sugar. boil about four cupfuls at a time and boil quickly. it will soon become jelly. a cup of roselle juice diluted is better to acidulate with than the lemon juice. a beautiful ruby jelly is the result. . candied grapefruit peel. cut the grapefruit peel in sections. about eight pieces to a grapefruit is a good size. prick each piece and soak for three days. if the weather is very hot, better scald the fruit instead of soaking it. change water every morning and evening. on the morning of the fourth day boil the skins until they can be easily pierced. remove them and squeeze them as dry as possible. place them on a tray and sun them for several hours, or else dry them in an expiring oven. weigh the peels, and take once and a half their weight in sugar. make this sugar with water into a thick syrup; then add the peels and boil until they look clear. take them out and boil the syrup until it is quite thick. return the peels and stir around and around until the sugar candies over them. put them to dry in the sun for a day. orange and lemon peel, watermelon rind, green muskmelons, and almost any kind of fruit can be preserved in the same way. . banana cheese. take a dozen ripe bananas, skin them, and mash them up with a cup of cream of wheat and a cup of sugar; also add a tablespoonful of butter and a little cinnamon. cook slowly for about three hours in a double boiler. when cold cut as you would cheese. fine for missionary functions. . carrot cheese. boil a pound of carrots until very tender. then mash them perfectly smooth. mix with them a pound of sugar, a tablespoonful of butter, and the juice of a large lemon. also add a few cardamon seeds. cook over a slow fire until the mixture hardens into a paste. add a little more butter just before removing from the fire. press into shallow pans and cut in neat squares or diamonds like fudge. . fruit cheese. any fruit may be made into a confection which, in india, is called "cheese." the fruit part first wants to be reduced to a pulp. then take equal parts of fruit pulp and sugar, with as much butter as you feel you dare use. if you feel that you dare not use any, use crisco with salt. cook down until it becomes a paste that can be cut with a knife. it must cook very slowly. sometimes when nearly finished nuts are added. in apricot cheese the kernels are used. they must be blanched and minced. guava cheese is perhaps the finest, as the flavor improves much with cooking. . "fools." a fool is a drink made of fruit pulp and milk. mango fool is perhaps the most popular. fools are always best made of tart unripe fruits. pare, slice, and stew the fruit until it is quite soft. strain through a fine sieve or coarse muslin. add to the pulp as much sugar as is desired and enough water to make it pour easily. boil for a few minutes and turn into a jug. when ready to drink it, fill the glass about half full of the fruit mixture and then fill with rich milk. add ice. these "fools" are very nutritious and refreshing. often in the hot weather one cares for little else. hindustani sweets. hindustani sweets are very sweet, very sticky, very greasy, and very dear to the heart of india's children, both old and young. we do not advise a steady diet of these, but it is well to know how some of them are made, as such knowledge always comes in handy when arranging for missionary programs, oriental booths in bazaars, and at frequent other times. . jellabies (best beloved). make a batter of one pound of flour and water. make it just about as thick as you would for pancakes. cover the vessel tightly and let stand for three days. then stir in about a half a cup of thick sour milk. pour a little of this batter into a vessel with a hole in the bottom. in india a cup made from half a cocoanut shell is made for this purpose, one of the eyes in the monkey face at the end being perforated. fill this cup with batter and let the batter run through a little at a time into a pan of boiling fat. while the batter is running out through the hole keep the hand moving in a circle, so that the jellabies will take the form of pretzels. fry as you would doughnuts. in the meantime have a dish of syrup ready. make this syrup from a pound of brown sugar and water. cook it until it is about as thick as maple syrup. keep this syrup in a warm place and as the jellabies fry place each one for a few minutes in the syrup. remove and pile them on oiled paper until needed. these are sure to make a hit. be sure and fry them until they are quite brown. if one doesn't want to bother with the batter standing around for three days, they can be made up at once by adding a teaspoonful of baking powder to the mixture and beating it well. the milk must not be too sour in that case. . gulab jamans. take a pound of rice flour. if one cannot obtain rice flour use common flour. put it in a bowl. crack into it two eggs, add a little salt, and enough cocoanut and cocoanut milk to make a soft dough. use a ten-cent tin of baker's fresh cocoanut for this. knead well and cover for a little while with a damp cloth. after a while mold this dough into little balls about the size and shape of pecans. you will have to keep your fingers oiled while doing this. fry them as you would doughnuts. let stand until perfectly cold. weigh them, and for every pound take a quarter of a pound of white sugar. make this sugar into a syrup. when thick put in the gulab jamans and stir them for a few minutes. when they are well frosted, remove. spread out on oiled paper. these are really very nice. any kind of little cakes and nuts can be frosted the same way. the syrup should be allowed to cool a little before the cakes are put in it. . malpuas. make a batter of one pound of cream of wheat and water. this batter should be very thick. let stand two days. then add a cup of grated cocoanut, a cup of small raisins, two eggs, a cup of sugar, half a cup of curds, and a little flour. fry as you would pancakes. these are to be eaten cold. these are also very nice to serve at functions. if each one of these little cakes is made the size of a dollar, a large number could be prepared. a heavy aluminum griddle is very nice for frying these, as they would then require but little fat. . crow's nest fritters. pare and cut in very small strips a pound of sweet potatoes. steam until a little soft, but not entirely so. make a batter of flour, two eggs, and water. put a tablespoonful of batter on a well-greased griddle, then a tablespoonful of the potatoes. cover these with another tablespoonful of batter. when done on one side, turn. eat with melted brown sugar and butter or with syrup. . hulwa. fry a cupful of cream of wheat in half a cup of butter or crisco. when it begins to have a nutty flavor and to be slightly brown, add three cups of water and one cup of sugar and a few of the small inside seeds of the cardamon. boil slowly until it forms a thick rich paste. press into square cake pans and sprinkle over the top minced nuts and also raisins, if desired. cut in squares like fudge. very good and wholesome. . bombay hulwa. bombay hulwa is noted all over india. soak a pound of cream of wheat in enough water to cover it. let it stand three or four hours. then rub it through a coarse strong cloth until you get all the starch out. to do this you must keep dipping the cloth in water again and again. let this water stand until the starch has settled, then pour off the water. make two pounds of white sugar into a syrup. boil until it reaches the fondant stage, then add the cream of wheat starch, and keep boiling and stirring until it forms into a lump. then add about half a pound of butter. crisco will do as well if salt is used with it. go on cooking the hulwa until it begins to get so hard that you can hardly manage it. then add a wineglass of rose water, some blanched and shredded almonds and the little inside seeds of half a dozen cardamons. delicious and nourishing, but rather expensive. . turkish delight. this popular confection is made by a similar method to no. , excepting gum arabic is used instead of cream of wheat starch. the right proportion is about an ounce of powdered gum arabic to two pounds of sugar. the butter also is omitted at the last, but the almond, rose water, and cardamon seed are usually added. press into plates, cut in squares, and roll each square in powdered sugar. there is an easier way, however, to make it. melt gum-drops. this is easily done by adding a little water and boiling, or by keeping hot in a double boiler or fireless cooker for a while. add the almonds and cardamons and lemon or orange juice if desired. dust powdered sugar in a square pan. press in the paste, dust powdered sugar over the top. cut in squares. . frosted bananas. use rather green bananas for this. peel, slice crosswise, sprinkle lightly with salt and fry. be careful to keep them whole and not to burn them. allow them to get thoroughly cold, then frost as directed for gulab jamans (no. ). . sujee puffs. make the paste according to no. . to make the mince heat a cupful of cream of wheat in a little butter. do not fry this brown, but heat all through. stir into this half a cup of dessicated cocoanut, two tablespoonfuls of small seedless raisins, two tablespoonfuls of almonds (blanched and sliced), and the seed of six cardamons. cook this mixture for a few minutes, then add a cup of sugar and cook for a few minutes longer. this will not be a paste, for no water has been added; so don't think it is not right if it is very crumbly; that is the way it ought to be. roll the paste out not too thin, cut in circles with a pound-baking-powder tin. put as much of the sweetmeat as you think you can enclose, fold over, make as fancy as you like, and either fry or bake. this is a favorite sweet at native weddings. . breadcrumb balls. mix dry breadcrumbs and grated cocoanut together, and a few raisins, too, if liked. take a cup of sugar and half a cup of water, and boil. when syrup has reached the stage that it forms a hard ball in water, pour over the breadcrumb mixture. mold as if making popcorn balls. if one likes, these may be rolled in powdered sugar afterward. these are also a very fine sweet for social and missionary functions of all kinds. . sujee biscuits. one pound of cream of wheat and one pound of sugar mixed intimately; then add half a cup of lard or crisco and knead awhile. form into little balls and shape the balls as desired. usually they are simply flattened out into squares. bake a light brown. be careful that they are not crowded in the pan. [illustration: salaams] transcriber's note: hyphenation has been standardised. minor typographical errors have been corrected without note. this is a copyrighted project gutenberg etext. copyright (c) mitzi perdue. the perdue chicken cookbook by mitzi perdue preface: why i chickened out introduction: you don't need to wing it! let frank take you under his. everything you wanted or needed to know about selecting, storing and cooking chicken chapter . chicken for everyday tips on cooking in a hurry, plus: quick recipes, simple recipes, and family favorites chapter . chicken for the microwave tips for using the microwave, plus: quick microwave recipes, and classic recipes adapted for the microwave chapter . chicken for dieters tips for dieters, plus: low calorie, low cholesterol recipes chapter . chicken for children tips on cooking for kids, plus: recipes for kids to eat and recipes for kids to cook chapter . chicken for barbecuing tips for cooking outdoors, plus recipes for barbecuing chapter . chicken for crowds tips on quantity cooking, plus recipes for crowds chapter . chicken for tomorrow$or next week tips on storing and freezing, plus cook ahead recipes chapter . chicken for holidays chicken and holiday cooking, plus: menus and recipes for the chinese new year, valentine's day, mother's day, fourth of july, thanksgiving, chanukah, and christmas chapter . chicken for important occasions chicken for when you want something different and exciting, plus show stopper recipes chapter . chicken for planovers tips on food safety, plus recipes for the rest of the bird conclusion: a rare bird what frank is really like acknowledgements i've often thought that inspiration is one of the greatest gifts one person can give another, and there are several people who were an inspiration in writing this book. first is a woman whom i would term the godmother of this book, connie littleton, the director of advertising and marketing services at perdue. she is a woman totally committed to excellence, and if that commitment to excellence meant she had to read and edit until the wee hours of the morning, she always did it as if it were a matter of course. with each passing day, i gained increasing respect for her professionalism, judgment and knowledge. bev cox, a home economist and food stylist, was an inspiration for her meticulous attention to detail, her enthusiasm, and her unfailing good humor no matter what. beth fusaro, who typed most of the recipes in this book, is a renaissance woman, who knows not only about food and typing, but also about everything from making pottery to preserving the environment. it's been a privilege to work with beth. gretchen barnes, who assisted bev cox in editing, learned a whole new computer program, word perfect, in order to get the job done quickly. sharon sakemiller, who is already a word perfect expert, also helped with typing and retyping recipes. she impressed everyone with how rapidly she could get things done. my sincere thanks to the members of american agri-women who over the years have shared their food tips with me. also, deepest thanks to the u.s. department of agriculture's cooperative extension. one of cooperative extension's major activities is helping to educate consumers, and i owe cooperative extension a deep debt of gratitude for the education i've received through their many publications, broadcasts, classes, seminars, meetings, and personal contacts. the following cooperative extension members$many of whom are good friends as well as professional colleagues$have been invaluable resources for food tips and food knowledge: dorothy thurber, kathryn boor, christine bruhn, ellen pusey, sally foulke, bonnie tanner, bettie collins, sue snyder, chuck waybeck, and george york. also thanks to dot tringali of the national broiler council, to connie parvis of the delmarva poultry industry, to joy schrage from the whirlpool corporation, and lisa readie from the barbecue industry association. preface why i chickened out want to know a high stress situation? try being a food writer and cookbook author, and then marry frank perdue. you come home from the honeymoon, everything has been wonderful and then...it's time to cook the first meal! frank wants to eat chicken and you're supposed to be a good cook. i remember that afternoon so vividly. i knew he'd be coming home around six and that he'd be hungry. now up until that day, i had always felt fairly confident in the kitchen. after all, i love cooking and trying new recipes is my favorite pastime. but cooking chicken for frank perdue? i began to get stage fright. as i was trying to find where the pots and pans were in his kitchen, i started calculating that there were probably few people in the world who've eaten chicken more times than my husband. "he's been eating chicken almost daily for his entire life" i thought, "he likes it, he cares about it, and my cooking is about to be judged by a world class expert." as i rummaged around looking for the right herbs and spices$and couldn't find the ones i liked $ my stage fright grew worse. "this man must be one of the world's greatest experts on cooked chicken," i thought to myself. "he's attended dozens and dozens of chicken cooking contests, he's been part of hundreds and hundreds of taste testings for perdue products. everywhere he goes, people know he likes chicken and the best chefs and hostesses in the world have served it to him." in my mind i ran through some of the times when together we'd driven an hour out of the way to go to a restaurant that cooked chicken particularly well, and how he always seemed to have lists of the restaurants he wanted to visit. help! my stage fright was getting still worse. the thirty year old oven didn't seem to be heating right, but i couldn't be sure because there wasn't any oven thermometer. the "elbow test," which our grandmothers used to use before the days of thermometers (you stick your elbow in the oven and feel how hot it is), told me that things weren't right, but i didn't know how far off the oven was so i didn't know how to compensate. as i rubbed my elbow with my other hand, i thought of frank's reputation for being demanding. if you've seen the ad that we call "boot camp," you know what i mean. (he plays the part of a drill sergeant in this ad and teaches the new perdue recruits the quality points that they have to inspect -- and then he's all over one recruit for missing what seems like an invisibly small hair.) it's a funny thing, but when you start losing your confidence, you start asking some basic questions about what you're doing. part of me was saying that cooking chicken is pretty simple; after all, i'd been doing it for most of my life. but another part of me realized when attempting to cook chicken for frank the first time, that i knew very little of the basics of cooking chicken. like, for example, what makes a chicken tender? how do you really know when it's done$and not over done? how do you get the best flavor? should you salt before or after cooking? in desperation, i made a two-part promise to myself. first, i'd let myself take the easy way out that first meal, and not even try to cook the chicken myself. instead, dinner would be a never-fail salad, pasta (frank loves pasta), plus store-bought fully-cooked perdue tenders. in return for letting myself off so easily, i'd make it my business from then on to learn how to make the best chicken every time. that meant asking frank every question that popped into my head; checking with the food technologists who work for perdue; getting tips from the farmers who grew the perdue chickens; and systematically going through the thousands of recipes that frank has in his files, trying a different one each night. dinner that night wasn't the show piece i would have liked to create, but it was good enough and frank happens to love his own tenders so the chicken part of the meal was a success. in the time since, i've tried to live up to the second part of the promise, the one about learning how to serve the best chicken every time. in this book, i'd like to share with you the most useful cooking tips and the most appealing, most successful recipes developed by perdue farms over the last twenty years. the first chapter contains the kinds of information i wished i'd known from the beginning. you don't need to read this chapter, because chicken isn't that hard to cook; but there are tips in it that can save you time and money and that can enable you to cook with greater confidence. this chapter also has the latest tips on food safety. the remaining chapters are organized, not by method of cooking or whether the food is an appetizer or salad or whatnot; but rather by the kind of occasion you're facing. you want to put some spark and variety into every day meals? you want to make the most of your microwave? or you're in a hurry today? maybe you need something that will please kids? or you're dieting? you've got a bunch of leftovers? you have to cook for a hundred people tomorrow night? i tried to think of the kinds of situations in which you could need recipes and then i organized frank's recipes around them. jean brillat- savarin, the famous french gourmet, once said, "a chicken to a cook is like a canvas to a painter." enjoy the recipes and tips that follow, and may they help you to feel the creativity and confidence that make cooking fun and eating a joy! you don't have to wing it! let frank take you under his. everything you wanted or needed to know about cooking chicken frank gets roughly , consumer letters a year. half of these are requests for pamphlets, but many of the others are requests for information on selecting, storing, serving, or cooking his products. these letters are tremendously important to frank. often i've been with him when he has a few extra minutes, such as waiting for an airplane, and he'll dash to a pay phone to answer one of the letters with a phone call. he also likes to attend store openings or conventions or other public places because he genuinely wants to hear what people are thinking. one of the marketing men once told me that he was embarrassed about a day he had planned for frank because it included meetings with people who owned just a few stores. when i passed this on to frank, he answered that these were some of the best meetings because the owners of the smaller stores were so close to their customers. he went on to say that the reason he likes to visit butchers (and in new york, he's called on as many as in two days) is that these men are close to the needs and wants of their customers and he can learn things from them that he'd learn in no other way. i've heard that there's almost no other head of a fortune -size company who would spend as much time with the people who buy his products. people are often surprised that a man with his responsibilities would take the time for this much face to face contact. but the fact is, learning what people care about is almost a religion to him. here are some of the questions that people either write to frank or ask him in person. in answering the questions, i've either used the information i've heard frank give, or else i've checked with the perdue food scientists or home economists. what should i look for when i shop for chicken? whatever city we're in, whether it's on the east coast, or puerto rico, or even london or moscow or tokyo, frank visits supermarkets the way other people visit museums or monuments. he notices the following kinds of things himself and would recommend that you do also when selecting chicken. _give the package a little squeeze. are there signs of ice along wings, backs or edges? frank explained to me that some chicken producers blast their birds with air as cold as - o f, but he never does. freezing causes a breakdown in protein, loss of natural juices, and reduced tenderness. also, when you cook a frozen bird, the bones and nearby meat may turn an unappetizing dark color. _look at the thickness of the meat in proportion to the bone. if, for example, the breast looks scrawny, you're paying a lot for bone rather than meat. _read the labels so you know what you are getting. many different parts and combinations are available, and some look surprisingly alike even to frank's trained eye. the label tells exactly what is inside. _ask questions. if any meat or poultry product doesn't look, feel, or smell just right, check with the professionals behind the counter. _notice the pull date. most stores are scrupulous about removing chicken before the pull date expires$but sometimes there's a slip-up. _was the chicken well-cleaned? or are there little traces of feathers or hairs? these can look really unattractive when the bird is cooked. _is the chicken stored correctly on the chilling shelf, or are the trays of chicken stacked so high that the top ones aren't kept cold? when that happens, the shelf life of the top ones is seriously shortened. _is the meat case kept so cold that the fresh chicken is frozen and ends up with ice crystals on the tray? if so, complain to the manager. _look at the ends of the bones. are they pink or are they turning gray? generally, the more pink the bone ends are, the fresher the chicken. how should i store chicken at home? chicken, like all meat, is perishable. it should be stored in the coldest part of the refrigerator ( o or below), sealed as it comes from the market, and used within two or three days of purchase. should i freeze chickens? frank doesn't recommend freezing poultry. however, if a bird must be held beyond three days, freezing will keep it wholesome. how do i freeze poultry? when freezing is necessary, seal chicken or other poultry in an airtight container, heavy plastic bag, plastic wrap, foil or freezer paper. try to have the wrapping tight against the chicken because any place where it isn't, small ice crystals will form. that means moisture has been drawn from the meat, and where that's happened, the meat will be tough and breading won't stick. frozen uncooked chicken can be stored up to six months; frozen cooked chicken should be used within three months. (personally i try to avoid freezing chicken since i know that freezing makes the chicken less tender and less juicy. still, in spite of good intentions, i sometimes end up doing it. i've learned to make it a point to have a wax marking pencil and freezer tape handy, so i can label the package with the date and contents. i wonder if you've found, as i have, that it's unbelievably easy to lose track of how long things have been in there.) do not stuff poultry before freezing, and freeze cooked birds and stuffing separately. can frozen chicken be thawed and frozen again? each time you freeze chicken, you sacrifice quality. if carefully handled, however, it is safe to defrost uncooked chicken and to freeze it again after cooking. if frozen after cooking, do not thaw and freeze again. why is chicken sometimes implicated in illness? in a warm, moist environment, illness-causing bacteria can grow in high-protein, low-acid foods such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs and milk. but there is no reason to become ill from eating or serving these foods, if they are cooked thoroughly and served or refrigerated immediately. to prevent transferring bacteria from one food to another, use warm water and soap to wash hands, utensils and work surfaces before and after use. what makes chicken tender -- or tough? frank does his best to make perdue chickens as tender as possible, but there's also a lot you can do. _don't let chicken dry out in the refrigerator; dry chicken is tough chicken. keep it wrapped in the package it comes in until you use it. _avoid freezing it. when the juices inside the cells freeze, they act like little spears and they'll rupture some of the cell walls. when you defrost the chicken, you'll lose some of the juice and the chicken will be less tender. _cook chicken to the proper temperature, using a meat thermometer or pop-up guide. cook bone-in chicken to degrees and boneless chicken to degrees. undercooked chicken will be tough and rubbery because it takes a fairly high internal temperature to soften the proteins in the muscles and make them tender. but don't overcook chicken either, because moisture will start to steam off, and the more chicken dries out, the tougher it gets. _keep the skin on chicken during cooking. the skin helps keep juices in, and tenderness and juiciness go hand in hand. i've tried this both ways, and the difference is significant. (when you cook chicken with the skin on, approximately half the fat from the skin is absorbed into the meat; if calories and cholesterol are very important to you, you might want to remove the skin before cooking even if it means a less tender result.) _when microwaving any chicken product, cover with a loose tent of waxed paper to prevent drying. _some authorities feel strongly that you should not salt the chicken before cooking because salt draws the juices out during cooking and toughens the meat. in my experience, there is a detectable difference in tenderness between salting before cooking and salting afterwards; the chicken that i salted afterwards was slightly more tender. still, i would guess that most people, myself included, wouldn't notice a big difference unless they were specifically paying attention to it. the difference doesn't jump out at you as it does with overcooking or freezer burn. _fry or roast breast pieces rather than microwaving them if tenderness is a top priority for you. microwaving is significantly faster, but there's a greater risk of toughness when you microwave breast meat. breast meat is fairly dry to begin with, and you don't have a whole lot of latitude between overcooking and undercooking. with breast meat, there's a trade-off between the speed of microwaving and the reliability of frying or roasting. why are some chickens yellow skinned and some white? a chicken's skin color comes from the diet it was fed and the same bird could have a white skin or a yellow skin, depending on what it ate. the diet that produces a yellow skin is more expensive than the usual diet, but the people at perdue farms feel it's worth it because a yellow skin color is one of the fastest ways frank's inspectors have of finding and disqualifying an inferior bird. if a bird is sick or off its feed, it doesn't absorb nutrients well and won't develop the rich golden color that is characteristic of perdue birds. also, if part of a bird's outer skin is "barked", that is, rubbed off due to rough handling during processing, the perdue inspectors can detect it more easily than with a white-skinned bird. detecting and removing and chicken with a barked skin is important because damaged skin shortens the shelf life and dries out and toughens the meat. no white colored chickens get by the inspectors. sometimes when i open a package of chicken, there's a pungent odor that doesn't smell spoiled, but it's definitely unpleasant. should i throw the chicken out? if the odor lasts only a matter of seconds, your chicken is probably fine. meat is chemically active, and as it ages, it releases sulfur. when you open a bag that doesn't have air holes, you may notice the accumulated sulfur, but it will quickly disperse into the air. in fact, i've heard of cases where a wife will lean over to her husband and say, "smell this, i think it's gone bad." he'll take a deep whiff and find nothing wrong with it. she'll take another sniff and then wonder if it was her imagination. it wasn't. it's just that once the package was opened, the sulfur smell faded into the air like smoke rings. if the chicken still smells bad after a couple of minutes, that's an entirely different story. the problem is bacterial spoilage or rancidity or both. return the chicken to the store where you bought it and write to frank. if a chicken's been around too long you can smell it, and if you can't detect it at room temperature, you probably can as it cooks, since rancidity is more obvious at higher temperatures. rancidity can occur without bacteria if the freezer where the meat was stored wasn't cold enough or if the product was kept there for a very long time, such as more than six months for uncooked chicken, or more than three months for cooked chicken. (by the way, i don't like to focus on this unpleasant stuff, but i do want you to get your money's worth when you're buying chicken.) are chickens given hormones? never. i remember when i lived on the west coast, there was a small company that advertised that its chickens were grown without hormones. i thought this was unethical, because it implied that other chickens were grown with hormones. the fact is none are. can i cook frozen chicken, or do i have to let it defrost first? in a pinch, go ahead, but allow extra cooking time. for the best texture and tenderness, however, you're better off starting from refrigerator temperatures; you can be more sure of getting an evenly cooked product. how long can i keep chicken at room temperature? from the point of view of food safety, you're taking a risk if you leave it outside the refrigerator for more than two hours. unfortunately, bacteria grow and multiply at temperatures between degrees and degrees, and they flourish at room temperature. to avoid food borne illness, all foods of animal origin should be kept either hotter than degrees or colder than degrees. if you know you won't be returning home directly after shopping, bring along an insulated bag or box to keep cold foods cold until you can get them into the refrigerator. do i need to rinse chicken before cooking? advice on this has varied over the years, including the advice frank gives. the latest research shows that from a health point of view, washing is not necessary. any microbes that you'd wash off will be entirely destroyed by heat when you cook the meat. it's actually far more important to wash your hands, your cutting board, and your utensils since they won't be sterilized by cooking. how do i get the best flavor? that depends on whether you're after a mild and delicate flavor, or a strong and robust flavor. the younger the bird, the milder the flavor. a game hen, which is five weeks old, will have the mildest flavor of all. a broiler, at seven weeks, will still have a quite mild and delicate flavor; a roaster, on the other hand, is usually about five weeks older than a broiler and it will have a much more pronounced "chickeny" flavor. (frank and i enjoy chicken at all ages, but if we had to choose on flavor alone, we'd most often go for the roasters.) for a really strong, chickeny flavor, see if you can find fowl or spent hens or stewing hens. these birds are around months old, which means they're going to be quite tough, but if you use them in soups or stews, they'll add an excellent flavor. i've had chicken in the freezer for a year. is it still edible? from a health point of view it would be ok, but the flavor and texture will have deteriorated and it just won't be particularly tasty. i stored chicken in the freezer for a year once as an experiment, just to see what it would be like. it wasn't awful, but it was kind of flat and tasteless. i remember wondering if this was what cotton tasted like - although to be fair, it wasn't really that bad. why are bones sometimes dark? darkened bones occur when the product has been frozen. freezing causes the blood cells in the bone marrow to rupture and then when the chicken is thawed, these ruptured cells leak out and cause visible reddish splotches on the bones. when cooked, these discolorations will turn from red to almost black. is it true that breast meat is the least fattening part of a chicken? yes. breast meat has about half the fat of thigh meat. if calories or cholesterol are important to you, choose the breast meat. frank watches his cholesterol and i've never seen him go for anything but breast meat. is it better to cook a chicken quickly at a high temperature-or slowly at a low temperature? both work, but with high temperatures, you run a greater risk of uneven cooking, with the wings and legs becoming overcooked before the rest of the bird is done. usually we recommend a moderate temperature of degrees for whole birds and degrees for parts. if you are in a hurry and want to use a higher temperature, then shield the wings and legs by wrapping them with aluminum foil if they're starting to become too brown. how much should i allow for shrinkage when cooking chicken? for each -ounce serving of cooked poultry, buy an extra ounce to allow for shrinkage and an extra two ounces to allow for bone. if i want to use different parts of the chicken from what the recipe calls for, how do i go about making substitutions? this table should help: name of part approximate no. to equal one whole chicken whole breasts half breasts whole leg (thigh and drumstick) thigh drumsticks wing drumette (upper part of wing) when using cooked chicken, allow one pound of whole uncooked chicken for each cup of cooked, edible chicken meat. how do you truss a chicken? here have illustration showing how what's the best way to carve a chicken? here have illustration showing how some of your recipes call for roasters. i don't live in an area where perdue chicken is sold, and i haven't been able to find roasters in the stores. what exactly is a roaster, and can i substitute a broiler? a perdue oven stuffer roaster is a week old bird especially developed for a broad breast. roasters are bigger than broilers, and have a more favorable meat to bone ratio than broilers. because they are older birds, they also have a much deeper, richer flavor. you can use broilers in roaster recipes, but plan on the chicken's being done sooner and having a noticeably milder flavor. frank, by the way, is the man responsible for creating the roaster market. back in the early s, when few people had ever heard of a roaster, he was the one who worked to breed these broad-breasted birds, and who put the effort into advertising so people would learn about the new product. he surprised his colleagues by how determined he was in his developing and marketing efforts. one of the men who worked with frank told me that he was amazed that frank, who will hang onto an old pair of shoes to save $ , was willing to spend millions to let people know about the product, and further, he did it without a qualm, because he had such belief in it. if you haven't tried an oven stuffer roaster and you're visiting the east coast, try one, and you'll see why frank believed in it so much. chapter one: chicken for everyday napoleon's cook once bet that he could cook chicken a different way every day of the year. the cook found that this was an easy bet to win, and i can see why, having looked at the recipes in frank's files. chicken's versatility seems almost endless. perdue farms home economists have been developing chicken recipes since the early s and as a result, frank has more than chicken recipes. if only napoleon had chosen to bet with me, i could have won even if he'd said the bet was for six years! in this chapter, you'll find some of frank's and my favorites for every day cooking. but there are different kinds of every day cooking, so i've divided the chapter into three sections to take care of three different every day situations. the first section, fast food chicken from your refrigerator, is for when you're in a hurry and want dinner on the table in the shortest possible time. none of these recipes takes more than minutes, and many are ready in five. however, you will find special tricks to make the food more interesting than just heat and serve. the second section, perdue plus five, is for when you don't mind if dinner isn't ready for another hour or so, but you want your part of the preparation to be as brief as possible. the recipes in this section use only five ingredients in addition to chicken, salt, and pepper, and all of the recipes are simple to prepareathough they may take awhile to cook. the third section, family favorites, is for relaxed times. when you don't mind spending some time putting together something your family will really like, try this section. fast food chicken from your refrigerator (photo: the most valuable player on the tv football- party table might be perdue done it!) frank loves to tell people that they can pick up delicious, fast-food chicken within easy walking distanceatheir refrigerators. "when you're hungry and in a hurry," he says, "you don't need to rush across town for great chicken. you can just walk (slowly) to your refrigerator and pick up my perdue done it! chicken." although fried foods are notoriously high in fat, particularly fast food ones. perdue done it! is an exception. frank flash fries the perdue done it! products. they are in oil for seconds only. further, to assure the chicken is as low in saturated fat as possible, perdue uses only polyunsaturated soybean oil. in the recipes that follow, i've used generic nuggets, cutlets, tenders, and other fully cooked products. however, try for the perdue done it! if you live in the perdue marketing area, which is the east coast and some of the mid western states. the perdue nuggets, cutlets and tenders come from white meat fillets, while some of the other brands are pressed and formed from dark meat chicken and don't have the best texture or flavor. tenders, and nuggets chick on a biscuit: split hot baked biscuits. fill each with a breaded chicken nugget and a thin slice of ham; top with mustard. chicken mexicali: top cutlets or tenders with prepared salsa and avocado slices. chicken parmesan: top partially heated cutlets with spaghetti sauce and sliced mozzarella cheese; broil briefly to melt cheese. super caesar salad: quarter heated nuggets and toss with croutons, romaine lettuce, and caesar salad dressing. holiday crepe: heat breast tenders and place on a warm crepe. top with cranberry sauce and roll up; serve with sour cream. japanese meal-in-a-bowl: prepare japanese-style noodle soup (ramen) as directed. add heated chicken breast nuggets or tenders, sliced scallions and a dash of soy sauce. (i often put this in a thermos and bring it to frank at his office when he's working late.) nugget sticks: on metal skewers, alternately thread to chicken breast nuggets with inch pieces of bacon. heat in oven as directed on nugget package. dip into prepared chutney or sweet-sour sauce. stir-fry snack: stir-fry wings in a little oil with red bell pepper strips, scallions and sliced water chestnuts. season with soy sauce. serve over rice. substantial sub: split a loaf of italian bread lengthwise. pile on heated breaded chicken cutlets or tenders, provolone cheese, sliced tomato, sweet onion, pimentos and shredded lettuce. douse with bottled salad dressing and dig in. tenders under wraps: brush boston lettuce leaves with prepared hoisin sauce or chinese-style duck sauce. place a heated tender or nuggets and a piece of scallion on top. roll up lettuce around tender, securing with a toothpick. precooked hot & spicy wings chicken antipasto: arrange hot & spicy wings on platter with slices of provolone cheese, sliced tomatoes, marinated artichoke hearts and olives. out-of-buffalo wings: warm hot & spicy wings and arrange with celery sticks around a blue cheese dip. combine / cup mayonnaise, / cup crumbled blue cheese and minced scallion in a small bowl. speedy arroz con pollo: prepare a box of spanish rice mix as package directs. during last minutes of cooking time, add package hot & spicy wings, package thawed frozen peas and / cup sliced olives. ed chicken, toasted almonds, and chopped scallions. blend in mayonnaise flavored with curry powder and spoon back into pineapple shell to serve. cheesy chick: prepare packaged stuffing mix as directed, adding cup shredded jarlsberg or swiss cheese. stuff whole roasted chicken or cornish hens with mixture; heat until warmed through. chicken frittata: shred roasted chicken or cut breaded chicken into cubes. add to beaten eggs, along with mushrooms, onions, and any leftover vegetables. cook mixture quickly, forming into an open-faced omelet or frittata. chicken normandy: arrange cut-up roasted chicken or cornish hen meat in a shallow baking dish and scatter thinly sliced apples around pieces. cover and heat until hot and apples are tender. stir in a little light or heavy cream and warm to serve. chicken reuben: thinly slice roasted chicken. pile on sliced rye that's been spread with russian dressing. top with prepared sauerkraut, a slice of swiss cheese, and another slice of rye. grill or pan fry sandwiches until cheese melts. chicken sesame: brush roasted chicken or cornish hens with bottled salad dressing; sprinkle surface with sesame seeds and heat as directed. fabulous fajitas: slice roasted chicken into strips. saute in oil, adding lime juice, garlic, and ground cumin to taste. roll up in warm flour tortillas and top with chunks of avocado, chopped scallion, and cherry tomatoes. pasta pizazz: saute pieces of roasted or breaded chicken with sliced zucchini, chopped onion, sliced mushrooms, and garlic. add a dash of heavy cream and toss with hot cooked spaghetti or noodles. power pita: slice roasted chicken and stuff into a whole wheat pita bread. top with shredded carrots, alfalfa sprouts, red pepper strips and a tablespoon of dressing made of plain yogurt seasoned with lemon juice, curry powder and salt and pepper to taste. stir fried chicken: dice roasted chicken into a wok or skillet and stir-fry with scallions, celery, mushrooms, and peas. add cooked rice and soy sauce to taste; toss well. super spud: halve a baked potato and top with shredded roasted chicken mixed with a little mayonnaise. pile on shredded swiss cheese, bacon bits, and chopped chives; bake or microwave until cheese melts. taco perdue: cube roasted chicken and serve in taco shells, topped with shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, onion, shredded cheese, and taco sauce. photo: harvest fruit adds seasonal flavor to chicken - golden nugget salad: heat package of chicken breast nuggets. combine with romaine lettuce, halved cherry tomatoes and diced avocado. toss with your favorite dressing. nuggets or tenders with dip fully cooked breaded chicken breast nuggets ( - per package) or tenders ( - per package) following package directions, warm nuggets or tenders in a conventional oven or, using package tray, heat in a microwave oven. serve with ketchup or your favorite mustard. for myself, i've been trying some of the more exotic mustards from the supermarket and sometimes i put out several kinds in pretty little dishes that i'd otherwise use for nuts. instead of a wine or cheese tasting, my guests end up trying different mustards. perdue plus five when was the last time you baked a pie from scratch? i'm asking you this question because i'm guessing that you're like many other people who've told me that today they'd never have time to bake a pie from scratch. they might have once, but they don't have the time any more. in the last few years i've asked this question to dozens and dozens of audiences when giving talks. almost always, i get the same answer: that people who once had had the time to do a lot of cooking now seldom do. the want to eat well, they enjoy cooking, but they just can't find the time. if you were to ask me that question, i'd have to answer that i haven't found time to bake a pie from scratch in years either. frank keeps me so busy that sometimes i think that i'm married to a whirlwind. people joke that he's the only man you'll ever meet who can enter a revolving door in the compartment behind you and come out ahead of you. they also joke that he doesn't get ulcers$but he's a carrier. knowing quick recipes has become more important to me than ever, and this section contains a selection of the best. the heating and cooking time may take an hour or so, but your part in the kitchen should be no more than fifteen minutes. in this section, you'll find uncomplicated recipes with few steps, and none of the recipes have more than five ingredients in addition to chicken, salt, pepper and water. if like me, you also are looking for ways to prepare meals that taste good, look good, give you more satisfaction than microwaving a store bought frozen dinner, but don't require a long time in the kitchen, this section is for you. baked onion chicken serves recipes don't get much easier on the cook than this. anne nesbit developed it for perdue farms. one of her jobs as a perdue home economist was to translate some of the world's most successful recipes into ones that were both easy to assemble and quick to prepare. "i'm an admirer of simple recipes," says anne. "my heart was in this work because i believed in it. people want food that looks good and tastes good, but they don't have time to put a lot of work into getting there." i've never met anne, except over the phone, but from this comment, i know i would like her. the recipe isn't fancy, and it may be old-fashioned, but it's a treasure when you're in a hurry. chicken, cut in serving pieces dehydrated onion soup mix preheat oven to of. roll chicken in dry soup mix, using about as much mix as you would salt. place chicken in a single layer, skin side up, on baking sheet. bake, uncovered for to minutes until cooked through. basic fried chickenserves this is fried chicken in its simplest form. it's good enough so that the last time i made it, the grandchildren were making off with pieces almost as fast as i could cook them. frank's daughter anne oliviero particularly recommends basic fried chicken served cold the next day for picnics. she and her family love to explore some of the islands off the coast of maine, where they live, and cold fried chicken is just about always on the menu. / cup flour teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper or to taste chicken cut in serving pieces / cup vegetable shortening in a large plastic bag combine flour with salt and pepper. shake chicken in bag with mixture. in a large, deep skillet over medium heat, melt shortening. cook chicken uncovered, heat for to minutes on each side or until cooked through. oven-fried chicken, southwestern style any basic fried chicken recipe may be adapted for oven frying. it is a useful technique when cooking larger quantities of chicken and is less messy than stovetop frying. (especially if you have a self-cleaning oven.) simply follow the basic cooking instructions as given in the southwestern version below. chicken, cut in serving pieces cup buttermilk / teaspoon tabasco, optional vegetable oil for frying / cup flour / cup corn meal teaspoon salt / teaspoon chili powder / teaspoon ground pepper place chicken in a large bowl. sprinkle with tabasco. pour buttermilk over all and allow to marinate for to minutes. preheat oven to of. place / inch of oil in the bottom of a heavy baking pan large enough to hold chicken without crowding. place pan in oven to heat for minutes. in a plastic bag combine remaining ingredients. shake chicken in seasoned flour. remove pieces one at a time and quickly slip into hot oil. place in oven and bake for minutes. turn and bake for to minutes longer or until chicken is cooked through. drain chicken on crumpled paper towels. basic roast chickenserves sometimes there is nothing else that will fill the bill like roasted chicken. here's the easiest way to do it. you can brush the surface with melted butter, margarine or oil, but it isn't really necessary. whole chicken teaspoon salt or to taste package ( - / -ounces) stuffing mix, prepared as directed on package sprinkle cavity of chicken with salt. stuff with favorite prepared stuffing. or skip stuffing if you're really in a hurry. place chicken in baking pan (no rack needed). roasting chart approximate additional cooking cooking time amount of time if stuffed time at f stuffing if stuffed broiler/fryer - / to hours - / to cups to minutes ( - / to pounds) oven stuffer roaster - / to - / hours to - / cups to minutes ( to pounds) cornish game hen to minutes / to / cup to minutes ( - -ounces) bird of paradiseserves the recipe calls for a chicken cut in serving pieces, but naturally you can substitute any parts that you particularly like, such as breasts or thighs. three breasts or thighs with drumsticks attached would come out to about the same amount as the chicken called for in this recipe. chicken, cut in serving pieces salt and ground pepper to taste egg, beaten / cup milk teaspoon salt or to taste / cup grated parmesan cheese / cup butter or margarine cup sherry season chicken with salt and pepper. in a shallow bowl combine egg and milk. place cheese in a shallow baking pan. dip chicken in egg mixture; then roll in cheese. in a large, deep skillet, over medium heat, melt butter. add chicken and brown for to minutes on each side. add sherry. cover and cook at medium-low heat for to minutes or until cooked through. corn crisped chickenserves i grew up on this recipe. it's not new, but it's good and the preparation time is minimal. if you don't have cornflakes, you can substitute almost any breakfast flakes as long as they don't have raisins in them. (the raisins can scorch in the oven.) for variation, you can add teaspoon dried italian seasonings or teaspoon chili powder or / teaspoon curry powder to the cornflake crumbs. cup cornflake crumbs teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup evaporated milk, undiluted chicken, cut in serving pieces preheat oven to of. on a sheet of wax paper combine cornflake crumbs, salt and pepper. place evaporated milk in a shallow bowl. dip chicken in milk; then roll in seasoned crumbs. place chicken, skin side up, in a baking pan. bake, uncovered for hour, or until cooked through. cutlet paillards with basil butterserves when i made this recipe, i happened to be in a hurry, and didn't have time to get fresh basil so i used dried basil instead. frank liked it and had seconds. the name "paillard," by the way, comes from a european restaurant famous at the end of the th century. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast tablespoon olive or vegetable oil tablespoons butter or margarine tablespoons minced fresh basil, or tablespoon dried small clove garlic, minced teaspoon lemon juice salt and ground pepper to taste lemon slices, for garnish place chicken between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / inch thickness. if using thin sliced boneless roaster breast, omit placing in plastic wrap and pounding. brush cutlets lightly with oil, grill over hot coals to minutes per side, rotating to form crosshatch marks characteristic of paillards, or broil to minutes per side or until cooked through. place butter, basil, garlic and lemon juice in a small pan and melt on the side of the grill. spoon butter over paillards and season with salt and pepper. garnish with lemon slices. easy oven chickenserves this recipe has been one of my favorites since college days. the true chicken flavor comes out with just a touch of garlic. chicken, cut in serving pieces / cup olive or vegetable oil teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper small clove garlic, minced preheat oven to of. in a shallow baking pan arrange chicken in a single layer, skin side up. pour oil over chicken. sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic. bake, uncovered, for about hour, or until cooked through. honey lemon chickenserves this recipe was originally designed for broiling, but this version requires less attention. chicken, cut in serving pieces / cup honey / cup lemon juice teaspoon salt or to taste preheat oven to of. in a shallow baking pan arrange chicken in a single layer, skin side down. in a small bowl combine honey, lemon juice and salt. pour half of this sauce over chicken. bake, covered for minutes. remove cover; turn chicken. pour other half of sauce on chicken. replace cover. bake another to minutes or until cooked through, removing cover last minutes for browning. honey-mustard baked breastserves have you ever been concerned about whether the honey you have in your cupboard is fresh or whether it should be thrown out? not to worry! honey is itself a natural preservative and samples of honey have been found in the tombs of ancient egypt that were still edible. if it's crystallized, it may look bad, but it's still a wholesome food. just heat it gently until it reliquifies. whole boneless roaster breast salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons melted butter or margarine / cup honey / cup dijon mustard / teaspoon curry powder preheat oven to of. season breast with salt and pepper. combine butter, honey, mustard and curry powder. spoon half of sauce into a shallow baking dish. add breast and turn to coat well. bake, uncovered, for about hour or until cooked through. turn and baste with remaining sauce once during cooking time. it's a dilly chicken when i read this recipe in the files, i noticed several hand-scrawled notes saying that it was really good, and someone described it as "a dilly of a recipe." yet from reading the recipe, it didn't sound as special as the notes indicated, especially since the ingredients include canned mushrooms rather than fresh. i was curious enough that i went to the kitchen and made the recipe, expecting that this would be one of the recipes that i wouldn't include in this book. but to my surprise, i discovered that yes, dill seed and canned mushrooms, along with the juice from the mushrooms, really do something terrific for chicken. it's not rich or creamy, but there's an attractive, aromatic flavor that permeates the chicken. chicken, cut in serving pieces teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper can ( -ounces) whole small mushrooms (with liquid) / teaspoon dill seed preheat oven to of. in a shallow baking pan arrange chicken, skin side up, in a single layer. add salt, pepper, mushrooms (with liquid from can) and dill. cover with foil. bake at for hour or until cooked through. kiwi glazed cornish hensserves kiwifruit is only sweet and mild when it's fully ripe. a kiwifruit grower told me that kiwifruits are ripe when they're "soft as a baby's bottom." when they're underripe, they taste like something between a lemon and a crabapple. if your kiwifruit is hard when you bring it home, give it a couple of days to ripen on your kitchen counter. fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons butter or margarine tablespoon sugar ripe kiwifruit, peeled and mashed preheat oven to of. remove giblets. season hens inside and out with salt and pepper. tie legs together, fold wings back and arrange in baking pan. in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt butter. brush hens with tablespoons butter, reserving remainder. put hens in oven, and while they are cooking, prepare kiwi glaze. add sugar to remaining butter in pan and heat over medium-low until sugar dissolves. add mashed kiwi and cook one minute. remove from heat. after minutes of cooking time, brush hens generously with kiwi glaze. continue baking for to minutes or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. family favorites in contrast to the preceding recipes, these recipes have more ingredients and require more preparation time, but if you've got the time, they're worth it. if you want to minimize time in the kitchen using these recipes, here are some suggestions. tips for saving time in the kitchen _to halve baking time, select boneless chicken breasts. cooking time is only - minutes at of. a bone-in breast takes - minutes. _stir fry chicken can be done in as little as minutes. _cook double batches and freeze the extras in serving size packages. on days when time is short, pop a package into the microwave for "fast food." _take advantage of your supermarket's time-saving convenience items. if you're in a hurry, don't bother to slice and chop your fresh ingredients. the salad bar has probably done it for you. you can also find time savers such as shredded cheese and frozen chopped onion. (the supermarket industry has watched restaurants and fast food stores take more and more of your food dollars away each year. they're now doing everything they can think of to reverse this trend and make supermarket shopping so attractive, quick, convenient and economical that you'll want to cook at home.) _learn to cook chicken in the microwave. a pound of broiler parts that would take minutes in a degree oven takes only - minutes in the microwave. see chapter four, chicken in the microwave. soups photo: pot of soup with fresh vegetables surrounding outside - wherever there are people and chickens, there are chicken soups. virtually every immigrant group arriving in america brought along favorite chicken soup recipes and often the treasured family soup pot, too. if you grew up on canned, frozen, and dried soups, you may not realize how easy it is to make truly wonderful soups at home. if so, try it for yourself, perhaps with these american classics. all the soups are based on a key ingredient: rich, homemade chicken stock, made from either whole birds or from parts, in about three hours. stock takes little tending, just slow easy cooking to bring out all the flavor and wholesome goodness. why not try making one of these soups now? and then, with the help of your freezer, enjoy the results many times in the coming months. basic guide to chicken soup _older, larger birds, such as the - pound roasters, make the best soups. an older bird will have developed more of the rich, intense chickeny flavor than the younger, milder-flavored broilers or cornish hens. i've made soup from broilers and while it wasn't bad, it wasn't as good as it could be. _use roaster parts if you want to save time. they cook faster and are excellent when you need only a small amount of broth. the richest flavor, by the way, comes from the muscles that are exercised most, which happen to be the dark meat muscles. all parts will make satisfactory soup, but the legs, thighs and necks provide the fullest flavor. _for clear, golden broth, do not add liver. it turns stock cloudy. and avoid a greenish cast by using only parsley stems and the white parts of leeks or scallions. _as the stock cooks down, foam will float to the top. skim it off, or strain it out through double cheesecloth when the stock is complete. tie herbs and greens in cheesecloth as a "bouquet garni," so you won't inadvertently remove them during the skimming. _always simmer stock over low to medium heat. it's not a good idea to boil the stock for the same reason it's not a good idea to boil coffee; too much of the flavor would boil away into the air. _leftover vegetables and those past their prime are good pureed in cream soups. when thickening such recipes with egg, prevent curdling by stirring a cup of hot soup first into egg, then back into soup. also, be careful to keep the soup from boiling once you've added the egg. _most soups develop better flavor if you'll store them, covered, in the refrigerator for a day or two. to seal in the flavor while you're storing the soup, don't remove the fat that's on top. when you're ready to serve the soup you can lift the congealed fat off as a sheet. to remove the last particles of fat, place unscented paper towel on the surface. draw towel to one side and remove. _when freezing stock, allow / - to -inch head room in containers so soup can expand. freeze some in quart- sized or larger containers for use in soups. ladle the rest into ice cube trays or muffin cups for adding to vegetables, sauces, or gravies. freeze and then transfer frozen stock cubes to a plastic bag or freezer container and keep frozen until ready to use. _soup may be stored in the refrigerator two or three days or frozen for three to four months. when reheating, make sure to bring the broth to a boil. soups enriched with eggs are, unfortunately, not good candidates for reheating; they're apt to curdle. basic chicken stock makes about cups if you need to, you can make the following substitutions for the roaster: stewing hen or spent fowl ( - pounds); fresh young chickens ( - pounds); or pounds fresh chicken parts, preferably dark meat portions. (as i mentioned earlier, young chickens will not provide as rich a flavor as the older birds but the taste will still be good.) cooking times for meat will vary from hours for stewing hens or spent fowl, to - / hours for smaller birds to slightly less time for parts. in each case, time from beginning of simmer and return bones to stock for an additional / hour after you've removed the meat. chicken stock is delicious served as a simple broth with herbs, shredded or julienne vegetables, slivers of meat, or rice. it also is the base from which countless other soups are made. roaster ( - pounds) chicken giblets, except liver large bay leaf whole cloves teaspoon white peppercorns / teaspoons fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried quarts water or enough to cover chicken generously cup dry white wine, optional medium onions, quartered large carrots, sliced ribs celery, sliced leek, white part only, cleaned and sliced, optional bunch fresh parsley, stems only teaspoon salt or to taste remove giblets from roaster and discard bird-watcher thermometer, if it has one. place roaster along with giblets in a large stockpot ( to quarts) or other large sauce pot. wrap bay leaf, cloves, peppercorns, and thyme in cheesecloth as bouquet garni; tie closed with string. add to stockpot along with remaining ingredients. cover pot and simmer over medium-low heat for - / hours or until meat is tender. carefully skim stock from time to time with a ladle or spoon to remove fat particles and foam. to check roaster for doneness, pull back a leg or cut into meat close to bone; it is cooked when no pink color remains in meat. remove pieces with a slotted spoon. cut away meat from bones and return bones to stock; simmer minutes longer. (see chapter : cooking with leftovers for uses for the cooked meat.) strain stock through a fine sieve. if you want, prepare in advance to this point and refrigerate or freeze. skim off top fat before using. to make a soup, bring as much stock as needed to a simmer. then follow the soup recipe, adding chicken, vegetables, thickeners, seasonings, and garnishes. chicken-in-every-pot soupserves - for the best flavor, use fresh vegetables, varying them according to the season. speaking of fresh vegetables, do you know how to tell a good carrot? look at the "crown," (that's the stem end). if the crown is turning brown or black or has regrowth visible where the stem was, you've got a carrot that's been around awhile. if the crown and shoulders are a bright orange, you've got a nice, fresh carrot. cup potatoes, cut in / -inch cubes cups chicken broth / cup dry sherry teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cup onions, halved and thinly sliced cup carrots, in / -inch by -inch sticks cup celery, in / -inch by -inch sticks cup fresh or frozen green beans, in -inch pieces cups cooked chicken, in / -inch by -inch julienne strips cup zucchini, in / -inch by -inch sticks place potatoes in a saucepan with enough salted water to cover. bring to a boil over medium-high heat. cook potatoes minutes; drain, rinse under cold water and set aside. in large saucepan over medium-high heat, bring broth and sherry to a boil. season with salt and pepper. add onions, carrots, and celery and simmer minutes. stir in green beans and chicken and heat soup to boiling. add zucchini and potatoes and simmer minute longer or until vegetables are as tender as you like them. variation: chicken minestrone add cup chopped stewed tomatoes in their juice and cups cooked, drained fusilli or other pasta and / -cup cooked kidney beans when adding zucchini and potatoes. stir in / -cup grated parmesan cheese just before serving. other fresh vegetables may be added according to their cooking times. minestrone happens to be one of frank's favorites, although he skips the cheese because of its cholesterol. new england chicken 'n' corn chowderserves - chowders are thick soups which take their name from the large french pot used in soup-making called a "chaudiere." you can use fresh corn in this recipe, but i deliberately suggested frozen corn first because frozen corn can actually taste sweeter and fresher than the fresh corn you buy at the supermarket. corn loses % of its sweetness in just hours at room temperature, and it can take days for corn to get from the fields to the supermarket to your house. in contrast, frozen corn is rushed from the fields to the freezer in just a few hours, and once frozen, it stops losing its sweetness. strange as it may seem, with corn, frozen can taste fresher than fresh. / pound bacon or salt pork, diced cup chopped onion / cup chopped celery cups chicken broth cups peeled potatoes, cut in / -inch cubes package ( ounces) frozen corn or kernels from ears of corn teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cups cooked, diced chicken cup ( / -pint) heavy cream oyster crackers, for garnish in large saucepan over medium-high heat, saute bacon for minutes until its fat has been rendered. add onions and celery and cook minutes longer. stir in broth and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. add potatoes and corn, season with salt and pepper and cook to minutes or until tender. stir in chicken and cream, simmer minutes and serve with oyster crackers. variation: shellfish chowder add cup chopped green pepper and cup cooked crab or shrimp to soup when adding chicken. hearty lancaster chicken, vegetable and dumpling soup serves this is a famous pennsylvania summer soup made with extra vegetables for hearty winter eating. you can substitute noodles for the dumplings, or add crackers, pretzels $ and some people have told me that even popcorn works. i'm skeptical about the popcorn, but if you're feeling adventurous, give it a try. cups chicken broth cups cooked, diced chicken teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup parboiled potatoes, cut in / -inch cubes / cup parboiled carrots, cut in / -inch pieces / cup shredded green cabbage cup thinly-sliced leek, white and tender green parts only, or medium onion, thinly sliced package ( -ounces) frozen corn kernels from ears of corn knepp in large saucepan over high heat, bring broth to a boil. add other ingredients and reduce heat to low. simmer for minutes while making dumplings. knepp (little dumplings) egg / cup flour / cup water / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon baking powder pinch ground nutmeg teaspoon minced, fresh parsley, optional garnish in small bowl, beat egg; stir in flour, water, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg. drop batter by half teaspoons into the simmering soup. when dumplings rise to top, stir in parsley and serve. variation: chicken spinach straciatella omit dumplings. clean and stem / pound fresh spinach; stack and cut into / -inch strips. whisk together eggs with / -cup grated parmesan cheese. stir in spinach with chicken, then heat soup just to boiling. immediately pour in the egg mixture in a thin stream, while stirring. the goal is to end up with thread-like strands of cooked egg. cook until soup simmers again; stir gently just before serving. stew from bavariaserves if you like mild sauerkraut, instead of just draining it, as the recipe suggests, rinse it in a colander or strainer. roaster boneless breast, cut into bite-size pieces salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons butter or margarine medium onion, thinly sliced pound sauerkraut, drained can ( ounces) whole berry cranberry sauce large apple, peeled, cored and sliced / cup chopped walnuts (optional) season breast pieces with salt and pepper. in a flame proof casserole or dutch oven over medium heat, melt butter. add chicken and onions. saute until lightly browned, about minutes. in a bowl combine sauerkraut, cranberry sauce and apples. spoon over chicken and onions and toss gently. cover and simmer over medium-low heat for minutes. sprinkle with walnuts just before serving. main dish recipes recipes with chicken breasts unlike women, chickens have only one breast. a single serving would usually be a breast half. the recipes that follow will refer to "breasts" and "breast halves." a cutlet is a breast half (or thigh) that is both skinless and boneless and sometimes has been pounded to flatten. a scaloppine is a cutlet sliced almost in half lengthwise and then opened, like the wings of a butterfly or a thin slice from a large roaster breast. to save time, look for chicken scaloppine which have already been made for you: the perdue thin-sliced oven stuffer roaster breasts are ready-made scaloppine. the recipes will also specify whether to use a chicken breast or a roaster breast. you can interchange them, but the results will be different. a roaster has a more intense flavor and is juicier. it's also bigger, and requires longer cooking. baked breasts with cheeseserves when the perdue oven stuffer roasters and roaster parts first came out, frank used to have recipe cards put in each one because it was a new product and most people didn't know how they should be cooked. the practice was discontinued once roasters became well-known. the woman in charge of distributing recipes told me that sometimes the recipes on the cards became family favorites, and when a person lost one of the family favorite cards, he or she would actually take the trouble to write to frank for a replacement. i asked how often this happens and learned that over the years, frank has received thousands of letters requesting replacement cards. this is one of the recipes that people have asked for over and over again. tablespoons butter or margarine, divided roaster boneless breast salt and ground pepper to taste scallions, thinly sliced tablespoon fresh chopped parsley and / teaspoons fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried / cup chicken broth tablespoons dry white wine / cup grated swiss cheese tablespoons grated parmesan cheese tablespoons bread crumbs preheat oven to of. lightly butter a shallow baking dish. place chicken in baking dish and sprinkle with salt, pepper, scallions, parsley, and thyme. in a measuring cup combine broth and wine and pour over chicken. cover and bake minutes. in a small bowl combine cheeses and bread crumbs. remove chicken from oven and sprinkle with cheese mixture. dot with remaining butter and place under broiler until cheese is melted and golden. berliner schnitzel breastserves you'll notice that the "hard-cooked" egg in this recipe isn't called "hard-boiled." the reason is that the egg producers tell me that it's better never to boil an egg, but rather to cook it until it's hard in water that's just below boiling. if you cook your eggs in boiling water, they'll end up with an unattractive greenish color where the yolk meets the white. at lower temperatures, the yolk will be more tender and won't discolor. roaster boneless breast or a package of thin sliced boneless roaster breast. eggs / teaspoon salt or to taste ground pepper to taste / cup flour cup dry breadcrumbs vegetable oil tablespoons butter or margarine tablespoons fresh lemon juice tablespoons capers, drained hard-cooked egg, finely chopped tablespoons minced fresh parsley separate fillets from breast halves and then cut breast halves in half, lengthwise. place breast pieces between sheets of plastic wrap. pound chicken to a / -inch thickness to form scaloppine. if using thin sliced breast skip this step. in a shallow bowl beat eggs with salt and pepper. place flour and bread crumbs on sheets of wax paper. dredge chicken in flour then dip in egg and coat with breadcrumbs. heat / -inch oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. add chicken and saute for to minutes per side or until cooked through. remove to serving platter. pour oil from skillet and wipe clean. add butter to skillet and melt over medium heat. add lemon juice and capers carefully to avoid spatters; pour over schnitzels. in a small bowl toss together hard- cooked egg and parsley and sprinkle over top. serve with buttered noodles. boneless breast parmesanserves to get the best flavor from the tomatoes, make sure your supermarket doesn't store them on the chilling shelf and don't refrigerate them when you bring them home. store them at room temperature and use them soon after you buy them. roaster boneless breast or thin sliced boneless roaster breast / teaspoons salt, divided ground pepper to taste eggs, beaten / cup plain bread crumbs / cup grated parmesan cheese / cup flour pound fresh ripe tomatoes, chopped small clove garlic, minced / cup olive oil, divided tablespoons minced fresh basil or teaspoons dried separate fillets from breast halves and then cut breast halves in half, lengthwise. place breast pieces between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / " thickness to form scaloppine. if using thin sliced breast, skip the previous step. in a shallow bowl beat eggs with / teaspoon salt and pepper. place flour on a sheet of wax paper. on another sheet of wax paper combine bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. dredge cutlets in flour, dip in egg and roll in bread crumb mixture. refrigerate while making sauce. in a small serving bowl combine tomatoes, garlic, / cup olive oil, basil and salt and pepper. in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat remaining oil. add chicken and saute for to minutes per side or until cooked through. transfer to a warmed serving dish. pass sauce separately. breast coq au vin serves the famous food writer, malcolm r. herbert, tells a story that i've always loved about coq au vin (chicken in wine). according to herbert, a lady lavished praise on alexander dumaine, one of france's outstanding chefs, for his version of chicken in wine. "madam, i'm not satisfied," dumaine replied. "but you have been making coq au vin for years," the woman protested. "how can you not be satisfied?" "that, madam, was practice." according to herbert, dumaine's version of coq au vin uses red wine, white wine, and brandy, and it takes a good twenty-four hours to prepare. this version is a lot simpler, but still very good. the day i made it, i couldn't find pearl onions or small onions in my local supermarket, so i used a large white onion, chopped. the pearl onions would have been prettier, but the taste was fine. tablespoons butter or margarine roaster breast cup dry red wine salt and ground pepper to taste sprig each of fresh thyme and rosemary or / teaspoon each, dried clove garlic, minced pearl onions, if available, otherwise small white onions, peeled and quartered, or large onion, chopped. / pound fresh mushrooms, quartered tablespoon cornstarch / cup water slices bacon, cooked and crumbled tablespoon fresh minced parsley in a dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt butter. add breast and brown on all sides, to minutes. add wine, seasonings, garlic and onions. cover and simmer minutes. add mushrooms and simmer to minutes longer or until breast is cooked through. drain juices into a small saucepan; blend cornstarch and water; stir into pan juices and cook, over medium heat, stirring constantly, one minute or until sauce thickens and clears. carve breast and serve with wine sauce. garnish with crumbled bacon and parsley. breast with apple-pecan stuffingserves make sure that the pecans you use are fresh. in the shell, they'll last in a cool dry place for six months. shelled pecans should be kept in the refrigerator, in an air tight container. if you plan to keep them for longer than half a year, freeze them. roaster breast salt and ground pepper to taste cups seasoned breadcrumbs tablespoons butter or margarine, divided / cup hot chicken broth or water apples, peeled, cored and chopped / cup chopped pecans preheat oven to of. season breast inside and out with salt and pepper. in a bowl, combine breadcrumbs, tablespoons butter, broth, apples and pecans. stuff breast cavity and cover with aluminum foil. carefully place breast, skin side up in roasting pan. rub remaining butter over breast and bake about one hour and minutes until juices run clear with no hint of pink when pierced. remove stuffing and carve half of breast. buttermilk pecan chickenserves the pecan halves are more appetizing-looking when you put them on top of the chicken during the last ten minutes of baking; the nuts get a delicious-looking brown. i come back to this recipe when i want something that's never fail. egg / cup buttermilk / cup pecan halves, divided / cup flour / cup ground pecans teaspoons paprika teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon pepper tablespoons sesame seed chicken breast halves / cup oil in a mixing bowl beat egg with buttermilk. chop / cup of pecans coarsely, reserving remaining halves for garnish. on a sheet of wax paper mix together chopped pecans, flour, paprika, salt, pepper and sesame seed. dip chicken pieces in buttermilk mixture; then pecan mixture. pour oil in shallow baking pan. place chicken breasts, skin side down, in pan and turn to coat with oil; finishing with skin side up. bake, uncovered, at of to minutes, or until cooked through. during last minutes of baking, place reserved pecan halves on top of chicken. chicken avocado melt serves for years i made it a kind of hobby to ask cookbook authors and recipe contest winners how they came up with their recipes. since i don't invent recipes myself, the people who create the real winners seem to me as mysterious and impressive as someone who composes a hit song or writes a best selling novel. my favorite example of this is marge fortier, who won the $ , grand prize at the national chicken cooking contest. she didn't do any tinkering, tasting, and adjusting the way most of us would. no, the complete idea for her recipe for chicken avocado melt came to her seemingly out of nowhere. "i was vacuuming the living room," she told me, "when all of a sudden, i don't know how, the complete idea for the finished recipe just came to me. she grabbed a pencil and jotted down the entire recipe on the notepad that she always keeps handy$and won $ , . her recipe calls for chicken breast halves, but you can simplify things a little if you use thin sliced boneless roaster breast pieces instead. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast tablespoons cornstarch teaspoon ground cumin clove garlic, minced / teaspoon salt egg, slightly beaten tablespoon water / cup cornmeal tablespoons cooking oil ripe avocado, peeled, sliced - / cups shredded monterey jack cheese / cup sour cream, divided / cup sliced scallion greens / cup chopped sweet red pepper cherry tomatoes parsley sprigs preheat oven to of. pound the chicken to / " thickness. if using thin sliced breast, skip the previous step. in a shallow bowl, mix the cornstarch, cumin, garlic, and salt. in another bowl mix egg and water. place cornmeal in a third small bowl. coat chicken first with the cornstarch mixture, then with the egg, and finally with the cornmeal. (marge fortier says, "i always use cornstarch because it comes out thinner than flour".) in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add chicken and saute for two minutes on each side "to firm up the crust", then remove pieces to a shallow baking pan. before putting cutlets in oven, top them with avocado slices and sprinkle with cheese. bake for minutes or until cooked through. top each chicken breast with sour cream and a sprinkling of scallions and red pepper. garnish with cherry tomato halves and parsley. serves four. chicken in mustard sauceserves home economist michelle scicolone developed this recipe for perdue, and she has an ultimate compliment for it: "it's what i make all the time when i'm cooking at home." you get crunchiness and crispness but it's not fried. according to michelle, it comes out just fine with any mustard that you have on hand or any chicken parts you have around. roaster boneless breast or thin sliced boneless breast tablespoons vegetable oil, divided / pound mushrooms, sliced ( cups) tablespoons minced, fresh parsley l tablespoon minced shallot or scallion l/ teaspoon ground pepper l/ cup chicken broth l/ cup dry white wine l tablespoon dijon mustard slice breast thinly if using whole breast. in large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat tablespoons oil. add breast slices a few at a time, placing them so that pieces do not touch. saute about minutes per side, until chicken is lightly browned on both sides and cooked through. remove from skillet; keep warm. heat remaining oil. add mushrooms, parsley, shallot and pepper. stirring frequently, cook minutes. stir in broth and wine; bring to a boil and cook until liquid is reduced by half (about / cup). reduce heat to low; stir in mustard until well blended. spoon over chicken. hot pineapple breast serves - my teenage son carlos says he likes this better cold the next day with a small handful of slivered almonds tossed over it. myself, i like it hot, served over rice. if you have leftover chicken broth (as you probably will if you're using canned chicken broth), use it as part of the liquid you use to cook the rice. also, if you like peppers to stay a bright green and don't mind if there's still some crunch to them, add them at the same time that you add the cornstarch rather than earlier in the recipe. they look pretty that way and pick up the bright red of the pimentos. roaster boneless breast cut into / " by " strips tablespoons butter or margarine green pepper, cut into strips cup celery, sliced diagonally -ounce can pineapple chunks, with liquid / cup chicken broth / cup chopped onion tablespoon fresh tarragon or teaspoon dried tablespoons cornstarch -ounce can pimento, drained and cut into strips / teaspoon salt or to taste in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat, melt butter. add chicken and saute for minutes. add green pepper and celery and cook minutes, stirring. drain pineapple, reserving liquid. add drained pineapple, / cup of pineapple juice, broth, onion and tarragon. bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer minutes. blend cornstarch with tablespoons water to make a smooth paste. (if you like the sauce quite thick, use an extra teaspoon of cornstarch.) add to skillet and continue to cook, stirring, until thickened. add pimento and serve immediately. layered chicken (hawaiian) serves - if you have a sweet tooth, this recipe could end up one of your favorites. frank likes it a lot. besides tasting delicious, it's also quite versatile. once when i was making it, i happened to have leftovers of both chicken and rice, so i substituted them for the first two ingredients in this recipe. i also omitted the water and pineapple juice. if you make this substitution in the recipe, you won't need to bake it, but instead only keep it in the oven long enough to heat it through. it's not quite as delicious as the original, but it's still very good. by the way, the layered arrangement of this dish is typically hawaiian; don't stir or mix the ingredients. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - / cups quick-cooking rice, uncooked can ( - / -ounces) shredded coconut can ( ounces) pineapple chunks, drained...reserve juice / cup water teaspoons fresh lemon juice tablespoons orange marmalade tablespoons butter or margarine, melted tablespoons soy sauce - / teaspoons ground ginger preheat oven to of. cut chicken into -inch cubes. place half of chicken in bottom of large shallow baking dish. arrange rice in layer on top of chicken, then remaining chicken in layer. add layer of coconut; then layer of pineapple chunks. dot marmalade in spaces between chunks of pineapple. mix water, lemon juice and pineapple juice; pour over layers. pour melted butter or margarine and soy sauce over all. sprinkle ginger on top. bake, covered, for minutes or until chicken and rice are done. remove cover during last minutes of baking for browning. lemon-parsley breastserves i have a friend who grows garlic in california who is a member of the society of the lovers of the stinking rose. he says, "the most common misconception about garlic is that garlic breath is bad breath." he and his fellow lovers of the stinking rose believe that on the contrary, it's mouthwash breath that is unpleasant. their slogan is, "get rid of mouthwash breath; eat garlic!" this recipe probably won't give you either mouthwash breath or garlic breath, since cooked garlic is quite mild in its effects. roaster boneless breast salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons melted butter or margarine, divided / cup bread crumbs tablespoons minced, fresh parsley tablespoons minced shallots or scallions clove garlic, minced lemon, thinly sliced preheat oven to of. season breast with salt and pepper. pour tablespoons melted butter into a baking dish. add chicken to dish and turn to coat with butter. in a small bowl combine bread crumbs, parsley, shallots and garlic and spoon over chicken. drizzle with remaining tablespoon butter. top with lemon slices. bake to minutes or until chicken is cooked through. maryland breast of chickenserves this recipe calls for scallions. if you have trouble finding scallions, ask for green onions; they're the same thing. / cup butter or margarine, divided / pound fresh crab meat (or frozen, thawed) / cup thinly sliced scallions tablespoon prepared horseradish teaspoon tomato paste tablespoon fresh lemon juice tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs salt and ground pepper to taste / cup dry white wine roaster breast tablespoon vinegar preheat oven to of. melt tablespoons of butter and toss in a mixing bowl with crab meat, scallions, horseradish, tomato paste, lemon juice, breadcrumbs and salt and pepper. with your forefinger carefully loosen skin from the neck end of the chicken breast to form a pocket, taking care not to detach sides or bottom. stuff crab mixture between breast and skin. rub breast with tablespoon butter; sprinkle with salt and pepper and place in roasting pan. bake approximately one hour, until skin is brown and meat is tender. remove to serving platter and keep warm. skim off any fat from drippings; add wine and vinegar and bring to a boil. reduce pan juices to about / cup and remove from heat. whisk in remaining butter, strain into a sauceboat and serve separately. quick sweet and sour breastserves in most cases, i prefer fresh produce to canned. tomatoes are, at times, an exception. if you're buying out-of-season tomatoes, and if you don't know the source, there's a good chance that they were picked green and artificially ripened. one tomato grower told me she'd rather eat cotton than an out-of-season tomato because the taste was so disappointing. there is some good news on the subject, though. tomatoes retain their flavor during canning exceptionally well, and canned tomatoes are picked vine ripe. if you want the next best thing to a vine-ripened tomato, and it's winter, try canned tomatoes, as suggested in this recipe. roaster boneless breast salt and ground pepper to taste flour tablespoons butter or margarine medium onion, chopped garlic clove, minced medium green pepper, chopped cup canned chopped tomatoes (with liquid) can ( - / -ounces) cubed pineapple (plus tablespoons pineapple juice from can) tablespoons ketchup tablespoons vinegar tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in tablespoons water cut roaster breast into -inch pieces. season with salt and pepper; coat with flour and set aside. in saucepan, over medium heat, melt tablespoons butter and cook onions, garlic and green pepper for minutes stirring often. add tomatoes, pineapple and juice, ketchup and vinegar. stir and simmer over low heat. meanwhile, in a large skillet, over medium-high heat, melt remaining tablespoons butter. saute chicken, half at a time, until golden and cooked through, about to minutes per batch. drain and place on serving dish. to sauce in pan, add dissolved cornstarch; cook, stirring, over high heat until sauce thickens. pour over chicken pieces. stuffed breast parmentierserves parmentier, a french food writer from years ago, popularized the use of potatoes. before him, people worried that potatoes might be poisonous. today, when the name "parmentier" occurs in a recipe, it's a signal that there will be potatoes in it. roaster breast salt and ground pepper to taste pound boiling potatoes, unpeeled / pound bacon, cooked and crumbled / cup chopped red onion / cup chopped celery tablespoons dry bread crumbs / cup sour cream tablespoons butter or margarine, softened preheat oven to of. season breast inside and out with salt and pepper to taste. boil potatoes in salted water to cover until just tender, to minutes. drain, cool slightly, peel and cut into / -inch cubes. toss with bacon, onion, celery, bread crumbs, sour cream and salt and pepper to taste. stuff breast and neck cavities with potato mixture, wrapping exposed stuffing with foil. place chicken breast-side-up in roasting pan. rub skin with butter. bake approximately - / hours, until tender. transfer to serving dish; remove foil and serve. recipes with cornish hens have you ever wondered just what a "cornish game hen" is? it's a very young bird, usually about weeks old, as opposed to a broiler, which is weeks, or a roaster, which is weeks. typically, they're tenderer and slightly lower in fat than older birds. all cornish game hens are very young chickens, but the perdue cornish game hens have something else special about them. frank directed the perdue geneticists to breed the broadest breasted cornish hens in the industry. like the perdue roasters, the perdue cornish have exceptionally broad breasts. the ratio of meat to bone is therefore particularly favorable. buffalo-style cornish piecesserves you can re-use the frying oil called for in this recipe, or any deep frying recipe, for that matter. as long as you never heat the oil to the smoking point and as long as you strain it through cheese cloth to remove any particles of food, you can use it over and over again. the oil is still good as long as it retains it's golden color. when it has turned a dark brown, it's time to replace it. if you don't have cheese cloth handy for straining, laundered nylon stockings make a good substitute. creamy blue cheese dressing / cup mayonnaise / cup sour cream tablespoons crumbled blue cheese tablespoons minced fresh parsley tablespoon fresh lemon juice scallion, thinly sliced small clove garlic, minced fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste oil for deep frying tablespoons butter or margarine, melted tablespoons tabasco in a small serving bowl prepare dressing by blending mayonnaise and sour cream. stir in blue cheese, parsley, lemon juice, scallion and garlic. chill. quarter hens and remove backbones. pat pieces dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. heat oil to of or until a small cube of bread sizzles when placed in oil. deep-fry hens minutes, turning once. drain well. in a small bowl blend melted butter and hot sauce; brush on chicken pieces. serve warm with creamy blue cheese dressing. cornish saute with summer squashserves to keep the olive oil called for in this recipe in its best condition, store it in an airtight container in a cool cupboard away from the light. it's not necessary to refrigerate it, and besides cold temperatures will make it cloudy and difficult to pour. fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons olive oil medium onion, sliced clove garlic, minced medium zucchini, sliced medium yellow squash, sliced / cup chicken broth tablespoons minced fresh parsley tablespoon fresh lemon juice halve hens and remove backbones. season with salt and pepper. in a large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add hen halves and brown on all sides, to minutes. add onion and garlic; saute to minutes. add squash, broth, parsley and lemon juice. cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook to minutes or until hens are cooked through. grecian hen sauteserves do you know the easiest way to peel the fresh tomatoes called for in this recipe? place the tomatoes in boiling water for about - seconds and you'll find that the skin slips off quite easily. the riper the tomato, the quicker the skin loosens in boiling water. fresh cornish game hens tablespoons olive oil clove garlic, minced bay leaf and / teaspoon minced, fresh oregano or / teaspoon dried salt and ground pepper to taste / cup white wine ripe tomatoes, peeled and quartered / pound feta cheese, cut into / " cubes tablespoons ripe olives, sliced cut hens into quarters and remove backbones. in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add chicken and brown to minutes per side. add garlic, bay leaf, oregano, salt, pepper and wine. cover and simmer over medium-low heat for minutes. add tomatoes and cook minutes. stir in cheese and olives. cook minutes longer or until hens are cooked through. remove bay leaf before serving. hens normandy with applesserves if you're not using the apples in this recipe the day you buy them, store them in the refrigerator. apples age five times faster at room temperature than they do in the refrigerator so they'll keep fresher longer if you store them in the refrigerator instead of in a fruit bowl. fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoon minced, fresh sage or teaspoon dried tablespoons butter or margarine, melted / cup apple juice golden delicious apples, peeled / cup chicken broth or white wine / cup heavy cream tablespoon minced fresh parsley season hens inside and out with salt and pepper. put / of sage in each cavity. tie legs together and fold wings back. place hens in a flame proof baking pan just large enough to hold them comfortably. brush with melted butter. add apple juice to baking pan. bake at of minutes, basting several times. core and quarter apples; add to pan and baste. bake minutes, until hens and apples are tender, basting several times. remove hens and apples to serving platter; keep warm. on top of stove, bring pan drippings to a boil; add broth or wine and cook until reduced by half. stir in cream; cook to minutes until slightly thickened. pour sauce over hens and apples. sprinkle with parsley and serve. wine-country cornishserves when you buy (or pick) the tomatoes called for in this recipe, store them at room temperature rather than in the refrigerator. the tomato farmers say that refrigerator temperatures destroy a tomato's flavor and texture. try to use tomatoes soon after you buy them while they're still at their best. fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons olive oil large onion, thinly sliced cloves garlic, minced tablespoon flour / cup dry white wine or vermouth / cup chicken broth tomatoes, peeled and chopped tablespoons tomato paste / teaspoons minced, fresh oregano or / teaspoon dried season hens inside and out with salt and pepper. fold wings back and tie legs together. in a dutch oven large enough to hold all cornish, over medium-high heat, heat oil. brown hens on breast side. if you don't have a pan big enough to do four at a time, brown one or two at a time. remove hens and reserve. add onion and garlic and saute for minutes. stir in flour. add remaining ingredients and season to taste with salt and pepper. stir. return hens to dutch oven breast side up, and bring liquid to a boil. reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for minutes. cornish are done when juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. recipes with chicken pieces in the early s, % of the chicken sold was whole chicken. today it's less than %. if you want to substitute all legs or all breasts or some other combination, look at the table in the introduction, page s - for a chart showing equivalent amounts of the different parts. batter fried chickenserves i bet you can make this in less time than it takes to drive to the local fast food place and wait in line for service and drive back again. it should cost a lot less too. remember, you can re-use the frying oil many times. just don't let it get so hot that it smokes and be sure to strain it after you've finished with the frying. - / cups flour teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper teaspoons baking powder cup milk egg, beaten chicken cut in serving pieces oil for deep frying in a mixing bowl combine dry ingredients; add milk and egg gradually to make batter. dip chicken in batter. in a deep fryer heat oil to of. add chicken and fry for to minutes until cooked through. beer and pretzels chicken serves this dish is at its best when the bacon and pretzels are finely chopped. use your blender or food processor to make the job easy. / cup flour teaspoon paprika teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ginger / teaspoon ground pepper / cup beer egg / cup finely crushed pretzels / cup grated parmesan cheese slices bacon, cooked crisp, crumbled tablespoons minced, fresh parsley chicken cut in serving pieces in a mixing bowl combine flour, paprika, salt, ginger and pepper. add beer and egg; beat with a hand beater to make smooth batter. mix crushed pretzels, parmesan cheese, bacon and parsley in a large plastic bag. dip chicken pieces one a time in batter; then place in bag with pretzel mix and shake to coat. place coated chicken pieces in shallow baking pan, skin side up. bake, covered, at of for minutes. remove cover. continue baking, uncovered, about minutes longer or until chicken is cooked through. capital chicken serves this is rather highly seasoned dish. your family might prefer it with a little less ginger--but then again, maybe they'll love it this strong. chicken, cut in serving pieces teaspoons ground ginger / teaspoon dried oregano tablespoons brown sugar tablespoon flour cloves garlic, sliced / cup rose wine / cup soy sauce / cup oil / cup water preheat oven to of. place chicken in single layer, skin side up, in shallow baking pan. in a mixing bowl combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. bake, uncovered for about hour or until cooked through, basting occasionally. chicken orange-ano serves when you're making this recipe, what if you find that your brown sugar has hardened into a brick and you can't measure it anymore? i used to take a hammer and wallop it and then use the pieces. but then a sugar cane producer told me that a short term emergency solution is to heat the sugar at degrees in the oven until it softened. the advantage of this is that it works. the disadvantage is that whatever's left is twice as hard once it cools. you can re-heat it again, but it gets more brick-like with each heating. / cup flour teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper chicken, cut in serving pieces / cup butter or margarine can ( -ounces) frozen orange juice concentrate can ( -ounces) water tablespoons dark brown sugar / teaspoon dried oregano / teaspoon nutmeg in a large plastic bag, combine flour salt and pepper. add chicken pieces and shake to coat. in a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. add chicken pieces and brown for to minutes per side. remove chicken and reserve. pour off and discard butter from skillet. add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. return chicken to skillet. cover and cook over low heat for about / hour, turning chicken several times until cooked through. fruit and nut chickenserves inflation hits all of us, but in this recipe, you'll find one ingredient has come down in price over the years. in fact, it's come down spectacularly. in roman times, raisins weren't just expensive, they were money. you could buy a young slave for amphora (jars) of raisins. tablespoons oil chicken cut in serving pieces - / cups orange juice teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon cinnamon ground pepper to taste / cup golden raisins / cup slivered almonds in a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. add chicken and brown for to minutes per side. pour orange juice over chicken. sprinkle salt, cinnamon, pepper, raisins and almonds on top. cover and simmer for approximately minutes or until cooked through. oven barbecued chickenserves this isn't new or unique, but it's good. of course, you can always use your favorite prepared barbecue sauce if you prefer. chicken, cut in serving pieces teaspoon salt or to taste / cup water / cup chili sauce / cup vinegar tablespoons worcestershire sauce / cup brown sugar tablespoons oil preheat oven to of. place chicken in single layer, skin side up, in shallow baking pan. in a mixing bowl combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. bake, uncovered, for about hour, or until cooked through. photo: drumsticks in bowl of rice - bread & glass of wine - recipes with ground chicken ground chicken is a perfect substitute for ground beef in dishes such as spaghetti, chili, meatloaf, lasagna or even plain burgers. and ground chicken has fewer calories and less fat than ground beef. it will vary according to the individual manufacturer's formulations, but ground chicken usually averages % less fat than the u.s. department of agriculture standard permits for regular ground beef. (regular ground beef is about % fat.) i was surprised to learn that there's actually a double standard for the beef industry and the poultry industry when it comes to describing fat content. beef can be classified as "lean" at . % fat, while chicken is only "lean" if it contains % or less fat. i was also surprised to learn how complicated it is to make ground chicken. if i weren't connected with the industry, i would have thought that to get ground chicken, you just put it in a grinder the way you do to get hamburger, and that would be it. ah, but it's not so! the fibers of chicken meat are shorter and more delicate than beef. to get the right texture took a full year of experimentation and fine tuning at perdue. the skilled and knowledgeable food scientists working on the project had to discover which parts of the bird tasted best in hamburger, what size holes the meat should be forced through in the grinding machine, what temperature would be best, and so on. a difference of a mere degrees in the meat's temperature meant the difference between a desirable texture and one that was merely passable. i remember when the food scientists were first developing the ground chicken, that hundreds of people, including me, were involved in the taste testings. i also remember the first time frank and i tried ground chicken outside of the laboratory. it happened at a barbecue at his son's house. jim and jan perdue had chicken hamburgers and beef hamburgers grilling side by side, and frank beamed like a kid with a new toy when he saw how the chicken burgers stayed plump and didn't shrink. meanwhile the hamburgers, being % fat, were dwindling into hockey pucks. basic cooking guide for burgers: saute: shape one package fresh ground chicken into patties. saute in a small amount of oil over high heat, to minutes on each side to brown. reduce heat to medium and continue to cook to minutes on each side until thoroughly cooked and springs back to the touch. broil: shape one package fresh ground chicken into patties. broil on a rack -inches from heat to minutes on each side until thoroughly cooked and springs back to the touch. grill: shape one package fresh ground chicken into patties. place burgers on hottest area of lightly oiled grill to minutes on each side to brown. move burgers toward the outside of the grill and continue to cook to minutes on each side until thoroughly cooked and springs back to the touch. chicken stromboli serves i've had this at a restaurant, made with bread dough, but i liked it better using this recipe with pie crust dough. the day i made it, i was late (as usual), and took a short cut: i used prepared pie crusts, the kind that come frozen and already shaped in aluminum pie pans. tablespoons olive oil - / cups thinly sliced onion large green pepper, thinly sliced package (about pound) fresh ground chicken / cup tomato paste clove garlic, minced teaspoon dried oregano teaspoon salt prepared recipe pie crust mix tablespoons butter or margarine, melted in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add onion and pepper and saute to minutes. add chicken, tomato paste and seasonings and cook to minutes until chicken is cooked through. preheat oven to of. roll out prepared pie crust into a round / inch thick. cut circle in quarters to form wedge shaped pieces. place / of filling on the wide rounded end of each wedge; fold in sides and roll up. place stromboli seam-side down on baking sheet, brush with butter and bake minutes until pastry is lightly browned. chicken burgers bordelaiseserves these are good just as they are, but i've also found that they're wonderful made into little cocktail sized meat balls to pass during parties. by the way, at one of my parties, i tried to determine whether it was better to use the maximum amount of pepper and mustard in this recipe or the minimum. some guests liked the meat balls highly seasoned, and others preferred them mild, so i guess one isn't better than the other; it's just what your family or guests like. package (about pound) fresh ground chicken to - / teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper tablespoon vegetable oil (optional) - / cups red wine / cup minced shallots or scallions tablespoon sugar - teaspoons dijon mustard / teaspoon dried thyme to tablespoons butter or margarine tablespoon minced fresh parsley form chicken into burgers. press pepper into both sides. in a large, non-stick skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add burgers and brown for minutes on each side. salt burgers lightly and reduce heat to medium-low. continue cooking to minutes per side until thoroughly cooked through. while burgers are cooking, combine wine, shallots, sugar, mustard and thyme in a saucepan. cook over high heat to minutes until liquid is reduced to / cup. remove burgers from skillet and keep warm. add wine mixture to skillet and stir over medium heat to combine with pan juices. whisk in butter and parsley. spoon sauce over burgers and serve. recipes with thigh & drumsticks if you haven't liked dark meat up until now, try these recipes with an open mind. thigh meat, drumsticks, or the meat from any well-exercised muscle, has more flavor and is apt to be juicier. if frank were going by taste alone and forgetting about calories, he would always choose thigh meat. i was present at a taste testing at perdue when teri benson, a food technician, asked the dozen or so participants to rate the flavor of various parts of a chicken. the chicken was ground and fried in patties so none of us could identify which parts we were eating. we also couldn't be influenced by what our neighbors thought because each patty was coded and the breast meat or the thigh meat on my plate was in a different position from what they'd be on my neighbor's plate. the test was replicated with many different groups, but the results were fairly uniform: people prefer the flavor and juiciness of thigh meat. try a few of these recipes; you may discover some new family favorites. waldorf saladserves you could use other apples in this recipe, such as red delicious or granny smith, but the mcintosh with its characteristic crispness, juiciness, and mildly tart flavor works particularly well in this recipe. you can tell a mcintosh by its two-toned red and green skin. quart chicken broth roaster boneless thigh cutlets / cup fresh lemon juice teaspoon dijon mustard / cup vegetable oil tablespoons minced, fresh parsley salt and ground pepper to taste / cup celery, thinly sliced to mcintosh apples, unpeeled in / -inch cubes (about cup) / cup walnut halves head bibb or boston lettuce in a quart saucepan over medium heat, bring chicken broth to a boil. add chicken and simmer over low heat for minutes, uncovered. drain thighs and cut into bite-size pieces. reserve broth for other use. in a mixing bowl blend together lemon, mustard, oil, parsley, and salt and pepper. toss warm chicken with sauce and allow to cool. toss with remaining ingredients and serve on beds of bibb or boston lettuce. drumsticks with herb sauceserves when serving this recipe, take a tip from bev cox, a woman who not only is responsible for many of my favorite perdue recipes over the years, but who is also famous for being one of the best food stylists around. she likes to have the garnishes mirror the seasonings, so if she had, for example, this chicken recipe with basil in it, she'd be apt to garnish it with fresh basil. she also believes that garnishes should be edible. these chicken drumsticks with new potatoes and green beans would be a simple dinner, but sprinkle the new potatoes with chopped chives, stick a red pepper ring around the green beans and you have something that looks special as well as tastes special. roaster drumsticks salt and ground pepper to taste clove garlic, minced tablespoons olive oil sauce: / cup minced fresh basil, or tablespoon dried / cup minced, fresh parsley / cup thinly sliced scallions tablespoons white vinegar tablespoon minced fresh tarragon, or teaspoon dried tablespoon capers / cup olive oil preheat oven to of. place drumsticks in a baking pan and season with salt and pepper. in a small bowl combine garlic and olive oil and baste drumsticks generously. bake drumsticks for to minutes until tender and cooked through, turning and basting once. meanwhile, in a bowl make sauce by whisking together remaining ingredients. serve drumsticks, passing sauce separately. drumsticks zingaraserves the word "zingara" is from a french sauce with mushrooms, ham, and truffles. in this version, i've skipped the truffles. roaster drumsticks / cup ( -ounces) minced fresh mushrooms / cup ( / pound) minced ham / cup minced shallots or scallions tablespoons madeira or brandy, divided / teaspoons minced, fresh tarragon, or / teaspoon dried tablespoons butter or margarine, softened, divided salt and ground pepper to taste preheat oven to of. pull back the skin of each drumstick and cut lengthwise slits in the meat in places. pull skin back into place in a mixing bowl, combine mushrooms, ham, shallots, tablespoon madeira, tarragon, tablespoons butter and salt and pepper. stuff mixture under the skin of each drumstick and secure with toothpicks. melt remaining butter and baste drumsticks. bake for to minutes or until tender and cooked through. remove to a serving platter and remove toothpicks. to drippings in pan, add tablespoons madeira and bring to a boil, stirring. pour sauce over drumsticks. chili thighs rellenos if you're making this recipe and you're not sure how old the eggs you have in your refrigerator are, the chances are that they're still good. as long as they're clean, dry, have been kept cold and have no cracks, and weren't cooked, they'll last for months in your refrigerator and still be suitable for cooking in dishes like this. eggs that are several months old won't have the quality of a perfectly fresh egg, and i wouldn't use them for frying, but they're still edible. do be sure they've been kept cold and have no cracks and are clean. roaster boneless thigh cutlets can ( -ounces) whole, mild green chilies, seeded egg, beaten salt and ground pepper to taste / cup seasoned bread crumbs tablespoon butter or margarine tablespoon olive oil can ( -ounces) tomato sauce / cup shredded monterey jack cheese open thighs and lay flat. divide chilies in four equal amounts and place in the center of each thigh. roll up and secure with toothpicks. in a shallow bowl, combine egg and salt and pepper to taste. dip thighs in egg and roll in bread crumbs. refrigerate minutes. in a large skillet, over medium heat, melt butter with oil. add thighs and cook, turning, to minutes or until brown on all sides. spoon tomato sauce over thighs. reduce heat to medium-low reduce heat and cover. cook for minutes or until thighs are cooked through. sprinkle with cheese; cover and cook minutes longer. indonesian stir-fry thighsserves this recipe originally called for much more ginger, but i like a milder flavor, so i reduced it. you may want to increase the amount suggested here if you like highly seasoned food. to store fresh ginger, keep it in the refrigerator in a plastic bag along with a dampened paper towel to keep it from drying out. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil / cup soy sauce, divided tablespoons molasses tablespoons rice wine or white distilled vinegar teaspoons minced, fresh ginger or to taste clove garlic, minced / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon red pepper flakes or ground pepper pinch ground cloves / teaspoon nutmeg teaspoon cornstarch cup carrots, cut in match stick strips cup peeled cucumber, halved, seeded and cut into match- stick strips / cup thinly sliced scallions cut thighs into / -inch strips. in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add chicken and stir-fry for minutes add tablespoons soy sauce, molasses, vinegar, seasonings, garlic and ginger; bring to a boil. cover, reduce heat to medium-low and steam chicken minutes, stirring once, until tender. in a small bowl dissolve cornstarch in remaining soy sauce and reserve. add carrots and steam, covered, minutes. stir in cucumber, scallions and cornstarch mixture and stir until liquid comes to a boil. serve over hot fluffy rice. island thighsserves one of the best money-saving tips i know for buying food is one you can use in this recipe. a pennsylvania mushroom grower told me that when you see slightly browned mushrooms on sale$and they're often a fraction of the price of the cosmetically perfect mushrooms$buy them. the mushroom flavor will be more intense since the mushrooms are older; they'll have dried slightly so you won't be paying as much for water; and you won't see the discolorations anyway if you're using the mushrooms for cooking. i've tried his recommendation many times, and i think he's right. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoons cornstarch tablespoons vegetable oil cup sliced fresh mushrooms ( ounces) cup thinly sliced scallions cup chicken broth - / cups fresh snow peas or package ( ounces) frozen snow peas, thawed / cup seedless, green grapes, halved teaspoons slivered lemon peel teaspoon minced, fresh ginger, or / teaspoon ground cut thigh cutlets into / " by " strips. toss with cornstarch to coat well. in a wok or large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add chicken and saute until browned on all sides, to minutes. add mushrooms and scallions. saute, stirring until mushrooms are golden, about minute. stir in remaining ingredients. cook, stirring, until sauce is thickened and smooth. reduce heat and simmer to minutes. serve over rice. pojarski style thighsserves pojarski style dishes use ground meat. they are typically made from beef, veal, salmon, or chicken. one of the most famous pojarski dishes is salmon shaped to look like a pork chop. doing the same thing with chicken tastes and looks delicious and costs a lot less. package fresh ground chicken (about pound) / cup sour cream, divided salt and ground pepper to taste / teaspoon nutmeg / cup flour tablespoons butter or margarine cup sliced fresh mushrooms ( ounces) tablespoons minced fresh dill or parsley mix ground chicken with / cup sour cream, plus salt and pepper to taste. cover and refrigerate minutes. form mixture into four "chop" shaped cutlets and coat each lightly with flour. in a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. add cutlets and saute for to minutes on each side until lightly browned and cooked through. remove to a serving dish and keep warm. add mushrooms to skillet and saute to minutes. add remaining sour cream and mix well. spoon sauce over cutlets. sprinkle with fresh dill. stir-fried thighs with beansproutsserves stir frying isn't more difficult than regular frying, but one big difference is that the pan is kept hotter than would be usual for american-style frying. to tell if it's hot enough, place your frying pan$or wok if you have one$over high heat. the pan or wok is hot enough if a drop of water dropped onto it sizzles and then evaporates. add the oil, and let the oil heat until it's almost at the smoking point. when adding the ingredients, stir them constantly until done. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoon cornstarch egg white, slightly beaten salt to taste to tablespoons peanut oil, as needed or cloves garlic, minced red, sweet, bell pepper, cut into thin strips / cup thinly sliced scallions / pound ( cups) snow peas, sliced diagonally / pound ( cups) beansprouts, washed and drained / cup soy sauce few drops tabasco, to taste cut thighs into / " strips. in a shallow bowl, combine cornstarch, egg white and salt. add chicken, turning to coat well. cover and refrigerate one hour. in a wok or large skillet over high heat, heat tablespoon oil. add thighs and garlic and stir-fry for minutes. remove chicken and set aside. add additional oil to wok, if necessary. add pepper strips and stir-fry one minute. remove and set aside. add scallions and snow peas and stir-fry one minute. add beansprouts and cook, tossing, minutes. return chicken and pepper to wok and toss. add soy sauce and tabasco. heat thoroughly. serve over hot cooked rice. sweet and sour thighsserves cornstarch yields a more transparent sauce, and has roughly twice the thickening power of flour. the transparency makes it appropriate for oriental recipes like this one. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoons peanut oil / cups sliced green pepper / cup sliced celery / cup sliced scallions, stems included can ( - / -ounces) sliced water chestnuts, drained ounces fresh or frozen (thawed) snow peas can ( - / -ounces) pineapple chunks in syrup / cup chicken broth tablespoon cornstarch tablespoons sugar / teaspoons minced fresh ginger or / teaspoon ground tablespoons vinegar tablespoons soy sauce cut thighs into bite size pieces. in a wok or large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add thigh pieces and stir-fry minutes. add green pepper, celery, scallions and water chestnuts. stir-fry minutes. add snow peas, pineapple and syrup and chicken broth. reduce heat to medium and cook for minutes, stirring often. in a small bowl, blend together cornstarch, sugar, ginger, vinegar and soy sauce. add to wok and cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about minutes. serve over hot cooked rice. szechuan stir-fry thighsserves the woman in charge of supervising the entire perdue recipe program, says that this is her personal favorite. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil cup carrots, cut into matchstick strips / cup cashews teaspoon hot chili pepper, finely chopped, or to taste clove garlic, minced teaspoons minced fresh ginger / cup soy sauce / cup dry sherry tablespoon cornstarch cut boneless thighs into strips (about / " x "). in a wok or large skillet over high heat, heat tablespoons oil. add chicken and stir-fry for to minutes. remove chicken and reserve. add remaining tablespoons oil to wok and add carrots, cashews, chili pepper, garlic and ginger. stir-fry minutes until carrots just begin to soften. return chicken to wok. in a small bowl blend together soy sauce, sherry and cornstarch. add to wok and cook, stirring constantly, until sauce boils and thickens. serve over hot cooked rice. thigh chiliserves this is a healthy, low-cholesterol chili. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoons vegetable oil / cup chopped onion large garlic clove, minced green pepper, seeded and chopped can ( -ounces) tomatoes, chopped, with liquid can ( -ounces) kidney beans, drained tablespoon chili powder salt and ground pepper to taste tabasco, to taste cut chicken into bite size pieces. in a dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat oil. add chicken, onion, garlic and green pepper and cook, stirring until chicken loses its pink color. add remaining ingredients and stir. simmer, covered, over medium-low heat for minutes or until chicken is tender. adjust seasonings according to taste. thigh flautasserves you can tell if your avocado for the guacamole in this recipe is ripe by whether it yields to gentle pressure when you hold it between your palms. if there's some "give" to it, it's ripe. if it feels hard, like a baseball, it's not ripe. wait a few days, and it will have a richer, creamer texture and flavor. you can speed the ripening by keeping the avocado in a paper bag, at room temperature, along with a banana or pear or apple. these fruits give off a ripening factor and the paper bag concentrates the ripening factor. roaster boneless thigh cutlets quart chicken broth / pound monterey jack or cheddar cheese, coarsely grated (about cups) / cup red or green chili salsa salt to taste flour tortillas vegetable oil, for frying / cup sour cream, optional guacamole: large ripe avocado tablespoon fresh lemon or lime juice / cup chopped tomato / cup chopped onion tablespoon red or green chili salsa in a large saucepan over medium-high heat bring chicken broth to a boil. add boneless thighs, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, minutes. remove thighs, reserving broth for other use. shred meat and place in a mixing bowl. toss with - / cups cheese, salsa, and salt to taste. divide mixture among tortillas and roll up, securing with a toothpick, if necessary. in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat, heat / -inch oil. fry flautas in hot oil, turning to brown lightly on all sides. transfer to serving dish and keep warm. to make guacamole, scoop out avocado flesh, chop and toss with lemon juice. combine lightly with remaining ingredients. serve flautas topped with guacamole, remaining cheese and sour cream, if desired. chapter two. chicken for the microwave when i was organizing this chapter, i was tempted to include all of these microwave recipes in the "cooking for everyday" chapter. after all, the microwave is certainly becoming part of our everyday life. the reason i didn't is$well, there are two reasons. first, if i put all the microwave recipes in one chapter, you won't have to waste time hunting for them. second, there are a number of tips on using the microwave successfully, and i thought you might like to have them all in one place, also. the microwave is a wonderful convenience, but in my case, i used to use it for reheating foods or for boiling water and not much else. are you the same? ah, but there's so much more to it than that! having spent time with the perdue food technologists and home economists, and especially after studying the techniques and recipes from rita marie schneider, the home economist who developed the majority of the perdue microwave recipes, i'm a convert now. i've come to appreciate the versatility of the microwave as well as the speed. there's a reason i happen to have spent time with the perdue experts. once when frank was microwaving nuggets for himself at high, he found that by the time all of them were heated, one of them was badly overcooked and therefore, dried out and$what a dirty word this is in the perdue household!$tough. frank didn't know that the microwave was the problem and instead assumed it was his product that was at fault. how can i even tell you about the crisis that one tough "tender" caused! frank didn't seem as upset when a whole processing plant burned down the year before. because of that one tough tender, he called the plant manager, the quality control people, the packaging people, the man who wrote the cooking directions, the food technologists, the woman who runs the tasting lab, and probably half a dozen other people as well. it didn't matter that it was the weekend$the situation had to be addressed immediately! he kept repeating disconsolately, "i have no right to sell a product like this." eventually, one of the perdue food technicians came out to our house and checked the microwave and suggested that we'd get more even cooking if we used medium high. she said that at this setting, the microwaves reach an equilibrium so heating is much more even. and when there are no hot spots and no cold spots, the chicken gets uniformly warm with no dried out tough parts. while she was there, she had a number of other tips for me as well, and as i talked with other perdue people, i collected still more. by now, knowing a few little tricks about the microwave, i know how to make much better use of it. because of the time it saves in cooking, and the time it saves in clean-up (no baked on bits of food to scrub), i use the microwave about as often as my oven. tips for using your microwave _the best microwave tip i know is, learn about the "cold spots" in your microwave so you don't end up with unevenly cooked chicken. to learn your microwave's "cold spots," line the bottom of your microwave oven with wax paper and then spread an eighth-inch layer of pancake batter over it. turn the oven on high, and then check it at second intervals. at some point, (in my case after a minute and a half), you'll see that in some places the batter is dried out and hard, while in others, it's still soupy, as if the heat hadn't touched it. once i made this check, i gained an immense respect for the fact that microwaves don't necessarily cook evenly, and i've made sure to compensate ever since by stirring or turning foods as directed in microwave recipes. _do not use utensils with metal trim (including the gold trim on fine china), handle clamps, or fastening screws. metal trim can cause arcing (sparking). aluminum foil, in small amounts on the other hand, won't cause arcing in most microwaves as long as it doesn't touch the sides of the oven. _the coverings used in microwave cooking have definite purposes: use plastic wrap to steam and tenderize; use wax paper to hold in heat without steaming; use paper towels to absorb moisture, yet hold in heat. _to obtain a crisp, crunchy crumb-coated chicken, first cook covered with wax paper, then switch to a paper towel covering and, finally, complete cooking with chicken uncovered. _if the bony parts of your chicken are overcooking before the meatier parts are done, shield the bony parts by placing strips of thin aluminum foil over them. _if you're microwaving chicken livers, prick each one to allow steam to escape. before i knew this tip, i've had them explode in the oven. _microwave recipes usually call for smaller amounts of seasonings than conventionally cooked dishes. microwaving tends to intensify flavors, so you won't need as much seasoning. _don't ignore the standing time called for in some of these recipes. in microwave cookery, standing time allows further cooking to occur after you have removed the food from the microwave oven. covering the food holds heat in and speeds this final, important step. when i've cheated on this step, i've found the chicken hard to carve and undercooked. _when possible, arrange food in a circular or donut shape; without corners, food cooks more evenly from all sides. for example, if you're cooking drumsticks, arrange them like a wagon wheel with the meatier portions at the outer edge, and the drum stick end in the center. _thin foods cook faster than thick foods because microwaves lose power after they penetrate food. _ingredients also affect cooking time. foods higher in sugar or fat heat faster and to higher temperatures than do those with lower sugar or fat content. _when the recipe says " % power," or medium high, don't be tempted to get things done faster by going for % power. at % power, the microwaves cook the product more slowly but also more evenly, so there's less worry about cold spots. roasted chicken with almond sauceserves of course you can serve the pre-cooked chicken just as it comes from the store, without doing anything else to it at all. i've done this many times with our perdue done it! roasted chicken when i've been in a hurry. but this recipe only takes a few extra minutes and you'll have a show piece at the end. as you're making it, be glad for a moment that you're not making this recipe in the year . a typical recipe in a the december issue of the wisconsin farmer assumes that you've already plucked the bird and removed its head and feet. it directs you "to singe the bird over a burning newspaper on a hot stove." the stove would probably have been a wood-burning one, and in all probability, it would have been up to you to get the wood for the stove. when i think of then and i think of now, i'm glad that "we've come a long way, baby". roasted chicken tablespoon cornstarch cup chicken broth tablespoons amaretto or other almond liqueur - / teaspoons fresh lemon juice / cup sliced toasted almonds heat pre-cooked roasted chicken in its own microwave tray following package directions. in -cup glass container, combine cornstarch, broth, liqueur and lemon juice. cover with plastic wrap and microwave at high ( % power) or minutes until bubbly and thick; stir twice during cooking. add almonds. slice chicken onto a platter and top with sauce. five-minute roasted drumsticks package roasted chicken drumsticks ( - per package). following package directions, warm roasted drumsticks in a conventional oven or, using package tray, heat in a microwave oven. brush with your favorite bottled barbecue sauce. chicken pocket sandwichesserves you could use regular chicken breasts for this, but the roaster breast has a richer, more chickeny flavor. ("chickeny" is a word, by the way. frank uses it all the time, and he ought to know.) roaster boneless breast / cup olive oil tablespoons fresh lemon juice tablespoons finely chopped onion clove garlic, minced / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon dried oregano / teaspoon cayenne pepper pita breads lettuce leaves container ( -ounces) plain yogurt tablespoons finely chopped green onion cut chicken into -inch chunks. in -quart microwave-safe utensil, combine olive oil, lemon juice, onion, garlic, salt, oregano, and cayenne pepper; add chicken chunks and stir. cover with wax paper; microwave at high ( % power) minutes or until chicken has turned white. stir mixture or times during cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. cut each pita bread into pockets, line with lettuce and spoon in chicken. in small bowl, combine yogurt and green onion; serve over chicken. chicken a la montmorencyserves any recipe with the word "montmorency" is apt to have cherries in it. the sauce for this one is particularly good and frank liked it enough to spread the leftovers on toast the next day at breakfast. if you don't want to microwave the roaster breast, just cook it in your oven, following the package directions. when i'm in a hurry, i use this microwave recipe, but breasts are the hardest part of the chicken to keep tender in a microwave because they're fairly dry to begin with, and if you overcook them, they'll get tough. roaster breast can ( -ounces) pitted dark sweet cherries / cup dry red wine water teaspoons cornstarch tablespoons red currant jelly (optional) tablespoon butter or margarine salt and ground pepper to taste place breast, skin side down, on microwave-safe roasting utensil. cover with wax paper; microwave at high ( % power) minutes. reduce power to medium high ( % power) and cook minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn breast, skin side up; brush with drippings in utensil. re-cover with wax paper; complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. test for doneness after standing; juices should run clear with no hint of pink when breast is cut near bone. drain cherries, reserving syrup in a -cup glass container. place cherries and red wine in small bowl. add enough water to cherry syrup to measure cup. stir in cornstarch, mixing until well blended. microwave at high minutes, stirring twice. stir cherries with wine into thickened syrup. continue cooking at high to minutes or until mixture thickens and boils for minute. add jelly, if desir ed, and butter; stir until smooth. to serve, slice chicken and place on warm platter. spoon some of cherry sauce over chicken slices; pass remaining sauce. chicken a la nancyserves unlike me, frank does not enjoy puttering around in the kitchen. he loves the results, but cooking is not his favorite way to spend his free time. (he'd be more apt to watch a game on tv or visit with friends.) when he does cook, i can almost guarantee that it will be something quick and carefree. but there is one exception, and it's this recipe. i've never dared ask just who nancy is, but frank once won a cooking contest using her recipe, so he's been fond of it ever since. he says to point out that the cooked lemon with rind does remain as a part of the food. it adds an unusual taste and texture. if you don't like a strong lemony flavor, you might start by using half the lemon that the recipe calls for. that's what i do when i make this recipe. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast tablespoon vegetable oil clove garlic, minced / lemon with peel, very thinly sliced / pound fresh mushrooms, sliced / cup dry white wine tablespoon flour / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / teaspoon dried oregano can ( -ounces) water-packed whole artichoke hearts, drained and quartered place chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap. pound to / inch thickness and cut into inch squares. if using thin sliced boneless roaster breast, skip the pounding and simply cut into inch squares. frying pan method: in a large skillet over medium heat, hat oil. add garlic and saute until soft. add lemon and mushrooms and saute to minutes. add all other ingredients except artichokes. fry, stirring frequently, approximately minutes or until chicken is cooked through. add artichokes and heat. amicrowave method: in -quart microwave-safe round dish, combine oil, mushrooms, lemon slices and garlic; cover with plastic wrap. microwave at high ( % power) minutes, stirring once. in a -cup glass measuring cup, combine wine and flour; stir into mushroom mixture. arrange chicken pieces on top of mushroom mixture and cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound, stirring mixture times. sprinkle with salt, pepper and oregano. stir in artichoke quarters; re- cover and microwave at high minutes. let stand, covered, minutes. chicken thighs parmesanserves - the dijon mustard called for in this recipe is quite sharp before it's cooked. after heating in the microwave, you'll find that it loses much of its sharpness and leaves behind a subtle spicy flavor. yellow mustard won't produce the same effect. chicken thighs / cup seasoned bread crumbs / cup grated parmesan cheese / cup melted butter or margarine tablespoon dijon mustard / teaspoons worcestershire sauce remove skin from thighs. on wax paper, combine bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. in shallow dish, combine butter, mustard and worcestershire sauce. brush thighs with butter mixture and then roll in crumbs to lightly coat both sides. reserve remaining butter mixture and crumbs. arrange thighs in circular pattern on microwave-safe roasting utensil; cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn thighs over; spoon on remaining butter mixture and sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. cover with a double thickness of paper towels. complete cooking; remove paper towels during last minutes cooking time. let stand, uncovered, minutes before serving. chicken with mango sauceserves mangos, which are rich in vitamins a and c, make a delicious, colorful and unusual sauce for a roaster breast. when mangos aren't available, try fresh or canned peaches. roaster breast tablespoon butter or margarine tablespoon cornstarch tablespoons brown sugar / cup fresh orange juice ripe mangos, peeled and cut into chunks tablespoons cherry- or orange-flavored liqueur salt and pepper to taste place skin side down on microwave-safe roasting utensil. cover with wax paper; microwave at high ( % power) minutes. reduce power to medium-high ( % power) and cook minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn breast skin side up; brush with drippings in utensil. re- cover with wax paper and complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. test for doneness after standing; juices should run clear with no hint of pink when breast is cut near the bone. in a -cup glass container, place butter. microwave at high seconds or until melted. stir in cornstarch until blended; stir in brown sugar and orange juice. in blender or food processor fitted with steel blade, puree mango chunks. stir pureed mangos into orange juice mixture. microwave at high minutes, stirring twice. add liqueur; microwave minute longer. to serve, slice chicken and place on warm platter. spoon some of mango sauce over slices, then pass remaining sauce. curry-glazed breastserves curry powder is a blend of many spices, so you don't need to combine spices yourself. indian curry powder is mild and madras curry powder is quite hot. whole roaster breast tablespoons butter or margarine / cup honey tablespoons dijon mustard teaspoons curry powder / teaspoon salt or to taste place breast bone side down on a microwave-safe roasting utensil. place butter in a -cup glass container; microwave at high ( % power) seconds. stir in honey, mustard, curry powder and salt; brush mixture all over breast. cover with wax paper; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. baste breast and rotate utensil or times during cooking. let stand, covered with wax paper, minutes. test for doneness after standing; juices should run clear with no hint of pink when breast is cut near bone. ham and chicken roll-upsserves if you can't easily find the prosciutto called for in this recipe, substitute any thinly sliced ham, such as the pre- sliced ham you find in the deli section of your supermarket. or try thin slices of smoked turkey ham. if you slice the cooked roll-ups crosswise, they make wonderful hors d'oeuvres or appetizers. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast tablespoon olive oil teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled salt and ground pepper to taste thin slices prosciutto place chicken breast halves between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / -inch thickness. skip the previous step if you are using thin sliced boneless roaster breasts. brush breasts with olive oil to help seal in moisture; sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper. roll up each breast half, starting from narrow end. wrap a slice of prosciutto around each roll. in -inch square microwave-safe baking dish, place chicken rolls seam side down. cover with wax paper. microwave at high ( % power) minutes, rotating dish or times during cooking. let stand minutes. check for doneness after standing; juices should be clear with no hint of pink when chicken is cut near center. heavenly chickenserves if you're using fresh asparagus spears for this, here's how to tell the tender part from the part that's too tough and fibrous to be good eating. take the bud end of an asparagus spear in one hand and the butt end in the other and then bend the spear until it breaks. the part on the bud side is tender enough to use. the spears will always break at just that point. but don't throw away the tough end. if you peel the tough end with a potato peeler, you'll get down to the tender, edible part underneath and can use that portion also. cook the leftover parts until tender and use them in soups or omelettes. chicken breast halves fresh or frozen asparagus spears / cup water / cup butter or margarine tablespoons flour / teaspoon ground ginger / cups chicken broth / cup dry white wine salt and freshly ground pepper to taste / cup chopped pecans / cup crushed crackers on microwave-safe roasting pan, arrange breasts, bone side up, in a circular pattern. cover loosely with plastic wrap; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time turn breasts over; re- cover with plastic wrap and complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. rinse asparagus and remove tough end. on microwave-safe rack, arrange asparagus with stem ends toward outside. place rack in microwave-safe utensil. add water; cover with plastic wrap. microwave at high ( % power) to minutes or until tender-crisp. let stand, covered, to minutes. in -cup glass container, place butter; microwave at high minute. blend flour and ginger into melted butter. gradually add chicken broth, wine, salt and pepper, stirring constantly. microwave at high minutes or until thick and smooth, stirring times. in x -inch microwave-safe dish, arrange cooked asparagus, with stem ends toward outside; pour half of wine sauce over asparagus. arrange chicken breasts on top with meatier portions toward outside; spoon remaining sauce over breasts. sprinkle pecans and cracker crumbs on top; cover with a double thickness of paper towels. microwave at medium-high minutes or until heated through. microwave marmalade drumsticksserves this recipe calls for a microwave-safe utensil. do you know how to tell for sure if your utensil is suitable? . place the utensil and a cup of water side by side in the microwave oven. . turn the oven to the high setting for minute. if the dish is warm, then it is absorbing microwave energy. do not use it in the microwave oven. roaster drumsticks tablespoons butter or margarine / cup finely chopped onion / cup orange marmalade (you can also use current jelly) / teaspoon curry powder in -inch microwave-safe utensil, combine butter and onion. cover; microwave at high ( % power) minutes. blend in marmalade and curry powder; turn drumsticks in mixture. place drumsticks with meatier portions toward outer edge of utensil; cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn chicken over, re-cover with wax paper and microwave remaining time. let stand, covered, minutes. saucy microwave chicken wingsserves to make an attractive presentation, try tucking the tip of each wing under to form a triangle. / cup honey / cup soy sauce tablespoons ketchup small clove garlic, minced chicken wings in x -inch microwave-safe utensil, combine all ingredients except wings; turn wings in mixture. cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound, turning wings over to times during cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. tex-mex drumsticksserves removing skin from chicken is an easy way to reduce calories, and because moisture doesn't evaporate readily in microwave cooking, the chicken will remain juicy and flavorful. chicken drumsticks / cup finely chopped pecans / cup fine, dry bread crumbs tablespoon minced fresh parsley teaspoon chili powder / cup taco-flavored or other pourable salad dressing remove skin from drumsticks. on wax paper, combine pecans, bread crumbs, parsley and chili powder. brush drumsticks with taco dressing, then roll in crumb mixture to coat all sides. reserve crumbs and dressing. on microwave-safe roasting pan, arrange drumsticks in circular pattern, with meatier portions toward outside. cover with wax paper; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn drumsticks over, spoon on remaining dressing and sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture. cover with a double thickness of paper towels. complete cooking, removing paper towels during last minutes. let stand, uncovered, minutes before serving. microwave chicken breasts paprikashserves one way of avoiding having your eyes tear when the slicing the onion in this recipe is to do the cutting under running tap water. the vapors that hurt your eyes won't have a chance to get into the air, but instead will just wash down the drain. tablespoons vegetable oil green peppers, thinly sliced large onion, thinly sliced can ( -ounces) tomato sauce tablespoon sweet paprika / teaspoon dried marjoram / teaspoon salt or to taste ground pepper to taste chicken breast halves container ( -ounces) commercial sour cream tablespoon flour in a x -inch microwave-safe utensil, combine oil, peppers and onion. cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high ( % power) minutes. stir in tomato sauce, paprika, marjoram, salt, and pepper. on top of tomato mixture, place breasts bone side up with meatier portions toward outside. cover with wax paper; microwave at high minutes; reduce power to medium-high ( % power) and cook minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn breasts over and stir mixture. re-cover with wax paper and microwave remaining time. let stand minutes. stir sour cream and flour into tomato mixture. cover; microwave at high minute. stir and let stand minutes. pour over chicken breasts. cornish hens with lemon tarragon sauceserves you can get more juice from a lemon if you roll it around on a flat surface first while pressing your palm against it fairly hard. this ruptures the little juice sacks. you'll also get more juice if the lemon is at room temperature rather than just out of the refrigerator. fresh cornish game hens / cup flour / teaspoons fresh tarragon, divided, or / teaspoon dried cup chicken broth juice of one lemon (about / cup) salt and ground pepper to taste / pound fresh asparagus, or substitute green beans teaspoons water with sharp knife or poultry shears, cut hens in half, lengthwise. remove and discard backbone and skin. coat hen pieces lightly with flour and sprinkle with half of tarragon. place hens bone side up, with legs to inside, on a microwave-safe roasting utensil. in a -cup glass container, combine chicken broth, lemon juice, remaining tarragon and pepper. microwave at high ( % power) to minutes, or until boiling. baste hens with half of hot broth. cover with wax paper; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound combined weight of hens. halfway through cooking time, turn hens bone side down and baste with remaining broth mixture. re- cover and complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. slice asparagus diagonally into -inch pieces and place in a -quart microwave-safe utensil with water. cover; microwave at high to minutes. let stand minutes; drain and set aside. when ready to serve, add asparagus to lemon sauce and pour over hens. microwave hens jubileeserves this is a close cousin of chicken a la montmorency, but it's spicier and less sweet. fresh cornish game hens can ( -ounces) dark sweet cherries in syrup / cup dry sherry tablespoons cornstarch / cup chili sauce clove garlic, minced salt and freshly ground pepper to taste with poultry shears or sharp knife, split hens lengthwise, removing backbone, if desired. in x microwave-safe utensil, arrange hens, bone side up with meatier portions to outside. in -quart microwave-safe utensil, drain liquid from cherries; blend in sherry and cornstarch. add cherries, chili sauce, garlic, salt and pepper. microwave at high ( % power) to minutes, stirring once, until mixture begins to boil and thicken. pour sauce over hens. cover loosely with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound, turning the hens over halfway through cooking time. re-cover with wax paper and microwave remaining time. let stand, covered, minutes. pineapple baked cornish hensserves green peppers and most other fresh vegetables are ideal for microwaving. they retain their clear color and stay crunchy and fresh tasting. for extra color, substitute / sweet red pepper and / green pepper for the single whole green pepper. fresh cornish game hens green pepper, cored, finely chopped medium onion, finely chopped teaspoons vegetable oil can ( -ounces) crushed pineapple in natural juices tablespoons soy sauce teaspoons dry mustard / teaspoon ground ginger with poultry shears or sharp knife, split hens lengthwise and remove and discard skin. place hens bone side up on a microwave-safe x -inch utensil, arranging with legs to inside. in a -quart microwave-safe utensil, place green pepper, onion and oil. microwave at high ( % power) to minutes or until pepper is tender. add pineapple, soy sauce, mustard and ginger; microwave at high to minutes. baste hen halves with half of pineapple mixture. cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound combined weight of hens. halfway through cooking time, turn hens bone side down and baste with remaining pineapple mixture. re-cover and complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. serve with pineapple sauce. rosemary hens with light wine gravyserves game hens are sold both fresh and frozen. if you've selected a frozen one, follow your microwave manufacturer's directions for defrosting and turn and rearrange the birds frequently for even defrosting. i've tried game hens both fresh and frozen, and i found that there's enough of a difference in flavor and tenderness to make me strongly prefer fresh. cornish game hens sprigs fresh parsley small onion, halved clove garlic, halved small carrots, peeled, cut in / -inch slices ( cup) medium tomatoes, peeled and cut in wedges, or cherry tomatoes, halved medium zucchini, cut in / -inch slices ( cup) / pound mushrooms, quartered (about cup) / cup chicken broth / cup dry white wine and / teaspoon minced, fresh rosemary or / teaspoon dried salt and freshly ground pepper to taste tablespoons cold water teaspoons cornstarch into each hen cavity, place sprigs parsley, / onion and / garlic clove. place carrots, tomatoes, zucchini and mushrooms in a microwave-safe baking dish. combine chicken broth, wine and / teaspoon rosemary; pour over vegetables. cover with plastic wrap and microwave at high ( % power) minutes. arrange hens, breast side down, on top. sprinkle with remaining rosemary and pepper. cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound combined weight of hens. halfway through cooking time, stir vegetables; turn hens breast side up and rotate dish. re-cover with wax paper. remove hens to serving platter, reserving juices for gravy. using slotted spoon, arrange vegetables around hens and cover with foil; allow to stand minutes. cut hens in half to serve. to prepare gravy, in a cup glass container, combine water and cornstarch. slowly add reserved cooking juices (about / cup) from hens; stir to blend. microwave at high minutes or until thickened, stirring twice. serve with cornish hens. honey mustard roasterserves covering is a key technique in successful microwave cooking. in a conventional oven a sweet honey-mustard basting sauce could overbrown. instead, in the microwave it dries as the roaster skin cooks and it forms an attractive golden glaze on the bird. whole roaster (about pounds) tablespoons butter or margarine / cup honey / cup dijon mustard / teaspoon curry powder teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper remove giblets from roaster. with rounded wooden picks, fasten skin across cavity and neck openings. place roaster, breast side down, on microwave-safe roasting pan. melt butter in a -cup glass measuring cup by microwaving at high ( % power) minute. stir in honey and remaining ingredients; brush roaster with mixture and cover with wax paper. microwave at high minutes. reduce power to medium-high ( % power) and cook minutes per pound, brushing frequently with honey mixture. halfway through cooking time, turn roaster breast side up; complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. test for doneness after standing; juices should run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. pour drippings from utensil into remaining sauce mixture in measuring cup; microwave at high minutes or until heated through. serve sauce with roaster. mexican microwave chicken casserole leftover mexican chicken casserole makes a fast and delicious taco filling. shred chicken, reheat in sauce and serve with shredded lettuce and cheese and a dollop of sour cream. tablespoons butter or margarine large onion, chopped ( cup) large green pepper, chopped ( cup) clove garlic, minced can ( . ounces) tomato sauce tablespoons flour teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground cumin / teaspoon dried oregano / teaspoon ground pepper chicken cut in serving pieces can ( -ounces) corn, drained in to -quart microwave-safe utensil, combine butter, onion, pepper and garlic. cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high ( % power) to minutes or until onion and pepper are tender. stir in tomato sauce, flour, salt, cumin, oregano and pepper. place chicken pieces, bone side up with meatier portions toward outside of utensil, on top of mixture. cover with wax paper; microwave at high minutes. reduce power to medium-high ( % power) and cook minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn chicken pieces over; re- cover with wax paper and microwave remaining time. let stand, covered, minutes. remove chicken pieces to serving dish; cover. add corn to sauce in utensil; cover with plastic wrap. microwave at high minutes. to serve, pour sauce over chicken. plum-spiced chickenserves the plum sauce is a low-fat way to make the chicken develop an attractive color as it cooks in the microwave. chicken, cut in half lengthwise cup plum jelly or preserves / cup chicken broth / cup chopped onion tablespoons red wine vinegar / teaspoons soy sauce / teaspoon ground ginger / teaspoon chinese five-spice powder (optional) place chicken halves, skin side down, on microwave-safe roasting utensil, set aside. in a -cup glass container, combine jelly and remaining ingredients. microwave at high ( % power) minutes, stirring times. brush chicken halves with sauce; cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) to minutes per pound, brushing chicken frequently with sauce. halfway through cooking time, turn chicken halves over; brush with sauce. re-cover with wax paper; complete cooking. let stand, covered minutes. stuffed chicken charleston styleserves the microwave oven makes it possible to make this succulent roast chicken and all the trimmings in less than an hour. to complete the meal with "baked" potatoes, you can microwave them during the chicken's standing time. whole chicken strips uncooked bacon, diced / cup chopped onion / cup chopped celery / cups packaged cornbread stuffing / cup coarsely chopped pecans tablespoons butter or margarine, melted, divided / cup plus tablespoons dry sherry, divided tablespoons water tablespoons minced fresh parsley teaspoon salt or to taste ground pepper to taste remove giblets. in / -quart microwave-safe utensil place diced bacon; cover with paper towel. microwave at high ( % power) minutes or until crisp, stirring twice. with slotted spoon, remove bacon to paper towel to drain; set aside. reserve drippings. in same / -quart microwave-safe utensil, combine onion and celery; cover with plastic wrap. microwave at high minutes. in a mixing bowl, combine onions and celery with stuffing, pecans, and cooked bacon. in cup, blend tablespoons butter, tablespoons sherry and water; toss with stuffing. spoon stuffing loosely into cavity and neck openings of chicken. with rounded wooden picks, fasten skin across cavity and neck openings. combine tablespoon butter with teaspoon sherry; brush on chicken. place chicken, breast side down, on microwave- safe roasting utensil; cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound, brushing chicken frequently with butter-sherry mixture and drippings. halfway through cooking time, turn chicken breast side up; re-cover with wax paper. complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes. test for doneness after standing; juices should run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced pour pan drippings into a -cup glass container. add / cup sherry to roasting utensil to loosen pan juices; pour into container with drippings. microwave at high minutes; stir in remaining tablespoons butter and parsley. serve chicken, sliced, with stuffing and gravy. cheesy microwave thighsserves chicken thighs and drumsticks are fairly uniform in size, making them an ideal choice for quick cooking in the microwave. chicken thighs tablespoons butter or margarine, divided cup finely chopped onion tablespoons flour / teaspoon salt or to taste cup milk / cup grated swiss cheese / cup grated parmesan cheese tablespoons white wine pinch freshly grated or ground nutmeg minced, fresh parsley (optional) remove and discard skin from thighs. in a x -inch microwave-safe utensil, combine tablespoons butter and onion. microwave at high ( % power) minutes. arrange thighs in a circular pattern on top of onions. cover with wax paper; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn thighs over; re-cover with wax paper and microwave remaining time. let stand, covered, minutes. place remaining butter in -cup glass container; microwave at high to seconds. blend in flour and salt; gradually stir in milk, mixing well. microwave at high to minutes, stirring frequently, until mixture boils and thickens. add cheeses, wine and nutmeg; stir until cheese is melted. pour sauce over chicken thighs; cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high to minutes or until heated through. garnish with parsley if desired. chicken marengoserves - frank admires napoleon because he was such an effective leader and motivator of men. but frank has another reason to like the famous french general. napoleon liked chicken so much that during his campaigns, he ate it almost every night. in when napoleon was fighting in italy, the supply wagons were late and his chef had to scour the countryside for whatever food he could find. the result was a chicken dish made with olive oil, mushrooms, tomato, garlic and other ingredients available from the nearby farms. napoleon liked the dish so much that he named it "chicken marengo," in honor of the battlefield where he had just been fighting, and from then on ordered it served to him after every battle. chicken thighs teaspoons olive oil cups coarsely chopped fresh plum tomatoes / cup chopped green pepper / cup finely chopped onion cloves garlic, minced tablespoons minced, fresh parsley / teaspoon dried oregano / teaspoon ground pepper / teaspoon salt or to taste remove and discard skin from thighs. in -quart microwave- safe utensil, combine remaining ingredients; cover with plastic wrap. microwave at high ( % power) minutes, stirring twice. arrange thighs in circular pattern on top of tomato mixture; spoon mixture over thighs. cover with wax paper; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn thighs over; re-cover and complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes before serving. chinese chickenserves the shape of foods affects cooking results. thin areas cook faster than thicker ones, so meatier portions should always be placed toward the outer edge of the utensil where microwave energy is greater. chicken drumsticks chicken thighs / cup melted butter tablespoons soy sauce / teaspoon ground pepper / teaspoon minced, fresh ginger can ( -ounces) chow mein noodles / cup sliced almonds salt to taste remove and discard skin from drumsticks and thighs. in small bowl, mix butter, soy sauce, pepper and ginger. in blender or food processor fitted with steel blade, finely chop chow mein noodles, almonds and salt; transfer to wax paper. brush chicken with soy mixture, then roll in noodle mixture to coat all sides. arrange on microwave-safe roasting pan, with meatier portions toward outside; cover with wax paper. reserve remaining soy and noodle mixture. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time turn legs and thighs over; spoon on remaining soy mixture and sprinkle with remaining noodle mixture. cover with a double thickness of paper towels. complete cooking, remove paper towels during last minutes. let stand, uncovered, minutes before serving. drumsticks little italy styleserves do you know how to tell when rice is done? the aim of cooking rice is to have all the little starch granules inside each grain swell with water but not burst. you can tell that rice is undercooked if you pinch a grain and feel a hard or gritty core. you can tell that it's overcooked if you look at a grain closely and find that the edges are split and ragged. it's perfectly cooked if the grain is the same smooth shape as the uncooked grain, only puffed, swollen and soft. cup chopped, canned tomatoes / cup long grain rice cup chicken broth / cup dry white wine medium onion, chopped large clove garlic, crushed / teaspoon dried thyme roaster drumsticks salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons or more minced, fresh parsley in a quart microwave-safe utensil combine tomatoes and rice. stir in broth and wine; add onion, garlic, thyme, and mix well. cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high ( % power) minutes. arrange drumsticks over top of mixture, with meatiest portions to the outer edge of utensil. re-cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high ( % power) minutes then at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time stir and turn drumsticks over. re-cover and complete the cooking. let stand, covered minutes before serving. test for doneness after standing; juices should run clear with no hint of pink when drumstick is pierced. season with salt and pepper. add parsley to rice mixture for garnish. olive microwaved chickenmakes drumsticks when you saw the title of this recipe, did you hesitate because you were concerned that the calories in olives could wreck your diet? not to worry! olives are actually a fairly low calorie food, with the average one having only - calories. the largest jumbo olive has only calories. chicken drumsticks cup slivered onion strips / cup slivered green pepper strips / cup thawed lemonade concentrate / cup ketchup / cup sliced pimento-stuffed olives / cup sliced pitted ripe olives teaspoons worcestershire sauce clove garlic, minced remove and discard skin from drumsticks. in a x -inch microwave-safe utensil, combine remaining ingredients; cover with plastic wrap. microwave high ( % power) minutes, stirring once. turn drumsticks in sauce to coat. arrange drumsticks in circular pattern in sauce with meatier portions toward outside of utensil. cover with wax paper; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn drumsticks and spoon sauce on top. re-cover with wax paper; complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes before serving. pennsylvania dutch-country drumsticksserves when you're buying the apples for this recipe, you can tell which ones are red delicious by looking at the base of the apples. a red delicious always has five knobs or points at the base. roaster drumsticks salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons butter or margarine, divided / cup apple juice ( / cup for microwave) tablespoon soy sauce ( - / teaspoons for microwave) / cup brown sugar, firmly-packed ( / cup for microwave) red delicious apples, peeled, cored and cut into wedges each tablespoons sugar conventional method: season drumsticks with salt and pepper. in a large skillet over medium heat, melt tablespoons butter. add drumsticks and brown for to minutes per side. in a measuring cup combine apple juice, soy sauce and brown sugar and pour over drumsticks. cover and simmer minutes. turn and simmer minutes longer. ten minutes before end of cooking time, in another skillet, over medium-high heat, melt remaining butter. add apple wedges and brown on one side. sprinkle with sugar and turn. brown other side. transfer chicken to serving dish and top with apple wedges. spoon sauce over top. amicrowave oven: place tablespoons of butter in a -inch microwave-safe utensil. microwave at high ( % power) seconds. combine / cup apple juice, / teaspoons soy sauce and / cup firmly packed brown sugar with melted butter. place drumsticks in apple juice mixture and turn to coat well. arrange drumsticks with meatiest portions toward outer edge of utensil. cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. half way through cooking time turn drumsticks and spoon sauce over each. re-cover and complete cooking. let stand, covered, to minutes. place tablespoons butter in a -quart microwave-safe utensil. microwave at high seconds. sprinkle butter with tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar; stir. place apple wedges in brown sugar mixture; toss gently to coat. microwave at high minutes, stir. microwave an additional minutes or until apples are tender. transfer chicken to serving dish and top with apple wedges. spoon sauce over top. roaster thighs in wineserves for the longest shelf life and the best flavor, don't wash the mushrooms called for in this recipe until just before using them. and don't soak them, just lightly mist them or wipe them with a damp paper towel. with soaking, they easily become waterlogged and lose some of their flavor. roaster boneless thigh cutlets strips uncooked bacon, diced cup burgundy or other dry, red wine tablespoons cognac or brandy small whole onions, peeled ounces sliced, fresh mushrooms, cups tablespoons flour teaspoons minced fresh parsley bay leaf / teaspoons minced, fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried cut thigh cutlets in half. in -quart microwave-safe utensil, place bacon; microwave at high ( % power) until crisp, to minutes. combine wine and cognac and add to utensil with remaining ingredients; stir well. arrange thighs, with thicker portions toward outer edge, on top of vegetables. cover with wax paper; microwave at high minutes. reduce power to medium-high ( % power) and cook minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, stir vegetable mixture and turn cutlets over. let stand, covered, minutes before serving. spicy african drumsticksserves if you eliminate the crushed pepper in this recipe, it could be a dish children would love. be sure the peanuts you use in the recipe are fresh. once a package has been opened, keep it in the refrigerator since peanuts rapidly go rancid. as an emergency first aid measure for peanuts that aren't as fresh as you wish they were, try this tip i got from a peanut farmer in georgia. put the peanuts in a sieve and pour boiling water over them. the hot water will wash away some of the oils that are responsible for the off-flavor. chicken drumsticks tablespoons vegetable oil cup chopped onion garlic clove, minced can ( -ounces) tomato puree / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon crushed red pepper / cup peanut butter / cup chopped peanuts remove and discard skin from drumsticks. in a x -inch microwave-safe utensil, combine oil, onion and garlic. cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high ( % power) minutes or until onions are tender. stir in tomato puree, salt and red pepper. arrange drumsticks in utensil with meatier portion toward outside; spoon tomato sauce over top. cover with wax paper; microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn drumsticks over; re-cover with wax paper and microwave remaining time. remove drumsticks to serving platter; cover with foil and let stand minutes. stir peanut butter and peanuts into tomato sauce. cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high minutes. to serve, spoon sauce over drumsticks. cornucopia stuffed roasterserves a roaster stuffed with vegetables and rice is a tasty meal in one dish. the stuffing doesn't increase the cooking time, which is about one hour less in a microwave than required for conventional roasting. whole roaster (about pounds) / cup hot water / cup butter or margarine cup frozen peas and carrots / cups cooked rice tablespoons minced fresh parsley / teaspoon dried thyme teaspoon salt or to taste browning spray (optional) remove giblets. in a -cup glass measuring cup, place water and butter; microwave at high ( % power) minute. in -quart microwave-safe utensil, place peas and carrots; cover. microwave at high minutes, stirring once; drain. in a small bowl, combine rice, melted butter mixture, peas and carrots, parsley, thyme and salt. place in cavity of roaster; with rounded wooden picks, fasten skin across cavity opening and at neck. place roaster, breast side down, on microwave-safe roasting pan. spray with browning spray or brush roaster with melted butter if desired; cover with wax paper. microwave at high minutes. reduce power to medium-high ( % power). cook minutes per pound, brushing with drippings several times during cooking. halfway through cooking time, turn roaster over, using paper towels to protect hands. pour off drippings and reserve, if desired. baste roaster with drippings or use browning spray; cover with wax paper and complete cooking. let stand, covered with aluminum foil, minutes. test for doneness after standing; juice should run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. to serve, spoon stuffing into serving bowl and slice roaster. chicken wing paellaserves - paella is a spanish dish with a mixture of rice, vegetables, meat and sometimes shellfish. i lived in spain for a couple of years and came to the conclusion that there must be almost as many versions of paella as there are spanish cooks$which means that you have a lot of latitude to vary the ingredients according to what you have handy in your refrigerator. i like this better the next day, when the different flavors have had a chance to "marry." chicken wings pound sweet italian sausage links teaspoon browning sauce large onion, chopped sweet red pepper, cut into thin strips medium-sized zucchini, chopped can ( -ounces) tomatoes, undrained / cup hot water teaspoon salt or to taste teaspoon dried oregano / teaspoon paprika / teaspoon ground turmeric / teaspoon tabasco cups hot cooked rice cup frozen peas, thawed cut wing-tip section from wings. set tips aside to cook later in soup or stew, if desired. brush sausages with browning sauce; cut into -inch pieces. in -quart microwave-safe dish, place sausage pieces; cover with wax paper. microwave at high ( % power) to minutes, or until sausage loses its pink color, stirring twice. with slotted spoon remove sausage. to drippings in dish, add onion, red pepper and zucchini; cover with plastic wrap. microwave at high minutes, stirring twice. add tomatoes, browned sausages, water, salt, oregano, paprika, turmeric and tabasco; stir to blend. arrange chicken wings in circular pattern on top of tomato mixture. cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high minutes. reduce power to medium-high ( % power); cook minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn wings over; re-cover and complete cooking. stir in hot cooked rice and peas; microwave at high minutes. to warm for serving, cover with plastic wrap to speed cooking and microwave at high until heated through. let stand minutes before serving. chapter three-chicken for dieters are you concerned about the cholesterol in your diet? are you watching calories and trying to cut down on fat? has your doctor suggested that you consume less salt? then read on. the wonderful thing about chicken is that the low cholesterol and the low calorie recipes are the same. and the flavors that add spark to a low calories recipe are the same ones that can help you get along with little or no salt. chicken is the dieter's ray of sunshine. except for turkey breast, no other popular meat is as low in calories as skinless chicken breast. a -ounce portion of skinless broiled chicken breast has only calories. an equivalent size portion of cooked lean trimmed beef would average calories, and cooked lean, trimmed pork is calories. chicken is also lowest in saturated fat compared with non-poultry meats. grams of saturated fat cooked -ounce portion skinless chicken breast: . average cooked -ounce portion of chicken: . average cooked -ounce portion of lean, trimmed beef: . average cooked -ounce portion of lean, trimmed pork: . to avoid both fat and calories when cooking with chicken: _choose breast meat. this is the leanest part of the bird and has less than half the fat of, for example, thigh meat. because of its low fat content, it's the only meat i ever serve frank, and it's the only meat he ever asks for in restaurants. _remove the skin. forty percent of the fat in poultry is attached to the skin and therefore can be easily removed. this is in contrast with other meats, where the fat is dispersed throughout the meat and not so easily removed. one point, though. if you're broiling or baking or grilling chicken, leave the skin on until you're finished cooking; otherwise the meat will lose too much moisture and become tough. i've watched tests done at the perdue tenderness laboratory in which they measured the tenderness of breast meat roasted with the skin and without the skin. the meat cooked with the skin retained its moisture and was startlingly more tender than the meat cooked without the skin. _roast, broil, poach, or grill chicken instead of frying it. _substitute low fat dairy products in recipes. use yoghurt or light sour cream instead of sour cream, and non- fat milk instead of regular milk. to be honest, the taste isn't as rich, but if you're watching calories and cholesterol, these substitutions make a substantial difference. for example, plain low fat yoghurt is calories per cup and light sour cream about calories, while the same amount of regular sour cream is to calories. non-fat milk is to calories per -ounce glass, while whole milk is to calories. _replace oil or fat in marinades with fresh lemon or lime juice, or with wine or vinegar. _broil with wine instead of butter. _take advantage of non-caloric pan sprays. _if you're really counting every single calorie, you may want to choose cornish hens rather than the older broilers and roasters. cornish hens and broilers are young birds and they bear the same relationship to the older roasters that veal does to beef: the younger the animal, the lower the fat content. for comparison, the white meat of a cornish is calories per ounce of cooked meat; the white meat of a broiler is calories per cooked ounce. for low salt diets: _avoid prepared sauces such as barbecue sauce or ketchup: usually they are high in salt. _season chicken with foods that are naturally high in potassium, such as tomatoes, citrus, raisins or bananas. when you eat foods high in potassium, you don't miss the sodium so much. tomato paste, by the way, is very high in potassium, and does not have as much added salt as most prepared or canned foods. _season foods with garlic, onion, wine and a variety of herbs and spices. again, you'll miss the sodium less. _trick your palette by cooking with your own flavored vinegars. use a cup of whichever fresh herb you can find, such as tarragon or mint or dill, for two cups of plain white vinegar and then add a garlic clove or twist of lemon peel. store in a screw top jar for several days and if you want it really strong, leave it for a week. you might taste it along the way to see if it's too strong. finally, strain it and pour into a sterilized bottle and seal. _season chicken with concentrated homemade chicken broth. make chicken stock (use the recipe on page ___, but omit the salt), boil it down until it's concentrated, and then freeze it in ice cube trays. use individual cubes to intensify the flavor of casseroles or stir fry dishes. after a couple of weeks of following a low salt diet, you'll find that your taste changes and that you'll actually be satisfied with far less salt. you'll even find that the olives and potato chips and peanuts that once tasted just right, now seem too salty. we've found that with salt, the less you eat, the less you feel you need$but be patient because this doesn't happen overnight. for that matter, a preference for low fat cooking may not happen overnight either. in fact, to level with you, i think that in most cases it won't happen overnight. if you're not used to the low fat substitutions for rich sauces and gravies, some of the recipes in this chapter may seem downright spartan to you the first time you try them. but once you're used to them, you may find as frank and i have, that with time it's not only possible to get used to lighter cooking, it's actually possible to prefer it. barbecue drumsticksserves microwave recipe to save additional fat and calories, remove the skin from the drumsticks. i wouldn't recommend this for a conventional oven recipe because the meat would dry out. but microwaving retains moisture, and the sauce adds flavor. roaster drumsticks cup water / cup finely chopped onion / cup tomato paste tablespoon vinegar cloves garlic, minced - / teaspoons chili powder teaspoon dry mustard / teaspoon ground pepper remove skin from drumsticks and discard. in -cup glass container, combine water, onion, tomato paste, vinegar, garlic, chili powder, mustard and pepper until well blended. cover with plastic wrap; microwave at high ( % power) minutes. stir and microwave, uncovered, minutes longer. pour half the mixture over bottom of a x -inch microwave-safe utensil. place drumsticks in sauce with meatier portions toward outer edge of utensil. pour remaining sauce over drumsticks; cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn drumsticks over and move drumsticks to sides of utensil. re-cover with wax paper; complete cooking. let stand, covered, minutes before serving. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. burgundy chickenserves microwave recipe the perdue home economists say that microwave recipes are often more nutritious than their conventional versions because microwaving requires much less liquid, ensuring that vitamins and minerals are not washed away. chicken, cut in serving pieces / cup burgundy or other dry red wine / cup low-sodium chicken broth teaspoon dried thyme leaves / teaspoon ground pepper bay leaf / pound pearl onions, peeled / pound small mushrooms, sliced small new potatoes, cut into quarters carrots (about cup), thinly sliced tablespoons water - / tablespoon cornstarch remove and discard skin and visible fat from the larger chicken pieces. in a -quart microwave-safe utensil, combine wine, chicken broth, thyme, pepper, and bay leaf. add onions, mushrooms, potatoes, and carrots. cover and microwave at high ( % power) minutes. arrange chicken on top of vegetables, bone-side up, with meatier portions toward outer edge of utensil. cover with wax paper; microwave at high minutes. turn chicken pieces over and rearrange, spooning vegetable mixture over each piece. re- cover; microwave - minutes per pound or until chicken and vegetables are fork tender. remove chicken pieces and vegetables; cover to keep warm. in microwave-safe cup, combine water and cornstarch. add small amount of hot pan juices to cup and stir to blend; gradually stir cornstarch mixture into remaining juices. microwave on high minutes; stir and microwave minutes longer or until boiling. serve sauce over chicken and vegetables. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. chicken au poivreserves pepper's piquant flavor helps disguise the lack of salt. l roaster boneless breast or package thin sliced roaster breast tablespoons flour teaspoons cracked black pepper l teaspoon dry mustard tablespoons vegetable oil clove garlic, minced / cup dry red wine tablespoon minced, fresh parsley remove and discard visible fat from boneless breast; slice thin. (you can skip this step if you have the thin sliced roaster breast.) place chicken slices between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / inch thickness. on wax paper, combine flour, pepper and mustard. lightly coat chicken with flour mixture, pressing to make pepper adhere. in large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add garlic; saute seconds. place chicken in skillet so that pieces do not touch. cook about minutes or until lightly browned, turning once. remove to serving platter; keep warm. pour off fat; stir in wine. cook over high heat, stirring constantly to minutes or until thickened and liquid is reduced by one-half. stir in parsley. spoon sauce over chicken. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. chicken provencalserves microwave recipe do you know why you brown chicken first in traditional stews and casseroles? it's to seal in the juices. you don't need to in microwave cooking, so you save the fat calories from the butter or margarine or oil you'd use for browning, and the chicken still ends up moist and tender. chicken breast halves cups coarsely chopped fresh italian plum tomatoes or a -ounce can, drained - / cups sliced mushrooms ( -ounces) / cup chopped onion clove garlic, minced / teaspoon dried basil / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper tablespoons dry white wine tablespoon cornstarch tablespoons minced fresh parsley remove and discard skin from chicken breasts. in a -quart microwave-safe utensil, combine tomatoes, mushrooms, onion, garlic, basil, salt and pepper. cover with wax paper. microwave at high ( % power) minutes. meanwhile, in cup combine wine and cornstarch, stir into tomato mixture. place chicken breasts, bone-side up and meatier portions toward outside of utensil, on top of tomato mixture. cover with wax paper; microwave at high minutes. reduce power to medium-high ( % power) and cook minutes per pound. halfway through cooking time, turn chicken breasts over and stir tomato mixture. after cooking, let stand, covered, minutes. remove chicken to serving platter; stir parsley into tomato mixture and spoon some over breasts; serve remaining sauce on side. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. chicken ratatouillemakes drumsticks. when "ratatouille" appears in a recipe's name, you can be sure it will have eggplant in it and probably tomatoes and peppers as well. these vegetables will be noticeably more delicious if you use them very fresh rather than after storage in the refrigerator. the flavor of these vegetables all deteriorate at refrigerator temperatures. they're warm weather crops and nature didn't mean for them to be in the chilling temperatures of a refrigerator. chicken drumsticks tablespoons vegetable oil cup coarsely chopped onion clove garlic, minced / pound eggplant, peeled and cubed medium zucchini (about / pound) cubed medium tomatoes, coarsely chopped green pepper, cut in thin -inch strips tablespoon minced, fresh basil or teaspoon dried / teaspoon minced, fresh oregano or / teaspoon dried / teaspoon ground pepper remove and discard skin and visible fat from drumsticks. in large skillet, over medium-heat, heat oil. add drumsticks; cook about minutes, turning until browned on all sides. remove drumsticks; drain on paper towels. add onion and garlic; cook minute, stirring frequently. add eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, green pepper, basil, oregano and pepper. cook minutes, stirring occasionally. place drumsticks in vegetable mixture; cook about minutes longer or until drumsticks are tender, occasionally spooning vegetables over chicken. nutritional figures per drumstick calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. chicken in mustard sauceserves if controlling sodium is important to you, use an ordinary table wine for the white wine called for in this recipe. cooking wines often contain salt and should be avoided by anyone who is watching sodium intake. likewise, sweet wines and fortified ones such as sherry, madeira and marsala should be used sparingly because they are higher in calories than dry wines. no wines contain alcohol after cooking. roaster boneless breast or package thin sliced roaster breast tablespoons vegetable oil, divided / pound mushrooms, sliced ( cups) tablespoons minced, fresh parsley l tablespoon minced shallot or scallion l/ teaspoon ground pepper l/ cup low-sodium chicken broth l/ cup dry white wine l tablespoon dijon mustard remove and discard visible fat from breast; slice thin. (if using thin sliced product, skip this step.) in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat tablespoons oil. add breast slices a few at a time, placing so that pieces do not touch. saute minutes, turning once, until chicken is lightly browned on both sides. remove from skillet; keep warm. heat remaining oil. add mushrooms, parsley, shallot and pepper. stirring frequently, cook minutes. stir in broth and wine; bring to a boil and cook until liquid is reduced by half (about / cup). reduce heat to low; stir in mustard until well blended. spoon over chicken. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. chicken veroniqueserves any recipe with the name veronique will have grapes in it. when buying grapes at the supermarket, you can tell how fresh they are by how green and pliable the stem is. another way of telling is to give the bunch a quick shake. if it's fresh, none of the individual grapes should fall from the bunch. i should warn you, though, that shaking the bunch will not do anything for your popularity with the store's produce manager. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast / lemon ground pepper tablespoon unsalted margarine - / teaspoons cornstarch / cup low-sodium chicken broth / cup dry white wine cup seedless green grapes, halved remove and discard any visible fat. butterfly breast halves to make scaloppine. skip the previous step if you are using thin sliced boneless roaster breasts. rub with lemon and sprinkle lightly with pepper. in large skillet over medium heat, melt margarine. add scaloppine, in batches if necessary, so that they do not touch. saute minutes, turning once, until chicken is lightly browned on both sides and just cooked through. remove from skillet; keep warm. in small bowl, stir together cornstarch, broth and wine until smooth; add to skillet. over medium heat, bring to boil; boil minute, stirring constantly. stir in grapes until heated through. to serve, spoon grapes and sauce over chicken. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. chicken breasts with vegetablesserves whenever possible, choose crisp, fresh vegetables over their canned or frozen counterparts. fresh vegetables have better color, flavor and texture. when using frozen or canned products, be sure to look for those with no salt added. this kind of nutritious, high vitamin, low calorie meal that features breast meat is a mainstay for frank and me, and it has been for him for a long time. his grown daughter, bev nida, tells me that one of her childhood memories of frank was that if he was late for dinner, ("and he always was"), everyone knew to save a chicken breast for him. chicken breasts halves tablespoons unsalted margarine large carrots, cut into matchstick strips ( - / cups) ribs celery, cut into matchstick strips ( - / cups) green pepper, cut into matchstick strips ( cup) small shallot, minced cut low-sodium chicken broth / teaspoon ground pepper tablespoons water tablespoon cornstarch remove and discard skin and visible fat from chicken breasts. in large skillet over medium heat, melt margarine. add chicken, cook to minutes, turning until browned on all sides. remove chicken; drain on paper towels. add carrot, celery, green pepper, and shallot; cook stirring constantly, minutes. remove vegetables; set aside. stir in broth and pepper; add chicken. reduce heat to low; cover and simmer minutes or until chicken is cooked through. remove breasts to serving plate; keep warm. in cup, stir together water and cornstarch until smooth; stir into skillet. over medium heat, bring to boil; boil minute, stirring constantly. stir in vegetables ; cook until heated through. to serve, spoon vegetables over chicken. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. chicken stroganoffserves this is a s version of a nineteenth-century russian classic. by substituting plain, lowfat yogurt for sour cream, you're decreasing the calories in this recipe by calories. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast tablespoons vegetable oil, divided medium onions, thinly sliced / pound mushrooms, thinly sliced ( cups) clove garlic, minced / cup low sodium chicken broth / teaspoon ground pepper tablespoons water tablespoon cornstarch container ( -ounces) plain low-fat yogurt hot cooked noodles, cooked without salt remove and discard visible fat from chicken; slice chicken in thin strips. in large skillet over medium heat, heat tablespoon oil. add onions; cook minutes, stirring frequently. add mushrooms; cook minutes longer. remove vegetables from skillet; set aside. heat remaining oil in skillet. add chicken and garlic; cook minutes or until chicken turns white, stirring frequently. return vegetables to skillet; add broth and pepper. in cup, blend water and cornstarch; stir into skillet. over medium heat, bring to a boil; boil minute, stirring constantly. remove from heat; stir in yogurt until well blended. heat gently over low heat (do not boil). serve over noodles. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. citrus-marinated chicken wingsserves taste tests show that the parts of the bird that get the most exercise, such as the wings, leg, and neck have the deepest flavor. the seasonings in this recipe bring out the wonderful flavor of wings. chicken wings tablespoons vegetable oil grated peel and juice of lemon grated peel and juice of orange cloves garlic, minced whole cloves bay leaves fold wing tips back to form triangles. place wings in shallow baking pan. in small saucepan, stir together remaining ingredients and heat over medium heat minutes. pour mixture over wings. cover; refrigerate several hours or overnight. preheat oven to of. bake wings minutes or until tender, basting occasionally. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. roaster breast a l'orangeserves if you have a choice when buying the orange for this recipe, buy a valencia in preference to a navel. navel oranges are excellent eating oranges, but they're not good juice oranges; the juice develops an off flavor if not used within half an hour. the valencia, on the other hand, has a more stable flavor in its juice form. roaster breast - / tablespoons cornstarch - / tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar dash ground pepper / cup orange juice / cup low-sodium chicken broth / cup julienne-cut orange peel strips tablespoon fresh lemon juice preheat oven to of. place breast skin-side up in roasting pan; roast minutes. meanwhile, in -quart saucepan, stir together cornstarch, sugar and pepper. gradually stir in orange juice and broth until smooth. over medium heat, bring to a boil; boil minute, stirring constantly. remove from heat. stir in orange peel and lemon juice. roast chicken, basting frequently with sauce for minutes longer or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when a cut is made near the bone. heat remaining sauce and serve with roaster breast. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. cornish hens with mushroomsserves skim milk contains all the calcium and protein of whole milk. use it to make a prudent version of mushroom "cream" sauce. fresh cornish game hens tablespoons vegetable oil / pound mushrooms, halved or quartered small onions, peeled and cut in thin wedges cup low-sodium chicken broth / teaspoon ground pepper bay leaves cup skim milk tablespoon cornstarch remove and discard any fat from cavities of hens. in a - quart dutch oven or large deep skillet, over medium heat, heat oil. add hens; cook about minutes, turning to brown on all sides. remove hens from pan and set aside. pour off all but tablespoons drippings; stir in mushrooms and onion. cook minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. stir in broth, pepper and bay leaves. return hens to pan; reduce heat to medium low. cover and simmer minutes or until tender. remove hens to serving platter and cut in half. discard bay leaves. in cup, blend milk and cornstarch until smooth; stir into liquid in pan. over medium heat, bring to a boil; boil minute, stirring constantly. serve sauce with hens. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. cornish hens with apple stuffingserves microwave recipe no extra cooking time is needed when you stuff fresh cornish game hens before microwaving. fresh cornish game hens tablespoons unsalted margarine, divided tart red apple, coarsely chopped / cup chopped celery / cup chopped onion cup fresh whole-wheat bread cubes ( slices) / teaspoon poultry seasoning / teaspoon ground pepper tablespoons cider or apple juice divided / teaspoon paprika remove and discard any fat from cavities of hens. place tablespoons margarine in a cup glass container; microwave at high ( % power) seconds. add apple, celery and onion; cover with plastic wrap. microwave at high ( % power) minutes, stirring once. stir in bread cubes, poultry seasoning, pepper and tablespoon cider. spoon stuffing mixture lightly into cavities and close openings with toothpicks. arrange hens, with legs pointing toward center, on microwave-safe roasting utensil. place remaining tablespoon margarine in custard cup; microwave at high seconds. stir in remaining tablespoon cider and paprika; brush mixture on hens. cover hens with wax paper. microwave at medium high ( % power) minutes per pound (combined weight of both hens). let stand, covered, minutes. to serve, cut hens in half. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. curried roaster drumsticksserves in this recipe, you'll see vegetable oil instead of butter or margarine or lard. solid fats contain saturated fat, either because they came from animal sources (butter or lard) or because they have been hydrogenated (shortening or margarine). roaster drumsticks tablespoons vegetable oil medium apples (diced cups) / cup chopped onion clove garlic, minced tablespoon curry powder teaspoon ground ginger / teaspoon ground pepper - / cups low-sodium chicken broth tablespoons cold water - / tablespoons cornstarch remove and discard skin and visible fat from drumsticks. in large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add drumsticks; cook about minutes, turning until browned on all sides. remove; drain on paper towels. pour off all but tablespoon fat. add apple, onion, garlic, curry, ginger and pepper; cook to minutes, stirring frequently. stir in broth. return chicken to skillet; reduce heat to medium low. simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally for minutes or until chicken is tender and cooked through. remove chicken to platter; keep warm. in cup, blend water and cornstarch until smooth; stir into skillet. over medium heat, bring to boil; boil minute, stirring occasionally. spoon sauce over chicken. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. greek lemon chickenserves this recipe adapts well to barbecuing. chicken ( pounds), quartered / cup fresh lemon juice (about lemons) tablespoons cold pressed (extra virgin) olive oil medium-sized onion, sliced into thin rings tablespoons minced fresh oregano or teaspoons dried teaspoons minced fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried / teaspoon ground black pepper cayenne pepper to taste (optional) lemon wedges, fresh oregano and thyme leaves (optional garnish) remove and discard visible fat from chicken. in large, shallow bowl, combine remaining ingredients except garnishes. add chicken and marinate in refrigerator minutes or longer. preheat broiler. drain chicken from marinade; place on rack in broiler pan. broil chicken quarters, inches from heat, for to minutes or until cooked through, turning and basting with marinade to times during cooking. add onion rings during last minutes of broiling time. serve chicken with onion slices and garnish with lemon wedges, and sprigs of fresh oregano and thyme, if desired. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein . carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. lemon drumsticks and thighsserves both the grill and the broiler are good friends to the dieter because any fat that cooks out of your chicken just drops away into the fire or pan below. the juice and rind from lemons help achieve tasty, no salt basting. chicken drumsticks chicken thighs / cup lemon juice tablespoons water tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoon finely shredded lemon peel clove garlic, minced / teaspoon salt (or less) / teaspoon ground pepper remove and discard skin and visible fat from drumsticks and thighs. place in large, shallow dish. in small bowl, stir together lemon juice, water, oil, lemon peel, garlic, salt and pepper; pour over chicken. cover; refrigerate several hours or overnight, turning occasionally. prepare outdoor grill for cooking or preheat broiler. remove from marinade. grill inches from source of heat or broil indoors, cooking about to minutes or until tender and golden brown; turn and baste frequently with marinade. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. oriental chicken and vegetablesserves fresh garlic is definitely better than powdered garlic. if you haven't been using it, give fresh garlic a try. look for garlic cloves with plump, firm heads that have a fresh appearance. the paper-like casing should be dry and should completely cover the individual garlic cloves, and there should be no trace of sprouting. store garlic in a cool, dry place, but don't refrigerate it. i asked a garlic grower why not, and he told me that cool temperatures can increase the garlic's tendency to sprout. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoons cornstarch ground pepper to taste cup low-sodium chicken broth at room temperature tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoons sliced scallions clove garlic, minced cup diagonally sliced carrots (about medium) cup snow peas cup well-drained bean sprouts can ( -ounces) sliced water chestnuts, drained hot cooked rice (cooked without salt) trim visible fat from thighs; cut chicken in thin strips. in small bowl, stir together cornstarch and pepper. gradually stir in broth and soy sauce until smooth; set aside. in wok or large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add green onions and garlic; stir-fry seconds. add chicken and carrots; stir-fry to minutes or until chicken turns white and carrots are tender crisp. add snow peas, bean sprouts and water chestnuts. stir-fry to heat through. re-stir cornstarch mixture; add to wok. over medium heat, bring to a boil; boil l minute, stirring constantly. serve over rice. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. pasta primavera with chickenserves because freshly grated parmesan cheese has a more intense flavor than pre-grated cheese, you can use less of it, and in the process, you'll be saving on both fat and calories. when i'm cooking pasta for frank, i omit both the oil and salt called for in the directions on the pasta package. if we're having guests, though, i use the salt and oil called for in the package directions; people who aren't used to low-fat, low-salt cooking would find it pretty bland otherwise. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast tablespoons vegetable oil, divided scallions, cut in julienne strips (about / cup) cloves garlic, minced pound asparagus, peeled, cut in -inch pieces or julienne zucchini (about cups) carrots, peeled, cut in julienne strips (about cup) / cup low-sodium chicken broth / cup dry white wine / cup minced fresh parsley / teaspoons minced, fresh oregano, or / teaspoon dried / teaspoon ground pepper / pound spaghetti, cooked, drained / cup freshly grated parmesan cheese slice breast meat into thin strips. in a large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat tablespoon oil. add scallions and garlic; cook minute, stirring frequently. add chicken; cook to minutes or until chicken turns white, stirring constantly. remove chicken and vegetables; set aside. heat remaining oil in skillet; add asparagus and carrots and cook minutes, stirring frequently. stir in broth, wine, parsley, oregano and pepper; simmer to minutes or until vegetables are tender crisp. place spaghetti on large platter; top with chicken mixture. sprinkle with cheese. toss and serve. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. pineapple-minted roasterserves microwave recipe fat attracts more microwave energy than muscle does. that's good for you if you're on a low-fat diet because when you microwave chicken, the fat will render out into the drippings where you can easily discard it. whole roaster (about pounds) can ( -ounces) pineapple chunks in their own juice about / cup pineapple juice, orange juice, or water - / tablespoons cornstarch - small sprigs fresh mint or - / teaspoons dried mint leaves tablespoons unsalted margarine, melted remove and discard any visible fat from roaster cavity. remove giblets. place, breast side down, on microwave-safe roasting utensil. drain pineapple chunks, reserving juice and chunks. add additional juice or water to reserved juice to measure - / cups. place cornstarch in -cup glass container and gradually stir juice into cornstarch until smooth. microwave at high ( % power) minutes; stir and microwave minutes longer or until mixture boils and thickens. add mint (if using fresh mint, remove sprigs after five minutes). remove / cup of mixture for glaze; stir pineapple chunks into remaining mixture for sauce and set aside. brush roaster with melted margarine; cover with wax paper. microwave at medium-high ( % power) to minutes per pound, brushing with glaze several times during cooking. halfway through cooking time, turn roaster over, using paper towels to protect hands. pour off drippings and reserve, if desired. baste bird with glaze and cover again with wax paper; complete cooking. let stand, covered with aluminum foil, minutes. (standing time is important even if bird-watcher thermometer has popped.) after standing time, juice should run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. to reheat sauce, microwave at high for two minutes. serve hot sauce with roaster. nutritional figures per serving: calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. roasted cornish hens with new potatoesserves when you combine tender-skinned new potatoes with cornish game hens, you have almost a complete meal in one pan. add a fresh green vegetable to complete a wholesome menu. fresh cornish game hens vegetable cooking spray tablespoons unsalted margarine, melted teaspoon minced shallot or scallion and / teaspoons fresh rosemary or / teaspoon dried ground pepper to taste small new potatoes, quartered pearl onions, peeled cup low-sodium chicken broth tablespoons cold water tablespoon cornstarch preheat oven to of. with sharp knife or poultry shears, cut hens lengthwise in half. remove and discard any visible fat from cavity. spray shallow roasting pan lightly with vegetable cooking spray. place hens skin-side up in pan. stir together margarine and shallot; brush on hens and sprinkle with rosemary and pepper. arrange potatoes and onions around hens. cover pan with foil. bake minutes. uncover and continue baking, basting occasionally, to minutes or until hens and vegetables are tender. remove to serving platter. cover with foil; keep warm. pour pan drippings into measuring cup. allow to stand several minutes until fat drippings separate from hen juices; discard fat. return hen juices to roasting pan; add broth. bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring up brown bits from bottom of pan. in cup, blend water and cornstarch until smooth; stir into broth mixture. bring to a boil; boil minute, stirring constantly. serve gravy with hens and vegetables. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. roaster paprikashserves this comment has nothing to do with this recipe, but i'm slipping it in here because i thought you might like to know about it! fitness declines if you exercise two days or less each week. fitness is maintained if you exercise three days a week. fitness is improved if you exercise four or more days a week. whole roaster (about pounds) / cup vegetable oil small white onions, peeled carrots, peeled and quartered - / cups low-sodium chicken broth tablespoons paprika, divided / teaspoon ground pepper / cup water tablespoons cornstarch cup plain low-fat yogurt remove and discard any visible fat from cavity. remove giblets, tie legs together and fold wings back. fasten neck with wooden pick or small skewer. in -quart saucepot over medium heat, heat oil. add roaster. cook about minutes, turning until browned on all sides. remove and set aside. add onions and carrots; cook minutes, stirring frequently. remove vegetables. pour off fat and stir in broth, tablespoon paprika and pepper. return roaster to saucepot; sprinkle with remaining paprika. arrange onions and carrots around roaster. reduce heat to medium low; cover and simmer hour or until roaster juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced and vegetables are tender. remove roaster and vegetables to serving platter; keep warm. in cup, blend water and cornstarch until smooth; stir into liquid in saucepot. bring to a boil over medium heat; boil minute, stirring constantly. remove from heat; add yogurt and stir until well blended and smooth. heat gently over low heat; do not boil. serve sauce with roaster and vegetables. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. tandoori cornish hensserves fresh cornish game hens contain even less fat and fewer calories than larger poultry and are close in size and flavor to the chickens traditionally used for india's tandoori chicken. if you want a barbecue version of this, using chicken breasts, look for "boneless breasts tandoori" in chapter five. fresh cornish game hens / cup plain yogurt tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoons lime juice tablespoon curry powder cloves garlic, minced teaspoons minced fresh gingerroot teaspoon grated lime peel teaspoon chili powder teaspoon paprika with sharp knife or poultry shears, cut hens lengthwise in half. remove and discard any visible fat from cavities. place hens in large shallow baking dish. in small bowl, stir together remaining ingredients; brush on all sides of hens. cover; refrigerate several hours or overnight to marinate. preheat oven to of. place hens on rack in shallow baking pan; brush with marinade. bake minutes. reduce oven temperature to of; bake to minutes longer or until chicken is tender and juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced with a fork. nutritional figures per serving: calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. tarragon roasted chickenserves make a light, clear pan gravy for chicken by removing fat from drippings and using cornstarch instead of flour to thicken; tablespoon cornstarch = tablespoons flour. whole chicken (about pounds) tablespoons unsalted margarine tablespoon minced fresh tarragon or - / teaspoons dried / teaspoon ground pepper sprigs fresh parsley cloves garlic, peeled cup low-sodium chicken broth tablespoons dry white wine tablespoon cornstarch remove and discard any visible fat from cavity of chicken. remove giblets. preheat oven to of. in small saucepan, over medium heat, melt margarine; stir in tarragon and pepper. place parsley and garlic in cavity of chicken; tie legs together. place chicken, breast-side up, in roasting pan; brush with tarragon mixture. roast, brushing occasionally with remaining tarragon mixture, for about / hours or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. remove chicken to serving platter; keep warm. pour pan drippings into measuring cup. allow to stand several minutes until clear fat drippings separate from chicken juices; discard fat drippings. return chicken juices to roasting pan; add broth. in cup, blend wine and cornstarch; stir into roasting pan. over medium heat, bring to a boil, stirring up brown bits from bottom of pan; boil minute. serve gravy with chicken. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. thyme thighsserves wine is a flavor bargain, if you're counting calories. the alcohol calories in this recipe will evaporate away, but the flavor of the wine remains. chicken thighs tablespoons flour / teaspoon ground nutmeg / teaspoon cayenne pepper tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoon fresh, minced thyme or teaspoon dried / cup dry white wine remove skin from thighs and trim visible fat. on wax paper, combine flour, nutmeg, and pepper. coat thighs with flour mixture. heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. add thighs and cook to minutes or until lightly browned, turning once. sprinkle thyme on chicken and pour wine on top. cover, reduce heat to medium low and cook minutes or until chicken is tender. nutritional figures per serving calories . protein grams. carbohydrate grams. fat grams. cholesterol mg. sodium mg. crunchy baked drumsticksserves the grated lemon peel and the pepper can minimize the need for salt in this recipe. if you're on a low salt diet, skip the salt. chicken drumsticks egg white, lightly beaten tablespoons lowfat milk / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cup crunchy nut-like cereal nuggets or bran flakes, crushed (grapenuts) teaspoon grated lemon peel vegetable cooking spray preheat oven to of. in shallow bowl, beat together egg white, milk, salt and pepper. on waxed paper, combine cereal and lemon peel. roll drumsticks evenly in egg white mixture, then in cereal mixture, turning to coat well. spray a rectangular baking dish or cookie sheet with vegetable cooking spray. arrange drumsticks in dish in a single layer. bake to minutes or until cooked through and golden. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium mg. cholesterol . cape cod chicken breastsserves the cranberries called for in this recipe are available in your supermarket produce section from september through november. if you want to have cranberries available for use at another time of the year, buy them when they're available and then freeze them in the bag they came in, but enclose that bag in a freezer bag so the berries are double wrapped. they'll stay in good condition for about nine months. chicken breast halves ground pepper to taste to tablespoons vegetable oil or margarine medium onion, finely chopped - / cups fresh or frozen, thawed cranberries / cup orange juice to tablespoons sugar teaspoon grated fresh orange peel pinch nutmeg removed skin, and season chicken on both sides with pepper. in a large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add chicken breasts and cook for to minutes per side until golden brown. add onion; cook minutes longer, stirring often. add cranberries, orange juice, sugar, orange peel and nutmeg. stir to scrape up bits from bottom of skillet; bring to a boil. reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook to minutes longer or until chicken is tender and cranberries are soft, stirring occasionally. remove chicken to warm platter; keep warm. transfer cranberry mixture from skillet to food processor or blender; cover and puree until almost smooth. to serve, pour sauce over chicken. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium mg. cholesterol mg. mediterranean chicken breastsserves fresh garlic, stored in a cool, dry place will last about as long as a fresh onion. if the cloves start to sprout, you can still use them, but they won't be quite as flavorful. chicken breast halves to tablespoons olive oil ground pepper to taste / cup dry red wine fresh or canned plum tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped garlic cloves, minced / teaspoon dried basil / teaspoon dried marjoram / cup pitted black olives, cut in half / cup minced, fresh parsley remove skin from chicken breasts. in a large skillet, over medium heat, heat tablespoon oil. add chicken breasts and cook for minutes until golden, turning once. add more oil if necessary. stir in wine, tomatoes, garlic, basil and marjoram; bring to a boil. reduce heat to low; cover and simmer to minutes or until chicken is almost cooked through. uncover; increase heat to medium- high and cook minutes longer or until liquid is reduced by one-third. stir in olives and parsley; heat through. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium mg. cholesterol mg. indonesian chicken kebobs with curried yogurt dip serves you can use bottled lime juice in this recipe, but it lacks the spark that fresh lime juice has. also, you can lower the sodium content still further by using light soy sauce. tablespoons fresh lime juice tablespoons soy sauce tablespoon vegetable oil teaspoon brown or white sugar garlic clove, crushed boneless, skinless chicken breast halves cup plain lowfat yogurt / cup chopped scallions tablespoon curry powder teaspoon oriental sesame oil, optional in a shallow bowl, combine lime juice, soy sauce, vegetable oil, sugar and garlic; mix well. add chicken, turning to coat with marinade. cover and refrigerate hour. meanwhile, in small bowl, combine yogurt, scallions, curry powder and sesame oil. cover and refrigerate until ready to use. remove chicken from marinade and cut into / -inch cubes; reserve marinade. on each of to skewers, thread to chicken cubes. preheat broiler. place skewers in broiler pan; broil inches from heat source to minutes until cooked through, turning once and brushing occasionally with marinade. serve kebobs with curried yogurt dip. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium grams. cholesterol mg. poached chicken in creamy lemon sauceserves i'm fond of this recipe because the texture is creamy and it doesn't use cream. boneless, skinless, chicken breast halves / teaspoon ground pepper / cup chicken broth / cup white wine tablespoons lemon juice teaspoon grated lemon peel cup lowfat milk - / tablespoons cornstarch tablespoon dijon mustard tablespoons minced, fresh parsley, optional season chicken with pepper. in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat, combine broth, wine, lemon juice and lemon peel; bring to a boil. add chicken; reduce heat to medium-low. cover and simmer to minutes or until chicken is cooked through. transfer chicken to a warm serving plate and keep warm. in a small bowl, blend milk, cornstarch and mustard until smooth; stir into simmering liquid in skillet. increase heat to medium; cook until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. return chicken to skillet; coat well with sauce. sprinkle with parsley, if desired. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium cholesterol mg. chicken and bell pepper sauteserves this recipe is prettiest when made with red, green, and yellow bell peppers. however, your supermarket may not have the red and yellow ones available, in which case, substitute green ones. incidentally, red bell peppers started out as green bell peppers, but as they matured, their color changed from green to red. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves teaspoon ground cumin teaspoon dried oregano ground pepper to taste to tablespoons olive oil clove garlic, minced small red bell pepper, cut into thin strips small green bell pepper, cut into thin strips small yellow bell pepper, cut into thin strips place chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / inch thickness. sprinkle both sides of chicken with cumin, oregano and pepper to taste, pressing to make seasonings adhere. in large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add chicken; saute to minutes per side or until almost cooked through. remove chicken to warm platter; keep warm. add garlic and pepper strips to drippings in skillet; stir- fry one minute. reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook minutes or until peppers are tender-crisp. return chicken to skillet, spooning pepper mixture on top. cover and cook to minutes longer until vegetables are tender and chicken is completely cooked through. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium grams. cholesterol mg. chicken normandyserves if they're available, choose rome beauty apples for this recipe. romes have a somewhat flat, mealy taste when eaten raw, but their flavor develops a wonderful richness when cooked. they're available from october until early summer. the golden delicious, the cortland, the jonathan, and the granny smith are also good for baking. the red delicious apples, by the way, are only fair for cooking. chicken, cut in serving pieces (about pounds) ground pepper to taste vegetable cooking spray medium apples, cored and sliced large onion, sliced / cup apple cider or juice tablespoons fresh lemon juice tablespoon vegetable oil teaspoons brown sugar / teaspoon ground allspice preheat oven to f. sprinkle chicken pieces with pepper to taste. spray by -inch baking dish with vegetable cooking spray. arrange chicken in baking dish; scatter apple and onion slices around and on top of chicken. in cup, combine cider, lemon juice, oil, sugar and allspice; pour over chicken. bake, uncovered, for about hour or until chicken is cooked through and apples are tender, turning pieces once during cooking and basting occasionally with drippings. to serve, remove chicken from pan juices and spoon apples and onions on top. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium mg. cholesterol mg. balsamic chicken and mushroomsserves if you can find balsamic vinegar, buy it! i've included red wine vinegar in case you can't find balsamic vinegar, but the balsamic vinegar is terrific in this recipe, and it's worth having on hand for salad dressings afterwards. chicken, cut in serving pieces (about pounds) ground pepper to taste paprika - / to tablespoons olive oil, divided tablespoons chopped shallots or scallions cups sliced fresh mushrooms (about / pound) / cup chicken broth tablespoons balsamic or red wine vinegar preheat oven to f. in large baking dish, place chicken, skin-side up; brush with / to tablespoon oil and sprinkle with pepper and paprika to taste. bake minutes. pour off and discard pan juices. meanwhile, in medium skillet over medium-high heat, heat remaining oil. add shallots; saute minutes until slightly softened. stir in mushrooms; cook minutes longer until lightly browned, stirring constantly. add broth and vinegar; reduce heat to medium, and cook minutes or until mushrooms are tender and liquid is slightly reduced. pour mushroom mixture over chicken; bake to minutes longer until chicken is cooked through, basting occasionally with pan drippings. serve chicken with mushroom sauce. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium mg. cholesterol mg. harvest chicken dinnerserves acorn squash is high in vitamin a. a single serving will more than meet your recommended daily allowance for this vitamin. whole roaster (about pounds) / cup white wine / cup brown sugar tablespoons cider vinegar tablespoon vegetable oil teaspoons dried rosemary leaves, crushed teaspoon worcestershire sauce large acorn squash preheat oven to of. remove and discard and visible fat from roaster cavity. remove giblets. tie drumsticks together and fold wings back. place chicken in roasting pan. in small bowl, combine wine, sugar, vinegar, oil, rosemary, worcestershire; brush mixture on roaster, covering entire surface. roast chicken minutes. meanwhile, cut squash into quarters; remove seeds. after minutes cooking time, arrange squash in roasting pan around chicken; fill cavities with a little rosemary mixture. roast chicken, basting occasionally / to / hours longer (depending on weight) or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. to serve, slice chicken with degreased pan juices and accompany with squash. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium mg. cholesterol mg. cajun spiced roaster if roasters aren't available in your area, you can use a regular whole chicken, adjusting the cooking time. however, roasters are juicier and tenderer and more flavorful, so if you've got a choice, go for a roaster. whole roaster (about pounds) to - / tablespoons dried thyme teaspoons ground black pepper teaspoon salt / to teaspoon cayenne pepper clove garlic, minced celery ribs, sliced (leaves included) onion, quartered / cup parsley sprigs / lemon tablespoon vegetable oil preheat oven to f. remove and discard any visible fat from roaster cavity. remove giblets. rub roaster inside and out with lemon; brush oil evenly over skin. in small bowl, combine thyme, black pepper, salt, red pepper, and garlic. rub some of mixture into cavity of roaster; stuff with celery, onion and parsley. skewer or tie cavity closed and fold back wings. rub remaining herb and spice mixture evenly into skin of roaster, covering entire surface. place chicken in roasting pan. roast / to / hours (depending on weight)or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. baste occasionally with pan drippings. to serve, remove celery, onion and parsley from cavity of roaster; discard. skim fat from pan drippings and discard; reserve pan juices. slice roaster and serve with pan juices. nutrition figures per serving calories . protein grams. fat grams. carbohydrate grams. sodium . cholesterol chapter four$chicken for children this chapter is going to be about cooking for and by kids, but i got the idea for it when i was thinking about something entirely different. i was idly wondering, "when is frank the absolute happiest and most content?" part of me instantly wanted to answer, "when working, of course." i believe that for him business is pleasure. if it's a busy time, he'll happily get along for weeks at a time on four hours sleep and work the rest except for meals. when it gets really busy, i've seen him get by on two hours$and still relish the work. but there are certainly other things he enjoys. he's an avid baseball fan and the best father's day gift i think he ever got was tickets to go to one of the oriole games with his son jim and grandson ryan. he also loves dancing (his nickname years ago used to be "twinkle toes"). still, i think the time that he looks the most relaxed and content and generally pleased with life is when the four children and twelve grandchildren are here. they're scattered from maine to virginia, so we don't get them often, but when we do, it's an occasion. and it's one when i want to have food that i can count on the kids' liking. here are some of the principles of cooking for young children that i've learned from the perdue home economists and from cooperative extension. i'm guessing that if you have kids, you know their preferences pretty well, but if you're entertaining other kids, these tips may come in handy. _finger foods such as chicken nuggets are always a hit. i keep a carton or two on hand for a never-fail snack food for kids$or grown-ups. _young children often prefer uncomplicated tastes. while some may go for elaborate sauces, it's safest to cook chicken by quickly sauteing it in your frying pan, and then have any of the grown-up's sauces available for the kids to use as an optional dip. _avoid highly seasoned foods for kids unless you know they're used to them. _frequently young children like uniform textures. casseroles with hard and soft textures would be riskier than, say, a straightforward boned chicken breast. _pieces cut from a cooked cornish hen can be a real treat for a small child. he or she eats the child-size portion, breast or leg, while the grown-ups eat regular size broiler breast or drumsticks. _my friends in cooperative extension tell me that the latest scientific research suggests thinking of a balanced diet in terms of several days rather than just a rigid - hour period. that means that if one of the kids in your care goes on a chicken-eating jag or a peanut butter jag or a not-eating jag, don't worry; it's ok as long as in the course of several days he or she is getting a balanced diet. knowing this can make meal time a lot more relaxed. cooking with school age kids can be a lot of fun, as long as it's presented as a treat instead of a chore. you might, for a start, get them involved in planning the week's menu. i know some families who allow each child to pick the main dish for one meal a week. older children actually get to cook their choice. my daughter-in-law, jan perdue, suggests getting kids to pick out meals with an ethnic or international theme so that mealtime is a time to explore other cultures as well as a time to eat. many of the recipes in this chapter are not only popular with kids, they're designed to be easy and fun for them to make. when your kids are trying these recipes, how about teaching them some of the food preparation tips that will be useful to them for the rest of their lives? when i'm cooking with kids, my first concern is food safety. i explain to them that in most cases food-borne illnesses don't make you violently sick (although they can); the usual episode is more likely to be simple queasiness or a headache or feeling under the weather and not knowing quite why. to avoid these nuisance illnesses as well as the possibility of more serious ones, the number one rule is: _wash your hands and all utensils before and after touching any raw meat. here are some other food preparation tips that kids should know: _before starting to cook, read the recipe carefully and gather all ingredients and equipment. _don't wear loose, floppy clothing or sleeves that are too long. tie back hair if it gets in the way. _when using a sharp knife, cut on a cutting board and point the knife away from your body. _if you're walking around with a knife, hold it so the blade is pointed toward the floor and away from your body. _make sure you know how to light your stove. if a gas burner or oven doesn't light, turn the knob to "off" and ask an adult for help. electric burners remain hot even after they're turned off, so don't touch! _when removing lids from cooking pots, point them away from you to prevent steam burns. _don't let pot handles extend over the edge of the stove or counter$a little brother or sister could grab the handle and pull it down on his or her head. _never stick anything into an electric mixer or blender while it's running. _don't let any part of your potholder touch the burner; it could catch fire. _clean up as you go along$and don't forget the cutting board. _double check that stove and appliances are turned off before you leave the kitchen. make a habit of turning off the burner before removing your pan, that way you won't forget. _never be embarrassed to ask for help. that's how we learn. personally, i love having kids in the kitchen. i like the bustle and hubbub, and even though i know, as i'm sure you do too, that we parents could probably do things a lot faster without their "help," that's not the point. the point is being together and doing things together and having fun together. allison's chix in a blanket at age , our granddaughter allison perdue, loves to make these. she tells me that her -year old brother can make them too. she got the recipe from summer camp, but changed the main ingredient to frank's franks. if you can't find frank's franks, use any chicken hot dog. it will have much less fat than regular franks. i've watched ally make these, and sometimes the biscuits stay wrapped around the frank, and sometimes they open during cooking. ally says they're okay either way. biscuits from a tube of buttermilk refrigerator biscuits, uncooked chicken frank tablespoon of grated cheddar cheese, or more, to taste lay the biscuits side by side with the sides touching. pinch together the parts that are touching and then, using your palms or a rolling pin, press or roll the biscuits into a single rectangle that's hot dog shaped, only wider. lay a frank on the dough and then sprinkle the frank with the cheese. pierce frank in several places with fork. wrap the dough around the frank, pinch closed, and then bake according to the directions for cooking the biscuits. bbq "spareribs" makes , serves - one of my favorite commercials is of frank introducing the perdue chicken franks. it starts out with frank in front of a hot dog stand calling out, "hot dogs only cents." a young kid who's been made up to have a large nose and ears just like frank's, says, "only cents for a hot dog? how good could it be?" frank answers, "i'm making it easy for people to try perdue chicken franks." the kid answers, "chicken franks? free would be a lot easier." when frank answers that his franks cost less and have % less fat, the kid answers, "all right, i'll bite," and then says, "tastes as good a real hot dog." frank looks at the kid, with his perdue-shaped nose and ears, and says, "this kid's got good taste and good looks." these "spareribs" also taste good and look good. chicken franks - / cups prepared barbecue sauce tablespoon finely chopped onion teaspoon mustard slice each frank on the diagonal into pieces. in a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients. add frank slices and toss gently to coat well. arrange coated franks in single layer on baking sheet and place under broiler minutes. turn and broil minutes longer, or until franks are golden brown. watch carefully to avoid burning. serve with toothpicks, if desired. betsy's best-"getti" serves - you can make this even simpler by using canned spaghetti. also, if you top the casserole with thin slices of mozzarella and heat it until the mozzarella melts, you'll get a gloppy, stretchy, chewing-gum-like topping that kids will adore if they're into being messy. mine love it. chicken franks pound spaghetti tablespoons vegetable oil / cup finely chopped onion / clove garlic, minced can ( -ounces) tomato sauce can ( -ounces) whole tomatoes, chopped with liquid / teaspoons minced fresh basil or / teaspoon dried tablespoon minced fresh parsley grated parmesan cheese slice franks into thin rounds. in large kettle, over high heat, bring - / quarts salted water to boil. add spaghetti, stir and cook until tender. drain and place in large bowl. in a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat oil. add garlic and onion and cook for minutes, stirring often. add tomatoes and liquid, sauce and herbs. stir and add franks. bring to boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer minutes. pour sauce over spaghetti, toss to combine. serve with parmesan cheese. big top corn dogsserves because this involves deep fat frying, it's probably best cooked by adults or mature teenagers only, but the end result will impress your kids. chicken franks / cup flour package ( -ounces) corn muffin mix eggs cup milk vegetable oil for deep frying wooden lollipop or caramel-apple sticks pierce each frank in several places with a fork. roll in flour and set aside. in a mixing bowl combine corn muffin mix, eggs and milk; mix thoroughly. in large fryer or deep, heavy skillet, heat / inches of vegetable oil to of or until bread cube sizzles in it. dip each frank in batter, coating evenly. place gently into oil; cook - at one time, turning until golden brown all over. drain on paper towels. place corn dogs on lightly-oiled shallow baking sheet and bake at of for minutes or until thoroughly heated. insert stick at least -inches into corn dog. serve with mustard and ketchup. chicken divanserves - this is an easy recipe for a kid when he or she is in charge of making dinner for the family. package ( -ounces) frozen broccoli, uncooked packages fully cooked chicken breast tenders / teaspoon salt or to taste can ( - / -ounces) cream of celery soup, undiluted cup shredded cheddar cheese preheat oven to of. place broccoli across bottom of baking dish; sprinkle with salt. arrange chicken tenders in a layer on top of broccoli. pour soup over chicken. sprinkle with cheese. bake, uncovered for - minutes or until broccoli is just tender. chicken pizzas serves if you want something unusual for the teenagers, this is it. it's tasty and not much trouble. chicken drumsticks can ( - / -ounces) pizza sauce cup grated mozzarella cheese package ( -ounces) refrigerated parkerhouse rolls (unbaked) preheat oven to of. pour pizza sauce in small bowl. dip chicken in sauce; place on baking sheet. bake, uncovered, for minutes. separate rolls and roll out one at a time to -inch circle. dip chicken in pizza sauce again and roll in cheese. place on round of dough; pull dough around chicken and pinch together. (leave bony end of drumstick uncovered for finger eating.) bake, uncovered, approximately minutes longer or until dough is brown. cozy kitten whiskersserves a short cut for this is to use bread dough that comes in tubes in the refrigerator section of your supermarket. chicken franks package ( - / -ounces) hot roll mix butter or margarine pierce each frank in several places with a fork. to make "whisker" on both ends of franks, lay frank on cutting board and make -lengthwise cuts - / -inches from each end. cut carefully, rotating frank, so that "whiskers" result. repeat with all franks. prepare hot roll mix according to package directions. or use the prepared bread dough that comes in tubes at the supermarket. divide into equal portions and roll each on lightly floured surface to by -inch square. starting at a corner, roll dough around middle of each frank, leaving ends of franks exposed. place on buttered baking sheet, tucking dough tip under frank. arrange "whiskers" fanned out. brush with melted butter. bake in preheated of oven for to minutes until golden brown. serve with mustard and ketchup in squeeze containers so children can "draw" faces. crispy peanut butter chickenserves i once heard a professor at the university of california at davis argue that wine was the greatest cultural achievement of mankind. he's wrong, of course. it's really peanut butter. or at least a lot of my young friends seem to think so. by the way, did you know that there are peanuts in a -ounce jar of peanut butter? the first time i made this recipe, i skipped the / cup oil, just to see if i could save some calories. having tried it, i don't recommend skipping any of the oil. it was too dry and crusty without it. egg / cup peanut butter teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup milk / cup bread crumbs chicken, cut in serving pieces / cup oil preheat oven to of. in a mixing bowl beat egg and peanut butter together; add salt and pepper. add milk gradually, stirring well to blend. place bread crumbs on a sheet of wax paper. dip chicken in peanut butter mixture and roll in crumbs. place chicken, skin side up, in single layer in shallow baking pan. pour oil over chicken. bake, uncovered, at of for hour, or until cooked through. croissant dogsserves - i don't think i can count the number of times my son carlos made this as a teenager. he's also served it to frank. carlos and i laugh over the idea of serving frank's franks to frank. chicken franks package ( -ounces) crescent roll dough tablespoons dijon mustard slices swiss cheese, x -inches egg beaten with tablespoon water - / teaspoons poppy seeds (optional) preheat oven to of. pierce franks all over with tines of fork. divide crescent rolls and place on lightly floured surface. working with one piece of dough at a time, fold tips of long side of triangle in to meet at center. then stretch triangle lightly up toward point. cut cheese slices in half, then diagonally to form four triangular pieces. brush dough with thin layer of mustard, top with cheese, brush with mustard again. roll franks in the dough, starting at the bottom and rolling toward the point. place on ungreased baking sheet so they are not touching. brush lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with poppy seeds. place in the middle of the oven for to minutes or until dough is golden brown. crunchy mini drumsticksserves young children love miniature versions of adult food, but if you're serving this recipe to them, i recommend leaving out the worcestershire sauce. / cup whole wheat flour eggs, beaten teaspoon worcestershire sauce (optional) / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cups whole wheat or seasoned bread crumbs tablespoons unsweetened wheat germ (optional) / cup vegetable oil chicken wings paprika preheat oven to of. place flour on wax paper. in shallow bowl, beat eggs with worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. on another sheet of wax paper, combine bread crumbs and wheat germ, if desired. pour oil into a shallow roasting pan or large shallow baking dish and place in oven. with sharp knife, divide wings into pieces, reserve bony wing tips to prepare chicken broth. roll remaining "mini drumstick" pieces first in flour, then in egg mixture, and finally in bread crumbs. sprinkle with paprika and arrange in preheated baking dish. bake minutes, then turn with tongs and bake minutes longer. reduce heat to of; cook to minutes longer until crisp and golden brown. drain on paper towels and serve warm or at room temperature. deli dogsserves - some teenagers love sauerkraut; some most definitely don't. this is a great dish for those who do. chicken franks can ( -ounces) sauerkraut cups bisquick tablespoon caraway seeds / cup water tablespoons prepared mustard (optional) flour egg beaten with tablespoon water preheat oven to of. pierce franks all over with tines of fork. drain sauerkraut thoroughly by pressing between two stacked dinner plates, then chop coarsely. in a large mixing bowl, combine bisquick, sauerkraut and teaspoons of the caraway seeds. gradually add water and mix vigorously until soft, slightly sticky dough forms. divide dough in half. roll each half on a well-floured surface into a x -inch rectangle approximately / -inch thick. cut each rectangle into four x -inch pieces. brush center of each piece of dough with a thin layer of mustard, if desired, then brush the outer / -inch of the rectangle with egg wash. roll each frank loosely a piece of dough. tuck outer ends under and place seam-side down on lightly greased baking sheet so they are not touching. brush lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with remaining caraway seeds. bake in middle of oven for minutes or until crust is golden brown. serve with more mustard and relish if desired. jalapeno burgersserves - this is good for older teenagers. young kids ones may find the flavors too harsh. package fresh ground chicken (about pound) / cup shredded monterey jack cheese with jalapeno peppers / teaspoon cumin teaspoon salt taco shells tomato, thinly sliced avocado, thinly sliced cup salsa combine chicken and remaining seasonings. form into burgers. grill or broil on lightly oiled surface to - inches from heat source to minutes per side until burgers are cooked through. serve in heated taco shells with slices of tomato and avocado. top with salsa. maple crunch chickenserves maple syrup with chicken may seem a little unusual to you$but it's really good. frank liked it so much that i've served it to him several times, once substituting boneless skinless chicken breasts. if you want to make that substitution, shorten the cooking time to about twenty minutes, or until a meat thermometer registers - degrees. also, use instant oatmeal and toast it for a couple of minutes in the oven first, to compensate for the shorter time in the oven. chicken, cut in serving pieces egg / cup maple syrup / cup uncooked oatmeal teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup oil preheat oven to of. in a shallow bowl beat egg with maple syrup. place oatmeal, salt and pepper on a sheet of wax paper. dip chicken pieces in egg mixture, then oatmeal mixture. pour oil in shallow baking pan. place chicken, skin side down, in oil in baking pan; turn chicken pieces to coat with oil; leave skin side up. bake, uncovered, for approximately hour, or until cooked through. nacho nibblesserves i've made this recipe scattering the cheese and franks and other ingredients over the tortilla chips haphazardly, and i've also made it so that each individual tortilla chip has its own slice of frank, its own chili and its own pepper and cheese. the second way looks more impressive. the first way is a lot easier. my son jose likes to serve this at parties with his college friends. chicken franks package ( ounces) tortilla chips cups chili scallions, thinly sliced / cup diced green pepper, or mild to hot green chili peppers ounces grated monterey jack or cheddar cheese preheat oven to of. cut franks into thin slices. place tortilla chips on large shallow baking pan and top with frank slices. dab chili on top, then sprinkle with scallions, peppers and cheese. bake nachos for minutes or until cheese bubbles. photo: tucking chicken nuggets into pita pockets and arranging vegetables are easy steps in teaching children... - nuggets in a pocketserves this is an easy sandwich for teenagers to make. package fully-cooked chicken breast nuggets mini pita pockets prepared thousand island dressing or magic mixture sauce (recipe follows) / cup shredded lettuce cherry tomatoes, halved bake nuggets following package directions. slit top of pita pockets. spoon to teaspoons sauce into each pocket and fill with nuggets, lettuce, tomato and additional sauce if desired. serve with rick rack carrot sticks and broccoli trees (raw cut-up pieces of carrot and broccoli). magic mixture sauce: in small bowl, combine / cup mayonnaise, / cup ketchup, tablespoon prepared french dressing, / to / teaspoon curry powder (optional), and - drops tabasco (optional). nutty buddy chickenserves according to the texas peanut producers' board, we americans eat million pounds of peanuts each day. tell your kids that, as they help you chop the salted peanuts for this recipe. egg tablespoons milk / cup all purpose flour teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup bran buds / cup finely chopped salted peanuts chicken, cut in serving pieces / cup melted butter or margarine preheat oven to of. in a shallow bowl beat egg with milk. place flour, salt, pepper, bran buds and peanuts on a sheet of wax paper and mix together. dip chicken pieces in egg mixture; then flour mixture. place chicken in single layer, skin side up, in shallow baking pan. pour melted butter or margarine over chicken. bake, uncovered, for about hour or until cooked through. picnic packet chickenmakes packets the whole picnic meal is ready to serve when these come out of the oven -- and there are no portioning and serving problems. children love this idea. you can also cook this on an outdoor grill. chicken, cut in serving pieces small raw carrots, cut in sticks raw potatoes, quartered teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / teaspoon dried oregano teaspoons butter or margarine preheat oven to of. tear off pieces heavy duty aluminum foil, approximately -inches square. place or pieces of chicken on each piece of foil. put one carrot and one potato on each piece of foil. sprinkle salt, pepper and oregano over all. add teaspoon of butter or margarine to each. wrap tightly. bake for approximately hour or until chicken is cooked through. potato chip drumsticksserves - these are wonderful for school lunch boxes. since they're stored in the freezer, you can take them out a meal at a time and they'll defrost in the child's lunch box in time to eat later in the day. chicken drumsticks / cup whole wheat flour container ( -ounces) plain yogurt ( cup) salt and ground pepper to taste / teaspoon curry powder (optional) package ( -ounces) no-salt potato chips, crushed preheat oven to of. grease a baking sheet. remove skin from drumsticks. in small bowl, combine yogurt, salt, pepper and curry. on wax paper, place crushed potato chips. roll drumsticks first in yogurt mixture and then in potato chips, pressing crumbs gently onto drumsticks to coat thoroughly. arrange drumsticks on baking sheet and place in oven. reduce heat to of and bake to minutes until crisp and golden brown. chill drumsticks, uncovered, on baking sheet. then wrap individually in foil and freeze. if desired, allow extra foil at ends of package and twist to form a chicken. to pack for lunch: freeze individual containers of juice overnight. place frozen juice in lunch bag with well- chilled or frozen foil-wrapped drumsticks and fresh peas and cherry tomatoes in plastic bag. frozen juice will keep other foods chilled and by lunchtime will be a "fruit slush" dessert. variation: instead of potato chips, use crushed salt-free tortilla chips and substitute chili powder for curry. punk pizza rollsserves tell your kids as they're eating this, "if you grew as fast as a chicken, you would have weighed pounds by the time you were months old!" chicken franks cup tomato sauce or pizza sauce tablespoons finely chopped onion / teaspoon dried oregano flour tortillas / cups shredded mozzarella cheese preheat oven to of. pierce each frank in several places with a fork. in a small bowl combine tomato sauce, onion, and oregano; spread equal amounts over each tortilla. place one frank in center of each tortilla and roll up. place rolls about one-inch apart in shallow baking dish and sprinkle each with equal amount of cheese. bake for about minutes or until cheese melts and bubbles. ramaki wrapsmakes , serves - this is a good appetizer for a teenage party. i've served it to kids who would never go for the chicken livers in the original ramaki recipe. they've loved this version, made with cut up franks. chicken franks can ( -ounces) water chestnuts, drained strips bacon preheat oven to of. cut each frank into slices. slice water chestnuts thinly. halve bacon slices crosswise. for each ramaki, wrap frank slice and water chestnut slice with bacon; secure with toothpick. place ramakis on a rack over large baking pan and bake for minutes or until bacon is crisp. red eye eggrollsmakes , serves these take some work, but they've been a great success with both kids and adults. i've served them at parties where both have been present and the "egg rolls" vanished just about as fast as i could make them. chicken franks tablespoons vegetable oil can ( -ounces) bean sprouts, drained cups shredded chinese cabbage or iceberg lettuce tablespoon soy sauce / cup chicken broth square eggroll wrappers (you might be able to find them in the produce section of your supermarket and they are available in oriental food shops.) egg, beaten vegetable oil for deep frying halve franks crosswise, set aside. in large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil; add vegetables, toss and cook minutes. add soy sauce and broth. reduce heat to medium- low and simmer, covered, minutes; drain well in colander. place eggroll wrapper on work surface with a corner pointing toward you; brush each corner with egg. place two rounded tablespoons of vegetable mixture in center, then top with frank piece horizontally. fold bottom corner over frank and filling, then fold right and left corners over and roll up to complete. in a wok, fryer or heavy skillet, heat -inches oil to of or until a small cube of bread sizzles when placed in oil. fry - eggrolls at a time until crisp all over. drain well on paper towels. before serving , re-heat on shallow baking pan in preheated of oven for to minutes. (i don't recommend reheating them in the microwave. they'll come out soggy instead of crisp.) spiced creamed cone chickenserves this is my first choice for when our twelve grandchildren are coming. the ice cream cone flavor is so subtle that no one has yet been able to identify it without being told. still, the flavor is delicious. teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup sour cream tablespoon finely chopped onion / teaspoon ground allspice ice cream cones, crushed (i use the sugar cones) chicken, cut in serving pieces tablespoons shortening preheat oven to of. in a shallow bowl combine sour cream, salt, pepper, onion and allspice. place cone crumbs on a sheet of wax paper. dip chicken in sour cream mixture; then in cone crumbs. melt shortening in shallow baking pan; place chicken in single layer, skin side up, in pan. bake, uncovered, for about hour or until cooked through. spicy southwestern casseroleserves - is there a teenage cook in the family? he or she could make this for the family dinner one night this week. chicken franks cans ( -ounces) chili cup yellow cornmeal teaspoons baking powder teaspoon salt or to taste eggs / cup melted butter or margarine cup sour cream can ( ounces) niblets-style corn, drained / pound grated monterey jack or cheddar cheese can ( ounces) chopped, mild green chilies, drained preheat oven to of. cut franks in half lengthwise. place chili in bottom of a buttered x x -inch baking dish. arrange franks, cut side down, on top of chili. in medium size mixing bowl, mix dry ingredients. add eggs, butter, and sour cream and blend thoroughly. fold in corn. sprinkle half of the cheese and green chilies over the layer of franks. top with half of the corn mixture. sprinkle with remaining cheese and chilies and finish with a layer of corn mixture. smooth the top with a spatula. bake in the middle of oven for to minutes, or until top is lightly browned and toothpick inserted in corn layers comes out clean. photo: school's open, and crunchy tater-chip drumsticks, fresh vegetables and frozen-juice "slush" earn high lunch bag... - sweet and sour chickenserves this is one of the national chicken cooking contest winners, and it's easy enough for the beginning cook. the original recipe called for adding a teaspoon of salt to the sweet and sour mixture, but i found that the salt in the salad dressing and the onion soup mix was enough. if your kids like foods salty, they may want to sprinkle more on at the end. chicken, cut in serving pieces bottle ( -ounces) russian salad dressing envelope ( - / -ounces) dry onion soup mix jar ( -ounces) apricot preserves preheat oven to of. place chicken, skin side up, in single layer in large shallow baking dish. in a large measuring cup combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. bake, uncovered, for about hour, or until cooked through. taco dogsserves - our neighbors south of the border might be surprised at this version of their tacos, but it's quick and good. chicken franks taco shells can ( -ounces) chili with beans cup shredded monterey jack or cheddar erey jack or cheddar cheese cup shredded lettuce / cup diced tomato preheat oven to f. split franks in half lengthwise and grill or fry briefly. place franks in taco shells and top each with tablespoons chili and tablespoon cheese. place tacos on baking sheet and bake for minutes, or until chili is hot and cheese is melted. top with taco sauce, lettuce, tomato and remaining cheese. serve immediately. tater franksserves - this is inexpensive and easy to like. chicken franks tablespoons melted butter or margarine, divided - / tablespoons milk teaspoon salt or to taste ground pepper to taste cups cooked riced potatoes or very firm prepared instant mashed potatoes egg yolks egg whites, lightly beaten with tablespoon water - / cups cornflake crumbs preheat oven to of. pierce franks all over with a fork. pour half of butter into a mixing bowl. add milk, salt and pepper, then add riced potatoes and beaten egg yolks. (if using instant mashed potatoes, omit milk.) beat thoroughly with wooden spoon until well blended; chill until firm enough to handle. divide potato mixture into eight parts. using your hands, form an even layer of potato (about / - inch thick) around each frank. if mixture is sticky, flour hands lightly. roll first in cornflake crumbs, then in egg white and water mixture, and again in crumbs. place tater franks on buttered baking sheet so they are not touching, and drizzle with remaining melted butter. bake in the middle of the oven for minutes or until crisp and golden brown. serve immediately. team spirit herosserves your teenagers can make this one. if they don't like peppers or onions, it's fine to skip them. chicken franks hero rolls tablespoons vegetable oil onion, thinly sliced green peppers, cut into thin strips - / cups tomato sauce tablespoon fresh, minced basil or teaspoon dried tablespoon minced fresh parsley slices provolone cheese, cut into half-inch strips pierce each frank in several places with a fork. cut rolls lengthwise, leaving the two halves attached. in a large skillet over medium-low heat, heat oil. add onions and peppers and cook for minutes stirring often. add sauce and herbs; stir and simmer minutes. preheat oven to of. place one frank in each roll, spoon equal amounts of sauce mixture over franks. close roll and wrap securely in foil. heat for minutes, turning packages after minutes. chapter five: chicken for barbecuing: america's love affair with an old flame is heating up! photo: we have four good barbecue photos that might go with this chapter. they're paperclipped in section labeled page . are you about to barbecue something? then you're part of an ancient tradition. barbecuing is actually man's oldest form of cooking; the outdoors was man's first kitchen and an open fire his first stove. the earliest cooking method was to lay food on smoldering embers or impale it on sticks held over a fire or dying coals. it wasn't until the s, however, that backyard barbecuing as we know it began to catch on. it may surprise you, but auto mogul henry ford played a major role in this$and it had nothing to do with his automobiles. ford's contribution to backyard barbecuing was the invention of the charcoal briquet. in the late s, it was ford who had the better idea of grinding charcoal, combining it with a starch, and re-forming it into uniform pillow shaped briquets. these charcoal briquets burned more consistently and more evenly than randomly sized and shaped lumps of charcoal. people immediately began using charcoal briquets for industrial purposes, but backyard grills weren't readily available yet. in the s, when backyard grills became widely available, and outdoor cooking really began to take off. the combination of outdoor grills and the charcoal briquets made barbecuing so easy and reliable, that today, according to a barbecue industry association survey, seven out of ten american households own a barbecue grill, and we use them about . billion times a year total. frank and i also barbecue, but it took some learning on my part. in spite of being someone who loves to cook, before marrying frank, i'd never barbecued. i'd never even thought to buy an outdoor grill. what i'd been missing! frank does own a barbecue, a nice handsome one that can manage chickenburgers for our combined eighteen children and grandchildren all at once. i love it, because we can all be outdoors, playing volley ball or watching the young ones, with their arsenal of squirt guns, as they gang up on frank$and the beauty of it all is that no one has to miss a moment of the fun by having to go into the kitchen to fuss with dinner. if you've been barbecuing for years, skip ahead to the recipes. but if you're like me and still new at it, here are some tips that can help you get uniformly good results. the tips come from the perdue food scientists and home economists, from cooperative extension and from the barbecue industry association. _start with a clean grill. removing old ashes assures good air circulation, and cleaning away any cooked- on bits of food results in better flavor and quality. _be sure to wash everything after handling raw meat. don't use the same plate for the cooked meat that you used for the uncooked meat unless you've washed it in between. _coat grate with vegetable cooking spray, or brush with cooking oil to prevent food from sticking. _if the basting sauce contains oil, however, do not grease the grill; too much oil causes flare-ups. _prepare the fire a half hour or more before grilling. for quick lighting, use a chimney starter with crumpled newspaper in the bottom and briquets or charcoal above. or stack the charcoal in a pyramid shape and light with a liquid or electric starter, following the manufacturer's directions. charcoal is ready for cooking when it's % ashy grey in daylight, glowing red at night. this usually takes about to minutes. _toss a handful of aromatic wood chips such as mesquite, hickory, alder, or fruitwood chips over the coals. they'll create a whole new dimension of flavor without adding any extra calories. _check the temperature of the fire before cooking food to prevent over- or under-cooking. for most of the recipes in this chapter, the fire should be medium-hot with a single, even layer of coals lightly covered with grey ash. it's relatively simple to judge the temperature of a charcoal fire. to do this, hold your hand, palm side down, at cooking height: hot - you can hold your hand over the coals for only seconds. medium-hot - you can hold your hand over the coals to seconds. medium - you can hold your hand over the coals to seconds. _be patient. if the fire hasn't cooled down adequately, do not be tempted to put your chicken on to cook - unless you like "blackened bird" a lot more than i do. _if you're dieting and want to remove the chicken's skin, do so after cooking, not before. without some kind of covering, the chicken will dry out and toughen before it finishes cooking. _turn chicken frequently, about every minutes to insure even doneness and to prevent blistering. _if flare-ups occur, remove the food for a few moments and sprinkle water lightly over the flames, or smother them by covering the grill. a friend of mine who works for a volunteer fire department keeps a laundry squirt bottle handy for flare-ups. _to increase the heat, you can push coals together, add more coals or lower the grilling surface, or fan the fire and tap the ashes from the coals. _to decrease heat, raise the cooking grid or sprinkle coals with a little water. _cook white-meat poultry until juices run clear and the meat reaches an internal temperature of o to of and dark meat to o to of on a meat thermometer. _grill smaller poultry parts and cornish game hens directly over a single layer of coals on an open grill or hibachi. _grill whole birds and larger parts using the indirect method in a covered grill. place a drip pan beneath the bird; the pan should be slightly larger than the bird. fill the pan halfway with water, and surround it with a double layer of coals to provide longer, slower, oven-like cooking. add extra coals to the outer edge of the fire as needed to extend grilling. _to reduce the chance of overbrowning, apply tomato- based sauces or those containing sugar or other sweeteners only during last to minutes of grilling. _to make breast quarters grill more quickly and evenly, cut through the wing joint to break it and bring the wing closer to the grill. _chicken should be well-done. if you don't want to take the usual time it takes, cook your chicken partially in the microwave and then finish it on the grill. _the basic guidelines for timing chicken on the grill are: parts$cook dark meat minutes, white meat minutes, basting and turning every five or so minutes. halves$first, grill skin side down for minutes, then cook covered, skin side up, - minutes. wings$ minutes per side. whole$(about and / pounds...about and / to and / hours in a covered grill, and / to hours on rotisserie. _use tongs rather than a fork to turn food gently without losing juices. _if you plan to use marinade as a sauce to be served with chicken during the meal, be sure to cook it before using. you want to avoid the cross-contamination that can come from contact with the uncooked chicken. temperatures over degrees will destroy any microbes. beer-be-cued chicken serves - this is one of the national chicken cooking contest winners. it's been adapted slightly, and this version has the reputation of being particularly popular with men. can ( -ounces) beer tablespoon dark molasses tablespoon onion juice tablespoons lemon juice / cup ketchup teaspoon salt or to taste chicken, cut in half lengthwise in a shallow dish combine beer, molasses, onion juice, lemon juice, ketchup and salt. add chicken, cover, and marinate hours or longer, refrigerated. grill chicken to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. turn and baste with marinade every to minutes. boneless breasts tandooriserves to in many eastern countries, yogurt is a favorite ingredient for marinades used to flavor and tenderize meats. one of the most famous of these recipes is india's tandoori chicken, which takes its name from the clay stove called a tandor in which it is cooked. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves cup plain yogurt / cup butter or margarine / cup fresh lemon juice large cloves garlic, minced teaspoon cinnamon teaspoon ground cumin teaspoon ground ginger teaspoon turmeric teaspoons ground coriander salt and ground pepper to taste lemon wedges for garnish / cup melted butter in large bowl combine yogurt, butter, lemon juice and spices. place chicken breasts in mixture and turn to coat well. cover and marinate for hours or longer, refrigerated. remove chicken from marinade and grill to inches above medium-hot coals for minutes turn and baste to times with marinade. serve with lemon wedges. brandy-orange barbecued cornishserves - when choosing the brandy for this, i'd recommend a california brandy in preference to an imported one. the california ones tend to be lighter and more fruity, which makes them appropriate for this recipe. fresh cornish hens tablespoon vegetable oil tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided / teaspoon ground ginger, divided salt and ground pepper to taste / cup orange marmalade tablespoon brandy with kitchen string, tie drumsticks together. rub hens with oil and tablespoon lemon juice; sprinkle with / teaspoon ginger, salt and pepper. in small bowl, combine marmalade, brandy, remaining lemon juice and ginger; set aside. place hens on grill breast side up. grill, covered to -inches above medium-hot coals to minutes. after minutes, brush hens with brandy-orange sauce. cook, basting to times, until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. chick kebabsserves these chick kebabs go wonderfully with rice. as someone who grows rice commercially, it hurts me to say this, but for this recipe, i recommend a kind of rice i don't grow, the long grain kind that cooks up fluffy with each grain separate. (i grow short or medium grain rice which is always sticky, no matter how you cook it.) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves / pound small, fresh mushrooms can ( - / -ounces) whole white onions green pepper, cut in one-inch squares marinade: / cup oil tablespoons vinegar can ( -ounces) crushed pineapple cup ketchup tablespoons soy sauce teaspoon curry powder / teaspoon minced fresh rosemary or / teaspoon dried tablespoons brown sugar - / teaspoons salt or to taste teaspoons ground pepper tablespoon fresh lemon juice tablespoon cornstarch / cup water cut chicken breasts into -inch cubes. alternate chicken on skewers with mushrooms, onions and green pepper, then lay flat in shallow baking dish. combine marinade ingredients except flour and water. pour marinade over skewers. cover and store in refrigerator to hours or overnight. baste kebabs with marinade and grill to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes until chicken is lightly browned and cooked through. in a small bowl dissolve cornstarch in water. place remaining marinade in a small saucepan. stir in cornstarch and heat, stirring until sauce is slightly thickened. serve sauce over kebabs and rice. chicken almondineserves - you can save money buying the sesame seeds for this recipe in bulk, either from your supermarket or health food store. the one drawback to buying them in bulk is that they have a limited shelf life and at room temperature, they can develop an off-taste due to rancidity. keep bulk sesame seeds refrigerated or frozen if you won't be using them in a week or so. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves - / teaspoons salt or to taste / teaspoon paprika tablespoons sesame seeds tablespoons butter or margarine, melted tablespoons sliced almonds tablespoons dry vermouth aluminum foil season chicken with salt and paprika; then roll in sesame seeds. place each chicken piece in center of piece of foil; fold sides up to vertical position to hold liquids. place tablespoon butter, tablespoon almonds and tablespoon vermouth on each chicken piece. close foil over chicken and seal well. place packets on grill to inches above hot coals. cook about minutes, turning to times until chicken is cooked through. chicken tarragonserves to make breast quarters grill more quickly and evenly, remember to cut through the wing joint to break it and bring the wing closer to the grill. chicken, quartered / cup fresh lime juice / cup vegetable oil / cup chopped onion / cup chopped fresh tarragon or tablespoons dried salt and ground pepper to taste working from the cut side of breast and thigh quarters, carefully use fingers to separate skin from flesh and form a "pocket." in large bowl, combine lime juice and remaining ingredients. place chicken in marinade and spoon some marinade between skin and flesh. cover and refrigerate hour or longer. drain chicken, reserving marinade. grill chicken, uncovered, to -inches above medium-hot coals - minutes or until cooked through, turning and basting frequently with marinade. chutney burgersserves - try this "yogurt sauce" along with the chutney burgers. in a small bowl combine / cup yogurt, tablespoons chopped scallions, teaspoons lemon juice, / teaspoon sugar, / teaspoon salt and a dash of cayenne pepper. package fresh ground chicken (about pound) tablespoons chutney tablespoon fresh lemon juice / cup chopped scallion teaspoon salt individual pita pockets in a mixing bowl, combine chicken and remaining seasonings. form into to burgers. grill on lightly oiled surface, to inches above medium-hot coals, to minutes per side, or until burgers are cooked through. serve in lightly toasted pita pockets topped with "yogurt sauce". confetti burgersserves - a neat accompaniment for confetti burgers is halved kaiser rolls, brushed with olive oil flavored with garlic. place on outer edges of grill a few minutes until lightly toasted. package fresh ground chicken (about pound) / cup oat bran or bread crumbs / cup finely chopped onion / cup diced tomato / cup finely chopped carrot / cup finely chopped celery / cup finely chopped green pepper tablespoon worcestershire sauce tablespoon fresh lemon juice teaspoon salt / teaspoon dried thyme / teaspoon ground black pepper kaiser rolls in a mixing bowl combine chicken with vegetables and seasonings. form into burgers. grill on lightly oiled surface to -inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes per side or until burgers are cooked through. serve on toasted kaiser rolls. chinese grilled drumsticksserves - hoisin sauce is available in chinese groceries. it's slightly sweet, and thick, somewhat like ketchup. roaster drumsticks salt and ground pepper to taste / cup hoisin sauce tablespoons dry sherry tablespoons cider vinegar tablespoons honey teaspoon minced fresh ginger clove garlic, minced season chicken to taste with salt and pepper. in a shallow bowl combine remaining ingredients. roll drumsticks in sauce, reserving excess. wrap drumsticks individually in aluminum foil, adding a spoonful of sauce to each package. grill to -inches from hot coals, or bake hour at of, turning once. unwrap drumsticks and place on grill, or broiling pan. pour drippings from foil packages and remaining sauce into a small saucepan and heat. grill or broil drumsticks turning and basting frequently with sauce for minutes or until cooked through. fire eaters' chickenserves this recipe gets its name from the rather large quantity of red pepper. if children and other non-fire eaters will be eating this, you will probably want to decrease the amount of red pepper substantially. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves tablespoons fresh lemon juice tablespoons olive oil garlic cloves, minced teaspoon paprika / to teaspoon crushed red pepper or to taste / teaspoon salt or to taste lemon wedges (optional) in shallow dish, combine lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, paprika, pepper and salt. add chicken to marinade, turning to coat both sides. cover and refrigerate hour or longer. drain chicken, reserving marinade. grill chicken breasts, uncovered, to -inches above medium-hot coals to minutes on each side until cooked through, basting occasionally with marinade. to serve, garnish with lemon wedges. game hens pestoserves pesto is a sauce made with basil, parsley, garlic, olive oil and parmesan cheese. if you're looking for a shortcut, you might be able to find ready-made pesto in your supermarket. fresh cornish game hens / cup olive or salad oil / cup minced fresh basil or tablespoon dried basil / cup minced fresh parsley tablespoons grated parmesan cheese small clove garlic, minced / teaspoon salt or to taste can ( -ounces) minced clams, drained tablespoons dry white wine (optional) halve hens lengthwise and remove backbones. place half on each of four -inch squares of heavy duty aluminum foil. turn up edges of foil. in bowl, blend oil, basil, parsley, cheese, garlic and salt. add clams and wine. divide among packets, spooning over hens. bring two opposite sides of foil together and close packets securely using several folds and turning up ends to seal. cook to inches above hot coals, to minutes, until cooked through, turning packets twice. packets may also be baked at of for about minutes. grilled breast steak saladserves if you have leftovers, use them in a sandwich. roaster boneless breast tablespoons butter or margarine, melted - / teaspoons worcestershire sauce / teaspoon paprika salt and ground pepper to taste / cup red wine vinegar teaspoons dijon mustard / cup olive or vegetable oil tablespoons minced red onion cups spinach leaves, sliced into / " strips cups thinly sliced red cabbage flatten breast halves slightly between sheets of plastic wrap. combine butter, worcestershire sauce, paprika, salt and pepper. brush sauce liberally over chicken. grill to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes on each side or until cooked through. remove and slice thinly on the diagonal. combine vinegar and mustard in a small bowl. slowly whisk in oil. add red onion and season with salt and pepper. place cups spinach and cups cabbage in a salad bowl. arrange half of the chicken slices over top and spoon half of the dressing over all. grilled cornish with vegetablesserves if you want to skip tying the legs together, as called for in this recipe, the hens won't hold their shape as well and will look more relaxed. the advantage is that you may feel more relaxed. fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons butter or margarine medium carrot, cut into thin strips small leek, cut into thin strips rib celery, cut into thin strips / cup apple juice tablespoon minced fresh parsley season hens inside and out with salt and pepper. tie legs together and fold wings back. place each hen on an -inch square of heavy duty aluminum foil. dot with butter. divide vegetables and apple juice among foil pieces. fold edges up and seal tightly. place packets on grill to inches above hot coals. cook to minutes, turning to times until hens are cooked through. or bake at of one hour or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. open foil packages carefully and sprinkle with parsley. grilled drumsticks with fruit mustardserves - do you remember in the early s a fast food chain had a popular advertising campaign based on the slogan, "where's the beef?" one of my favorite perdue ads is a full page ad showing frank holding a drumstick with a big bite missing. he's looking out at you, his eyebrows raised quizzically as he asks, "who cares where the beef is?" this recipe could have been used to cook the drumstick shown in the ad. roaster drumsticks salt and ground pepper to taste ripe apricots, or can ( -ounces) drained and coarsely chopped tablespoon fresh lemon juice / cup dijon mustard tablespoons dark brown sugar / cup brandy teaspoon worcestershire sauce season drumsticks with salt and pepper. toss apricots with lemon; add remaining ingredients and toss. wrap drumsticks individually with aluminum foil, adding a spoonful of sauce to each package. grill to inches above hot coals or bake at of for hour, turning once. unwrap drumsticks and place on grill, or broiling pan. add drippings from foil packages to remaining sauce. grill or broil drumsticks turning and basting frequently with sauce for minutes or until cooked through. grilled cutlets costa del solserves this is one of perdue's most popular and most requested recipes. roaster boneless thigh cutlets / cup dry sherry teaspoon paprika teaspoon ground cumin teaspoon sugar teaspoon white vinegar salt and ground pepper to taste clove garlic, minced place cutlets between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / " thickness. in a shallow dish combine remaining ingredients. add chicken and marinate for hour or longer, refrigerated. grill chicken to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. turn and baste with glaze to times. grilled cutlets greek style with olive oilserves olive growers like to point out that the lowest mortality rates due to cardiovascular disease are found on the greek island of crete where olive oil consumption is highest. roaster boneless thigh cutlets cloves garlic, minced tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided tablespoons olive oil, divided / cup plain yogurt teaspoon dried oregano salt and ground pepper to taste ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges ( cups) cucumbers, peeled, halved and cut into / " slices ( / cup) tablespoons minced, fresh parsley or mint / cup pitted ripe olives place cutlets between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / " thickness. in a shallow dish whisk together garlic, tablespoon lemon juice, tablespoons olive oil, yogurt, oregano, salt and pepper. add cutlets and turn to coat with marinade. cover and marinate for hours or longer, refrigerated. grill cutlets to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes on each side or until cooked through. in a large bowl, combine tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, black olives, remaining lemon juice, tablespoons olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. sprinkle with parsley or mint before serving. cutlets may be served hot with salad as a side dish or served cold sliced and added to salad. gypsy burgers serves - what i like best about chicken burgers, as opposed to hamburgers, is that chicken burgers don't shrink much when you cook them. package fresh ground chicken / cup chopped scallion, divided / cup sour cream, divided teaspoons paprika teaspoon salt / teaspoon ground pepper pinch cayenne pepper to slices italian or french bread in a mixing bowl, combine chicken, / cup scallions, tablespoons sour cream, and remaining ingredients. form into to burgers. grill on lightly oiled surface to inches above medium-hot coals, to minutes per side or until cooked through. serve on toasted slices of italian or french bread, topped with sour cream and scallions. photo: hawaiian glazed wings hawaiian glazed wingsserves - the natural juiciness of chicken wings makes them a good choice for barbecuing. this can make either a nice meal for a few, or appetizers for several. chicken wings / cup vegetable oil tablespoons fresh lemon juice / teaspoon seasoned salt or to taste marmalade pineapple glaze: / cup orange marmalade / cup pineapple preserves / cup soy sauce teaspoon dijon mustard tablespoons white wine vinegar in a large bowl toss wings with vegetable oil, lemon juice and seasoned salt. in a small bowl combine glaze ingredients. drain wings and grill to inches above medium-hot coals for about minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. turn and baste to times with glaze. herb barbecued breastsserves frank always removes the skin from chicken, and often, that means losing some of the herbs and spices. i like this recipe because even if you remove the skin at the end of the barbecuing, the flavoring is still there. chicken breast halves / cup softened butter or margarine tablespoons chopped scallions tablespoons minced, fresh parsley and / teaspoons minced, fresh rosemary, or / teaspoon dried / teaspoon salt or to taste small clove garlic, minced / teaspoon ground pepper working from the wide "neck end" of breasts use finger tips to carefully separate skin from meat to form a pocket. in a small saucepan combine remaining ingredients. place about tablespoons of butter mixture in pocket of each breast. close skin flap at neck edge with a small skewer or toothpick. melt remaining butter mixture and reserve for basting. grill chicken to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through turning and basting chicken every to minutes with butter. honey mustard grilled hens serves i've found that hens cook a little faster and are more attractive when served if you remove the backbone before cooking. fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons butter or margarine tablespoons honey / tablespoons dijon mustard tablespoon worcestershire sauce halve hens and remove backbones. (see page ___ for directions on doing this.) season with salt and pepper. in a small saucepan, melt butter; stir in remaining ingredients. grill hens to inches above hot coals to minutes or until cooked through, turning often. baste with sauce during last minutes of cooking time. hot and spicy pick-of-the-chickserves - are you familiar with the spice, "cumin", called for in this recipe? it's the dried fruit or seed of a plant in the parsley family. it's sometimes substituted for caraway seed and is a principal ingredient in both curry powder and chili powder. jar ( -ounces) roasted peppers, drained can ( -ounces) mild green chilies, drained tablespoons brown sugar tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoons lime juice - / teaspoons tabasco teaspoon ground cumin teaspoon salt or to taste to sprigs fresh coriander (optional) package chicken parts (about pounds) in food processor or blender, combine all ingredients except chicken; puree until smooth. set aside / cup sauce. grill chicken, uncovered, to -inches above medium-hot coals to minutes or until cooked through, turning and basting with remaining sauce to times during grilling. serve reserved / cup sauce as a condiment with grilled chicken. oriental grill "kung fu" cutlets serves when you see the sweet potatoes called for in this recipe, you might wonder, "is there's a difference between sweet potatoes and yams?" and if there is a difference, "does it matter?" according to sweet potato grower tom archibald from california, there is and it does. "the sweet potato's texture is close to an irish potato's, while the yam's is moister and less firm and doesn't hold up as well," he says. "you can tell the difference between them because the sweet potato is light-skinned, while the yam has a bronze- colored or reddish skin." boneless, skinless chicken breast halves or package thin sliced roaster breast sweet potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled scallions, trimmed tablespoon soy sauce teaspoon sesame or vegetable oil / teaspoon ground pepper / cup tonkatsu sauce (recipe follows, or use bottled version) place chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / inch thickness. skip previous step if using thin sliced roaster breast. cut sweet potatoes into / - inch slices. place chicken and potatoes in a shallow bowl with scallions, soy sauce, oil and pepper; toss well. grill cutlets and potato slices to inches above medium- hot coals for to minutes per side or until cutlets are cooked through and potato slices tender. grill scallions minutes, turning once. serve grilled cutlets and vegetables with tonkatsu sauce as condiment; add a favorite cole slaw as side dish. tonkatsu sauce: in small bowl, combine / cup sweet and sour sauce, tablespoon soy sauce, teaspoon white vinegar, and teaspoon worcestershire sauce. lemon special chicken serves - if you don't want to barbecue a half chicken, substitute chicken parts. see table on page for amounts to equal a whole chicken. chicken, cut in half lengthwise tablespoons butter or margarine, melted / teaspoon paprika tablespoons sugar tablespoons fresh lemon juice teaspoon worcestershire sauce teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper grill chicken halves to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. in a small saucepan combine remaining ingredients. make sauce of butter or margarine, paprika, sugar, lemon juice and worcestershire. turn and baste chicken with butter sauce to times. mahogany barbecued hensserves people often ask frank if a cornish game hen is a separate breed from regular chickens. the answer is mostly no and a little bit yes. cornish game hens are young chickens, usually around five weeks; if they were just a couple of weeks older, they'd be sold for broilers, except for the perdue ones. perdue cornish come from the roaster breed which perdue geneticist norman lupean developed, and which is only available through perdue. unlike broilers, roasters reach market size at twelve weeks. both perdue cornish and the oven stuffer roasters were bred to have the broadest, meatiest breasts in the industry. fresh cornish game hens / cup mustard / cup grape jelly tablespoons oil halve hens and remove backbones. in a small bowl combine remaining ingredients. grill to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes until cooked through, turning to times. baste with mustard mixture during last minutes. mexicali chickenserves - when you buy a chili powder for use in a mexican dish like this one, you can be pretty sure that as long as you stick with the same brand, it will be about the same "heat" next year as it was last year. having this kind of quality control is difficult because, first, there are more than known varieties of chilies, each with their own degree of "heat" and second, the same variety grown in a different climate or different year will vary considerably. the chili powder manufacturers get a consistent product by adjusting the formulations each year. / cup fresh lime juice / cup white vinegar teaspoon chili powder teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper whole roaster breast tablespoons chopped, mild green chilies / cup ketchup tabasco in large bowl, combine lime juice, vinegar, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper. place breast in marinade; cover and refrigerate hour or longer. when coals are hot, arrange around drip pan filled halfway with water, close all vents. drain breast, reserving marinade. place breast skin side down on grill over drip pan. grill, covered, to minutes, turning occasionally. meanwhile, in small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine reserved marinade, green chilies, ketchup and tabasco to taste; bring to a boil. reduce heat to low; simmer until slightly thickened. remove from heat and brush over chicken during last minutes of cooking time. serve chicken with remaining sauce. grilled fiesta lunch mexicali cutletsserves you could just heat the cutlets in the microwave, but the smoke from the barbecue will produce a particularly delicious result. package breaded chicken breast cutlets, ready to eat slices monterey jack or mild cheddar cheese flour tortillas ripe tomato, sliced ripe avocado, sliced / cup sour cream / cup mexican salsa grill cutlets to -inches above hot coals to minutes on each side or until crisp, browned and sizzling. in last to minutes, place a slice of cheese on each cutlet to melt. while cutlets are grilling, sprinkle tortillas with few drops of water and wrap in aluminum foil. warm tortillas along edge of grill. to serve, remove grilled cutlets to serving plates and top with tomato and avocado slices; add dollops of sour cream and salsa. pass warm tortillas. mississippi smoky barbecued drumsticksserves try serving these with drumsticks frills for a special decorative touch. fold heavy white paper ( -inches by - inches) in half, lengthwise. fold in half lengthwise again and tape long edges closed. this produces a strip measuring -inches by - / -inches. cut strip into two - / -inch strips. on each, slash -inch cuts at / -inch intervals along the entire length of the untaped folded edge. to "fluff" frills, press top of slashed edge. tape frills in place around drumsticks just before serving. roaster drumsticks salt and ground pepper to taste / cup finely chopped onion / cup finely chopped green pepper / cup ketchup tablespoon worcestershire sauce - / teaspoons liquid smoke (optional) tablespoons dark brown sugar tablespoons cider vinegar / teaspoon cinnamon to drops tabasco, or to taste season drumsticks with salt and pepper. in a shallow dish combine remaining ingredients. roll drumsticks in sauce, reserving excess. wrap drumsticks individually in aluminum foil, adding a spoonful of sauce to each package. grill to -inches from hot coals, or bake at of hour, turning once. unwrap drumsticks and place on grill, or broiling pan. add drippings from foil packages to remaining sauce. grill or broil drumsticks turning and basting frequently with sauce for minutes or until cooked through. north carolina grilled chicken serves - this was a national chicken cooking contest winner. chickens, cut in half lengthwise cup butter or margarine ( sticks), melted envelopes ( -ounces each) italian salad dressing mix / cup fresh lime juice teaspoon salt or to taste place chicken in a shallow dish. in a measuring cup combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken; cover and refrigerate. melt butter or margarine in saucepan. marinate turning occasionally, for to hours or overnight. grill chicken to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. turn and baste with marinade every to minutes. peppery grilled thigh saladserves the arugula called for in this recipe is not essential and you can substitute watercress or even iceberg lettuce if you have to. but if you can find it, it's a fresh attractive taste. i used to grow arugula in my back yard garden, using seeds a friend brought back for me from italy. boneless roaster thigh cutlets teaspoon coarsely ground or cracked black pepper tablespoons worcestershire sauce, divided / cup olive oil or vegetable oil, divided salt to taste tablespoon dijon mustard tablespoons wine vinegar tablespoon minced shallot or scallion small head bibb or boston lettuce, torn into pieces bunch arugula, well rinsed, torn into pieces head belgian endive, torn into pieces / pound green beans, cooked tender-crisp tablespoon minced fresh basil (optional) tablespoon minced fresh parsley open cutlets and flatten slightly to even thickness; press pepper into both sides of cutlets and place in a shallow baking dish. add tablespoons worcestershire sauce; turn chicken to coat well. cover and refrigerate hour or longer. remove cutlets from marinade; brush with tablespoon oil and sprinkle lightly with salt. grill cutlets, uncovered, to -inches above medium-hot coals to minutes or until chicken is cooked through, turning occasionally. in salad bowl, combine mustard, vinegar and shallot. gradually whisk in remaining oil. slice warm cutlets and add any meat juices to dressing. arrange greens around edges of dinner plates. toss chicken and beans with dressing and mound equal portions in middle of greens. to serve, drizzle salads with any remaining dressing and sprinkle with minced herbs. prairie barbecued chicken serves - besides adding flavor, vinegar makes an excellent tenderizing agent in this$or any$marinade. / cup butter or margarine, melted / cup cider vinegar bottle ( -ounces) ketchup teaspoon salt or to taste teaspoon ground pepper cup water chicken, cut in half lengthwise in a shallow dish combine butter, vinegar, ketchup, salt, pepper and water. add chicken and turn to coat well; cover and refrigerate. marinate chicken several hours or overnight. grill to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. baste with marinade and turn to times. photo: "spring "b" list, , father's day barbecue provencal herb drumsticksserves - the flavorful combination called "herbes de provence", consisting of basil, thyme, oregano, and other herbs, is typically used in marinades in the south of france, where grilling is often done over cuttings from grape vines. chicken drumsticks / cup red wine / cup water tablespoon wine vinegar garlic cloves, minced / teaspoons minced fresh basil or / teaspoon dried - / teaspoons minced fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried - / teaspoons minced fresh oregano or / teaspoon dried bay leaf tablespoon tomato paste teaspoons anchovy paste (optional) / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper tablespoon olive oil with fork, pierce drumsticks to help seasonings to penetrate. in large bowl, combine remaining ingredients except oil; whisk in oil. add chicken to marinade; cover and refrigerate hour or longer. grill drumsticks, uncovered, to -inches above medium-hot coals to minutes or until cooked through, turning and basting frequently with marinade. russian grilled cornishserves - for a traditional russian cornish, use a heavy iron skillet to weight hens while grilling. called tabaka-style in russia, pressed chicken is popular because it browns quickly and holds its shape well. fresh cornish game hens tablespoons fresh lemon juice clove garlic, minced tablespoon vegetable oil kosher salt and pepper to taste lemon wedges (optional) with poultry shears or sharp knife, cut along both sides of backbone and remove. on flat surface, spread out hens skin side up and press down on breast bones to flatten. in a dish combine lemon juice and garlic. add hens to marinade, turning to coat well. cover and refrigerate hour or longer. remove hens from marinade, rub lightly with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. place hens on grill, skin side up, and top with a heavy iron skillet or other pan filled with pound heat-proof object, to flatten. grill, to inches above medium-hot coals. after minutes turn hens and replace weight. continue grilling for another to minutes or until hens are well browned and cooked through. to serve, garnish hens with lemon wedges. santa fe chicken heroserves - thin-sliced roaster breast couldn't be easier or faster to grill for this hearty update of the submarine/hoagy/hero sandwich. this is a complete tex-mex meal in one. roaster thin-sliced boneless breast ( / pounds) or skinless, boneless, chicken breast halves butterflied tablespoon vegetable oil salt and ground pepper to taste cayenne chili powder to thin slices monterey jack cheese with chilies to slices french or italian bread tablespoons melted butter or margarine to leaves romaine lettuce tomato, thinly sliced avocado, peeled, pitted, sliced and tossed with lemon juice / cup prepared salsa rub chicken lightly with oil and season with salt, pepper, cayenne and chili powder. grill, to -inches above medium-hot coals about minutes on each side. top chicken with slices of cheese; grill to minutes longer or until cheese is melted. brush bread with melted butter; grill alongside chicken to minutes on each side until golden brown. to serve, place a lettuce leaf on each toasted bread slice. evenly divide chicken, slices of tomato and avocado on top. serve sandwiches open-faced with salsa. seasoned barbecued chickenserves - this recipe calls for sauterne wine, which is a fairly sweet wine. you can use another white wine if you can't find sauterne; the results will still be good, just different. chicken, cut in half lengthwise cup sauterne wine / cup oil / cup fresh lemon juice / cup soy sauce tablespoon onion juice clove garlic, minced / teaspoon salt / teaspoon ground pepper place chicken in a shallow dish and add remaining ingredients. turn chicken to coat with marinade. cover and refrigerate for hours or longer. grill chicken to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. turn and baste with marinade to times. soy and sesame thigh kebabsserves thigh meat is a good choice for barbecuing because it's naturally juicy and doesn't easily dry out or toughen. if you want to grill some vegetables at the same time, reserve some of the marinade and baste the vegetables with it. try serving the kebabs over rice. roaster boneless thigh cutlets teaspoon minced, fresh ginger or / teaspoon dried cloves garlic, minced tablespoons sesame seeds / cup soy sauce tablespoon white vinegar tablespoons vegetable oil tabasco, to taste flatten cutlets slightly with a meat pounder. cut each thigh into or pieces. in a shallow dish, combine remaining ingredients. add thigh pieces and toss to coat well. cover and marinate one hour or longer, refrigerated. thread chicken onto skewers; reserve marinade. grill kebabs to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes until cooked through turn and baste often with marinade. sweet and sour roaster breastsserves - boneless roaster breasts grill quickly and make an impressive dish for guests. because they are skinless, they absorb marinades well, but should be turned and basted often to keep the meat moist. without basting, they can quickly get dry and tough. roaster boneless breast / cup diced onion / cup soy sauce tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoons minced fresh ginger / cup brown sugar tablespoon cornstarch in a shallow dish, combine onions, soy sauce, oil and ginger. place chicken in marinade; cover and refrigerate hour or longer, turning occasionally. drain chicken, reserving marinade. grill breasts to - inches above medium-hot coals to minutes on each side or until cooked through. meanwhile, in small saucepan over medium heat, combine marinade with sugar and cornstarch; bring to a boil. reduce heat to low; simmer to minutes or until thickened. baste chicken generously with sauce during last minutes of cooking time. to serve, spoon remaining sauce over chicken. sweet and sour drumsticks chicken drumsticks are wonderfully tasty to eat by hand at all outdoor functions. and as a matter of fact, if you've ever wondered about the etiquette of eating chicken with your fingers, frank says, "when in doubt, do!" / cup apricot preserves / cup chili sauce / cup brown sugar / cup red wine vinegar tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoons grated onion tablespoon fresh grated orange rind tablespoons fresh orange juice chicken drumsticks in a large measuring cup combine all ingredients except for chicken. reserve half of sauce to serve with cooked chicken. brush remaining sauce over legs and grill to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes until cooked through. turn and baste with sauce to times. transfer to serving dish and serve with remaining sauce. syrian grilled breastserves i like pistachios in recipes because they are relatively low in saturated fats and they're also lower in calories than most other nuts. weight watchers international endorses pistachios for just this reason. roaster boneless breast or roaster thin-sliced boneless breast tablespoons fresh lemon juice / cup olive oil tablespoon fresh mint or teaspoon dried small clove garlic, minced salt and ground pepper to taste / cup chopped pistachios cut breast pieces in half, removing tenderloin pieces. place pieces, including tenderloin pieces, between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / " thickness to form cutlets. or use the already sliced roaster breast and skip the cutting and pounding. in a shallow dish combine lemon juice, olive oil, mint, garlic, salt and pepper. add chicken to marinade. cover and refrigerate for hour or longer, turning occasionally. grill cutlets to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes per side until cooked through, brushing often with the marinade. sprinkle with pistachios before serving. szechuan wingsserves when you buy wings for these recipes, if they come from perdue, the odds are that they won't have any tiny hairs on them. that's actually a considerable engineering feat. in theory the singeing machines at the processing plants should burn the little hairs off, but in practice, the birds are wet by the time they get to the singeing machines and the hairs can be stuck down so the flame doesn't reach them. seeing this, frank told the engineers at the processing plant, "you know when you wash your hands in the men's room and they have those hot air driers? design one that's got an engine like a and we'll hit the wing with that and dry the hairs so they'll stand up." the idea worked, but not completely. after the initial effort, the machines still missed one or two hairs. for research into the solution to this minor detail, the company has spent more than $ , over the years. chicken wings tablespoons soy sauce tablespoons chili sauce tablespoons white vinegar tablespoon vegetable oil tablespoon minced fresh ginger tablespoon sugar tablespoon crushed red pepper (less if you don't like it hot) salt to taste fold wing tips behind tip of large joints to form triangles. in large bowl, combine soy sauce and remaining ingredients. place wings in marinade; cover and refrigerate hour or longer. grill wingettes, to -inches above medium-hot coals to minutes or until cooked through. turn and baste frequently with marinade. texas twister barbecued cutletsserves there are a number of tips for keeping brown sugar soft. my stepdaughter, sandy spedden, recommends adding a slice of fresh apple to the box once you've opened it. close the box with the apple slice inside, and put in a sealed plastic bag. roaster boneless thigh cutlets tablespoon vegetable oil salt and cayenne pepper to taste clove garlic, minced / teaspoon ground cumin tablespoon brown sugar / cup ketchup / cup cider vinegar / to / teaspoon tabasco, to taste flatten cutlets slightly with a meat pounder. rub lightly with vegetable oil and sprinkle with salt and cayenne pepper. in a small mixing bowl, combine garlic, cumin, brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar and tabasco. grill cutlets to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes until cooked through. turn and baste to times with sauce. note to person who lays out the book: can we have the marinades and basting sauces on a separate page, probably at the beginning of the chapter? marinades and bastes basting has no tenderizing qualities, but it does add a special flavor to poultry. marinating for half an hour or more will enhance both flavor and tenderness. beer marinademakes about cups tablespoons spicy brown mustard tablespoons brown sugar tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoon worcestershire sauce teaspoon tabasco teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper. can ( -ounces) beer extra large onion, peeled and sliced into rings in large, shallow baking dish, combine first ingredients; stir in beer. add onion and to pounds chicken to marinade. cover and refrigerate hour or longer, turning occasionally. to grill, drain poultry and use marinade for basting. onion rings may be grilled to minutes per side and served with poultry. chutney barbecue saucemakes about - / cups you'll get a deeply browned chicken with this recipe. jar ( - / -ounces) mango chutney / cup wine vinegar tablespoon spicy brown mustard tablespoon brown sugar / teaspoon cayenne pepper in small bowl, combine all ingredients. use as basting sauce for grilling to pounds of chicken during last to minutes cooking. lightly oil poultry before cooking, and turn often to avoid burning. firehouse barbecue saucemakes about cups this barbecue recipe was developed by robert baker of cornell university in , then published by new york's state extension service with directions for quantity grilling. dr. baker's updated version of the recipe is somewhat lower in salt. you can refrigerate the extra sauce for several weeks. egg cup vegetable oil cup cider vinegar tablespoons salt or to taste tablespoon poultry seasoning / teaspoon ground pepper in blender or medium-sized bowl, blend or beat egg. add oil and beat again. stir in remaining ingredients. use as a basting sauce for grilling to pounds of chicken, basting frequently. for milder, less salty flavor, baste less often. oriental marinademakes about cup if you're using this marinade for kabobs, avoid a sticky cleanup by using disposable wooden skewers; to prevent burning, soak skewers in water for minutes before use. / cup pineapple juice / cup soy sauce tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil tablespoons minced fresh ginger tablespoon brown sugar to garlic cloves, minced / teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional) / teaspoon salt or to taste in wide, shallow bowl, combine all ingredients. add to pounds chicken to marinade; cover and refrigerate hour or longer, turning occasionally. to grill, drain poultry and use marinade for basting. traditional barbecue saucemakes - / cups barbecue sauces differ from marinades in how they are used. a marinade is used to flavor meat before cooking and for basting during grilling. barbecue sauces are used for basting during cooking and are frequently re-cooked and later served as a sauce at the table. cup chili sauce / cup brown sugar / cup vegetable oil tablespoons cider vinegar tablespoons soy sauce tablespoon spicy brown mustard - / teaspoons minced fresh oregano, or / teaspoon dried to - / teaspoons liquid smoke (optional, but i recommend it, if you can find it.) in small bowl, combine all ingredients. use as basting sauce for grilling to pounds chicken during last to minutes of cooking. turn poultry often to avoid scorching. wine and garlic marinademakes about - / cups cup dry white wine / cup olive oil to garlic cloves, minced lemon slices tablespoon minced, fresh thyme or teaspoon dried tablespoon minced, fresh basil, or teaspoon dried teaspoon salt or to taste bay leaf (optional) / teaspoon ground pepper in wide, shallow bowl, combine all ingredients. add to pounds chicken to marinade; cover and refrigerate hour or longer, turning occasionally. grill poultry and use marinade for basting. chapter six chicken for crowds do you have a wedding coming up? a school reunion? or you just want to have the crowd over? well guess what! i recommend chicken for the menu! seriously, it's a good choice because it's on almost everyone's diet, most people like it, and it's probably the most economical main course that can be served to crowds. frank and i both enjoy entertaining. there are many months in the year when we entertain associates (that's the term used at perdue farms for employees) each week, and at christmas time, it has gotten up to in a week. people who know that frank and i entertain a lot sometimes ask why i don't have the parties catered. the fact is, i don't want to hire somebody to do what i enjoy doing anyway. besides, it wouldn't fit in with our lifestyle to have catered affairs. frank is actually a frugal and down-to- earth man. he travels economy class, is careful to turn the lights off when we leave the house, and before we married, he cooked for himself and washed his own dishes. (now i do it.) it's a real compliment when frank says that someone is "tight as the bark on an oak tree." still, i know we're all busy, so i'm in favor of any shortcuts that help save time even if they cost a little extra. and yet, as a former new england yankee, i am always in favor of spending money carefully. here are some of the tips that i've learned that may help you, whether you're cooking for eight or a hundred: _plan a simple menu with everything done in advance, except simple heating or reheating. most cookbooks suggest that you have only a few dishes that require last minute work, but i don't want the hassle of worrying about any; i've found that last minute things always come up, and it's wonderful to know that they're not going to upset your schedule or leave you in a state of frazzlement. in my own case, i'm always working harder the day before the party than the day of the party. _check that you've got refrigerator or freezer space for all perishables. _check that you have the pots and pans and storage containers for the foods you'll be preparing. _write a detailed schedule for yourself including the menu and shopping list. i like to have a copy of the menu visible on my refrigerator, partly because it gives me confidence as i check off each dish as it's completed, but mostly because i remember one party when i forgot a dish that i had cooked and was faced with leftover string beans for thirty. _this tip has nothing to do with poultry, but it's worked so well for me i'll share it anyway. when the occasion is special enough so that you're using a florist, (a wedding? an anniversary?) your flower budget will go further if you'll call the florist a week ahead and tell him or her your color scheme and what you're willing to spend. the florist will know which flowers are in over supply and therefore a bargain, and given a week, he or she will have the time to place an order with the wholesaler for the ones which are a good buy. you won't necessarily spend less, but you're likely to get considerably more for your money. _keep food safety in mind as you work. keep perishable food, such as chicken, in the refrigerator except when you're working with it. prepare food in batches and have out only what you're using. when refrigerating foods, have them in small enough batches so that they'll cool quickly. _if you're serving wine, make it white wine rather than red wine. i say that not because white wine is supposed to go with chicken (some of the more robust recipes for chicken go beautifully with red wine), but because white wine is less of a menace to your carpets. _if it's a buffet and people will be balancing plates on their laps, serve foods that are already bite-sized and that don't require cutting with a knife and fork. _just because you're not having it catered doesn't mean you have to do it all yourself. if you're near a college campus, see if the food service people at the student cafeteria would be willing to make the vegetables or other side dishes. also, check the cafeteria at a local factory or processing plant. sometimes these people will moonlight and make large batches of your favorite recipe for you. they've got the equipment, and in my experience, they're pleased to have the extra income. also, they're frequently less expensive than restaurants and they're apt to be much, much less expensive than a caterer. _a crowd seldom consumes more than -ounces of cooked protein total, per person, and that includes whatever protein is part of the appetizers as well as the main course. however, i usually have closer to -ounces per person available, just for "sociable security." if you plan on just under -ounces each, you'll almost certainly have leftovers, but at least you won't run out. another way of calculating is that a breast and a wing per person will insure that you'll have more than enough. (adjust this depending on whether you're entertaining toddlers or professional football players or$the biggest eaters$older teenage boys.) also, keep in mind how much else you're serving. at our parties, i've seen that i'll always have some leftovers if i allow a half cup serving per person for each of the following: starches, vegetables, and salad, plus a serving and a quarter of bread. that's assuming that there have been a couple of small appetizers before, and that the main course will be followed by dessert. _when you're multiplying recipes, keep in mind that cooking times may be different if you change the recipe size. a larger amount of food may take longer to cook; a smaller amount may be overcooked in the same time. illustration: oriental mini drumsticks from chicken wings curried chicken from boneless breast santa fe chicken or boneless thighs photo of all three in files photo: chicken "nibbles" just right for... - dips and spreads - chicken "nibbles" take the heat out of summer entertaining summer parties come in all shapes and sizes. some are small and happen on the spur of the moment. others are great boisterous affairs that roll across the lawn or down the beach. they're fun. they're happy. they also can be lots of work, but one of the nicest shortcuts i know is the pre-cooked nuggets, tenders, or wings. straight from the package or warmed for serving, they're extra tasty dunked into a quick dip. i sometimes have an assortment of store- bought mustards available, each in a pretty dish. or, when there's more time, i'd use one of these perdue recipes for dips. cool and creamy avocado dipmakes about - / home economist pat cobe developed many of the dips for perdue. i asked her how she got her ideas, and learned that when composing a recipe she starts out by imagining all the dips she's sampled at restaurants or food conventions or parties, or ones she's read about in magazines and cookbooks. then in her imagination, she puts together the best ideas from all of them. as she sorts these ideas around in her mind, she'll come up with something new, and then she'll test it. of all the ones she thinks of, the only ones that she would consider actually recommending to perdue, would have to meet her criteria of being "real food for real people." like this one. cups ripe avocado, peeled and seed removed / cup chopped scallions tablespoon lime or lemon juice / teaspoon salt or to taste / cup sour cream in small bowl with fork, mash avocado. add green scallions, lime juice and salt; blend well. stir in sour cream. serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve. creole dipmakes about cup / cup bottled chili sauce tablespoon prepared horseradish (optional) tablespoon worcestershire sauce tablespoon minced fresh parsley tablespoon minced scallion tablespoon minced celery in small bowl, combine all ingredients. if time allows, let stand at room temperature hour for flavors to blend. garlicky sweet-sour dipmakes / cup / cup packed brown sugar / cup chicken broth tablespoon soy sauce clove garlic, minced tablespoons cider vinegar tablespoon cornstarch in small saucepan, combine brown sugar, broth, soy sauce and garlic; mix well. in cup, blend vinegar and cornstarch until smooth; stir into saucepan and place over medium heat. bring to a boil; cook to minutes until mixture thickens and becomes slightly reduced, stirring frequently. serve warm or at room temperature. mexicali cheese dipmakes about cups can ( -ounces) condensed cheddar cheese soup cup shredded monterey jack cheese with jalapeno peppers / teaspoon ground cumin / cup sour cream / cup chopped pimentos or tomatoes tabasco (optional) in small saucepan, combine undiluted soup, shredded cheese and cumin. place over low heat and cook until cheese is completely melted, stirring constantly. remove from heat; stir in sour cream, pimentos and hot pepper sauce to taste, if desired. to serve, keep warm in fondue pot, chafing dish or heatproof bowl set on warming tray. red pepper dipmakes about - / cups jar ( -ounces) roasted red peppers, drained clove garlic, quartered / teaspoon ground cumin cup plain lowfat yogurt in blender or food processor, puree red peppers, garlic and cumin. add yogurt; blend or process a few seconds just until mixed. chill several hours or overnight to blend flavors. spicy cranberry - orange dipmakes about cup cup prepared cranberry sauce tablespoons fresh orange juice tablespoon port or marsala wine (optional) tablespoon fresh lemon juice / teaspoon dry mustard / teaspoon ground ginger in blender or food processor, puree all ingredients. if time allows, let stand at room temperature hour for flavors to blend. appetizers - chicken cocktail puffs makes puffs the cocktail puff is great when stuffed with chicken. i sometimes keep these puffs, unfilled, in the freezer to have available when i need something on short notice. you don't need to thaw them before stuffing. cocktail puffs / cup water tablespoons butter or margarine / teaspoon salt / cup flour egg, unbeaten / cup grated swiss cheese preheat oven to of. in a saucepan over medium heat, heat butter in water until melted. add salt and flour all at once and stir vigorously until ball forms in center of pan. remove from heat and let stand minutes. add egg and beat until smooth, add cheese. mixture should be very stiff. drop by teaspoonful on baking sheet and bake for about minutes or until surface is free from beads of moisture. turn off oven and prop door open slightly by putting a pot holder in the crack. allow puffs to cool in oven. slice crosswise for stuffing. filling cups cooked chicken, minced / cup minced celery tablespoons minced canned pimento tablespoons fresh lemon juice tablespoon finely chopped onion tablespoon minced fresh tarragon or basil / cup mayonnaise or salad dressing / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper in a mixing bowl combine chicken, celery, pimento, lemon juice, onion and tarragon lightly with mayonnaise. season with salt and pepper. fill each puff with about teaspoons of filling. chicken frank caraway & kraut roll-upsmakes about you can reheat the "roll-ups" by toasting briefly under the broiler after slicing. tubes ( -ounces each) refrigerated white dinner loaf tablespoons german-style mustard can ( -ounces) sauerkraut, drained egg, beaten, for glaze chicken franks tablespoons caraway seeds preheat oven to f. meanwhile, gently unroll loaf into a -inch square, pinching slashed portions together to seal. with sharp knife, cut dough into quarters. spread each piece of dough with mustard and a thin layer of sauerkraut to within / inch of edge. brush edge lightly with egg. place a frank on left side of piece of dough and roll up tightly. place roll, seam side down, on a greased baking sheet. repeat with remaining franks and dough. brush rolls with egg and sprinkle with caraway seeds. bake for minutes until golden brown. remove rolls to a cutting board and allow to cool several minutes. with serrated knife, slice each roll into small "roll-ups." serve immediately. chicken liver loverliesmakes puffs it's not quite a cookie. it's not quite a puff. it's not quite a fritter. it's just something very special. chicken livers (about lb.) / cup butter or margarine, divided cup water cup flour eggs, unbeaten envelope ( - / oz.) dehydrated onion soup mix. in a large skillet over medium heat, melt / cup butter. add chicken livers and saute for to minutes; chop finely. in a saucepan over medium heat, melt remaining butter with water. add flour all at once and stir vigorously until ball forms in center of pan. add eggs, one at a time, beating after each egg. stir in livers and soup mix. preheat oven to of. drop by teaspoonful on baking sheet and bake for to minutes until puffed and golden brown. chicken liver pate makes i like this on rye crackers. chicken livers (about lb.) / cup butter or margarine medium onion, finely chopped eggs, hard cooked / teaspoon tabasco in a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. add livers and onions and saute for to minutes. put all ingredients in blender or food processor and blend until smooth. chicken party sandwich fillingmakes approximately try using different shaped cookie cutters or use different colors of bread. it's nice on open sandwiches--garnished with an olive slice or a lemon sliver. cup cooked, ground chicken / teaspoon salt or to taste / cup mayonnaise or salad dressing tablespoons fresh lemon juice tablespoons milk teaspoon sugar in a bowl combine all ingredients. spread on bread or salted crackers. chicken quiche makes narrow wedges for an attractive and professional presentation, make miniature quiches by lining the inside bottom of your muffin pans with pie dough, forming little tart shells. then add the filling. i see a lot of these at washington parties. tablespoon butter or margarine, softened pie shells (approximately ") cup cooked chicken cut in small pieces cup grated swiss cheese slices crisp, cooked bacon, crumbled eggs, slightly beaten cups heavy cream / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon nutmeg / teaspoon sugar / teaspoon cayenne pepper / teaspoon ground pepper preheat oven to of. rub butter or margarine on pie shells. put chicken, grated cheese and bacon in pie shells. in a mixing bowl combine all remaining ingredients and pour into shells. bake for minutes. reduce heat to of and bake minutes longer. cut in narrow pie wedges for serving. photo: a storybook reception - garden dining on chicken... - curried chicken and fruit kebabs with yogurt sauce makes - be sure to look at the accompanying illustration. this looks good as well as tastes good. roaster boneless breast tablespoons curry powder / teaspoon salt or to taste tablespoon vegetable oil can ( -ounces) pineapple chunks, well drained / pound (about ) seedless grapes cocktail toothpicks yogurt sauce in zucchini cups (recipe follows) cut breast into to bite-sized chunks. place chicken chunks in large bowl; add curry powder and salt; toss together. in a large, heavy non-stick skillet over medium heat, heat oil. add curried chicken chunks; reduce heat to low and saute for minutes, turning to cook all sides. cover and remove from heat; cool. thread cooled chicken onto toothpicks with a chunk of pineapple and a grape. serve with yogurt sauce as dip. yogurt sauce in zucchini cups for curried chicken and fruit kebabs container ( -ounces) plain yogurt tablespoons honey tablespoons minced fresh coriander (also called cilantro or chinese parsley) or / teaspoon ground coriander seed teaspoon ground ginger tablespoon fresh lemon juice or medium-sized zucchini, optional in medium-sized bowl, combine yogurt, honey, coriander, ginger and lemon juice. if desired, spoon into individual zucchini cups for each guest. to make cups, cut each zucchini crosswise into equal pieces. use a melon baller to scoop out centers from one end of each piece. oriental mini drumsticksmakes about if the honey you're planning on using for this recipe has been around awhile and crystallized, you can re-liquify it by heating the opened jar gently in hot water. you can do the same thing in the microwave, but do it at low power and take the honey out as soon as it's become liquid again. don't heat the honey for longer than it takes to re- liquify; you would lose some of the delicate flavor. chicken wings bottle ( -ounces) teriyaki sauce / cup peanut or vegetable oil / cup honey tablespoon white vinegar teaspoon ground ginger cups lightly toasted, finely-chopped peanuts or pecans with sharp, kitchen knife, divide wings into three sections, cutting between joints -- not bone. reserve first and middle joints for mini drumsticks; set wing tips aside for stock or another use. to make mini drums from the first joint: using a small sharp knife, cut around the narrower end to loosen meat. then, use knife blade to gently scrape meat down toward the larger, knobby end of bone, turning meat inside out. to make mini drums from middle joints: cut around the narrower end; cut tendons away and loosen meat. then use knife blade to gently scrape meat along both bones toward the larger end. pull out smaller bone, detaching with knife if necessary. turn meat inside out around knob of remaining bone. in large bowl, combine teriyaki sauce, oil, honey, vinegar and ginger; mix well. add chicken and coat well. cover and marinate overnight in refrigerator. preheat oven to f. grease large baking sheets with sides; arrange chicken on baking sheets. bake for minutes or until cooked through. remove and roll in chopped nuts. serve hot or at room temperature. santa fe chicken quesadillas (kay sa diyas)makes about if you want to make this way ahead of time, you can cool and then freeze the ungarnished quesadilla wedges between layers of aluminum foil. reheat in preheated f oven for minutes and then add the garnish. roaster boneless thigh cutlets cloves garlic teaspoons ground cumin teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper tablespoons vegetable oil cans ( -ounces each) chopped mild green chilies minced, canned or fresh jalapeno pepper (optional) flour tortillas ( inches each) tablespoons minced fresh coriander (also called cilantro or chinese parsley), optional pound monterey jack or cheddar cheese, grated mexican salsa or slivers of avocado sprinkled with lemon juice, chopped tomato, and coriander sprigs cut each thigh into pieces. in container of food processor fitted with steel blade, finely mince garlic. gradually add chicken pieces, cumin, salt and pepper; grind to a fine texture. in a large heavy, non-stick skillet, heat oil. add ground chicken mixture and cook over medium heat, stirring often. cook for to minutes or until meat is no longer pink. preheat oven to f. drain chilies and add to cooked chicken. place tortillas on large baking sheets and brush lightly with water. divide chicken mixture among the tortillas, spreading a thin layer almost to the edges. sprinkle with chopped coriander and grated cheese; top with remaining tortillas, pressing down edges to seal. brush lightly with water and bake for minutes. remove from oven and cut each quesadilla into wedges. if desired, serve with mexican salsa or top with avocado, tomato and coriander. sherry fried chicken livers makes i know people who didn't think they could lik think they could like chicken livers who are won over when the flavor of sherry wine is added. chicken livers (about lb.) tablespoons butter or margarine / teaspoons salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup dry sherry in a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. add chicken livers and saute for to minutes. sprinkle with salt and pepper. add sherry, cover, and simmer minutes longer or until cooked through. serve on toothpicks. blue cheese chicken spreadmakes about although i usually prefer fresh products to canned ones, in this case i recommend using canned pineapple. fresh pineapple has an unusual characteristic that's worth knowing. it contains the enzyme bromelin which breaks down protein. the blue cheese in this recipe is rich in protein and fresh pineapple would not work well with it, unless you added it just before serving so the bromelin doesn't have a chance to break down the proteins and give it an off- flavor. canned pineapple, on the other hand, doesn't have enough active bromelin to cause a problem. makes approx. party sandwiches ( tablespoon per sandwich) cup cooked, ground chicken jar ( oz.) blue cheese spread / cup drained, crushed pineapple / cup chopped almonds, lightly toasted salt and ground pepper to taste in a bowl combine chicken with remaining ingredients. use as filling for party sandwiches. main courses - chicken cordon bleu for a crowd serves - there are many recipes for chicken cordon bleu, but i like this one because you can do everything the day before. reheat it in the microwave. don't, however, freeze it. fried foods tend to get a "warmed over" taste after freezing. also, don't hold it in the refrigerator for longer than a day. and finally, when reheating it in the microwave, be sure to rotate it several times so that you don't have uneven warming. (rotating the food in the oven performs the same function as stirring a pot. if you don't rotate it, you risk having some parts overcooked$and overcooked chicken is tough chicken.) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves cup butter or margarine, melted / cup minced, fresh parsley slices canadian bacon or ham slices sharp or swiss cheese eggs, beaten cups bread crumbs slice each breast half almost in half lengthwise and then open like the wings of a butterfly. brush with melted butter and sprinkle with parsley. place slice of bacon or ham and slice of cheese on each chicken breast, folding to fit. roll, jelly-roll fashion, and secure with toothpicks. dip in beaten eggs and roll in bread crumbs. fry in deep fat at of for to minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.. remove toothpicks before serving. keep warm in a preheated of if serving within minutes or reheat in a preheated of for to minutes. chicken salad hawaiianserves - this recipe is good for a summer lunch. you should keep it cold until serving, but contrary to popular belief, mayonnaise itself isn't particularly dangerous from a food safety point of view. mayonnaise in its usual commercial formulations is acid enough to be mildly protective against harmful microorganisms. but it's not protective enough, so don't take chances and do keep this refrigerated until you need it. cups cooked chicken, cut in chunks - / cups mayonnaise or salad dressing cups chopped celery tablespoons soy sauce can (# size or / cups) pineapple tidbits, drained / cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted, divided in a large mixing bowl combine chicken, mayonnaise, celery and soy sauce. gently fold in pineapple and half of almond slivers. serve salad on a platter lined with lettuce leaves. garnish with remaining almonds. creamed chicken victoriaserves - this is a good buffet dish because your guests don't have to cut anything while balancing their dinner plates on their laps. i've expanded it to feed as many as people, and it always draws raves. as an additional bonus, it's at least as good the next day for leftovers. you may find, as i have, that it's easier to add the flour right after sauteing the mushrooms and skip sauteing the chicken. you can also use leftover chicken and skip cooking the roaster breasts; i've done it and it works just fine. the original recipe called for twice as much mustard. if you like your foods quite spicy, you may want to use the four teaspoons of mustard that the original recipe called for. whole roaster breasts, - / to pounds each cups chicken broth / cup butter or margarine pound fresh mushrooms, sliced / cup flour teaspoons dry mustard salt to taste, depending on saltiness of the broth / teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste cups light cream or half and half cup dry sherry / cup grated parmesan cheese / cup minced fresh parsley puffed pastry hearts (recipe follows) or toast points in -quart dutch oven or large, deep skillet over high heat, bring chicken broth to a boil. add roaster breasts and enough water to cover, if necessary. reduce heat to low; simmer for minutes. cool breasts in broth. remove and cut into / -inch dice; discard bones and skin. reserve cups broth for recipe; save remainder for another use. in same dutch oven or skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter; add mushrooms and saute seconds. add diced chicken and saute seconds longer. stir in flour, seasonings, cups reserved broth and cream; bring to a simmer. reduce heat to low and simmer minutes, stirring frequently. add sherry, parmesan cheese and parsley. simmer minute longer. serve chicken with puff pastry hearts or toast points. puff pastry hearts to go with chicken victoria you can bake the puff pastry hearts or days in advance. store thoroughly-cooled hearts in an airtight container. package ( - / -ounces) frozen puff pastry -inch heart-shaped cookie cutter whole egg beaten with tablespoon water defrost pastry minutes at room temperature. preheat oven to f. open one sheet at a time onto a lightly- floured board. cut hearts from pastry and place on two dampened cookie sheets. pierce hearts with tines of a fork. then, using the back of a small knife, decorate tops and edges. brush tops lightly with egg wash. bake minutes or until golden. curried chicken rajserves - this is another dish that works well for a buffet. it's easy to serve and easy to eat since the guests don't need to cut anything. whole roaster breasts and / to pounds each / cup butter or margarine cups chicken broth / cup raisins / cup curry powder / cup flour - / teaspoons salt or to taste / teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cups light cream or half and half / cup minced fresh parsley puffed pastry hearts (see recipe) or toast points chutney, slivered toasted almonds, other condiments, optional in -quart dutch oven or large, deep skillet over high heat, bring chicken broth to a boil. add roaster breasts and enough water to cover, if necessary. reduce heat to low; simmer chicken for minutes. cool chicken in broth. remove meat and cut into / -inch cubes; discard skin and bones. reserve cups broth for recipe; save remainder for another use. in same dutch oven or skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter, stir in chicken, raisins, and curry powder; saute for minute. stir in flour, seasonings, reserved cups broth, and cream; bring to a simmer. reduce heat to low and simmer minutes, stirring frequently. stir in parsley. serve chicken with puff pastry hearts or toast points, accompanied by chutney, toasted almonds, or other condiments, if desired. just plain barbecued chicken serves if you visit the delmarva peninsula (delaware, maryland, virginia) in summer, you may come across some of the chicken barbecues that take place here. this is one of the popular recipes for crowds. chicken breast halves drumsticks quarts oil quarts vinegar tablespoons salt or to taste tablespoons ground pepper in a gallon container, combine oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. grill chicken to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. turn and brush with sauce every to minutes. sweet 'n smokey chicken serves - my step daughter-in-law, jan perdue, says that when frank's son jim was courting her, he invited her over for dinner and served sweet 'n smokey chicken for two. jan was enchanted with his culinary skill and thought that this would be a sample of what marriage to him would be like. she learned later that this is just about the only thing he cooks. fortunately, she enjoys cooking and doesn't mind. chicken breast halves chicken drumsticks chicken thighs medium onions, sliced quarts ketchup cup prepared mustard cups vinegar quart maple syrup / cup hickory smoked salt or to taste teaspoons ground pepper preheat oven to of. place chicken in a single layer, skin side up on top of onion slices in the bottom of to large baking pans. if possible keep breast halves in a separate pan from legs and thighs as they will cook more quickly. in a gallon container combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. bake chicken, uncovered for to minutes or until cooked through. check breast meat for doneness after minutes. treasure island chickenserves - a school-lunch chicken recipe contest produced this one. the winner adapted it from an old family recipe. chicken breast halves chicken drumsticks chicken thighs / pound butter or margarine / cup flour / cup sugar teaspoon dry mustard teaspoons cinnamon / teaspoon ground ginger quart orange juice tablespoons salt or to taste preheat oven to of. place chicken in single layer, skin side up, in to large baking pans. keep breast halves in a separate pan as they will cook more quickly than the legs and thighs. in a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. stir in flour, sugar, spices, orange juice and salt and cook, stirring constantly until thickened. pour sauce over chicken. bake, uncovered, for to minutes or until cooked through. check breast meat for doneness after minutes. texas barbecued breastsserves - turn chicken breasts with tongs instead of a fork, which could pierce the meat and cause it to lose some of its juiciness. cup tomato sauce / cup red wine vinegar / cup chili sauce / cup brown sugar tablespoons grated onion tablespoons worcestershire sauce tablespoon dijon mustard / teaspoon chili powder teaspoon paprika / teaspoon tabasco (optional) chicken breast halves in a large saucepan over medium heat combine all ingredients except chicken and bring to a boil. grill chicken to inches above medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through. turn and baste to times with sauce during cooking. chapter seven$ chicken for tomorrow$or next week. in an ideal world, we'd always have food at its freshest and we'd eat it right after it was prepared. in the real world, though, there are many, many times when cooking ahead is useful. you're giving a party and you don't want to be frazzled the day of the event. or you've got a busy week coming up and you want to do better by your family than just giving them calorie-laden, greasy take-out food. or you're having house guests, and you want to spend the time with them instead of in the kitchen. or maybe there's only one or two of you at home, and you've discovered that it's simpler to make a recipe for four and freeze part of it for use later. in my own case, my freezer is always full. one reason is that frank often invites three or four people the last minute, and it helps to have emergency food on hand. equally often, after i've made a meal, he'll call at : p.m. and tell me that we're eating out with one of the poultry distributors or suppliers, and i end up freezing what i've just cooked. as i wrap the food in foil and wedge it into the freezer, i remind myself, "this meal isn't going to waste, it's a head start on a future meal." when you know the principles for successful freezing$and i'll get to them in a moment$you can freeze just about any of the recipes in this cookbook. the recipes in this chapter are different from the rest because they not only can be cooked ahead, often they should be cooked ahead. some of them require marination, others improve with age, and still others adapt so well to cooking the day before that they belong in this chapter. use this chapter for recipes to use when you want to cook a day or so ahead of time, and also, use it for tips on how to freeze foods successfully. there are just a few principles needed to master the technique of cooking ahead, and once you know them, you'll have faster, better-tasting, healthier and safer meals to show for it. _the biggest boon to food preparation ahead is the freezer. everything freezes from the point of view of food safety, but there's a lot of variation in palatability. for best flavor and texture, don't freeze the following foods in your home freezer: _milk products $ they'll curdle. _boiled eggs $ the whites get watery. _custards $ they'll lose texture, get lumpy. _mayonnaise $ it may separate. _most foods that you fry at home (except french fries and onions) $ they can get an unattractive "warmed- over" taste. it's actually the fats turning slightly rancid. _cooked potatoes $ they darken and get an unattractive texture. (if you're going to freeze stew, add cooked potatoes later on when you're reheating the stew.) _fresh greens, celery, and carrots $ they get limp. _fresh tomatoes $ their high water content causes them to collapse when thawed. (however, you can freeze tomatoes if you're going to use them in a cooked form, such as in a pasta sauce.) _gravy $ the fat will separate out and puddle. (if you must freeze gravy, cut way back on the fat when you're making the gravy, and stir constantly when you're reheating it so as to keep the fat from separating.) _heavily spiced foods $ most herbs, salts, onions, fade away, but garlic and cloves will seem more intense. pepper has a tendency to turn bitter. curry takes on a musty flavor. _synthetic flavors $ use real vanilla rather than synthetic because synthetic vanilla can have an off-flavor after freezing. _highly salted foods $ salt tends to attract moisture and uneven freezing may result because salt slows down the freezing process. _even if you're freezing food for only a couple of days, be careful of packaging. air that's in the package will affect the color, flavor and texture. the container should be air tight, or the food will get freezer burn and lose nutritional value, and palatability. _it's critical to have a both your refrigerator and freezer cold enough. the best indicator of a good freezer temperature is brick-hard ice cream. if ice cream stored in your freezer is soft, turn the control to a colder setting. as for the refrigerator, check the drinking temperature of milk. if it's very cold, you've probably hit degrees, which is what you're aiming for. if the milk isn't cold enough, or if it sours too quickly, move the control to a colder setting. _here's a great tip if you're freezing chicken in a polyethylene bag: lower the bag, with the chicken in it, into a pan of water to force out the air. be sure the bag opening is above water. press entire surface area of bag to squeeze out air bubbles. twist end of bag and fold over. secure with fastener and label. _here's a convenient way to freeze casseroles for later use that joy schrage from whirlpool corporation told me: . line the casserole dish with foil, leaving " collar all around. . add casserole ingredients and bake. . cool and freeze in uncovered casserole . when frozen, lift casserole and foil out in one piece . cover with foil or place in a polyethylene freezer bag. press air out, then seal tightly, label, date and freeze. place in a polyethylene freezer bag. . to thaw, take frozen casserole out of bag and foil, and place in the casserole dish it was originally baked in. this type of freezing frees the casserole dish for other uses while the casserole is in the freezer. _homemade "tv" dinners: place leftovers in serving portions on sectioned plastic trays. cover, chill, tightly with plastic wrap and seal. then wrap entire tray in foil. label, date and freeze. to reheat, remove foil, puncture plastic wrap to make steam vents, and heat dinner in microwave. _to keep chicken pieces from sticking together in your freezer so that you can take out just the quantity you want without prying several pieces apart or thawing more than you need, do the following: . spread pieces in a single layer on a cookie sheet . place unwrapped in freezer . once frozen, remove chicken pieces from cookie sheet, and store in polyethylene freezer bag . place bag in freezer, label and date _freezing tip - use freezing tape to seal freezer wrap or suitable plastic wrap. freezer tape is made with a special adhesive designed to stick at low temperatures. _whole birds to be roasted should be thawed before cooking. broilers, and birds to be cooked by other methods can start being cooked when thawed enough for pieces to separate. if you'll follow the suggestions above, you'll find that most of the foods you cook can be prepared ahead of time and if necessary, frozen. this means that, with the exception of fried foods, just about all the recipes in this book can be considered cook-ahead foods. so, whether you're cooking for a party, for the week's meals, for houseguests, or for yourself, enjoy the recipes that follow$and all the others in this book as well. crispy cornish a la bleuserves there are easily varieties of blue vein cheeses for sale in this country. probably the most famous are the french roqueforta, the italian gorgonzola, the english stilton, and the american treasure cavea. personally, i like the american varieties best. fresh cornish game hens oil for deep frying / cup mayonnaise / cup sour cream / cup minced onion / cup crumbled bleu cheese small clove garlic, minced celery sticks cut hens into pieces each. fry in deep hot oil at f, turning once, until golden brown on both sides, about ten minutes. drain well on paper towels. refrigerate if not serving right away. in a small bowl combine remaining ingredients except celery. cover and chill. serve hens warm, at room temperature or cold with bleu cheese dip and celery sticks. chicken souffleserves this is a nice prepare-ahead item. it's really best if stored overnight in the refrigerator before baking so the flavors have a chance to blend. eggs, beaten teaspoon minced, fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried teaspoon minced, fresh basil or / teaspoon dried ground pepper to taste cups cooked, shredded chicken / pound ham, roughly chopped tablespoon minced, fresh parsley / cup grated parmesan cheese, divided cups chicken broth / loaf ( ounces) italian bread, roughly torn into chunks cup grated mozzarella cheese in a mixing bowl combine eggs, thyme, basil and pepper. add chicken, ham, parsley, / cup parmesan cheese and broth. combine thoroughly and set aside. butter an " x " baking dish. place bread chunks in the bottom. cover with egg mixture followed by mozzarella cheese and remaining parmesan. refrigerate hour or longer. preheat oven to of. bake for minutes until puffed and golden brown. chicken and stuffingserves i wouldn't serve this to a gourmet club, but it's an easy, cook ahead dish for a relaxed family meal when you don't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. it's also an ideal way to have the taste of stuffed chicken -- with easier serving qualities. you can make it ahead of time, up to the point of baking. cans ( - / -ounces each) condensed cream of chicken soup, divided can ( - / -ounces) chicken broth eggs, beaten package ( - / -ounces) herb seasoned stuffing mix cups cooked chicken, cut in chunks teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup milk tablespoons chopped canned pimento preheat oven to of. in a mixing bowl whisk together one can of undiluted soup, broth and eggs. add stuffing mix and toss. place stuffing in bottom of a baking dish. arrange chicken on top of stuffing and sprinkle with salt and pepper. in a large measuring cup combine remaining can of soup and milk and pimento and pour over all. bake, uncovered, for to minutes or until hot and bubbling.. chick-o-tato casserole serves - this tastes better reheated, after the flavors have had a chance to blend. you can make it today and it will taste better tomorrow. / cup vegetable oil / cup chopped onion / cup chopped celery / cup chopped green pepper / cup ketchup / cup water tablespoons vinegar tablespoons sugar tablespoon worcestershire sauce tablespoon prepared mustard teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper chicken, cut in serving pieces medium potatoes, peeled and thickly sliced preheat oven to f. in a large skillet, over medium heat, heat oil. add onion, celery and green pepper and cook, stirring often, for to minutes or until softened. add ketchup, water, vinegar, sugar, worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt and pepper and simmer at low heat for about minutes. place chicken in bottom of a baking dish and tuck potatoes around chicken pieces. pour sauce over all. bake, covered, for to minutes or until cooked through. if planning to re-heat, remove from oven when slightly under cooked. choice cheesy chicken serves - there's no last minute attention required for this recipe. prepare it a day ahead, right up to the point of baking. clove garlic, peeled / cup ( stick) butter or margarine cup bread crumbs / cup grated sharp cheddar cheese / cup grated parmesan cheese teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper skinless, boneless chicken breast halves with the broad side of a large kitchen knife crush garlic slightly to release flavor. in a small saucepan over low heat melt butter with garlic clove. set butter aside for / hour for maximum garlic flavoring. on a sheet of wax paper combine bread crumbs, cheeses, salt and pepper. dip chicken in garlic butter, then roll in cheese mixture. tuck sides under to form a neat roll. arrange chicken in a large shallow baking pan and drizzle with any remaining butter. cover and refrigerate if making ahead. when ready to bake, preheat oven to of. bake chicken for to minutes or until crisp, golden and cooked through. photo: new year's eve - cold "chicken tonnato" buffet cold chicken tonnatoserves - this is an elegant company recipe, and it works well if you make it the day before. i've made it with water-packed tuna, but oil-packed would work also. chicken cutlets (about pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, pounded thin, or thin sliced boneless roaster breasts) / cup flour, seasoned with salt and ground pepper to taste / cup ( stick) butter or margarine cans ( -ounces) tuna, drained anchovies cloves garlic, peeled cup olive oil tablespoons white vinegar tablespoons light cream tablespoons capers dip cutlets in flour to coat lightly, shake off excess. in a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. add cutlets and saute until cooked through, about minutes; turn once. drain cutlets on paper towels. chill. in a blender or food processor, combine tuna, anchovies, garlic, oil, vinegar and light cream. blend until pureed. pour sauce over cold cutlets, sprinkle with capers. may be loosely covered and refrigerated overnight before serving. easy chicken cordon bleuserves this is another recipe that can be fixed, except for frying, on the day before. for variation, try swiss cheese and canadian bacon. for a sauce, make a white sauce with chicken broth. if you're in a hurry, undiluted cream of chicken soup makes a handy substitute, but it's definitely a second choice compared to a good, homemade white sauce. garnish with parsley sprig. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast tablespoons butter or margarine tablespoon minced, fresh parsley slices ham slices sharp cheese egg, beaten cup bread crumbs place chicken between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / inch thickness. skip the preceding step if you're using the thin sliced boneless roaster breast. spread chicken with butter and sprinkle with parsley. place a slice of ham and a slice of cheese on each chicken breast, folding to fit. roll, jelly-roll fashion, and secure with toothpicks. dip chicken in beaten egg and roll in bread crumbs. fry in deep fat at of for - minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. remove toothpicks before serving. fiesta tortilla stack - servings the flavors in this recipe blend and get better if you make it the day before, but i have also served it the same day when i was in a hurry. it does need at least a couple of hours for the flavors to develop. i've made this recipe with coriander and without; it works well either way. coriander, by the way, is also known as cilantro or chinese parsley, so if you can't find "coriander" in your market, look for it by its other names. cup cooked, shredded chicken / cup mayonnaise tablespoons chopped, fresh, cilantro (also called coriander or chinese parsley), if available / teaspoon salt package ( ounces) cream cheese can ( ounces) whole kernel corn, drained tablespoons taco seasoning mix dozen -inch flour tortillas cherry tomatoes small head lettuce in a mixing bowl combine chicken, mayonnaise, cilantro and salt. in a separate small bowl combine cream cheese drained corn and taco seasoning mix. place flour tortillas, one on top of other. spread with / of chicken mixture, then two tortillas and corn mixture. continue until mixtures are used up. chill for at least hours to develop flavors. remove from refrigerator half an hour before serving. garnish with tomatoes and serve on a bed of lettuce. garden breast chevreserves chevre means goat in french, and the title of this recipe comes from the goat cheese in it. frank, by the way, loves goat cheese. whole roaster breast salt and ground pepper to taste ounces mild creamy goat cheese or cream cheese, softened medium carrot, coarsely grated small zucchini, unpeeled and coarsely grated / cup snipped fresh or frozen chives teaspoons minced fresh rosemary or / teaspoon dried tablespoon vegetable oil preheat oven to o f. working from the top of the breast use finger tips to carefully loosen the skin from the meat on the breast to form a pocket. do not detach skin on sides or at base of breast.. combine cheese, carrot, zucchini, chives, rosemary and salt and pepper. stuff vegetable mixture evenly under skin of breast. brush with oil and place skin side up in a roasting pan. bake for about one hour and minutes or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when a cut is made near the bone. chill, wrap tightly and refrigerate if not serving immediately. it's good served at room temperature, but it's also good reheated. cold cornishserves to get the best flavor from the green beans in this recipe, choose ones that are fresh and young. the bean growers say that if the bean is fresh, it will snap easily when broken. if it bends instead of snapping, the bean has been around too long. also, check the maturity of the developing seeds inside the pods. you want the seeds to be immature, and you can tell this by making sure that they don't bulge inside the pods. if the seeds are bulging, you can count on the green beans being tough and leathery. fresh cornish game hens tablespoons olive oil large tomatoes, coarsely chopped, or can ( ounces) whole tomatoes, chopped, drained medium zucchini, sliced cup fresh green beans, cut into -inch lengths scallions, sliced / cup minced fresh basil or tablespoon dried teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cup chicken broth / cup feta cheese (optional) quarter hens, remove backbones. in a large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add hens and brown on all sides, to minutes. add remaining ingredients. cover and simmer minutes or until hens are cooked through. refrigerate. serve cold, sprinkled with cheese. kick-off kabobsserves frank is an avid sports fan, and he constantly astonishes his friends by knowing obscure facts and dates concerning the various players and games. this is a an easy dish to serve your sports fans. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves / cup flour teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper egg, slightly beaten tablespoons water / cup fine dry bread crumbs / cup grated parmesan cheese tablespoons butter or margarine preheat oven to of. on a sheet of wax paper, combine flour, salt and pepper. in a shallow dish beat together egg and water. on a separate sheet of wax paper blend bread crumbs and cheese. dip chicken into flour, then egg, then bread crumb mixture turning to coat well on both sides. arrange chicken in a buttered baking dish. dot with remaining butter. bake for minutes. turn and bake to minutes longer or until cooked through. cut each breast half into four pieces and thread onto wooden skewers. wrap in foil or place in plastic container and refrigerate until needed. serve with assorted dips. herbed sour cream dip - in a small bowl combine cup sour cream, tablespoons minced fresh parsley, teaspoon dried tarragon, tablespoons minced scallions, tablespoons snipped fresh or frozen chives, and / teaspoon salt or to taste. instant spiced dip - in a small bowl blend together cup mayonnaise, / cup bottled french dressing, / cup chili sauce, teaspoon horseradish sauce, teaspoon worcestershire sauce, / teaspoon dry mustard, cloves garlic, minced and salt to taste. (if you're in a hurry, substitute / teaspoon garlic salt for the fresh garlic and the salt.) marinated broiled chicken serves - marinating provides an opportunity for flavors to penetrate the chicken. the marinating time can vary tremendously and the results will still be tasty. i like to marinate overnight, in the refrigerator, but even three hours can add a lot to the flavor or your chicken. chicken, cut in half lengthwise / cup peanut or vegetable oil / cup soy sauce teaspoon minced, fresh ginger or teaspoon ground cloves garlic, minced salt to taste place chicken in a shallow dish. add remaining ingredients and turn to coat well. cover and marinate refrigerated for at least hours. place chicken skin side down on broiler rack. pour half of marinade mixture in cavity of chicken. broil to inches from broiler for about minutes. turn chicken, brush with remaining mixture. broil to minutes longer or until cooked through. oven-braised roaster breast with vegetables serves - making this dish the day before has a couple of advantages. any fat will rise to the top where it's easy to remove and also the wine and herbs "marry" with the other flavors. whole roaster breast tablespoons vegetable oil small white onions (about / pound) - / cups low-sodium chicken broth / cup dry white wine tablespoon minced, fresh tarragon or teaspoon dried / teaspoon ground pepper small potatoes, peeled baby carrots cups broccoli florets / cup milk - / tablespoons cornstarch preheat oven to of. in -quart oven-proof dutch oven or saucepot over medium-high heat, heat oil. add roaster breast; cook to minutes turning until browned on all sides. remove and set aside. add onions, cook to minutes or until lightly browned, stirring frequently. remove onions; pour off excess fat. return roaster breast to dutch oven. add broth, wine, tarragon and pepper; bring to a boil. add potatoes; cover and bake minutes. add onions and carrots; cover. bake minutes longer or until roaster breast and vegetables are almost tender. add broccoli; cover. bake to minutes longer or until roaster breast is cooked through and vegetables are tender. (prepare to this point and refrigerate overnight, if desired.) remove roaster breast and vegetables to serving platter; keep warm. in small bowl, stir together milk and cornstarch until smooth; stir into liquid in dutch oven. over medium heat, bring to boil; boil l minute, stirring constantly. serve sauce with roaster breast and vegetables. parmesan breastserves parmesan cheese is a "cooking cheese" and is usually used in its grated form in the united states. when young, it's mild and nutty, but with age is acquires a sharply tangy flavor. when it's too old, it gives an off-flavor to foods, so check the shelf life on the container. when it doubt, taste it. whole roaster breast cups cooked rice cup fresh chopped spinach (or / package frozen, thawed and drained) / cup minced fresh basil, or tablespoons dried clove garlic, minced / cup toasted pine nuts egg tablespoons milk tablespoons olive oil, plus tablespoon for basting / cup grated parmesan cheese salt and ground pepper to taste preheat oven to of. season breast to taste with salt and pepper. in a mixing bowl combine remaining ingredients. stuff breast cavity with rice and place a sheet of aluminum foil over cavity to hold in stuffing. carefully turn breast over and place skin side up in a roasting pan. spoon any remaining rice around breast. baste chicken with oil and bake for about one hour and minutes or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when a cut is made near the bone. chill, wrap tightly, and refrigerate for hours to give flavors a chance to blend. you can serve it warm or at room temperature. salisbury chicken breasts serves - the name "salisbury," when used with steak means that the beef will be chopped or ground. this recipe has nothing to do with chopped meat; in this case "salisbury" refers to the town on maryland's eastern shore where the perdue farms headquarters is located. you can prepare this a day ahead of time right up to the point of baking. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or two thin sliced boneless roaster breasts / cup flour - / teaspoons salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cup bread crumbs / teaspoon minced, fresh sage or / teaspoon dried / teaspoon minced, fresh rosemary or / teaspoon dried / teaspoon minced, fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried eggs / cup ( stick) butter or margarine, melted / cup sauterne wine slices mozzarella cheese preheat oven to of. on a sheet of wax paper, combine flour, salt and pepper. in a shallow bowl beat eggs. on a separate sheet of wax paper combine bread crumbs and seasonings. dip chicken in flour mixture, then eggs, then crumb mixture. roll and secure with toothpicks. place in large shallow baking pan. pour melted butter over chicken. cover and bake for minutes. remove cover. pour sauterne over chicken. bake, uncovered, minutes more. fold slices of cheese in half; place one on top of each roll for last minutes or until cheese is melted. secretaries' saladserves - perdue home economists developed most of the recipes in this book, but this recipe is one of the few that is mine. i served it first at what frank and i jokingly call the "perdue high holiday," national secretaries' day. that's the day when we honor the people who we know really make the world go 'round. we usually have about of the top secretaries from perdue headquarters for dinner along with their husbands to celebrate the day. head lettuce, shredded cup chopped celery large green, red, or yellow pepper, chopped cup thinly sliced carrots or if it's summer, cup chopped tomato cup chopped scallions cup frozen peas, room temperature, not cooked / cups mayonnaise (i use hellmann's) cups cooked, shredded chicken - / cups shredded cheddar cheese in a large glass bowl, layer ingredients in the order given. refrigerate for hours to develop flavors. pistachio smoked chicken spread the green color and the crunch of the pistachios add a lot to this spread. be sure to store the pistachios in an airtight container after purchase. exposure to air affects the texture of the nuts and causes them to become soggy. package cream cheese ( -ounces), room temperature cup finely chopped cooked chicken / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon liquid smoke / chopped pistachios teaspoons fresh lemon juice in a mixing bowl combine ingredients thoroughly. refrigerate for hours while flavors blend. serve on crackers, or for a rich and delicious lunch, i have served it on croissants one time and on bagels another day. spicy cornish hen tidbitsserves this is another of the recipes included in the perdue cornish hen packages that people have requested from frank dozens and dozens of times over the years. i'm including the recipe exactly as it originally appeared, but you may want to substitute fresh garlic ( clove), fresh onion ( tablespoon, finely chopped), and fresh celery ( tablespoons, finely chopped), for the garlic powder, onion salt, and celery salt. if you make these substitutions, be sure to add salt to taste afterwards. fresh cornish game hens teaspoon chili powder / teaspoon garlic powder / teaspoon onion salt / teaspoon celery salt / teaspoon lemon pepper or black pepper cup vegetable oil or as needed cup bottled garlic cheese dressing cut hens into serving pieces. combine dry spices and toss hens in spices to coat evenly. heat oil in large skillet over medium heat and fry cornish pieces about minutes on each side until tender and golden. remove and drain on paper towels. arrange on a serving dish. cover and refrigerate overnight. to serve, dip cornish pieces into bottled dressing. serve at room temperature. chapter eight chicken for holidays if we were back in the s right now, and you were planning a holiday meal, it would almost certainly not include chicken$unless you were either lucky or rich. having chicken for holidays happens all the time today, but back then, chicken on the menu was either a sign of affluence or that you lived on a farm and had your own chickens. when herbert hoover was using "a chicken in every pot" as a campaign slogan back in the late s, chicken was such a rare and expensive treat that people thought hoover's promise was about as realistic as promising them pie in the sky. few people believed that anyone could deliver on that promise. all this changed because of a fortunate accident that happened near where frank grew up on the eastern shore of maryland. in , when mrs. wilmer steele, of nearby sussex county, was ordering baby chicks for her laying flock, someone processing the order got a zero wrong. instead of the chicks she was counting on, mrs. steele received baby chicks. she found herself faced with the twin problems of first, the expense of feeding so many birds, and second, the hassle of trying to sell more eggs than the market in sussex county could possibly absorb. the solution she came up with changed the eating patterns not just of sussex county, but of most of the world as well. it also had a lot to do with frank's future career. up until then, chicken production was no more than an adjunct to egg production and when someone had chicken to eat, it was most likely a "spent hen," a tough old bird which no longer laid a sufficient number of eggs to pay her feed costs. mrs. steele transformed all this by deciding to sell all her extra baby chicks for meat when they were only a few months old and hadn't yet cost her too much in feed. the young and tender meat from these birds made them an instant success. consumers loved them, and mrs. steele discovered that raising chickens entirely for meat rather than for producing eggs, was a lucrative business. other egg producers, including frank and his father, arthur w. perdue, eventually switched over to growing chickens for meat rather than for eggs. progressive farmers like the perdues were soon breeding their chickens for larger size, faster growth, and better conversion of feed to meat$something no one had thought about when chickens were grown only for egg production. as a result of this specialization, the poultrymen were able to bring the cost of chicken down far enough so that it became affordable for everyone. these changes literally transformed our eating habits. in , we americans didn't consume a pound of broiler chicken per person in a year; today we're eating about pounds each per year. and where once only the rich could feature chicken for a holiday meal, now everyone can and many do. the holiday recipes that follow were developed by the perdue home economists. you'll find them arranged by date, beginning with january. i've included the sample menus that accompanied the original recipes. my favorite among them is the fourth of july menu that comes from frank's family. chinese new year celebration is do-it-yourself feast i wonder if any nationality can compete with the chinese on the art of eating well. the last empress of china, for instance, was known to order dishes prepared daily. from these, she chose two for dinner. even average chinese families, when they can afford it, serve an array of dishes at meal time. i remember during one chinese cooking course that i took, the teacher explained the philosophy behind having several$or even many$dishes at each meal. the idea is that the taste buds quickly tire of one taste-sensation and therefore, the meal is more enjoyable if you have many flavors and textures. at celebrations such as those that welcome the lunar new year, chicken plays an important role. chicken represents renewal and rebirth, so it often appears in several different dishes. in china, the oven stuffer roaster included here would be served complete with head and feet to symbolize completeness -- but my husband isn't selling them that way right now, so i'm not going to be completely authentic! other symbolic foods include oysters to represent good fortune, fish to symbolize plenty, and mein (noodles) to represent long life. i don't really expect you to make all these dishes from scratch, so how about getting some of them canned or frozen from your supermarket? chinese new year feast cold platter of prepared meat and fish (abalone, smoked fish, smoked ham) boiled rice oysters egg rolls won ton soup *stir fry in noodle basket *poached soy roaster *new year low mein *peking cornish hens with scallion sauce *stir-fried vegetables over chow mein noodles *recipe follows poached soy roasterserves - whole roaster cups water cups dark soy sauce cup dry sherry tablespoons sugar - / teaspoons five-spice powder slices peeled, fresh gingerroot shredded cabbage (optional) carrot curls (optional) hot pepper flowers (optional) remove giblets; set aside. remove and discard fat from cavity. tie legs together and fold wings back. in -quart kettle or dutch oven, place roaster, breast-side down; add giblets and next ingredients. over high heat, bring to a boil. reduce heat to low and cover; simmer minutes. uncover and turn roaster over gently, being careful not to tear skin. over high heat, return to a boil; cover and simmer over low heat for another minutes or until leg joint moves easily and juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. remove roaster and cool slightly; cut into small pieces. serve hot, at room temperature or chilled, arranging on a bed of cabbage and garnishing with carrot curls and hot pepper flowers. soy sauce mixture may be boiled and then passed as a dipping sauce. note: sauce mixture can be used over and over again. skim off fat; refrigerate up to a week or freeze several months. bring to a boil before reusing. stir-fry in a noodle basketserves - boneless roaster breast, cut into / -inch cubes (about cups) tablespoons soy sauce, divided tablespoons dry sherry tablespoons cornstarch, divided scallions, cut into / -inch slices ( / cup) teaspoons minced fresh gingerroot cloves garlic, minced tablespoons cider vinegar teaspoons sugar teaspoons chinese sesame oil / teaspoon cayenne pepper tablespoons vegetable oil, divided cups broccoli flowerets ( small bunch), blanched / cups sliced carrots (about ), blanched / cup sliced water chestnuts can ( -ounces) straw mushrooms, drained, or can ( - ounces) whole button mushrooms, drained / cup dry roasted cashew nuts noodle basket (recipe follows) in large bowl, combine breast cubes, tablespoons soy sauce, sherry, and tablespoon cornstarch; toss until well mixed and set aside. on small plate, combine scallions, ginger and garlic; set aside. in small bowl, mix well remaining tablespoons soy sauce, tablespoon cornstarch, vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, and cayenne; set aside. in a wok or large, heavy skillet over high heat, heat tablespoons oil until hot, but not smoking. add breast cubes and cook, stirring quickly and frequently (stir-fry), minutes. remove breast cubes with slotted spoon. add remaining tablespoons oil to skillet and heat. add onions, ginger and garlic; stir-fry about seconds. add broccoli, carrots, water chestnuts, mushrooms, and cooked breast cubes; stir-fry minutes longer. pour soy sauce mixture into skillet and cook minute longer or until slightly thickened. stir in cashews. serve hot in noodle basket. note: dish may be made up to - / hours ahead, but do not add cashews; add just before serving. place mixture in oven-to-table serving dish; partially cover and reheat in preheated f oven for minutes. or reheat in top of double boiler over hot water for minutes, stirring occasionally. photo: unusual presentation of chineese food in noodle basket noodle basket package ( -ounces) spaghetti oil for deep frying cook spaghetti as package directs. run cooked spaghetti under cold water; drain. gently toss spaghetti with a little oil. over index fingers, fold five or six spaghetti strands in half. drape folded spaghetti over edge of - x - / -inch sieve, so that loops fall to outside of sieve and ends into center. continue to place folded spaghetti ( to strands at a time) around edge of sieve. intertwine ends of spaghetti in center to form a woven pattern that will make the noodle basket stronger and prevent spaghetti from separating during frying. extra spaghetti can be added in center of sieve to reinforce pattern. when basket is complete, place another sieve on top to hold in place. in large saucepan, pour enough oil to cover sieve; over medium-high heat, heat to of or until a small piece of spaghetti sizzles and turns golden when placed in oil. submerge sieves, with spaghetti between, and deep-fry until noodle basket is lightly browned; remove and drain on paper towels. makes large basket or small baskets ( x - / ) note: to make smaller baskets, drape spaghetti over a sieve measuring x - / -inches; repeat for baskets. new year lo meinserves - water tablespoons soy sauce, divided tablespoons cornstarch, divided roaster boneless thigh cutlets, cut into thin slices or strips teaspoons chinese sesame oil teaspoon sugar tablespoons vegetable oil, divided cup chopped scallions ( - ) cloves garlic, minced cups sliced celery cabbage ( / medium head) cups sliced celery ( ribs) cups carrots cut in julienne strips ( ), blanched cups sliced mushrooms ( / pound) cup snow peas, trimmed, cut into -inch pieces cups bean sprouts / cup sliced water chestnuts / cup bamboo shoots cut in julienne strips / pound fine egg noodles or thin spaghetti broken into fourths, cooked, rinsed and drained in medium-sized bowl, combine tablespoons water, tablespoons soy sauce and tablespoon cornstarch. add thigh pieces and toss until well coated; set aside. in small bowl, mix well / cup water, remaining tablespoons soy sauce, remaining tablespoons cornstarch, sesame oil, and sugar; set aside. in large skillet or wok over medium-high heat, heat tablespoons oil until hot but not smoking. add thigh mixture; stir-fry over high heat minutes. remove thigh meat with slotted spoon; set aside. heat remaining tablespoons oil in skillet. add scallions and garlic; stir-fry about seconds. add celery cabbage, celery, carrots, mushrooms, and snow peas; stir-fry over medium heat minutes or until vegetables are tender-crisp. (add - tablespoons water, if needed). add bean sprouts, water chestnuts and bamboo shoots; stir-fry minutes. stir in thigh meat and spaghetti. add cornstarch mixture and cook until sauce has thickened. serve immediately. photo: create a meal in the chinese tradition with fresh cornish hens peking-style, served with stir-fried vegetables peking cornish hens with scallion sauceserves fresh cornish game hens cups water / cup honey - / -inch-thick slices fresh ginger skewers (approximately -inches long) remove giblets. pat hens dry. bring water to a boil in large saucepan. when boiling, add honey and stir. one at a time, lower each bird into honey bath, quickly turning it completely over to evenly coat with liquid. immediately remove and place a slice of ginger in each bird. let hens dry on metal rack for minutes. place in roasting pan with wings folded back. push tail into body cavity, then run skewer through meaty part of drumsticks underneath bone, skewering the tail. (if wood skewers are used, cover ends with foil to prevent burning.) cook in preheated f oven for hour until tender. combine sauce ingredients and serve with hens. scallion sauce / cup soy sauce tablespoons dry sherry tablespoons fresh orange juice teaspoon grated orange rind teaspoon sugar scallions thinly sliced stir-frying is a classic chinese cooking technique in which food is quickly cooked over high heat to retain flavor and crispness. in a wok or skillet, saute chopped broccoli, green beans, celery and bean sprouts in a small amount of peanut oil for about minutes, stirring frequently. flavor with soy sauce and serve. stir-fried vegetablesserves / cup bias-cut bite-size carrot pieces / cup broccoli flowerets / cup bias-cut green beans / cup celery thinly sliced at an angle / cup snow peas - tablespoons peanut oil clove garlic peeled and lightly crushed (optional) - / -inch thick slice fresh ginger (optional) soy sauce to taste in a saucepan bring quart of water to a boil, add carrots, and cook for minutes. drain and rinse under cold running water, then pat dry with paper towels. to a heated wok or iron skillet add tablespoons peanut oil and optional garlic and ginger. when oil is hot, add well dried carrots and saute for minutes. quickly remove carrots with a slotted spoon and arrange on a serving platter, then continue in the same manner cooking the broccoli and green beans, each for minutes and the celery and snowpeas each for minute. add more oil as necessary and remove garlic and ginger if they start to burn. when all of the vegetables have been arranged, sprinkle lightly with soy sauce and serve immediately. elegant dinner for two photo caption: on valentine's day, show your loved one you care by serving cornish hens sheherezade and tender-hearts salad. there's a hearts and valentines connection today that great grandmother never considered. given what we now know about diet and heart disease, it's more true than ever that the way to a man's heart really is through his stomach. in the case of my husband, i think it's certainly true. to be honest, frank is not what you'd call a heavy duty romantic. on valentines day he does give me roses, but i've wondered if the flowers appear because his secretary, elaine barnes, puts him up to it. i also get a wonderfully romantic valentine's card, but for all i know elaine may choose it for him. in my heart of hearts, i think he enjoys valentine's day, but is more turned on by the health aspect of the menu that follows than with any flowers or valentines. february has been celebrated as national heart month since . what better time than february to pamper a loved one's heart -- or your own -- than the season for lovers? here's a special february dinner for your valentine, one with an elegant menu for two that encourages love, devotion and good health. to star at the meal, serve cornish hens sheherazade, a romantic choice because fresh hens, like love birds, come in pairs. they also are low in calories, fat, cholesterol, and sodium. to surround the birds with beauty and good nutrition, you could make a brown-rice pilaf, sweet- flavored miniature vegetables, and a salad studded with deep-red beets cut in tiny hearts. for dessert? try forbidden fruit souffle. menu *cornish hens sheherazade *curried brown rice pilaf miniature vegetables *tender hearts salad *forbidden fruit souffle *recipe follows cornish hens sheherazadeserves - fresh cornish game hens tablespoons fresh lemon juice (reserve shell) teaspoons soybean oil / teaspoon ground ginger / teaspoon ground cumin ground pepper to taste, and salt, if you must paprika to taste small onions, halved whole cloves fresh or frozen baby carrots, lightly steamed / cup combined fresh or frozen baby peas and pearl onions, lightly steamed curried brown rice pilaf (recipe follows) place hens in large shallow bowl. in small bowl, combine lemon juice, oil, ginger, cumin, pepper, salt and paprika. pour into and over cornish hens. cover and marinate in refrigerator minutes or longer. preheat oven to f. stick cloves into onion halves. place onion halves and / squeezed lemon juice inside each hen. tie legs together and fold back wings. sprinkle with pepper and paprika. roast about minutes or until juices run clear with no trace of pink when thigh is pierced. serve hens with vegetables and curried brown rice pilaf. curried brown rice pilafserves teaspoon soybean oil / cup chopped onion teaspoon curry powder / teaspoon ground ginger / teaspoon ground cumin / teaspoon ground turmeric ground pepper to taste, and salt, if you can't do without it dash cayenne / cup uncooked brown rice tablespoon raisins (optional) can ( -ounces) low-sodium chicken broth / cup water tablespoon snipped fresh or frozen chives preheat oven to f. in small, non-stick skillet over medium-low heat, heat oil. saute onion and spices and salt, if you're using it, in hot oil for to minutes until tender but not browned. stir in rice and raisins; remove from heat and set aside. in an ovenproof saucepan, over high heat, bring chicken broth and water to a boil. stir in rice mixture; cover and boil minutes. place covered saucepan in oven and continue to cook to minutes until rice is tender and liquid has been absorbed. to serve, toss pilaf with chives. tender hearts saladserves can ( -ounces) low-sodium fancy sliced beets teaspoons cider vinegar teaspoon dijon mustard tablespoon soybean oil ground pepper to taste pinch ground cinnamon to taste small heads bibb or boston lettuce with outside leaves removed teaspoons snipped fresh or frozen chives drain beets, reserving tablespoons liquid. using small heart-shaped cookie cutter or cardboard pattern, cut hearts out of beet slices. prepare dressing: in small bowl, combine reserved beet liquid, vinegar, and mustard. whisk in oil in a slow stream; season with pepper and cinnamon. toss beets with dressing and set aside. trim base of lettuce heads, if necessary, so they sit flat; gently spread leaves open like a flower. carefully wash lettuce in cold water; pat dry with paper towels. on each of the two salad plates, place one lettuce head; arrange beet hearts decoratively among leaves. to serve, drizzle with dressing and sprinkle with chives. forbidden fruit souffleserves large unblemished cooking/eating apples / lemon cup unsweetened applesauce teaspoons honey ground cinnamon to taste ground nutmeg to taste tablespoons applejack or calvados, divided (optional) large egg white confectioners' sugar preheat oven to f. lightly grease baking dish. wash apples and, if necessary, cut a thin slice off bottom of each apple to make it stand upright. cut a / -inch slice off tops of apples. using a small, sharp knife and a grapefruit spoon, hollow out apples, leaving a shell / - inch thick. rub inside and top edges of apple shells with lemon to keep them from discoloring. in small, heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat, combine applesauce, honey, cinnamon, nutmeg and to teaspoons applejack. cook, stirring often, until heated through but not boiling. in small bow, with mixer at high speed, beat egg white until stiff but not dry. into medium-sized mixing bowl, pour hot applesauce. add half the egg white; fold in with a rubber or wooden spatula. add remaining egg white and fold in gently. sprinkle inside of apple shells lightly with additional cinnamon and nutmeg. place apple shells in prepared baking dish; carefully fill with applesauce mixture, doming the top. bake in center of oven for to minutes or until souffles have risen and are very lightly browned on top. remove souffles from oven and sprinkle lightly with confectioner's sugar. to flame souffles, in small saucepan, heat remaining applejack until barely warm. using a long match, light applejack and pour over souffles. serve at once. photo - drumstick crown roast - spring drumstick crown roast adds whimsy to easter feast the symbols of easter are happy ones, full of the joy of the day$spring flowers and spring greens, new clothes, cuddly animals and their chocolate look-alikes, jelly beans, fancy breads and cakes, colored eggs and easter egg hunts. catching the spirit of the day, perdue farms' home economists developed a playful main course to "crown" the easter meal. it is a roast of drumsticks fashioned into an edible crown by baking them upright around a coffee can. when baking is complete, a corn bread stuffing that you make replaces the can. the technique is not difficult and the can actually helps brown the outside of the chicken. pilaf-stuffed crown roast with herb gravy could be the centerpiece to a greek feast, including a classic greek soup, artichoke casserole, and salad with feta cheese. traditional touches such as a garnish of red-dyed hard- cooked eggs and luscious rich baklava from the bakery will add authenticity to the celebration. for an american-style meal, serve cornbread-stuffed crown roast of drumsticks with madeira sauce. either way, happy easter! menu hot sherried consomme *pilaf-stuffed crown roast of drumsticks with herb gravy or *cornbread-stuffed crown roast of drumsticks with madeira sauce creamy cole slaw maple candied sweet potatoes wilted lettuce salad golden chiffon cake *recipe follows pilaf-stuffed crown roast ofserves - drumsticks with herb gravy roaster drumsticks empty coffee can ( - -ounces) with ends removed and outside greased kitchen twine / cup olive oil salt and ground pepper to taste / teaspoons minced, fresh oregano or / teaspoon dried, divided / teaspoons minced, fresh thyme, or / teaspoon dried / cup flour clove garlic, minced cups chicken broth or water hard-cooked eggs, dyed red, optional garnish fresh bay leaves, thyme, oregano and marjoram, optional garnish greek easter pilaf (recipe follows) preheat oven to f. place coffee can in center of a round - or -inch cake pan. arrange drumsticks around can, narrow end up. with twine, tie drumsticks securely around the can in places, starting at the middle, then bottom, then top. in a small bowl, combine oil with salt, pepper, one half of oregano, and / of thyme; brush onto drumsticks. roast drumsticks for hour, minutes, basting halfway through cooking time with any remaining oil. meanwhile, prepare greek easter pilaf; keep warm. using two spatulas, remove roast with can to a warm -inch platter or chop plate. pour / cup pan juices into a small saucepan. whisk in flour and cook over medium heat for minutes, stirring constantly. add garlic, broth, and remaining oregano and thyme; bring to a boil, whisking constantly. season to taste with salt and pepper; strain gravy into a warm sauceboat. to serve roast, spoon stuffing into coffee can. carefully lift off can and gently press drumsticks against stuffing. garnish, if desired, with dyed eggs and fresh herbs. greek easter pilaf / cup ( / stick) butter or margarine / cup chopped onion / cup pine nuts (pignoli) - / cups converted rice - / cups chicken broth or water / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup currants or raisins / cup minced, fresh parsley in a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. saute onion, pine nuts, and rice in hot butter for minutes, stirring constantly. stir in broth, salt, pepper, and currants and bring to boil. cover pot with tightly-fitting lid; reduce heat to low. cook rice minutes or until tender. fluff with a fork and toss with parsley. cornbread-stuffed crown roast of drumsticks serves with madeira sauce roaster drumsticks empty coffee can ( - -ounces) with both ends removed and outside greased kitchen twine / cup ( stick) butter or margarine melted salt and ground pepper to taste teaspoon ground sage dixie cornbread stuffing (recipe follows) / cup flour tablespoons madeira wine cup chicken broth or water preheat oven to f. place coffee can in center of a round - or -inch cake pan. arrange drumsticks around can, narrow end up. with twine, tie drumsticks securely around the can in places, starting at the middle, then bottom, then top. in a small bowl, combine butter with salt, pepper, and sage; brush onto drumsticks. roast for hour, minutes, basting halfway through cooking time with remaining any butter. meanwhile, prepare dixie cornbread stuffing, cover and bake in oven with roast during last minutes of cooking time. using two spatulas, remove roast with can to a warm -inch platter or chop plate. pour / cup pan juices into a small saucepan. whisk in flour and cook over medium heat minutes, stirring constantly. add madeira and broth; bring to a boil, whisking frequently. season to taste with salt and pepper; strain gravy into a warm sauceboat. to serve roast, spoon stuffing into coffee can. carefully lift off can and gently press drumsticks against stuffing. dixie cornbread stuffing / pound lean bacon, diced / cup chopped onion / cup chopped celery / cup ( / stick) butter or margarine / pound fresh spinach, kale, or collard greens, cooked, well drained and chopped* package ( -ounces) cornbread stuffing mix cup chicken broth or water salt and ground pepper to taste in a medium-sized ovenproof skillet, over medium heat, saute bacon, onion, and celery for to minutes or until bacon is cooked. add butter and heat until melted. stir in greens, stuffing mix, and broth; toss well. season with salt and pepper. *note: or substitute / package ( -ounces) frozen chopped spinach, kale, or collard greens, thawed and drained. mother's day dinner -- with love from the kids photo: chicken bouquet is a centerpiece for mother's day. mother's day became a national holiday in . since then, it's a day of love and memories, with no gifts more appreciated than the "i made it myself" or "i cooked it myself" variety. i remember so well the fledgling attempts by my oldest child to cook for mother's day. jose wasn't much more than a toddler when he got the idea on his own to make hot cocoa for a mother's day treat. while i was still in bed, he went into the kitchen, turned on the electric stove, and started to make the cocoa by setting a china cup full of water directly on the hot burner. i came into the kitchen just in time to prevent a disaster. as you can imagine, a quick lesson on kitchen safety followed. the perdue farms home economists want to be sure your kids don't have a similar close call and recommend that all kids be warned to stay away from the stove unless there's adult supervision. but assuming that there's an adult around to help, children can participate in making a wonderful treat for their mother. the recipe that follows is "a dinner bouquet for mom." grade school children and older can create a bouquet of chicken kebobs, helping to thread fruit and fresh boneless thigh meat on skewers and to "plant" them in rice. for younger children, even toddlers, drumstick blossoms are an easy alternate recipe in which drumsticks are rolled in parmesan-flavored crumbs. any age child can help scrub vegetables and spoon sherbet into orange cups. teenagers can enjoy creating radish roses, making stir-fry rice, and scalloping orange baskets to hold sherbet. editor's note: please see accompanying recipes and photograph. menu *citrus chicken bouquet or *drumstick blossoms stewed tomatoes idaho baked potatoes with sour cream succotash dinner rolls berries and cream *recipe follows citrus chicken bouquet serves roaster boneless thigh cutlets / cup fresh orange juice tablespoons vegetable oil tablespoons soy sauce tablespoons honey tablespoon grated orange peel cloves garlic, minced - / teaspoon minced, fresh ginger or / teaspoon ground medium-sized green peppers, cut into -inch squares tangerines, peeled and pulled into sections medium-sized clean, glazed ceramic flowerpot garden fried rice (see recipe) or - cups cooked rice cut chicken thighs into -inch chunks. in shallow bowl or non-metal container, combine orange juice, oil, soy sauce, honey, orange peel, garlic, and ginger; mix well. cover and marinate chicken for hour or longer, refrigerated. drain chicken; reserve marinade. preheat broiler. on each of four to six -inch skewers, alternately thread chicken, green pepper, and orange sections. broil kebabs, about inches from heat, for to minutes or until chicken is cooked through, turning occasionally and basting with marinade. to serve, spoon rice into flowerpot. stand skewers in rice. makes about servings note: kebabs can also be barbecued on an outdoor grill. cook over medium-hot coals for to minutes or until cooked through, turning occasionally and basting with marinade. drumstick blossomsserves - children can make this mother's day "bouquet" of drumsticks. served in a flowerpot it's whimsical and fun. tablespoons butter or margarine, melted / cup grated parmesan cheese / cup seasoned bread crumbs / cup sesame seeds / teaspoon paprika salt and ground pepper to taste drumsticks medium-sized clean, glazed clay flowerpot small head boston lettuce or green leaf lettuce parsley sprigs, optional preheat oven to of. place butter in a baking dish. on wax paper, combine parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, sesame seeds, paprika, salt, and pepper. roll each drumstick in melted butter, then in crumbs until well coated. arrange drumsticks in same baking dish, alternating direction of drums to accommodate all pieces. bake about minutes or until cooked through and golden brown. to serve, separate lettuce into leaves; wash and dry. line bottom and sides of flowerpot with lettuce, allowing leafy edges to extend above rim of flowerpot. place drumsticks, bone side down, on lettuce in flowerpot to resemble flowers. garnish with parsley sprigs, if desired. frank perdue's fourth of july menu frank has warm memories of his childhood, growing up on his father's poultry farm on the eastern shore of maryland. he was part of the family business from the time he was so small "he had to hold an egg with two hands." like any other farm family on maryland's eastern shore, the perdues did not often get to enjoy a tender young broiler; that was strictly springtime eating, when there were small birds to spare. the rest of the year, chicken dinner meant long, slow cooking of one of the venerable hens that hatched the eggs that were the family business. "if a holiday came along," says frank, "we could be sure my mother's big cast iron kettle would come out and it would be time to cook up one of the older hens. that was great eating!" here's the kind of fourth of july menu that frank grew up with. since you probably don't have an old stewing hen, try an oven stuffer roaster for the eastern shore chicken with slippery dumplings. roasters are old enough to have a lot of flavor, but young enough not to be too tough. if you're unfamiliar with slippery dumplings, they are more like noodles or won ton wrappers than conventional dumplings. sweet potato biscuits are a typical accompaniment, and frank is so particular about them that the first six months of our marriage, i probably tried ten different recipes before hitting on the one that accompanies the eastern shore chicken recipe. sweet potato biscuits are sweeter and chewier than the baking powder variety eaten elsewhere. enjoy this eastern fourth of july feast. menu *eastern shore chicken with slippery dumplings turnip greens corn on the cob zucchini parmesan *sweet potato biscuits iced tea peach cobbler *recipe follows eastern shore chicken with slippery dumplings serves - poached roaster whole roaster or soup and stew hen / lemon medium-sized yellow onion whole cloves salt and ground pepper to taste cups chicken broth or more if desired water bay leaf pound small white onions, peeled pound carrots (about ), peeled and cut into - / -inch lengths rub roaster inside and out with lemon. cut onion in half and stick with cloves; place in cavity of roaster. truss bird by lacing up cavity and tying legs together. season with salt and pepper, and place in an eight-quart dutch oven. pour in chicken broth and enough water to reach halfway up sides of roaster; add bay leaf. place over medium heat; bring liquid to a simmer. reduce heat to medium-low. cover and simmer, allowing minutes per pound for a roaster and minutes per pound for a hen. (to keep meat tender, do not allow to boil.) during last minutes of cooking time, add onions and carrots. roaster is done if juices run clear with no hint of pink when thickest part of thigh is pierced. (hen should be cooked beyond this time to tenderize.) remove bird and vegetables to serving platter and keep warm. add more broth or water to poaching liquid, if necessary, to bring it halfway up sides of dutch oven; bring to a boil. meanwhile prepare dumplings. slippery dumplings cups flour cup warm water teaspoon salt or to taste in mixing bowl, combine flour, warm water and salt. turn onto a well-floured surface and knead dough to minutes until it becomes elastic; reflour board as necessary. roll out kneaded dough as thinly as possible. with sharp knife, cut into - / to -inch squares. add to boiling poaching liquid and cook to minutes until "al dente." remove dumplings to a serving bowl. over high heat, cook poaching liquid until reduced and slightly thickened. for a thicker gravy, add a small amount of flour blended with cold water to poaching liquid. to serve, pour some gravy over dumplings; pass the rest separately. carve roaster and serve with vegetables, dumplings and gravy. note: you can substitute won ton skins for dumpling dough. a typical side dishes for this dinner would be greens sauteed with onion and a little salt pork. sweet potato biscuits makes to this is how i cook sweet potato biscuits for frank, with a minimum of salt. you may prefer the biscuits with a little more salt. cup drained, canned sweet potatoes / cup syrup from canned sweet potatoes tablespoons vegetable shortening tablespoon sugar cup flour teaspoons baking powder / teaspoon salt, or to taste preheat oven to f. grease a baking sheet. rice or mash potatoes until smooth; place in small saucepan and stir in syrup. cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until just warm. stir in shortening and sugar; mix well. in a mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. stir in sweet potato mixture; mix well with wooden spoon or knead with hands for minute. on floured surface, roll or pat out dough to / -inch thickness. with - / to -inch round biscuit cutter, cut out dough. bake to minutes until golden on top and cooked through. serve warm. say "bravo, cristoforo colombo" and celebrate italian style columbus day has been a national holiday in this country since . its first official celebration, however, dates to , the three hundredth anniversary of the exploration that brought columbus and a crew of sailors to the new world. the celebration took place in new york city, where today's italian-american population equals the population of genoa. the first columbus day celebration included a gala banquet$a thoroughly appropriate way to mark the event that changed the eating habits of the old world forever. the enriching exchange of foods between the old and new world affected all the cuisines of europe, but none more than that of italy. imagine italian cuisine without tomatoes or peppers or corn. to many of us "eating italian" is a favorite experience, and what could be a better excuse for a "festa italiana" than "cristoforo colombo day". here's a complete menu for just such a holiday dinner. in fact, it could be two dinners, because there's a choice of main courses one with the color, spice and flare of southern italy, the other with the rich creaminess of the north. because large numbers of immigrants came from southern italy, especially from naples and sicily, lively southern italian dishes are most familiar to americans. these typically include tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, spices such as cinnamon, raisins, and olives. layered pastas and pizza come from the south. in the north, foods are lighter, more varied, and are frequently delicate in flavor. many dishes call for butter, cream or cheese, and filled pasta and rice are also served. chicken is suited to either style of cooking, and boneless oven stuffer roaster thigh meat is as delicious with a spicy tomato sauce as with wine and cream. in all parts of italy, fresh vegetables, fruit, and herbs are important. columbus' own city of genoa is most closely associated with the use of fresh basil. whether inspired by the north or the south, columbus day is a time to wave the flags, both our red, white and blue and the italian red, white and green, and to salute christopher columbus with a meal to remember. regional italian columbus day menu antipasto *brodo genovese *chicken and eggplant agrodolce siciliana *"rice birds" piedmontese in wine and cream sauce broccoli florets parmigiano crusty italian bread *coppa cristoforo colombo cafe espresso *recipe follows brodo genovese: chicken broth with pasta, cheese and basilserves - cups homemade chicken stock or cans ( - / -ounces each) chicken broth cup small pasta such as tubetti (tiny tubes), farfalle (bow ties) or conchiglie (shells) / cup minced fresh basil or italian parsley cup freshly grated parmesan cheese in large saucepan or dutch oven over high heat, bring chicken stock to a boil. add pasta and cook until tender, stirring occasionally, about to minutes. to serve, ladle hot soup into bowls; sprinkle with basil and pass grated cheese. chicken and eggplant agrodolce scicilianaserves - large eggplant (about - / pounds), cut into - / inch cubes roaster boneless thigh cutlets salt and ground pepper to taste / - / cup olive oil, divided cups sliced red onions / cup balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar cloves garlic, minced / teaspoon ground cinnamon tablespoons honey grated rind of oranges can ( -ounces) whole plum tomatoes, drained and cut into thin strips minced, fresh parsley and basil (optional) sprinkle eggplant with salt; let stand minutes to extract liquid; rinse and pat dry. trim off any fat from thighs and cut into -inch pieces. preheat oven to of. in large heavy skillet over medium heat, heat tablespoons oil. add chicken, half at a time; saute to minutes until lightly browned, adding more oil if necessary. remove pieces with slotted spoon to large, covered casserole or baking dish. add to tablespoons oil to skillet; stir in eggplant and cook minutes until golden, adding more oil if necessary. add to casserole. pour vinegar into skillet, scraping and stirring to remove pan glaze; add garlic, cinnamon, honey orange rind, and salt and pepper to taste. pour vinegar mixture into casserole. cover and bake minutes. stir in tomato strips, re-cover and bake minutes longer. garnish with minced parsley and basil, if desired. serve with hot crusty italian bread. photo: roaster thigh "rice birds" "rice birds" piedmontese in wine and cream sauceserves - roaster boneless thigh cutlets salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons butter or margarine, divided tablespoons chopped onion / teaspoon minced, fresh rosemary or sage, or / teaspoon dried ounces chopped prosciutto or ham cup cooked rice tablespoons grated parmesan cheese / cup ( -ounces) grated or diced italian fontina or mozzarella cheese tablespoons olive oil cup chicken or beef broth / cup dry white wine / cup heavy cream tablespoon minced, fresh parsley trim off and discard any fat and sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. place between moistened pieces of plastic wrap; pound until about / inch thick. in large heavy, oven-proof skillet over medium heat, melt tablespoons butter. add onion and / teaspoon rosemary; cook, stirring occasionally, to minutes, until tender but not brown. stir in prosciutto; cook minute longer. in small bowl, combine onion mixture, rice, and cheeses; season with salt and pepper to taste. place heaping tablespoon rice stuffing inch from end of each pounded thigh. roll up thighs into neat "packages", folding edges in over stuffing; tie packages with kitchen string. in same skillet over medium heat, melt remaining butter with oil. cook rice birds in butter-oil on all sides until lightly browned, about to minutes. cover skillet and simmer minutes. transfer "birds" to serving platter; cut strings and keep warm. add broth, wine, and remaining rosemary to skillet, scraping bottom to incorporate any browned bits. stir in cream; cook over medium-high heat until sauce is thick enough to lightly coat the back of a spoon. return birds and any juices to skillet; cover with sauce and cook briefly just until heated through. arrange rice birds and sauce on serving platter and sprinkle with parsley. coppa da festa cristoforo colomboserves amarettini (small almond-flavored biscuits) or large amaretti, crushed pint each strawberry, vanilla and pistachio ice cream amaretto liqueur (optional) colored candy sprinkles or nonpareils cocktail toothpick flags of italy and usa ( each) for each serving: in bottom of large, stemmed glass, place teaspoon amarettini biscuit. alternately scoop strawberry, vanilla and pistachio ice cream on top, sprinkling about teaspoon amarettini between each scoop. pour a little amaretto or other liqueur on ice cream, if desired. top with sprinkles and insert a flag of italy and usa. repeat with remaining ingredients. serve immediately or place coppas in freezer until ready to serve. photo: chicken kebabs are tailgate party heroes photo: thanksgiving roaster nested in sage dressing takes an... recipes of old south are today's thanksgiving treasures even before george washington declared thanksgiving a national holiday, its celebration had spread from massachusetts colony to all america. in the old south, thanksgiving could mean weeks of preparation, days of celebrating and a house that overflowed with guests. modern times have inevitably relaxed some standards of southern hospitality, but not necessarily when it comes to setting a sumptuous table. here's a carolina version of a thanksgiving bird. it's an oven stuffer roaster complete with a nest of stuffing. the stuffing is cooked outside instead of inside, so it soaks up the pan juices and develops a lightly crusted surface. several of perdue farms' home recipe testers tried the stuffing-nest method and found it not only wonderful eating, but an appealing presentation as well. thanksgiving day dinner delight *roaster nested in sage dressing with sweet potato puff *creamed giblet gravy string beans almondine creamy cole slaw cranberry salad sour dough dinner rolls southern pecan pie *recipe follows roaster nested in sage dressing with sweet potato puff and creamed giblet gravy serves - whole roaster salt and ground pepper to taste cups hot water loaf ( - / to / - pounds) day-old white bread cup chopped onion - / cups chopped celery / cup minced, fresh parsley - / tablespoons minced fresh sage or - / teaspoons dried sage / teaspoon dried thyme eggs tablespoon butter or margarine creamed giblet gravy (recipe follows) preheat oven to f. remove giblets and sprinkle inside of bird with salt and pepper. tie legs together and fold wings back. place roaster in roasting pan or baking dish along with giblets. pour in cups hot water. roast - / hours, basting occasionally with pan liquids. meanwhile, prepare dressing: tear bread into / -inch pieces; place in large bowl with onion, celery, parsley, / teaspoon salt, / teaspoon pepper, sage, and thyme. mix well and set aside. after - / hours, remove roaster from oven. reserve giblets and pour cups of pan juices through strainer into a medium-sized saucepan; reserve for gravy. add water to remaining pan juices, if necessary, to bring liquid to - / cups. ladle into bowl with dressing mixture; add eggs and mix until thoroughly moistened. with hands, mold stuffing around outside of roaster to form a "nest." brush butter over breast. return roaster to oven; continue cooking minutes to hour longer or until dressing is cooked and lightly browned and juices run clear with no hint of pink when roaster thigh is pierced. if desired, serve nested roaster from roasting pan. or run spatula under bird to loosen it and carefully transfer to heated platter, keeping dressing intact. serve with creamed giblet gravy. creamed giblet gravy cups reserved pan juices reserved roaster giblets, chopped / cup milk / cup flour salt and ground pepper to taste chop giblets and add to pan juices; over medium heat, bring to a simmer. in small bowl, make a smooth paste of milk and flour. whisk flour mixture into pan juices and continue whisking until gravy is thickened. season with salt and pepper to taste. bourbon sweet potato puffserves if you have a sweet tooth, you'll love this recipe. frank does. medium-sized cooked sweet potatoes or can ( -ounces) sweet potatoes, drained / cup ( / stick) unsalted butter or margarine, melted eggs / cup firmly packed brown sugar / teaspoon ground cinnamon / teaspoon ground cloves / teaspoon ground nutmeg to teaspoons grated orange rind / cup bourbon package ( -ounces) marshmallows preheat oven to f. butter a - / -quart souffle dish or casserole. peel cooked sweet potatoes. in large bowl, combine potatoes with remaining ingredients except marshmallows. with electric mixer or food processor, beat or process until fluffy. turn mixture into prepared dish or casserole; arrange marshmallows over top. bake minutes or until marshmallows are puffed and golden. photo: black & white - platters, sm. bowl soup, chopsticks chanukah is a festival of fun and food chanukah is a jewish holiday, a day of remembrance, a festival of lights, and most of all, a family party that is celebrated during eight joyful days. chanukah was first celebrated more than , years ago, following the defeat of the syrian army by the macabees. after driving the syrians from jerusalem, the jewish temple was ceremonially cleansed. during the cleaning, a flask of oil belonging to the high priest was found. it contained enough oil to burn one night. instead, it burned miraculously for eight days and eight nights. that is why a special eight-branch menorah (candlestick) is lit each chanukah night at sundown, beginning with a single lighted candle on the first night and building to a full eight. as with all jewish holidays, traditional foods are part of the celebration. fried and sauteed dishes have special chanukah significance because of the oil used in cooking them. holiday chicken saute is a favorite meal in one family in which there are two small boys who still prefer fingers to forks. their mother, who is a food consultant, once asked frank what he thought of such table manners. his answer: "that's why we sell our drumsticks with built- in handles." with most of america's jewish settlers having come from eastern europe, holiday foods served in that part of the world are most popular here. for chanukah, this means crisp, brown potato latkes (yiddish for pancakes). latkes are usually served with fresh applesauce and dairy sour cream. before the arrival of the food processor, hand grating the potatoes was a traditional pre-dinner part of the ritual, with everyone taking turns at grating potatoes -- and sometimes knuckles. in israel, fried jelly doughnuts are frequently served instead of latkes, and many sephardic jews (from mediterranean countries), serve fried pastries unique to each country. among them are moroccan fichuelas. these crisp, honey-coated pastries are great fun to twirl in hot oil and shape into pinwheels - but beware of the little fingers near hot oil. photo: chanukah for families family chanukah supper party *holiday chicken saute *potato latkes *applesauce *fichuelas de chanukah *recipe follows holiday chicken sauteserves - chicken drumsticks chicken thighs tablespoons vegetable oil or chicken fat small zucchini, cut into / -inch slices medium-sized carrots, peeled and cut into / -inch slices large onion, sliced into rings tablespoons fresh lemon juice tablespoons honey lemon, thinly sliced teaspoon salt or to taste teaspoon paprika tablespoon cornstarch tablespoons cold water in large, deep skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat oil. saute drumsticks and thighs in hot oil until lightly browned on all sides, about minutes. remove from skillet. to pan drippings, add zucchini, carrots, and onion; saute minutes. return chicken to skillet; add lemon juice, honey, lemon slices, salt, and paprika. reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook to minutes longer or until chicken and vegetables are tender. in cup, place cornstarch; add water and blend to form a smooth paste. stir into skillet and cook until slightly thickened. to serve, arrange chicken, lemon slices and vegetables on large platter; spoon sauce on top. potato latkes (potato pancakes) serves - medium-sized raw potatoes medium-sized onion, peeled eggs / cup matzo meal or flour teaspoon salt or to taste vegetable oil for frying wash potatoes; remove spots or blemishes with a small knife. peel potatoes, if desired. with hand grater or food processor fitted with steel shredding blade, coarsely grate potatoes. transfer to large bowl; cover with cold water and let stand minutes. drain potatoes in colander, pressing out excess liquid. using hand grater or food processor fitted with steel blade, grate or chop onion. combine drained potatoes, onion, eggs, matzo meal or flour and salt; mix well. (as mixture stands, more liquid will accumulate. do not pour off liquid; stir mixture frequently to blend.) in large skillet, heat / -inch oil over medium heat until hot. drop potato mixture by tablespoons into hot oil; flatten slightly with spatula. cook pancakes, a few at a time, until golden brown on both sides, turning once and adding more oil if necessary. drain on paper towels. keep cooked pancakes warm in preheated f oven while others are cooking. serve pancakes warm, with applesauce. applesauceserves - frank loves this recipe. he's normally not fond of granny smith apples, but he likes them cooked, in this recipe. to medium-sized tart apples (about pounds) to tablespoons water to tablespoons sugar, to taste (optional) / teaspoon cinnamon / teaspoon nutmeg peel apples, if desired; remove cores and seeds. cut apples into chunks; place in medium-sized saucepan. add tablespoons water, sugar if desired, cinnamon, and nutmeg. over medium heat, bring to a boil. reduce heat to low; cover and cook to minutes or until apples are very tender, stirring occasionally and adding more water if necessary. remove from heat and stir until large lumps disappear and mixture is fairly smooth. if apples are used unpeeled, strain sauce in food press or mill to remove skin. let stand until cool; refrigerate until ready to serve. fichuelas de chanukahserves (spiral-shaped sephardic chanukah pastries) cups flour teaspoon salt or to taste eggs, slightly beaten - / cups vegetable oil, divided / cup warm water - / cups sugar / cup water in large bowl or container of food processor, fitted with steel blade, combine flour, salt, eggs, / cup oil, and / cup warm water. stir or process until mixture forms a fairly stiff dough. on unfloured surface, knead dough minutes until smooth and elastic. divide dough into parts; roll each into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. let dough stand hour for easier handling. on lightly floured surface, roll out one ball into a x -inch rectangle. cut dough into strips, each about - / -inches wide and -inches long. in small saucepan over low heat, heat sugar in water until sugar is dissolved, stirring constantly; keep warm. in medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, heat cups oil to f, or until small piece of dough sizzles when dropped in oil. with hand, gently lift one end of a dough strip; pierce the opposite end with a long-handled fork and twirl fork once to secure dough. place dough, fork-end first; into hot oil. as dough fries, quickly and gently turn fork, rolling dough around to form a pinwheel. fry dough until puffed and golden, about to seconds. (do not brown.) slip dough off fork; remove from oil with slotted spoon and immediately dip into warm sugar mixture to coat well. cool completely on wire rack placed over waxed paper. repeat with remaining dough. makes pastries for the romance of it, serve a christmas dinner george and martha washington style george and martha washington made much of christmas. they had been married on the twelfth night of christmas in , and from that year forward they tried to be together for the holidays. (the exceptions were such occasions as christmas , when general washington was busy crossing the delaware.) two of the food specialists at perdue are history buffs as well, an they put together for frank a christmas menu based on "receipts" (as recipes were once called) for dishes that might have been enjoyed at christmas dinner, two hundred years ago. as they pointed out, even basic food supplies were very different two centuries ago. american waters were so abundant with crabs, oysters, shrimp and clams, that inventive cooks tossed them into soups and spreads, baked them "potted," "scalloped" or in loaves, and used them lavishly in sauces and stuffings. the oyster stuffing included in this menu is based on a specialty of george washington's mother. she may have served it with passenger pigeon $common fare in those days. although this wild bird is extinct today, cornish game hens make tasty, tender, modern substitutes. and it is far easier to "bag a brace" or two of cornish hens at the local supermarket than to stalk dinner in the wild. early americans weren't partial to vegetables. they tended to overcook and under season them, then serve them up as a "mess of pease". but old-time cooks did make wonderful vegetable puddings and were superb at pickling and preserving their vegetables and fruits to serve all winter long. from the beginning, american settlers distilled spirits. even the stern pilgrims (who considered the celebration of christmas pagan) drank wine and cider for their health. after a festive holiday meal, most of our founding fathers probably enjoyed a few rounds of madeira or port. but thomas jefferson's favorite holiday drink was a spicy mixture of hot ale and rum, so heat producing it was called "a yard of flannel". frothy syllabub was thought to be suitable for everyone, even women and children, and this rich drink was a delicious accompaniment to sweetmeats, stewed fruit, cakes or pies. though few would wish to return to cooking at the hearth and beehive oven, if you're smitten by the romance of the past, try serving special guests a christmas dinner martha washington-style. photo: "an early american holiday menu with cornish hens" an early american christmas dinner for four potted crab *cornish hens with oyster stuffing mount vernon *sherried pan gravy savory grated-carrot christmas pudding pickled beet salad *"whipt" syllabub with sweetmeats *recipe follows cornish hens with oyster stuffing mount vernon and sherried pan gravyserves fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoons butter or margarine, divided oysters, shucked, coarsely chopped, and strained through a fine sieve or coffee filter (reserve oyster liquor) pinch ground mace / teaspoon minced, fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried / cup chopped onion - slices day-old bread, cubed tablespoon fresh lemon juice tablespoons dry sherry, divided spiced or brandied fruit for garnish (optional) preheat oven to of. season hens inside and out with salt and pepper. in medium-sized skillet over medium heat, melt tablespoons butter with / cup oyster liquor, mace and thyme. add onion; cook minutes until onion is tender and liquid is reduced to about / cup. in medium-sized bowl, toss onion mixture with oysters, bread cubes, / teaspoon salt, / teaspoon pepper, lemon juice and tablespoon sherry. spoon oyster stuffing loosely into hens. tie legs together and fold back wings. in a small saucepan, melt butter; combine with remaining sherry and baste hens with mixture. roast hens, basting occasionally, about hour and minutes longer or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. remove hens from roasting pan, cut strings, place on serving platter and keep warm. pour pan juices into a heat proof measuring cup or small bowl. skim off tablespoons of clear yellow drippings that rise to the top and return to pan. skim off any remaining yellow drippings and discard. reserve degreased pan juices to add to gravy with broth. if desired, serve hens garnished with spiced or brandied fruit. serve with sherried gravy. sherried pan gravy tablespoons reserved pan drippings tablespoons flour cups chicken broth or water tablespoons dry sherry place roasting pan over medium heat; add flour to reserved clear pan drippings and cook minutes, stirring and scraping the bottom to incorporate any browned bits. stir in enough combined degreased pan juices, chicken broth and sherry to make cups; simmer, stirring constantly, minutes longer. strain gravy into sauceboat. "whipt" syllabubserves - tablespoons dark rum or cognac tablespoons sugar grated rind and juice of lemon / teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg cup ( / -pint) heavy cream sprigs fresh rosemary (optional) sweetmeats (see note) or stewed fruits in large bowl, with mixer at medium speed, beat rum, sugar and lemon rind. gradually add heavy cream, beating constantly until cream forms soft peaks. (do not overbeat.) cover and refrigerate until serving time. when ready to serve, if liquids have separated, beat by hand to re-incorporate. serve syllabub in small cordial glasses, garnished with a rosemary sprig. accompany with sweetmeats. (by the way, do you know what a sweetmeat is? it's any dainty little confection such as stuffed dates, chocolate truffles, sugared apricots and pears, or even candied watermelon rind.) chapter nine chicken for very special occasions show stopper recipes with the majority of the recipes in this book, i've tried to keep in mind that you are busy and have plenty of other things to do with your time besides spending it in the kitchen. i've also tried to keep the ingredients and the processes reasonably simple and usually i've had an eye on the calories and the cost. this chapter is an exception. these recipes ignore calories, and some of them require not just minutes of preparation, but days. there are some occasions, however, that deserve showstopper recipes. maybe your daughter is getting married? or you're celebrating a very special anniversary? someone important to you just got a promotion? you're part of a gourmet club, and you want your recipe to be at least as good as linda's? this chapter is the place to look for unusual recipes, the show stoppers, the ones that will really make people feel special, and that they'll be talking about for days to come. bass drum stick serves - this really does look the padded stick a drummer would use for his bass drum. l. remove the knobby knuckle from the end of a drumstick by giving it a good hard whack with your heaviest knife. if you happen to have a meat cleaver the job is easier. . stand the drumstick on its meaty end and push the skin down to expose the tendons. remove the largest tendons by pulling them free with a pair of clean pliers. . scrape the skin and meat away from the bone to form a rounder, more compact drumstick. chicken drumsticks / cup flour / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup butter or margarine can ( -ounces) frozen orange juice concentrate can ( -ounces) water tablespoons dark brown sugar / teaspoon minced, fresh oregano or / teaspoon dried / teaspoon nutmeg in a large plastic bag combine flour, salt and pepper. add chicken pieces and shake to coat. in a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. add chicken pieces and brown on all sides, to minutes. pour off remaining butter. in a large measuring cup combine remaining ingredients. add orange juice mixture to skillet. cover and cook over low heat for to minutes, turning chicken several times until cooked through. breast paillard serves as you can see in the accompanying photograph, this is an attractive dish. i tried it on our indoor electric grill and thought it was worth making over and over again. roaster boneless breast or thin sliced boneless roaster breast vegetable oil salt and ground pepper to taste / cup butter or margarine, at room temperature tablespoons snipped fresh or frozen chives teaspoon minced fresh tarragon, or / teaspoon dried tablespoons minced, fresh parsley remove tenderloin pieces from back of breast. place breast pieces and tenderloins between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / -inch thickness to form cutlets. skip the preceding steps if using the thin sliced roaster breast. brush with oil and season with salt and pepper. combine butter, chives and tarragon. reform into a bar and freeze to harden. grill cutlets over hot coals, rotating the chicken on the grill to form crosshatch markings and turning completely over once. or broil " from heat a few minutes on each side until lightly browned. cut herb butter in slices. sprinkle each slice with parsley and top with a butter slice. serve immediately. breast roll cordon bleuserves you can find a simpler version of this in chapter seven, chicken for tomorrow or next week, but this one is a show stopper. roaster boneless breast / cup whole milk ricotta package ( ounces) cream cheese, softened egg yolk / cup grated parmesan cheese / cup thinly sliced scallion / cup minced fresh parsley clove garlic, minced / teaspoon nutmeg salt and ground pepper to taste / pound sliced ham to cups chicken broth place breast halves side by side between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound to / " thickness, forming an " x " rectangle. in a mixing bowl combine remaining ingredients except ham and broth. place breast smooth side down, on a piece of dampened cheesecloth. arrange ham slices over chicken breast. spread filling over ham leaving a / -inch border. carefully roll breast, lengthwise, jelly-roll fashion around filling. wrap in cheesecloth, tie ends and in to places in center. bring broth to a boil in a large saucepan. add chicken and reduce heat to low. poach chicken, covered, minutes. remove from pan and let cool. remove cheesecloth and chill. cut chicken roll in / -inch slices and arrange over lettuce or watercress. chicken broccoli cakeserves - from the name, you'd think this was a very unusual dessert, but in fact, the cake part of the name comes from its shape, not its taste. although this takes awhile to make, especially the pancakes, i've always felt it was well worth it every time i've made it. since you can eat this with just a fork, it's particularly good for a buffet meal when you don't want your guests to have to cut anything while they're balancing food on their laps. sauce: tablespoons butter or margarine tablespoons flour / cups milk / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground white pepper / teaspoon nutmeg in a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. blend in flour and cook, stirring for minute. add milk and cook, stirring, until sauce is smooth and thickened. add salt, pepper, and nutmeg. filling: when choosing the broccoli for the filling, look for firm, compact clusters of small flower buds with none opened enough to show the bright yellow flower. if you can see any yellow in the buds, the broccoli is overmature. broccoli is at its best when the bud clusters are dark green or sage green, or even green with a decidedly purplish cast. tablespoons butter or margarine cups broccoli, cooked and chopped (once when i didn't have enough broccoli on hand, i rounded it out with green peas and it was great.) / cup grated parmesan cheese / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / teaspoon nutmeg - / cups finely chopped cooked chicken / cup grated swiss cheese pancakes, each a little less than -inches wide and about / -inch thick. (the thicker the pancake, the taller the "cake". use your favorite recipe or mix.) in a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. stir in broccoli, parmesan, salt, pepper, nutmeg and chicken. (you can stop at this point the night before, but remember to bake the "cake" longer since the ingredients will be cold from being in the refrigerator.) preheat oven to of. to assemble ``cake," butter a cookie sheet and place a pancake on it. spread with part of the broccoli filling. repeat layers, ending with a pancake. pour sauce over the top and sprinkle with swiss cheese. bake for minutes (or minutes if ingredients were refrigerated). place under a hot broiler and broil until cheese is lightly browned. to serve, cut into wedges. chicken fondue iserves i haven't seen anyone use a fondue pot for a long time, but it's still a great way to serve chicken, and it's a fun and informal way to entertain. maybe it's time to remember this once-popular way of cooking. the first version is a new, low-calorie version. the second is more traditional. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cans ( - / ounces each) chicken broth bottle ( -ounces) chili sauce / cup mayonnaise or salad dressing tablespoon finely chopped onion / clove garlic, minced cut each breast in one-inch cubes. sprinkle salt and pepper on chicken. bring broth to boiling in fondue pot and keep at that temperature. provide each guest with portion of chicken and fondue fork as well as fork for eating. each guest cooks own chicken on fondue fork by holding in boiling broth about minute, or until done. in a small bowl mix remaining ingredients as sauce for dipping after cooking. chicken fondue iiserves skinless and boneless chicken breast halves - / pints oil / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper eggs, beaten cup water tablespoons sesame seed - / cups flour cut chicken breasts into -inch cubes. bring oil to boiling point in fondue pot and keep at that temperature. sprinkle / teaspoon of the salt and the pepper on chicken. in a mixing bowl combine remaining salt, eggs, water, remaining teaspoons salt, sesame seed and flour to make a batter. provide each guest with fondue fork as well as fork for eating. each guest cooks own chicken on fondue fork by dipping into batter and then holding in hot oil approximately minute, or until done. serve with a variety of dips. any barbecue sauce makes a good dip. i also recommend the dill dip and orange dip. dill dip makes cup / cup mayonnaise or salad dressing / cup sour cream teaspoon fresh lemon juice teaspoons finely chopped onion / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon dry mustard / teaspoon dill seed in a small bowl combine all ingredients and stir until blended. orange dip makes cup can ( -ounces) orange juice concentrate tablespoons oil tablespoon vinegar tablespoon sugar / teaspoon dry mustard / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon tabasco in a blender or food processor combine all ingredients. blend at speed for seconds or until smooth. food tip: use leftover orange or dill dip for fresh vegetable such as cauliflower, broccoli, carrots or celery. chicken kiev serves frank and i had this in a restaurant in moscow back in . we happened to be there because the soviet government had invited frank and his ceo, don mabe, to give them tips on producing plumper chicken. don's wife, flo, and i got to go along. i remember that frank was impressed by the world-class knowledge and skill of the soviet poultrymen, but he said their chickens didn't grow to be as plump and juicy as ours because their diets didn't include enough protein. the soviet birds may have been thin, but the recipe that we had for chicken kiev was "otlichnii," (outstanding). you've got it exactly right if, when you cut the cooked chicken, the melted butter spurts out. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast / cup butter or margarine, chilled tablespoon lemon juice tablespoon snipped fresh or frozen chives / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper egg, beaten cup bread crumbs oil for deep frying place chicken between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to flatten slightly. skip the previous step if you are using thin sliced boneless roaster breasts. in a food processor fitted with a steel blade, blend butter, lemon juice and chives; mold into four oblongs and chill. (in fact, i think freezing works best.) sprinkle salt and pepper on chicken. wrap chicken breast around chilled mold and secure with toothpicks. dip in beaten egg and roll in bread crumbs. chill again for one hour. fry in deep fat at of for to minutes or until crust is golden brown. serve immediately chicken paella perdueserves - this is the perdue version of the traditional paella. the authentic spanish version takes all day to make -a i've watched cooks in spain do it. you'll notice that the saffron in this paella is optional. that's because the last time i looked at the price for it in the spice jars in the supermarket, i calculated that saffron costs more than gold dust. however, you only need to use a couple of strands of it at a time so it's not totally out of line. if you can't find it or don't want to use it, this recipe will still taste good$just different. it will also look different because saffron imparts an attractive yellow to the rice. incidentally, the reason saffron costs so much is that it's made from the dried stigma of the saffron crocus and it takes , stigmas to make a pound of saffron. chicken, cut in serving pieces teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper small clove garlic, minced tablespoons butter or margarine, melted, divided cups quick-cooking rice, uncooked / cup chopped onion / teaspoon paprika tablespoon minced, fresh parsley / teaspoon seafood seasoning - filaments teaspoon saffron (optional) / cup fresh or can ( -ounces) minced, soft shell clams tablespoons clam juice cup canned chicken broth / pound backfin crabmeat cup peas dozen small clams (on the half-shell) package ( ounces) frozen artichokes, cooked jar ( ounces) pimento strips preheat oven to of. place chicken in single layer, skin side up, in shallow baking dish; season with salt, pepper and garlic. pour tablespoons of the butter or margarine over chicken; cover and bake for minutes or until cooked through, uncovering during last minutes for browning. while chicken is baking, in a large skillet over medium heat, melt remaining butter. add the uncooked rice and onions and saute until lightly browned. add paprika, parsley, seafood seasoning, saffron, minced clams, clam juice and chicken broth. simmer over very low heat for minutes. in the shallow baking dish, leave / of the chicken; add the rice mixture, the crabmeat and peas in layers. as garnish, place on top of this, the remaining chicken, all of the clams in the half-shell, cooked artichokes and pimento. cover and bake at o for - minutes to heat through. chicken piccataserves frank's good friend, sue hess, from ocean city, maryland is a busy lady who entertains frequently and likes to be efficient when doing it. as she puts it, "i don't like to have to invent every part of the wheel all over again for each party. i use the same plan over and over again. i know which platters i'll use for hors d'oeuvres, i know where i'm going to put the cocktail napkins, and when to start peeling the corn. when i find one recipe that i can count on, i use it often enough and make it often enough so i've got the preparation down to a science. this chicken piccata is one of my favorites to repeat for parties." skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast / cup flour / cup ( / stick) butter or margarine juice of lemon / cup chicken broth lemon slices / cup minced, fresh parsley salt and ground pepper to taste slice each breast in half lengthwise, butterfly-style. you should end up with thin, flat pieces. skip the previous step if you are using thin sliced boneless roaster breasts. dip pieces in flour to coat lightly, shake off excess. in a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. add scaloppine and saute until lightly browned on both sides. add lemon juice and broth to pan and cook to minutes more, turning scaloppine frequently in sauce until cooked through. garnish with lemon slices and parsley. chinese fried noodle cake with chicken topping theresa kreinen, who developed many of the low fat, low calorie recipes for perdue, says that her favorite show stopper recipe is this chinese noodle cake recipe. "i remembered that many years ago when i was working for a chinese spice company, i saw a similar recipe and thought that if i took the salt and fat out of the recipe and used far less oil, that it might still be tasty." she tried her health-conscious version of the classical chinese dish, and ended up with something that is clearly a show stopper. chinese fried noodle cakemakes noodle cakes in large sauce pot over high heat, bring quarts of water to a boil. add ounces dried fine egg noodles; cook in boiling water minutes; drain. rinse with cold water; drain well. in large bowl, toss noodles with teaspoons vegetable oil to prevent sticking. in -inch skillet over medium-high heat, heat tablespoons vegetable oil. add half noodles, flattening to form cake. cook minutes or until bottom is golden brown. loosen edges. invert onto large round platter. slide noodle cake back into skillet. cook minutes longer or until second side is golden brown. invert onto large round platter. repeat procedure with remaining noodles. chicken toppingmakes servings roaster boneless breast tablespoons vegetable oil medium onions, cut in thin wedges tablespoons minced ginger root cloves garlic, minced cups torn spinach - / cups chicken broth cup sliced mushrooms sweet red pepper, cut in thin strips ( cup) can ( -ounces) bamboo shoots, drained and cut in julienne strips tablespoons soy sauce / teaspoon crushed dried red pepper tablespoons cornstarch tablespoons dry sherry remove visible fat from breast meat and cut into thin strips. in a wok or large skillet, over medium-high heat, heat oil. add onion, ginger and garlic; stir fry minute. add chicken; stir fry minutes, or until chicken turns white. add spinach, broth, mushrooms, red pepper strips, bamboo shoots, soy sauce and crushed red pepper. cook minutes or until chicken and vegetables are tender, stirring frequently. in a cup, blend cornstarch and sherry until smooth; stir into wok. over medium heat, bring to a boil; boil minute, stirring constantly. to serve, spoon chicken mixture over chinese fried noodle cake. fillo wrapped chicken deanna doyel, a californian, brought these to a pot luck at my house, and since they were far and away the most popular food at the party that night, i thought you might enjoy knowing about them. they're tender, flaky, delicious, and they look good. you might garnish the plate with some parsley or watercress. i've served them here to a gathering of of the perdue marketing men and women, but for variation, i cut the chicken into bite size pieces and wrapped them individually to form cocktail-size morsels. to make this successfully, be sure to keep the pastry sheets from drying out or they'll get brittle and impossible to fold. work with only one sheet at a time and keep the others covered with a sheet of waxed paper and topped with a damp tea towel. wrapped chickenserves cup mayonnaise cup chopped scallions tablespoons minced fresh parsley cloves garlic, minced, divided / teaspoon fresh lemon juice pinch salt pinch ground pepper cup butter or margarine, divided sheets fillo pastry (available in most quality supermarkets) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves grated parmesan cheese in a shallow dish combine mayonnaise, scallions, parsley, half of garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. in a small saucepan over medium heat melt butter with remaining garlic. brush one pastry sheet with melted garlic butter, top with second sheet and brush again. dip chicken breast in mixed ingredients turning to coat thoroughly. place chicken diagonally on one corner of pastry sheets, then roll while folding in sides to make a neat rectangular package. brush top of wrapped chicken with butter and top lightly with parmesan cheese. preheat oven to of. place wrapped breasts in a baking dish and bake for about minutes. they're a golden brown when done. mushroom snails serves as an appetizer this is one of the very few recipes that i've developed on my own. in spite of its name, it doesn't contain snails. i'd eaten escargot (snails) in france, and thought they were expensive and overrated, but loved the garlic butter and other seasonings. one day it occurred to me that those flavorings would be delicious with the mushrooms and chicken livers that i happened to have in the refrigerator. i sat down and wrote what i thought would be right, and then made the recipe exactly according to the directions that i'd written. the verdict from guests was that these mushroom snails are a showstopper, especially if you by any chance have any of the escargot serving dishes with little indentations for each snail. since i'm guessing that you probably don't, i've suggested in the recipe that you serve the mushroom "snails" on little rounds of sauteed french bread. / cup butter or margarine, softened cloves garlic, minced tablespoons minced, fresh parsley tablespoons snipped fresh or frozen chives / teaspoon salt or to taste large mushroom caps chicken livers, halved preheat oven to of. in a small bowl combine butter with garlic, parsley, chives and salt. fill each mushroom cap with a half chicken liver. then, top each mushroom cap with / th of the butter mixture. bake at until filling is melted, and bubbly, about minutes. serve on / inch thick slices of french bread which have been sauteed in butter until lightly browned. old world cornish hens baked in saltserves this is one of my personal favorites. when it's brought to the table, this dish looks so impressive that i can still remember the first time i saw it, which was more than ten years ago. when the hostess brought the platter with the four cornish hens, we couldn't be sure what we were getting. it looked like four chicken-shaped pieces of white pottery in the exact shape of cornish game hens, only a little larger. our hostess explained that she had coated the cornish hens with a half-inch layer of salt, and then roasted the hens in this casing. to serve the hens, she took a small wooden mallet and gave each shell a sharp whap. each time she did this, the shell would crack into several pieces, revealing the fragrant and beautifully- roasted game hen inside. i thought the hens would taste salty, but found instead some of the tenderest and most succulent chicken you could hope for. garlic cloves, unpeeled bunch fresh rosemary or thyme, divided fresh cornish game hens ( / to / pounds each) ground pepper x inch squares heavy duty aluminum foil boxes ( ounces each) kosher salt / to cups water preheat oven to of. place garlic cloves and a sprig of rosemary in the cavity of each hen. season with pepper. fold wings back and tie legs together. place a hen on each sheet of foil. fold in edges of foil to form a nest with sides / inches high. leave a border of / inches between hen and foil. remove hens from nests and reserve. place nests on heavy baking sheets. fill each nest with a layer of salt, / inch thick. return hens to nests. in a large bowl combine remaining salt with enough water to make a heavy paste. use hands to mold salt around each hen enclosing it completely in a layer of salt approximately / inch thick. bake hens for to minutes depending upon their size. to serve: with a sharp knife, carefully cut around the base of each hen following its shape. use a spatula to gently lift salt covered hens out of nests and onto platter. decorate platter with sprigs of rosemary. in front of your guests, crack salt casings with a mallet and dust off any remaining salt. garnish hens with sprigs of rosemary. note: if you want to try this recipe with a / pound chicken, proceed in the same manner as for the cornish hens, using box ( ounces) kosher salt and / cups water. the cooking time would is approximately hour and minutes. oriental cook-out chicken serves - you need an outdoor grill with a rotisserie for this one. the sight of the whole chickens wrapped in orange peel spirals, turning on the spit is really impressive. don't let your guests or family miss this part. whole chickens teaspoons salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cup frozen orange juice concentrate (undiluted) tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil tablespoons french salad dressing teaspoons soy sauce oranges rub inside of chickens with salt and pepper. in a bowl combine orange juice, oil, salad dressing, and soy sauce; rub mixture on chickens, inside and out. peel oranges, spiral fashion, keeping skins in one strip. cut orange segments into small pieces and place inside of chickens. truss chickens securely with string. place on outdoor grill rotisserie rod, securing with forked holders. place spiral orange peels around chickens, holding in place with toothpicks. broil on rotisserie about hour or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced, basting constantly with sauce. perdue a la vertical serves - note to connie; there's a line drawing illustration of stuffing the bird in this recipe and also another drawing that illustrates carving. we have permission to use it from spanek, and there's no trade name on it. one of the really fun things about being mrs. frank perdue is that people are always giving me tips on cooking chicken. recently i met a woman in an airport in puerto rico who told me that my life wasn't complete unless i tried cooking chicken on a vertical roaster. not wanting an incomplete life, i took her advice and found that yes, vertical roasting really does have a lot going for it. the chicken cooks about % faster because the metal frame conducts heat and is in contact with the bird's interior. the bird is also juicier. the heat of the vertical roaster forces the juices outward while the heat of the oven is forcing the juices inward. the juices have no where to go, so instead they just stay inside, tenderizing and flavoring the meat. vertical roasters are available in major department stores as well as in quality gourmet cookware shops. denis spanek, who patented the first vertical roster, says he's cooked at least , birds during demonstrations and tests, and this is his favorite recipe. it's now one of my all-time personal favorites too, but i've felt leery about serving it to guests without knowing ahead of time that they liked bleu cheese. the last time i made it, though, i found a way around the problem. i stuffed one side of the roaster with the bleu cheese- mushroom mixture and omitted the bleu cheese from the stuffing for the other side. then i gave our guests the choice of which side they'd like. whole roaster ounces crumbled bleu cheese cloves garlic tablespoons butter or margarine / cup shittake mushrooms, if not available, use whatever mushrooms are. tablespoon dry white wine / teaspoon paprika place roaster on its back and use your fingertips to break the skin membrane at the neck opening on each side of the breast. work your fingers under the skin across both sides of the breast and continue along the thighs and legs. be careful not to break the skin that's attached at the center of the breastbone. in a food processor fitter with steel blade, combine blue cheese, garlic, butter and mushrooms. process, pulsating on and off, until mushrooms are coarsely chopped and mixture just holds together. then, spoon the stuffing under the skin, working over the breast, thigh, and leg areas, smoothing it evenly over each side of the bird. when the bird is stuffed, gently press it onto the vertical roaster so the metal ring at the top comes through. set the roaster in an - inch cake pan and add / cup water to the roasting pan. baste with a mixture of tablespoon of dry white wine with paprika. this will give a rosy color to the bird and the chicken will brown beautifully. sear for minutes in a preheated degree oven. lower temperature to degrees and cook for to minutes per pound food tip: carve the bird over rice so the rice catches the drippings. photo: black & white - chicken platter w/mozzarella strips placed in lattice pattern over breast. on ceramic counter w/napkins, forks, cups & saucers, breads, etc. roaster marinaraserves frank is particularly fond of any recipe with tomatoes, and usually we've found that in restaurants that if you see a menu item that's "marinara," whatever-it-is is going to be served with a tomato-based sauce. however, according to the new york times food writer, craig claiborne, marinara really means "marine style" or sailor style and marinara sauces exist without tomatoes. in this recipe, the sauce is tomato based. i'm fond of this recipe because it looks so good. be sure and notice the illustration. whole roaster / teaspoon minced fresh basil or / teaspoon dried salt and ground pepper to taste - / cups homemade or prepared marinara sauce (available in supermarkets) package ( -ounces) sliced mozzarella cheese preheat oven to f. remove giblets from roaster. season with basil, salt and pepper. place bird, breast side up, in roasting pan. brush marinara sauce over roaster minutes before end of cooking time. cut mozzarella cheese into long strips / -inch wide and place in lattice pattern over breast during final minutes of cooking. photo: stuffed chicken stuffed chicken jardiniereserves i don't know of many presentations that are more impressive than this. that's the good part. the price for all this impressiveness is that it's also one of the more time- consuming recipes in this book. while it's true that there is a fair amount of preparation required, the work is done in advance and not at the last minute. this recipe allows you to surprise your guests with a chicken that appears whole but slices into attractive pieces of chicken and stuffing. it's also a low calorie and healthy recipe. you'll find directions for boning and re-forming a whole chicken further on, but in case you don't have the time or desire to do it yourself, a cooperative butcher can do it for you in about five minutes. whole chicken ( / to pounds) - zucchini ( / pound), well scrubbed and grated - yellow squash ( / pound), well scrubbed and grated carrots, peeled and grated cup thinly sliced scallions large clove garlic, minced tablespoons minced fresh tarragon or teaspoons dried / cup grated parmesan or romano cheese / cup fresh bread crumbs (made from slices low-calorie while grain bread) egg white or egg yolk, lightly beaten / teaspoon ground pepper, divided / teaspoon of salt, divided / teaspoon ground nutmeg or to taste yogurt-herb sauce (recipe follows) fresh tarragon sprigs, miniature zucchini, yellow squash and carrots, (optional garnish) bone chicken except for wings and legs. using kitchen string and a large darning needle, sew up any holes in skin and the split area near tail -- chicken should form a roughly rectangular shape. place squash and carrots in a colander or strainer; press with back of wooden spoon or hands to remove as much liquid as possible. in a large, non-stick or lightly greased skillet, combine grated vegetables, scallions and garlic. cook over low heat, stirring frequently, to minutes or until mixture is quite dry, but not brown. remove from heat; stir in tarragon, parmesan, bread crumbs, egg white, / teaspoon pepper, / teaspoon salt and nutmeg. preheat oven to f. sprinkle inside of chicken with remaining salt and pepper. stuff and truss chicken, following directions for reforming a whole chicken. brush with oil, if desired. place on rack in roasting pan and roast minutes. reduce heat to f and roast hour longer or until juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. refrigerate chicken until ready to serve. recipe can be served hot, but will slice more easily if thoroughly chilled. serve chicken with yogurt-herb sauce, garnish with herbs and vegetables, if desired. yogurt-herb sauce cup plain low-fat yogurt tablespoon minced fresh chives tablespoon minced fresh tarragon tablespoon minced fresh parsley salt and ground pepper to taste in small bowl, combine yogurt and herbs. add salt and ground pepper to taste. boning and re-forming a whole chicken . on a large cutting board, place bird breast down with drumsticks turned toward you. using a small, sharp boning knife, cut off tail. then cut through skin down middle of backbone. . keep knife close to backbone to loosen flesh, cutting around small oyster-shaped piece of meat part-way down back; leave oyster attached to skin. just below oyster, use point of knife to locate and sever ball joint between hip and thigh. . working toward neck, loosen flesh from carcass. when shoulder blade is reached, keep bone to your right and cut through joint to sever wing from shoulder. . continue loosening flesh around edge of carcass until you reach breastbone. do not try to detach this because skin is very thin at this point. turn bird around so neck faces you; repeat steps and . carefully, cut through two spots where wishbone is attached to carcass. . when both sides of carcass and wishbone are loosened, lift carcass and cut breastbone away from meat. cut through cartilage, but do not worry about leaving some attached to flesh. it can be removed more easily later without piercing skin. remove carcass and, if desired, simmer with vegetables to make a stock. . using kitchen string or unwaxed dental floss, thread a large darning needle. turn chicken skin-side up and sew closed any holes in skin. stitch split area near tail together so that chicken roughly forms a rectangle. . turn chicken skin-side down and carefully remove any remaining cartilage in breast area. detach small breast fillets and use to cover less meaty areas near thighs. season meat, if desired. . mound stuffing down center of breast. pull skin up on either side around stuffing and re-form chicken. sew back of bird closed. . truss bird into attractive chicken shape. a trio of show stopper "veal" classics chicken breasts, when pounded and flattened, can make an excellent substitute for veal. and if your market has them, the thin sliced boneless roaster breast is even better, since you don't have to pound or flatten the individual pieces. the fact is, if someone didn't tell you, and if you're not a food professional, there's a good chance that you'd have difficulty telling the difference. the muscle fibers in both meats are surprisingly similar; they're both low in fat, and neither has much collagen, the factor that makes meat fibrous and chewy. the basic ingredients in most of the "veal" dishes that follow are boneless, skinless chicken breasts. they're called "cutlets." a scaloppine is a cutlet sliced in half lengthwise. by the way, if frank had his way, from now on you wouldn't think of chicken breasts as an inexpensive substitute for veal. you'd think of veal as a more expensive substitute for his chicken breasts. in fact, frank likes to say that "anything veal can do, my chicken breasts can do better," he points out that chicken breasts are richer than veal in vitamin a, niacin, and calcium, and they're lower in calories and cholesterol. they're equal to veal in protein, and of course, they're much, much more affordable. if thin sliced boneless roaster breast is unavailable in your market, you can make your own scaloppine, place a skinless, boneless chicken breast half on a flat surface, insert a sharp knife into the side and cut the chicken breast into two wide flat slices. put these slices between sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat mallet or rolling pin to / " thickness. chicken oscarserves veal oscar is served in some of the finest new york restaurants. you can make this chicken version yourself for a small fraction of the restaurant cost. scaloppine (about pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves) or thin sliced boneless roaster breast / cup flour / cup butter or margarine cup cooked crabmeat cooked, fresh asparagus spears or can ( / ounces), drained cup chicken broth cup hollandaise sauce (optional) dip scaloppine in flour to coat lightly, shake off excess. in a skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. add scaloppine and saute for about / minutes per side until lightly browned and just cooked through. remove to serving platter. top with crabmeat and asparagus spears. cover and hold in degree oven. add broth to skillet and cook over high heat to reduce by half. stir frequently. remove scaloppine from oven. top with sauce and hollandaise, if desired. perdue parmigianoserves this is a little like the austrian treatment of veal, but with an italian accent. serve it with spaghetti. if you don't have commercial bread crumbs handy, dry a couple of slices of bread in a degree oven, and then whirl in the blender or food processor. presto! your own bread crumbs. scaloppine (about pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves) or thin sliced boneless roaster breast / cup flour seasoned with teaspoon salt and / teaspoon ground pepper eggs / cup fine dry bread crumbs tablespoons oil cup homemade or prepared marinara sauce (available in supermarkets) / pound mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced / cup grated parmesan cheese place seasoned flour on a sheet of wax paper. break eggs into a shallow bowl and beat lightly. place bread crumbs on a separate sheet of wax paper. dip scaloppine in flour to coat lightly, shake off excess. dip in beaten egg, then coat with bread crumbs. in large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. add saute scaloppine and saute for about minute per side until golden brown. drain on paper towels. arrange scaloppine in shallow baking dish or casserole. cover with marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese. sprinkle with parmesan cheese and bake in degree oven for minutes. perdue wiener schnitzelserves i had the real thing in austria, and i don't think it was any better than this. serve it with buttered noodles. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves or thin sliced boneless roaster breast / cup flour seasoned with teaspoon salt and / teaspoon ground pepper eggs cup fine bread crumbs tablespoons butter or margarine, divided tablespoons chopped parsley salt and pepper to taste lemon, quartered pound chicken between plastic wrap to flatten to / inch thickness. skip the previous step if you are using thin sliced boneless roaster breasts. break eggs into a shallow bowl and beat lightly. place bread crumbs on a separate sheet of wax paper. dip cutlets in flour to coat, shake off excess. dip in beaten eggs, then coat with bread crumbs. in a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt half of butter. saute breaded cutlets until golden brown and cooked through, about minutes. remove to heated serving platter. add reserved butter to skillet and fry remaining eggs sunnyside up to desired doneness. season with salt and pepper. place egg on top of each cutlet, sprinkle with parsley and garnish with lemon quarters. note to editor: can we have the section on "menu for three beautiful guests" put on its own page, separate from the other recipes? i'd like to have it highlighted in some manner. let's use the story board for three beautiful guests here. most of the readers will never have seen a story board before and would find it fascinating. photo: possible photo of the four cornish, if we can find it in color. menu for three beautiful guests one of frank's most memorable commercials is "dinner with three beautiful guests." in the commercial, while frank roasts four fresh cornish game hens, he showers; shaves; puts on a tuxedo; chills some champagne; arranges flowers in a vase; turns on soft music; and then opens the door to greet three ravishing beauties. the commercial has been so successful that the advertising agency produced a sequel, dramatizing an actual letter that arrived at perdue farms' consumer relations department: "mr. perdue, i have a complaint. i prepared four of your cornish hens just as you did on t.v. i showered and shaved just as you did on t.v. i dressed as you did on t.v. i chilled the wine, and laid the birds on a bed of wild rice just as you did on t.v. your advertising is misleading. no pretty girls have knocked on my door." people sometimes ask me if the original ad makes me jealous. actually it's my favorite. quick, crisp cornish hensserves wild rice is a completely different crop from regular rice. it is chewier and has a more nut-like flavor. the people who grow it refer to it as "the caviar of grains." this is a good and quick method for roasting cornish hens but it can smoke up your kitchen. if you don't have a good fan, preheat your oven to of and then reduce it to of when you put the hens in - and then roast them for to minutes instead of the half hour mentioned in this recipe. fresh cornish game hens salt and ground pepper to taste tablespoon minced, fresh thyme or teaspoon dried bunch fresh parsley small bay leaves / cup butter or margarine, melted cups hot, cooked wild rice lemon cut in wedges as garnish bacon and wild mushroom gravy (recipe follows) place rack in lower half of oven; preheat to f. if you have a ventilator fan on stove, turn it on. reserving other giblets for gravy, discard necks and livers. season hen cavities with salt, pepper and thyme. trim stem ends from parsley and add tablespoon to each cavity, along with a bay leaf. tie legs together, fold back wings and place hens breast side up in a roasting pan. roast hens for about minutes, basting once with butter, until skin is brown and crisp and juices run clear with no hint of pink when thigh is pierced. remove hens from pan and skim off all but tablespoons drippings to be used in gravy. serve on a bed of wild rice; garnish with parsley and lemon wedges and pass gravy separately. bacon and wild mushroom gravy ounce dried wild mushrooms (cepes, morels or porcini) cup boiling water / pound bacon, diced giblets reserved from hens, chopped / cup chopped onion / cup dry sherry / cup flour - / cups chicken broth or water to reconstitute mushrooms well, pour boiling water over them and allow to steep minutes. strain through a coffee filter and reserve liquid. rinse mushrooms to remove any sand; chop finely. in a large skillet over medium-low heat, fry bacon until crisp. drain bacon on paper towels. leaving tablespoons bacon fat in pan, add giblets, mushrooms and onion and brown about minutes. add to cornish drippings in roasting pan. whisk in sherry and flour. cook, whisking frequently for to minutes or until flour is browned. add bacon, reserved mushroom liquid, and broth to flour mixture. bring to a boil, whisking frequently, and cook gravy to thicken. serve with hens. cider-glazed carrotsserves pound baby carrots, peeled cups apple cider tablespoons butter tablespoons honey / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper tablespoon minced, fresh parsley cut larger carrots in half on a diagonal, if necessary, so that all carrots are approximately the same size. in a saucepan over medium heat, bring cider, butter, honey, salt and pepper to a boil and add carrots. cook minutes or until just beginning to soften; remove with slotted spoon. bring cider mixture back to a boil and cook minutes to thicken glaze. remove from heat. two minutes before serving, reheat carrots in sauce, tossing frequently. serve garnished with parsley. peas in chive creamserves cup heavy cream / teaspoon salt and ground pepper to taste / to cups fresh or frozen peas tablespoon snipped fresh or frozen chives in a saucepan over medium-high heat, bring cream and seasoning to a boil and cook until thick, about minutes; whisk frequently. five minutes before serving, stir in peas and bring back to a boil, stirring frequently. add chives just before serving. strawberries romanoffserves quart long-stemmed strawberries cup sour cream / to cup brown sugar, sifted arrange strawberries attractively on four individual dessert plates. garnish each plate with a big dollop of sour cream and a heaping tablespoonful of sugar. dip strawberries first into sour cream, then into sugar. zurelli's spinach cutlets chuck zurelli, a butcher for one of the large supermarket chains, makes this for his customers. it's not hard to do at home and it looks professional. you may want to substitute fresh minced onion and garlic for the onion powder and garlic powder that mr. zurelli uses. there is a trick to it though. we all know that having sharp knives is a good thing, but how often do you sharpen yours? are you like me, that once a year would be average, and if you were to get up to once a month, you'd be feeling pretty virtuous? chuck zurelli does a little better than once a month. if you were to watch him at work, you'd see that in the process of butterflying chicken breasts, he'll almost automatically run his knife across his sharpening tool every or seconds. since meeting mr. zurelli, i've asked other butchers how often they sharpen their knives. it turns out that zurelli is typical. the professionals feel it's worth their while to keep their knives very, very sharp. now that i've tried it, i think they're right. if you're doing some serious cutting, how about a few quick strokes on your sharpening tool? it does make a difference. for each serving: skinless, boneless chicken breast half or slice of the thin sliced boneless roaster breast spinach leaves slice provolone cheese onion powder garlic powder vegetable oil salt and ground pepper to taste take a half boneless chicken breast and butterfly it open. or use a slice of the thin sliced roaster breast. remove the membrane and sinews, since these can tighten unevenly and distort the look of the final product. take four spinach leaves and layer these over the butterflied fillet. top this with a slice of provolone cheese, cut about as thick as the pre-sliced cheeses used for sandwiches. season with a few shakes each of onion powder and garlic powder. (don't add salt until after it's finished cooking; salt will draw out the juices and toughen the meat.) roll up the fillet tightly, jelly roll fashion. fasten with a toothpick or tie with kitchen twine. preheat oven to of. brush chicken with oil to seal in the moisture and then bake for to minutes or until cooked through. season with salt and pepper. chapter ten chicken planned-overs $ a great fast food everyone is so busy nowadays, it's often tempting to pick up dinner at a fast food carry-out on the way home. the problem is, these foods not only dent the budget, they can short-change you nutritionally. often they're high in the fat or sodium which many of us are trying to limit. there are, however, ways to serve speedy meals that are also good for you. in fact, i like to think of leftover chicken as a fast food. it gives you a head start on so many recipes. michelle evans, the eminent cookbook author and travel authority, likes to say that left over chicken is the "basic black dress" of the culinary world. it's true. you can dress it up in so many ways: you can use herbs and spices, sauces and dips, toppings and crusts. just as a basic black dress is handy to have around, so leftover chicken is wonderful for a fast start on a number of delicious dishes. by using leftovers, you can create fast food while maintaining control over the calories and nutrition. when you do cook, plan for leftovers by preparing extra quantities. serve part of what you prepared immediately, and save the rest for a "planover". then, on those days when you're short on time, use your microwave to create a meal from your store of "planovers." there are a few points to keep in mind when using leftovers. _know how long the food has been held at room temperature. the department of agriculture recommends that you throw food out if it's of animal origin and if it's been left unrefrigerated for more than two hours. i've talked with some food scientists, however, who feel that the usda two-hour rule is unnecessarily strict. they say that except for the at-risk groups, (infants, the elderly or those in poor health), that you can probably still use chicken that has been kept at room temperature for a little longer than two hours, maybe as long as four hours. still, they agree that the longer chicken is kept at room temperature, the bigger the chance you're taking. harmful organisms can multiply rapidly on food that's held in the danger zone between degrees and degrees. personally, i'm in favor of being cautious, but i thought you might like to know that there's more than one view. _when refrigerating leftovers, break them down into shallow pans that aren't deeper than a couple of inches. if you have a deep pan with lots of, for example, leftover stuffing, it could take too long for the food in the middle to cool down to degrees. _if you're not going to eat the leftover chicken within three days, freeze it. _don't store cooked chicken in the freezer for longer than three months. label it so you can keep track of it. a california home economist friend of mine keeps a running log of what's in her freezer, marking dishes when they are removed. this reduces the search time with the freezer open, and keeps her from losing track of what's in there. _wrap leftovers tightly in moisture proof wrapping so as to prevent freezer burn. _think of ways of working leftovers into your brown bag lunches. cold chicken makes a great lunch. chicken soup or stew goes great in a thermos. if you happen to be browsing in this chapter and find you want to make one of the recipes but don't have any leftovers handy, you can make some by: . baking a chicken. place whole chicken without any seasonings or coatings, uncovered in a of oven for approximately hour. . simmering a whole chicken chicken cups water teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper onion, peeled and quartered stalk celery, halved bay leaf put chicken in kettle or sauce pan. add water and remaining ingredients. cover and simmer minutes or until cooked through. save the broth for sauces or soup bases. . simmering parts of a chicken using the same recipe as for whole chicken. boneless parts cook fastest, a small breast in minutes, a larger roaster-size one in to , and boneless roaster thighs in to minutes. photo: pies and oblong casserole chicken potpies rediscovered one of the best uses for leftover chicken is chicken pot pies. back in the days of the roman empire, potpies were banquet fare, often created with surprises - even live birds -- under the crust. during the time of elizabeth i, english cooks made potpies using "chicken peepers," tiny chicks stuffed with gooseberries. by the mid-eighteenth century, an english cookbook included a sort of telescoping pie in which five birds were stuffed one inside another, then wrapped in dough. with a past like that, it is not surprising that immigrants to america brought an appreciation for potpies with them. when settlers moved west, so did their potpie recipes, which they adapted to local food styles with new ingredients and seasonings. by this century, chicken potpies and "meat and taters" variations had become as american as corn on the cob. they were thrifty foods, served at the kitchen table and in "home cooking" diners along country roads. recently, nostalgia for homespun cookery has meant a change in status for potpies. they not only are considered respectable, they're even "trendy," often appearing on the menus of fashionable restaurants. these are perfect recipes in which to use leftover chicken, and if you run short of a particular vegetable go ahead and substitute whatever else looks good. in fact, you can mix and match and change the ingredients, flavorings and toppings to suit the mood of the moment. to get you started, here are a few guidelines. tips for making old-fashioned chicken potpies _potpie fillings are actually stews or creamed dishes inside a crust. if you want you can also serve fillings over rice, noodles, toast points or party shells. _to prevent a soggy bottom crust, bake two-crust pies on the bottom shelf of a preheated oven and slit the top to allow steam to escape. for decorative slits, use a favorite hors d'oeuvre or cookie cutter. also space dumplings, biscuits and other toppings to allow for steaming. _when making individual potpies, eliminating the bottom crust creates a better proportion of filling to pastry. one double-crust recipe for a -inch pie plate makes about single-crust, -inch tarts. reduce baking time by minutes. _for a different flavor in biscuits, crusts or potato toppings, crumble in a few tablespoonfuls of herbs or grated cheese. _potpie fillings can be prepared in advance and refrigerated, but do not pour fillings into pastry shells until ready to bake. if you plan to freeze a pie for storage, eliminate the bottom crust, sealing the top one over cooked filling. place in a plastic bag or wrap tightly with heavy foil. do not defrost before baking. preheat the oven and add minutes to cooking time. cajun pieserves / pound lean bacon vegetable oil tablespoons flour / cup chopped onion / cup chopped green pepper / cup fresh ripe or canned chopped tomatoes tablespoons worcestershire sauce to drops tabasco - / cups water teaspoon salt or to taste package ( ounces) frozen succotash, thawed cups cooked, chopped chicken to ready to bake buttermilk biscuits grease a deep -inch pie plate or ovenproof dish. in large, heavy skillet, over medium-high heat, cook bacon until crisp. remove bacon with a slotted spoon to drain; crumble. pour drippings into a measuring cup and add oil to bring to / cup. return to skillet and stir in flour. cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for to minutes or until well browned. add onions and cook minute. stir in green peppers, tomatoes, sauces, and water; season to taste with salt. simmer until slightly thickened or about to minutes; stir in succotash bacon and chicken. pour into prepared dish. preheat oven to of. place biscuits on top of filling with edges touching. bake for to minutes or until filling is hot and biscuits are golden brown. chicken hash pieserves pounds ( large) potatoes, peeled and diced cup ( / pint) heavy cream, divided tablespoons butter or margarine, divided salt and ground pepper to taste pinch ground nutmeg cup thinly sliced scallions, white and tender green parts only / cup chopped celery tablespoons flour cup chicken broth cups cooked, chopped chicken / teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or / teaspoon dried eggs teaspoons minced, fresh parsley, optional preheat oven to f. grease a -inch pie plate or - / - quart ovenproof casserole. place potatoes in a large saucepan with enough water to cover. salt to taste. bring to a boil over high heat. reduce heat to low and cook until tender, about minutes. drain and mash potatoes, adding / cup cream, tablespoons butter, / teaspoon pepper, nutmeg, and salt to taste. cover and set aside. in large skillet over medium-high heat, melt remaining butter. saute scallions and celery in butter for minutes. whisk in flour and cook minutes. add broth and remaining / cup cream and heat to boiling, whisking constantly. stir in chicken, thyme, teaspoon salt or to taste, and / teaspoon pepper. spread chicken mixture on bottom of prepared pie plate. pipe potatoes rings on top of pie or spread potatoes over filling and make four depressions with the back of a spoon. bake minutes. remove from oven and carefully break eggs into rings or depressions. sprinkle with salt and pepper, if desired, and return to oven for minutes or until eggs are set to desired doneness. garnish with parsley and serve immediately. chicken pieserves in contrast to the recipe above for chicken hash pie, this may be one of the easiest chicken pie recipes there is. sprinkle grated cheddar cheese over the biscuits when you want something different. cups cooked chicken, cut in chunks cans ( - / -ounces each) cream of mushroom soup, undiluted / cup uncooked frozen peas raw carrots, sliced tablespoons finely chopped onion or teaspoon instant minced onion tube ( and / ounces) prepared biscuits preheat oven to of. mix all ingredients except biscuits in baking dish. cover with foil and bake hour. remove foil. place biscuits on top of mixture. bake, uncovered, minutes longer or until biscuits are brown. chicken tamale pie (mexican) serves - don't be alarmed if the cornmeal mixture gets lumpy$just keep stirring and cooking and the mixture will become consistently thick. tablespoons butter or margarine, divided cup chopped onion clove garlic, minced cups cooked chicken, cut in cubes can ( -ounces) tomato puree tablespoon chili powder cup pitted and chopped ripe olives / teaspoon ground coriander seed teaspoons salt, divided / teaspoon ground pepper cups chicken broth, divided cups cornmeal in a large skillet over medium heat, melt tablespoon butter. add onion and garlic and saute for minute. add chicken, tomato puree, chili powder, olives, coriander, teaspoon of the salt, pepper and / cup chicken broth. cover and simmer minutes. preheat oven to of. bring remaining broth to a boil in large saucepan. add salt and butter. stir in cornmeal. cook at low heat minutes, stirring constantly. line a large shallow baking dish with half of the cornmeal mixture. pour in chicken mixture. cover with remaining cornmeal mixture. bake for / hours. empanada pieserves this is a south american version of chicken pot pie. cups flour / teaspoon salt or to taste tablespoons ( stick) butter or margarine, divided tablespoons lard or shortening about / cup ice-cold water / cup thinly sliced onion cup thinly sliced green pepper hot green chili pepper, chopped (optional) / cup pitted green olives, sliced into rounds cup raisins / cup cider vinegar cup chopped fresh or stewed tomatoes tablespoon tomato paste / teaspoon ground cinnamon / teaspoon salt or to taste cups cooked, diced chicken egg, beaten pastry in a small bowl, combine flour and salt. with pastry blender or knives, cut in tablespoons butter and lard until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. gradually stir in water until dough forms a ball; do not overmix. preheat oven to f and grease a deep -inch pie plate or ovenproof dish. roll out / of the pastry and use to line bottom of pie plate. pierce well with a fork. roll remaining pastry to / -inch thickness for top crust. (pastry can be prepared ahead and refrigerated until filling is ready.) filling in medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat, melt remaining butter. add onion and pepper; saute for minutes or until softened. add olives, raisins, vinegar, tomatoes and tomato paste and cook minutes. season with cinnamon and salt; stir in chicken. spread chicken mixture in prepared pie plate and top with pastry. flute edges, cut decorative slits in top, and brush with beaten egg. bake on bottom shelf of oven minutes or until browned. fancy chicken puff pieserves tablespoons butter or margarine / cup chopped shallots or scallions / cup flour cup chicken broth / cup dry sherry salt to taste / teaspoon ground white pepper pinch nutmeg / pound ham, in / -inch by -inch strips cups cooked chicken, cut in / -inch by -inch strips - / cups fresh, or a package ( ounces) frozen, asparagus,cooked tender-crisp and cut in -inch pieces cup ( / pint) heavy cream chilled flaky pastry for a -crust pie or sheet frozen puff pastry egg, beaten in a medium-sized saucepan, oven medium-high heat, melt butter and saute shallots lightly. whisk in flour; cook minutes and add broth and sherry. heat to boiling, whisking constantly; season to taste with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. reduce heat to low and simmer minutes. stir in ham, chicken, asparagus, and cream. pour chicken mixture in -inch pie plate. preheat oven to f. cut an -inch circle from pastry, tracing around a plate as pattern. cut pastry hearts from extra dough with cookie cutter, if desired. place circle of dough on a cookie sheet moistened with cold water. pierce with tines of fork, brush with egg and decorate with cutout hearts; brush hearts with egg. place pastry on cookie sheet and the filled pie plate in oven. bake minutes; lower heat to f and bake to additional minutes or until pastry is golden brown and filling is hot. with a spatula, carefully place pastry lid on hot filling and serve immediately. chicken a la king with buttermilk biscuitsserves - according to food historians, chicken a la king got its name, not from some former monarch, but from the e. clark king family, proprietors of a fashionable resort near manhattan at the turn of the century. the original recipe used cream and sherry and egg yolks, and was served over toast points. this is somewhat lighter and a lot easier. if you have the time and are in the mood, skip the cream of chicken soup, and instead, use a basic white sauce made with chicken broth. if you don't have your own favorite white sauce recipe, here's a quick and simple one: stir tablespoons of flour into tablespoons of melted butter. cook for a couple of minutes, but don't let brown. slowly stir in cups chicken broth. continue stirring until thickened. season with salt and pepper to taste. cups cooked chicken, cut in chunks / teaspoon ground pepper / cup pimento, chopped / pound small fresh mushrooms, sliced ( cup) cans ( - / ounces each) cream of chicken soup, undiluted in a saucepan over low heat combine all ingredients and cook for about minutes or until heated through. serve on buttermilk biscuits. you can buy them ready-to-bake in a tube, or else make them from scratch, following this recipe: buttermilk biscuits cups flour / teaspoon salt or to taste teaspoon baking powder teaspoon baking soda / cup shortening or butter about / cup buttermilk preheat oven to f. in large bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. stir in just enough buttermilk so dough holds together; turn out onto a floured surface. pat to a / -inch thickness and cut into -inch rounds. bake to minutes, or until golden. chicken and corn soup serves - cups chicken broth / cups cooked, diced, chicken can ( / ounces) cream-style corn tablespoon dry sherry salt and pepper to taste / tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in tablespoons water cup watercress leaves in a saucepan over medium heat bring broth to a boil. add chicken, corn, sherry, salt and pepper. simmer to minutes. stir in cornstarch mixture and cook stirring constantly, to minutes or until slightly thickened. stir in watercress and serve immediately. chicken chow mein (chinese) serves - using the cream of mushroom soup puts this recipe in the category of "fast food." it's good, but if you have the time and the inclination, you'll get fresher-tasting results if you substitute your best white sauce recipe for the canned mushroom soup. also, if you have a choice between buying dark soy sauce and light soy sauce, remember the dark one is sweeter$molasses or caramel is added$and light soy sauce is saltier. - / cups cooked chicken, cut in chunks can ( -ounces) chow mein noodles, divided can ( - / -ounces) cashew nuts, divided can ( - / -ounces) cream of mushroom soup, undiluted / cup chicken broth tablespoons soy sauce preheat oven to of. in a baking dish combine chicken, / of noodles, / of nuts, soup, broth and soy sauce in baking dish, mixing well. top with remaining noodles and cashews. bake for about minutes. chicken-in-every-pot soupserves - for the best flavor, use fresh vegetables, varying them according to the season. speaking of fresh vegetables, do you know how to tell a good carrot? look at the "crown," (that's the stem end). if the crown is turning brown or black or has regrowth visible where the stem was, you've got a carrot that's been around awhile. if the crown and shoulders are a bright orange, you've got a nice, fresh carrot. cup potatoes, cut in / -inch cubes cups chicken broth / cup dry sherry teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cup onions, halved and thinly sliced cup carrots, in / -inch by -inch sticks cup celery, in / -inch by -inch sticks cup fresh or frozen green beans, in -inch pieces cups cooked chicken, in / -inch by -inch julienne strips cup zucchini, in / -inch by -inch sticks place potatoes in a saucepan with enough salted water to cover. bring to a boil over medium-high heat. cook potatoes minutes; drain, rinse under cold water and set aside. in large saucepan over medium-high heat, bring broth and sherry to a boil. season with salt and pepper. add onions, carrots, and celery and simmer minutes. stir in green beans and chicken and heat soup to boiling. add zucchini and potatoes and simmer minute longer. variation: chicken minestrone add cup chopped stewed tomatoes in their juice and cups cooked, drained fusilli or other pasta and / -cup cooked kidney beans when adding zucchini and potatoes. stir in / -cup grated parmesan cheese just before serving. other fresh vegetables may be added according to their cooking times. minestrone happens to be one of frank's favorites, although he skips the cheese because of its cholesterol. new england chicken 'n' corn chowderserves - chowders are thick soups which take their name from the large french pot used in soup-making called a "chaudiere." you can use fresh corn in this recipe, but i deliberately suggested frozen corn first because frozen corn can actually taste sweeter and fresher than the fresh corn you buy at the supermarket. corn loses % of its sweetness in just hours at room temperature, and it can take days for corn to get from the fields to the supermarket to your house. in contrast, frozen corn is rushed from the fields to the freezer in just a few hours, and once frozen, it stops losing its sweetness. strange as it may seem, with corn, frozen can taste fresher than fresh. / pound bacon or salt pork, diced cup chopped onion / cup chopped celery cups chicken broth cups peeled potatoes, cut in / -inch cubes package ( ounces) frozen corn or kernels from ears of corn teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper cups cooked, diced chicken cup ( / -pint) heavy cream oyster crackers, for garnish in large saucepan over medium-high heat, saute bacon for minutes until its fat has been rendered. add onions and celery and cook minutes longer. stir in broth and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. add potatoes and corn, season with salt and pepper and cook to minutes or until tender. stir in chicken and cream, simmer minutes and serve with oyster crackers. variation: shellfish chowder add cup chopped green pepper and cup cooked crab or shrimp to soup when adding chicken. hearty lancaster chicken, vegetable and dumpling soup serves this is a famous pennsylvania summer soup made with extra vegetables for hearty winter eating. you can substitute noodles for the dumplings, or add crackers, pretzels $ and some people have told me that even popcorn works. i'm skeptical about the popcorn, but if you're feeling adventurous, give it a try. cups chicken broth cups cooked, diced chicken teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup parboiled potatoes, cut in / -inch cubes / cup parboiled carrots, cut in / -inch pieces / cup shredded green cabbage cup thinly-sliced leek, white and tender green parts only, or medium onion, thinly sliced package ( -ounces) frozen corn kernels from ears of corn knepp in large saucepan over high heat, bring broth to a boil. add other ingredients and reduce heat to low. simmer for minutes while making dumplings. knepp (little dumplings) egg / cup flour / cup water / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon baking powder pinch ground nutmeg teaspoon minced, fresh parsley, optional garnish in small bowl, beat egg; stir in flour, water, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg. drop batter by half teaspoons into the simmering soup. when dumplings rise to top, stir in parsley and serve. variation: chicken spinach straciatella omit dumplings. clean and stem / pound fresh spinach; stack and cut into / -inch strips. whisk together eggs with / -cup grated parmesan cheese. stir in spinach with chicken, then heat soup just to boiling. immediately pour in the egg mixture in a thin stream, while stirring. the goal is to end up with thread-like strands of cooked egg. cook until soup simmers again; stir gently just before serving. chicken-bacon sandwich serves different kinds of bread make interesting variations. you can serve the sandwiches either open-face or topped with another slice of bread. i like open-face sandwiches that the kids can decorate. cup cooked, finely chopped chicken / cup chopped celery tablespoons minced, fresh parsley tablespoons mayonnaise or salad dressing teaspoons fresh lemon juice / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper slices crisp cooked bacon in a mixing bowl combine all ingredients except bacon and spread on favorite kind of bread. break slices of cooked bacon in half and place on top of sandwich. hot chickenwichserves if chicken has been chilled, it should be placed in of oven, uncovered, for about minutes. if you have the time, substitute a good homemade white sauce made with chicken broth for the cream of chicken soup. if you don't have the time, (and i bet that happens to you often!) the chicken soup shortcut is still very good. slices hot buttered toast can ( - / -ounces) deviled ham chicken, cooked and sliced tablespoons minced, fresh parsley can ( - / -ounces) cream of chicken soup, undiluted and heated salt to taste (you may not want any since the soup and the deviled ham are both fairly salty) spread deviled ham on buttered toast; sprinkle with parsley. place sliced chicken on toast. pour hot soup over each sandwich. quick chicken tetrazzini serves - this is even better after standing to let the flavors blend. green beans and broiled tomato go nicely with this. if you have time, use a good homemade white sauce made with chicken broth and mushrooms instead of the cream of mushroom soup. cup cooked, diced chicken can ( - / -ounces) cream of mushroom soup, undiluted / cup cooked spaghetti ( / cup uncooked yields / cup cooked) tablespoons dry sherry / cup grated parmesan cheese salt and ground pepper to taste (you may not want any since the soup is fairly salty) preheat oven to of. in a baking dish combine all ingredients and bake for about minutes until hot and lightly browned. salads chicken spring saladserves - spinach is an excellent source of vitamins a and c, as well as potassium and magnesium. when you eat it uncooked, as in this recipe, dentists say spinach is a detergent food, helpful to dental health. cups cooked chicken, cut in chunks package ( -ounces) raw spinach, washed and drained with stems removed and torn into small pieces small clove garlic, minced tablespoon chives, snipped, fresh or frozen teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper teaspoon sugar / cup chopped pecans apples, chopped / cup oil / cup red wine vinegar in a salad bowl combine all ingredients and toss lightly. french dressing chicken saladserves - this is a real "fast food," perfect for when you've got a lot of other things to do besides fuss in the kitchen. it's quick and easy, but the cayenne pepper gives it a little perk that lifts it out of the ordinary. cups cooked, diced chicken / cup finely chopped celery / cup french dressing / cup mayonnaise or salad dressing / teaspoon cayenne pepper in a salad bowl toss together all ingredients and serve on lettuce. olivey chicken saladserves i like this recipe partly because it tastes good, but also because it's a dandy use for leftover rice as well as leftover chicken. cups cooked, diced chicken cup cooked rice ( / cup uncooked yields cup cooked) / cup chopped celery / cup sliced pimento-stuffed green olives / cup toasted slivered almonds / cup thinly sliced scallions teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon ground pepper / cup mayonnaise or salad dressing tablespoons fresh lemon juice in a mixing bowl combine all ingredients and serve salad on a bed of lettuce leaves. sunshine chicken saladserves - the avocado you use in this recipe should be fully ripe, and that means it will have a slight give to it when you press it between your palms. if it has about as much "give" to it as a baseball, let it ripen for a couple of days more at room temperature. but don't refrigerate it because refrigeration puts a permanent stop to all ripening. cups cooked, diced chicken can ( -ounces) orange juice concentrate tablespoons oil tablespoon vinegar tablespoon sugar / teaspoon dry mustard / teaspoon salt or to taste / teaspoon tabasco cup chopped celery / cup diced ripe olives medium avocado, cut in small chunks / cup toasted, slivered almonds in a blender or food processor, make dressing by blending orange juice concentrate, oil, vinegar, sugar, dry mustard, salt and tabasco at high speed seconds or until smooth. in a salad bowl combine chicken, celery, olives, avocado and almonds. pour dressing over. toss and chill at least minutes before serving. tangy chicken saladserves - have you ever gotten the hard cooked eggs and the uncooked eggs mixed up in the refrigerator$and you wanted to know which was which without breaking them? if that should happen when you're making this recipe, here's what to do. spin them. the one that whirls around like a spinning top is hardcooked. the one that wobbles and doesn't spin well is still raw. cups cooked, diced chicken / teaspoon salt or to taste / cup chopped celery hard cooked egg, chopped tablespoon sweet pickle relish / cup mayonnaise or salad dressing in a salad bowl toss together all ingredients. serve on crisp lettuce. hearty chicken soup in a hurryserves this is an easy soup for a beginning cook. it's also good in a thermos for a school lunch on a cold day. i can't count the number of times i've made it when i've been in a hurry. cans ( - / ounces each) chicken broth cup cooked, diced chicken cup cooked, high-protein wagon wheel macaroni or other pasta cup frozen mixed vegetables in a saucepan over medium heat bring broth to a simmer. stir in chicken, pasta and vegetables. reduce heat to low; simmer minutes until vegetables are tender-crisp. spoon soup into a wide-mouth thermos jar and close tightly. serve with crackers or lightly buttered bread. saucy chicken bundles serves this takes time but it looks good and tastes terrific. it's not a gourmet item, but it's something a young cook can really enjoy making and showing off. cups biscuit mix / cup milk cup cooked, diced chicken / cup butter or margarine, melted cans ( - / -ounces each) cream of chicken soup, undiluted can ( - / -ounces) jellied cranberry sauce in a mixing bowl add milk to biscuit mix to form dough. roll dough into a square about / -inch thick. cut dough into -inch squares (makes about ). in a small bowl combine chicken, butter and tablespoons of soup. put tablespoons of this mixture on each pastry square. bring four corners of square together and pinch closed. preheat oven to of. place on baking sheet and bake for minutes. heat remaining soup and pour over baked squares. slice can of cranberry sauce into / -inch slices. with star-shaped cookie cutter, cut star from each slice of cranberry sauce and place on top of baked bundle before serving. conclusion: the story of a rare bird this part has almost nothing to do with recipes and cooking, but i've been trying to guess what you were looking for when you bought this book. clearly you wanted recipes from one of the world's premier authorities on chicken. i hope you've found this when looking at frank's favorites. but maybe you're also like many people who enjoy reading cookbooks almost as much as they enjoy the cooking. over the years, hundreds of people have told me that they buy cookbooks and only try a few recipes. the real pleasure they get from a cookbook is in reading it. knowing this, i've tried to make this book something that would be fun to read as well. but if you live in an area where frank sells his products, or if you've seen the pbs specials on him or read about him in in search of excellence, or perhaps read about him in some of the gossip columns, you may also have an additional reason to buy this book. perhaps you were curious about him as a person. what kind of man built a company from a father and son operation to one that today processes more than a million chickens a day and has sales in excess of a billion dollars a year? what is he really like? to me, his outstanding characteristic is that he gives of himself. i've seen first hand how he gives of himself for the sake of doing the best job he can for both consumers and for the people who work for the company. i know how often he's set the alarm for : a.m. after being up until : a.m. so he can get a head start on work. when he's really busy with something, i've seen him get by with two hours sleep after a month of getting only four hours. he cares so much for the people who work for him that i've heard him make transatlantic phone calls even during our honeymoon to make sure a low level associate's grievance was handled fairly. i've been touched by how often he visits retired associates, now in their s and s. company functions mean so much to him that once, after we had been traveling for twenty-three hours on our return from the soviet union, he went straight to a perdue volunteer fire brigade appreciation dinner rather than going home to bed. the associates meant far more to him than his sleep. when one of the perdue truckers needed help loading boxes, frank worked alongside him until the job was done because frank believed the man had a right to be home with his family. even in the building of the company, i find him generous. that may seem like an unusual way to look at the work of an entrepreneur, but he is providing jobs and a quality product; he's not engaged in leveraged buy-outs and paper transactions. many people know that frank perdue is famous for his chickens, his financial success, his marketing innovations, his drive, his creativity, or even his eccentricities, but i think that his greatest success lies elsewhere. to me, true success isn't measured by what you get, but rather by what you give. the tough man who makes those tender chickens, is an unusually giving man. proofreading team from scans from biblioteca de la universitat de barcelona note: this book is part of the w. m. volume the queens closet opened. the compleat cook. expertly prescribing the most ready wayes, whether, { _italian_, { _spanish_, { or _french_ for dressing of _flesh_, and _fish_, ordering of _sauces_ or making of pastry. london: printed by _e.b._ for _nath. brook_, at the angel in _cornhill_, . the compleat cook: expertly prescribing the most ready wayes, whether _italian, spanish_, or _french_, for dressing of _flesh_ and _fish_, &c. _to make a posset, the earle_ of arundels _way._. take a quart of creame, and a quarter of a nutmeg in it, then put it on the fire, and let it boyl a little while, and as it is boyling take a pot or bason, that you meane to make your posset in, and put in three spoonfuls of sack, and some eight of ale, and sweeten it with sugar, then set it over the coles to warm a little while, then take it off and let it stand till it be almost cool, then put it into the pot or bason and stir it a little, and let it stand to simper over the fire an hour or more, for the longer the better. _to boyle a capon larded with lemons._ take a fair capon and truss him, boyl him by himselfe in faire water with a little small oat-meal, then take mutton broath, and half a pint of white-wine, a bundle of herbs, whole mace, season it with verjuyce, put marrow, dates, season it with sugar, then take preserved lemons and cut them like lard, and with a larding pin, lard in it, then put the capon in a deep dish, thicken your broth with almonds, and poure it on the capon. _to bake red deere._ parboyl it, and then sauce it in vinegar then lard it very thick, and season it with pepper, ginger and nutmegs, put it into a deep pye with good store of sweet butter, and let it bake, when it is baked, take a pint of hippocras, halfe a pound of sweet butter, two or three nutmeg, little vinegar, poure it into the pye in the oven and let it lye and soake an hour, then take it out, and when it is cold stop the vent hole. _to make fine pan-cakes fryed without butter or lard._ take a pint of cream, and six new laid egs, beat them very well together, put in a quarter of a pound of sugar, and one nutmeg or a little beaten mace (which you please) and so much flower as will thicken almost as much as ordinarily pan-cake batter; your pan must be heated reasonably hot & wiped with a clean cloth, this done put in your batter as thick or thin as you please. _to dresse a pig the french manner._ take it and spit it, & lay it down to the fire, and when your pig is through warme, skin her, and cut her off the spit as another pig is, and so divide it in twenty peeces more or lesse as you please; when you have so done, take some white-wine and strong broth, and stew it therein, with an onion or two mixed very small, a little time also minced with nutmeg sliced and grated pepper, some anchoves and elder vinegar, and a very little sweet butter, and gravy if you have it, so dish it up with the same liquor it is stewed in, with french bread sliced under it, with oranges and lemons. _to make a steake pye, with a french pudding in the pye._ season your steaks with pepper & nutmegs, and let it stand an hour in a tray then take a piece of the leanest of a legg of mutton and mince it small with suet and a few sweet herbs, tops of young time, a branch of penny-royal, two or three of red sage, grated bread, yolks of eggs, sweet cream, raisins of the sun; work altogether like a pudding, with your hand stiff, and roul them round like bals, and put them into the steaks in a deep coffin, with a piece of sweet butter; sprinkle a little verjuyce on it, bake it, then cut it up and roul sage leaves and fry them, and stick them upright in the wals, and serve your pye without a cover, with the juyce of an orange or lemon. _an excellent way of dressing fish._ take a piece of fresh salmon, and wash it clean in a little vinegar and water, and let it lie a while in it, then put it into a great pipkin with a cover, and put to it some six spoonfuls of water and four of vinegar, and as much of white-wine, a good deal of salt a handful of sweet herbs, a little white sorrel, a few cloves, a little stick of cinamon, a little mace; put all these in a pipkin close, and set it in a kettle of seething water, and there let it stew three hours. _you may do carps, eeles, trouts, &c. this way, and they tast also to your mind._ _to fricate sheeps-feet._ take sheeps-feet, slit the bone, and pick them very clean, then put them in a frying-pan, with a ladlefull of strong broth, a piece of butter, and a little salt, after they have fryed a while, put to them a little parsley, green chibals, a little young speremint and tyme, all shred very small, and a little beaten pepper; when you think they are fryed almost enough, have a lear made for them with the yolks of two or three eggs, some gravy of mutton, a little nutmegg, and juyce of a lemon wrung therein, and put this lear to the sheeps feet as they fry in the pan, then toss them once or twice, and put them forth into the dish you mean to serve them in. _to fricate calves chaldrons._ take a calves chaldron, after it is little more then half boyled, and when it is cold, cut it into little bits as big as walnuts; season it with beaten cloves, salt, nutmeg, mace, and a little pepper, an onion, parsley, and a little tarragon, all shred very small, then put it into a frying-pan, with a ladle-full of strong broth, and a little piece of sweet butter, so fry it; when it is fryed enough, have a little lear made with the gravy of mutton, the juyce of a lemon and orange, the yolks of three or four eggs, and a little nutmeg grated therein; put all this to your chaldrons in the pan, toss your fricat two or three times, then dish it, and so serve it up. _to fricate champigneons._ make ready your champigneons as you do for stewing, and when you have poured away the black liquor that comes from them, put your champigneons into a frying pan with a piece of sweet butter, a little parsley, tyme, sweet marjoram, a piece of onion shred very small, a little salt and fine beaten pepper, so fry them till they be enough, so have ready the lear abovesaid, and put it to the champigneons whilst they are in the pan, toss them two or three times, put them forth and serve them. _to make buttered loaves._ take the yolks of twelve eggs, and six whites, and a quarter of a pint of yeast, when you have beaten the eggs well, strain them with the yeast into a dish, then put to it a little salt, and two rases of ginger beaten very small, then put flower to it till it come to a high past that will not cleave, then you must roule it upon your hands and afterwards put it into a warm cloath and let it lye there a quarter of an hour, then make it up in little loaves, bake; against it is baked prepare a pound and a half of butter, a quarter of a pint of white wine, and halfe a pound of sugar; this being melted and beaten together with it, set them into the oven a quarter of an hour. _to murine carps, mullet, gurnet, rochet, or wale, &c._ take a quart of water to a gallon of vinegar, a good handful of bay-leaves, as much rosemary, a quarter of a pound of pepper beaten; put all these together, and let it seeth softly, and season it with a little salt, then fry your fish with frying oyle till it be enough, then put in an earthen vessell, and lay the bay-leaves and rosemary between and about the fish, and pour the broth upon it, and when it is cold, cover it, _&c_. _to make a calves chaldron pye._ take a calves chaldron, half boyl it, and cool it; when it is cold mince it as small as grated bread, with halfe a pound of marrow; season it with salt, beaten cloves, mace, nutmeg a little onion, and some of the outmost rind of a lemon minced very small, and wring in the juyce of halfe a lemon, and then mix all together, then make a piece of puff past, and lay a leaf therof in a silver dish of the bigness to contain the meat, then put in your meat, and cover it with another leaf of the same past, and bake it; and when it is baked take it out, and open it, and put in the juyce of two or three oranges, stir it well together, then cover it againe and serve it. be sure none of your orange kernels be among your pye-meat. _to make a pudding of a calves chaldron._ take your chaldron after it is half boyled and cold, mince it as small as you can with half a pound of beef suet, or as much marrow, season it with a little onion, parsley, tyme, and the outmost rind of a piece of lemon, all shred very small, salt, beaten nutmeg, cloves and mace mixed together, with the yolks of four or five eggs, and a little sweet cream; then have ready the great gutts of a mutton scraped and washed very clean; let your gutt have lain in white-wine and salt halfe a day before you use it; when your meat is mixed and made up somewhat stiff put it into the sheeps-gutt, and so boyl it, when it is boyled enough, serve it to the table in the gutt. _to make a banbury cake._ take a peck of pure wheat-flower, six pound of currans, half a pound of sugar, two pound of butter, halfe an ounce of cloves and mace, a pint and a halfe of ale-yeast, and a little rose-water; then boyle as much new-milk as will serve to knead it, and when it is almost cold, put into it as much sack as will thicken it, and so work it all together before a fire, pulling it two or three times in pieces, after make it up. _to make a devonshire white-pot._ take a pint of cream and straine four eggs into it, and put a little salt and a little sliced nutmeg, and season it with sugar somewhat sweet; then take almost a penny loaf of fine bread sliced very thin, and put it into a dish that will hold it, the cream and the eggs being put to it; then take a handfull of raisins of the sun being boyled, and a little sweet butter, so bake it. _to make rice cream._ take a quart of cream, two good handfuls of rice-flower, a quarter of a pound of sugar and flower beaten very small, mingle your sugar and flower together, put it into your cream, take the yolk of an egg, beat it with a spoonfull or two of rose-water, then put it to the cream, and stir all these together, and set it over a quick fire, keeping it continually stirring till it be as thick as water-pap. _to make a very good great oxford-shire cake._ take a peck of flower by weight, and dry it a little, & a pound and a halfe of sugar, one ounce of cinamon, half an ounce of nutmegs, a quarter of an ounce of mace and cloves, a good spoonfull of salt, beat your salt and spice very fine, and searce it, and mix it with your flower and sugar; then take three pound of butter and work it in the flower, it will take three hours working; then take a quart of ale-yeast, two quarts of cream, half a pint of sack, six grains of amber-greece dissolved in it, halfe a pint of rosewater, sixteen eggs, eight of the whites, mix these with the flower, and knead them well together, then let it lie warm by your fire till your oven be hot, which must be little hotter then for manchet; when you make it ready for your oven, put to your cake six pound of currans, two pound of raisins, of the sun stoned and minced, so make up your cake, and set it in your oven stopped close; it wil take three houres a baking; when baked, take it out and frost it over with the white of an egge and rosewater, well beat together, and strew fine sugar upon it, and then set it again into the oven, that it may ice. _to make a pumpion pye._ take about halfe a pound of pumpion and slice it, a handfull of tyme, a little rosemary, parsley and sweet marjoram slipped off the stalks, and chop them smal, then take cinamon, nutmeg, pepper, and six cloves, and beat them; take ten eggs and beat them; then mix them, and beat them altogether, and put in as much sugar as you think fit, then fry them like a froiz; after it is fryed, let it stand till it be cold, then fill your pye, take sliced apples thinne round wayes, and lay a row of the froiz, and a layer of apples with currans betwixt the layer while your pye is fitted, and put in a good deal of sweet butter before you close it; when the pye is baked, take six yolks of eggs, some white-wine or verjuyce, & make a caudle of this, but not too thick; cut up the lid and put it in, stir them well together whilst the eggs and pumpions be not perceived, and so serve it up. _to make the best sausages that ever was eat._ take a leg of young pork, and cut of all the lean, and shred it very small, but leave none of the strings or skins amongst it, then take two pound of beef suet, and shred it small, then take two handfuls of red sage, a little pepper and salt, and nutmeg, and a small piece of an onion, chop them altogether with the flesh and suet; if it is small enough, put the yolk of two or three eggs and mix altogether, and make it up in a past if you will use it, roul out as many pieces as you please in the form of an ordinary sausage, and so fry them, this past will keep a fortnight upon occasion. _to boyle a fresh fish._ take a carp, or other, & put them into a deep dish, with a pint of white-wine, a large mace, a little tyme, rosemary, a piece of sweet butter, and let him boyle between two dishes in his owne blood, season it with pepper and verjuyce, and so serve it up on sippets. _to make fritters._ take halfe a pint of sack, a pint of ale, some ale-yeast, nine eggs, yolks and whites, beat them very well, the egg first, then altogether, put in some ginger, and salt, and fine flower, then let it stand an houre or two; then shred in the apples; when you are ready to fry them, your suet must be all beef-suet, or halfe beef, and halfe hoggs-suet tryed out of the leafe. _to make loaves of cheese-curds._ take a porringer full of curds, and four eggs, whites, and yolks, and so much flower as will make it stiff, then take a little ginger, nutmeg, & some salt, make them into loaves and set them into an oven with a quick heat; when they begin to change colour take them out, and put melted butter to them, and some sack, and good store of sugar, and so serve it. _to make fine pies after the french fashion._ take a pound and half of veale, two pound of suet, two pound of great raisins stoned, half a pound of prunes, as much of currans, six dates, two nutmegs, a spoonfull of pepper, an ounce of sugar, an ounce of carrawayes, a saucer of verjuyce, and as much rosewater, this will make three fair pyes, with two quarts of flower, three yolks of egges, and halfe a pound of butter. _a singular receit for making a cake._ take halfe a peck of flower, two pound of butter, mingle it with the flower, three nutmegs, & a little mace, cinamon, ginger, halfe a pound of sugar, leave some out to strew on the top, mingle these well with the flower and butter, five pound of currans well washed, and pickt, and dryed in a warm cloth, a wine pint of ale yeast, six eggs, leave out the whites, a quart of cream boyled and almost cold againe: work it well together and let it be very lith, lay it in a warm cloth, and let it lye half an hour against the fire. then make it up with the white of an egg, a little butter, rosewater and sugar; ice it over and put it into the oven, and let it stand one whole hour and a half. _to make a great curd loaf._ take the curds of three quarts of new milk clean whayed, and rub into them a little of the finest flower you can get, then take half a race of ginger, and slice it very thin, and put it into your curds with a little salt, then take halfe a pint of good ale yeast and put to it, then take ten eggs, but three of the whites, let there be so much flower as will make it into a reasonable stiff past, then put it into an indifferant hot cloth, and lay it before the fire to rise while your oven is heating, then make it up into a loaf, and when it is baked, cut up the top of the loaf, and put in a pound and a half of melted butter, and a good deale of sugar in it. _to make buttered loaves of cheese-curds._ take three quarts of new milk, and put in as much rennet as will turn, take your whay clean away, then breake your curds very small with your hands, and put in six yolks of eggs, but one white; an handfull of grated bread, an handfull of flower, a little salt mingled altogether; work it with your hand, roul it into little loaves, then set them in a pan buttered, then beat the yolk of an egg with a little beer, and wipe them over with a feather, then set them in the oven as for manchet, and stop that close three quarters of an hour, then take halfe a pound of butter three spoonfuls of water, a nutmeg sliced thin, a little sugar, set it on the fire, stir it till it be thick; when your loaves are baked, cut off the tops and butter them with this butter, some under, some over, and strow some sugar on them. _to make cheese-loaves._ grate a wheat-loafe, and take as much curd as bread, to that put eight yolks of eggs and four whites, and beat them very well, then take a little cream but let it be very thick, put altogether, and make them up with two handfuls of flower, the curds must be made of new milk and whayed very dry, you must make them like little loaves and bake them in an oven; and being baked cut them up, and have in readinesse some sweet butter, sugar, nutmeg sliced and mingled together, put it into the loaves, and with it stir the cream well together, then cover them again with the tops, and serve them with a little sugar scraped on. _to make puff._ take four pints of new milke, rennet, take out all the whay very clean, and wring it in a dry cloth, then strain it in a wooden dish till they become as cream, then take the yolks of two egges, and beat them and put them to the curds, and leave them with the curds, then put a spoonfull of cream to them, and if you please halfe a spoonfull of rose-water, and as much flower beat in it as will make it of an indifferent stiffnesse, just to roul on a plate, then take off the kidney of mutton suet and purifie it, and fry them in it, and serve them with butter, rose-water and sugar. _to make elder vinegar._ gather the flowers of elder, pick them very clean, and dry them in the sun on a gentle heat, and take to every quart of vinegar a good handfull of flowers and let it stand to sun a fortnight, then strain the vinegar from the flowers, and put it into the barrell againe, and when you draw a quart of vinegar, draw a quart of water, and put it into the barrell luke warme. _to make good vinegar._ take one strike of malt, and one of rye ground, and mash them together, and take (if they be good) three pound of hops, if not four pound; make two hogs-heads of the best of that malt and rye, then lay the hogs-head where the sunne may have power over them, and when it is ready to tun, fill your hogs-heads where they lye, then let them purge cleer and cover them with two flate stones, and within a week after when you bake, take two wheat loaves hot out of the oven, and put into each hogs-head a loaf, you must use this foure times, you must brew this in _aprill_, and let it stand till _june_, then draw them clearer, then wash the hogs-heads cleane, and put the beer in again; if you will have it rose-vinegar, you must put in a strike and a half of roses; if elder-vinegar, a peck of the flowers; if you will have it white, put no thing in it after it is drawn, and so let it stand till _michaelmas_; if you will have it coloured red, take four gallons of strong ale as you can get, and elder berries picked a few full clear, and put them in your pan with the ale, set them ouer the fire till you guesse that a pottle is wasted, then take if off the fire, and let it stand till it be store cold, and the next day strain it into the hogs-head, then lay them in a cellar or buttery which you please. _to make a coller of beef._ take the thinnest end of a coast of beef, boyl it and lay it in pump-water, and a little salt, three dayes shifting it once every day, and the last day put a pint of claret wine to it, and when you take it out of the water, let it lye two or three hours a drayning, then cut it almost to the end in three slices, then bruise a little cochinell and a very little allum, and mingle it with the claret-wine, and colour the meat all over with it, then take a dozen of anchoves, wash them and bone them, and lay them into the beef, and season it with cloves, mace, and pepper, and two handfuls of salt, and a little sweet marjoram and tyme, and when you make it up, roul the innermost slice first, and the other two upon it, being very wel seasoned every where, and bind it hard with tape, then put it into a stone-pot, something bigger then the coller, and pour upon it a pint of claret-wine, and halfe a pint of wine-vinegar, a sprig of rosemary, and a few bay-leave and bake it very well; before it is quite cold, take it out of the pot, and you may keep it dry as long as you please. _to make an almond pudding._ take two or three french-rowles, or white penny bread, cut them in slices, and put to the bread as much cream as wil cover it, put it on the fire till your cream and bread be very warm, then take a ladle or spoon and beat it very well together, put to this twelve eggs, but not above foure whites, put in beef suet, or marrow, according to your discretion, put a pretty quantity of currans and raisins, season the pudding with nutmeg, mace, salt, and sugar, but very little flower for it will make it sad and heavy; make a piece of puff past as much as will cover your dish, so cut it very handsomely what fashion you please; butter the bottome of your dish, put the pudding into the dish, set it in a quick oven, not too hot as to burne it, let it bake till you think it be enough, scrape on sugar and serve it up. _to boyle cream with french barly._ take the third part of a pound of french barley, wash it well with fair water, and let it lie all night in fair water, in the morning set two skillets on the fire with faire water, and in one of them put your barley, and let it boyle till the water look red, then put the water from it, and put the barley into the other warme water, thus boyl it and change with fresh warm water till it boyl white, then strain the water clean from it, then take a quart of creame, put into it a nutmeg or two quartered, a little large mace and some sugar, and let it boyl together a quarter of an hour, and when it hath thus boyled put into it the yolks of three or foure eggs, well beaten with a little rose-water, then dish it forth, and eat it cold. _to make cheese-cakes._ take three eggs and beat them very well, and as you beat them, put to them as much fine flower as will make them thick, then put to them three or four eggs more, and beat them altogether; then take one quart of creame, and put into it a quarter of a pound of sweet butter, and set them over the fire, and when it begins to boyle, put to it your eggs and flower, stir it very well, and let it boyle till it be thick, then season it with salt, cinamon, sugar, and currans, and bake it. _to make a quaking pudding._ take a pint and somewhat more of thick creame, ten egges, put the whites of three, beat them very well with two spoonfuls of rose-water; mingle with your creame three spoonfuls of fine flower, mingle it so well, that there be no lumps in it, put it altogether, and season it according to your tast; butter a cloth very well, and let it be thick that it may not run out, and let it boyle for half an hour as fast as you can, then take it up and make sauce with butter, rose-water and sugar, and serve it up. _you may stick some blanched almonds upon it if you please._ _to pickle cucumbers._ put them in an earthen vessel, lay first a lay of salt and dill, then a lay of cucumbers, and so till they be all layed, put in some mace and whole pepper, and some fennel-seed according to direction, then fill it up with beer-vinegar, and a clean board and a stone upon it to keepe them within the pickle, and so keep them close covered, and if the vinegar is black, change them into fresh. _to pickle broom buds._ take your buds before they be yellow on the top, make a brine of vinegar and salt, which you must do onely by shaking it together till the salt be melted, then put in your buds, and keepe stirred once in a day till they be sunk within the vinegar, be sure to keep close covered. _to keep quinces raw all the year._ take some of the worst quinces and cut them into small pieces, and coares and parings, boyle them in water, and put to a gallon of water, some three spoonfuls of salt, as much honey; boyle these together till they are very strong, and when it is cold, put it into half a pint of vinegar in a wooden vessell or earthen pot; and take then as many of your best quinces as will go into your liquor, then stop them up very close that no aire get into them, and they will keep all the yeare. _to make a gooseberry foole._ take your gooseberries, and put them in a silver or earthen pot, and set it in a skillet of boyling water, and when they are coddled enough strain them, then make them hot again, when they are scalding hot, beat them very well with a good piece of fresh butter, rose-water and sugar, and put in the yolke of two or three eggs; you may put rose-water into them, and so stir it altogether, and serve it to the table when it is cold. _to make an otemeale pudding_. take a porringer full of oatmeale beaten to flower, a pint of creame, one nutmeg, four eggs beaten, three whites, a quarter of a pound of sugar, a pound of beefe-suet well minced, mingle all these together and so bake it. an houre will bake it. _to make a green pudding._ take a penny loafe of stale bread, grate it, put to halfe a pound of sugar, grated nutmeg, as much salt as will season it, three quarters of a pound of beef-suet shred very small, then take sweet herbs, the most of them marigolds, eight spinages: shred the herbs very small, mix all well together, then take two eggs and work them up together with your hand, and make them into round balls, and when the water boyles put them in, serve them with rose-water, sugar, and butter or sauce. _to make good sausages._ take the lean of a legge of pork, and four pound of beefe-suet, or rather butter, shred them together very small, then season it with three quarters of an ounce of pepper, and halfe an ounce of cloves and mace mixed together, as the pepper is, a handfull of sage when it is chopt small, and as much salt as you thinke will make them tast well of it; mingle all these with the meat, then break in ten eggs, all but two or three of the whites, then temper it all well with your hands, and fill it into hoggs gutts, which you must have ready for them; you must tye the ends of them like puddings, and when you eat them you must boyle them on a soft fire; a hot will crack the skins, and the goodnesse boyle out of them. _to make toasts._ cut two penny loaves in round slices and dip them in half a pint of cream or cold water, then lay them abroad in a dish, and beat three eggs and grated nutmegs, and sugar, beat them with the cream, then take your frying pan and melt some butter in it, and wet one side of your toasts and lay them in on the wet side, then pour in the rest upon them, and so fry them; send them in with rosewater, butter and sugar. _spanish cream._ put hot water in a bucket and go with it to the milking, then poure out the water, and instantly milke into it, and presently strain it into milk-pans of an ordinary fulnesse, but not after an ordinary way for you must set your pan on the ground and stand on a stool, and pour it forth that it may rise in bubbles with the fall; this on the morrow will be a very tough cream, which you must take off with your skimmer, and lay it in the dish, laying upon laying; and if you please strew some sugar between them. _to make clouted cream._ take foure quarts of milke, one of cream, six spoonfuls of rose-water, put these together in a great earthen milke-pan, & set it upon a fire of charcoale well kindled, you must be sure the fire be not too hot; then let it stand a day and a night; and when you go to take it off, loose the edge of your cream around about with a knife, then take your board, and lay the edges that is left beside the board, cut into many pieces, and put them into the dish first, and scrape some fine sugar upon them, then take your board and take off your cream as clean from the milk as you can, and lay it upon your dish, and if your dish be little, there will be some left, the which you may put into what fashion you please, and scrape good store of sugar upon it. _a good cream_ when you churn butter, take out six spoonfuls of cream, just as it is to turne to butter, that is, when it is a little frothy; then boyle good cream as must as will make a dish, and season it with sugar, and a little rose-water; when it is quite cold enough, mingle it very well with that you take out of the churn, and so dish it. _to make piramidis cream._ take a quart of water, and six ounces of harts horn, and put it into a bottle with gum-dragon, and gum-arabick, of each as much as a small nut, put all this into the bottle, which must be so big as will hold a pint more; for if it be full it will break; stop it very close with a cork, and tye a cloth about it, put the bottle into a pot of beef when it is boyling, and let it boyle three hours, then take as much cream as there is jelly, and halfe a pound of almonds well beaten with rose-water, so that you cannot discern what they be, mingle the cream and the almonds together, then strain it, and do so two or three times to get all you can out of the almonds, then put jelly when it is cold into a silver bason, and the cream to it; sweeten it as you like, put in two or three grains of musk and amber-greece, set it over the fire, stirring it continually and skimming it, till it be seething hot, but let it not boyle, then put it into an old fashion drinking-glasse, and let it stand till it is cold, and when you will use it, hold your glass in a warm hand, and loosen it with a knife, and whelm it into a dish, and have in readinesse pine apple blown, and stick it all over, and serve it in with cream or without as you please. _to make a sack cream._ set a quart of cream on the fire, when it is boyled, drop in a spoonfull of sack, and stir it well the while, that it curd not, so do till you have dropped in six spoonfuls, then season it with sugar, nutmeg, and strong water. _to boyle pigeons._ stuffe the pigeons with parsley, and butter, and put them into an earthen pot, and put some sweet butter to them and let them boyle; take parsley, tyme, and rosemary, chop them and put them to them; take some sweet butter, and put in withall some spinage, take a little gross pepper and salt, and season it withall, then take the yolk of an egge and strain it with verjuyce, and put to them, lay sippets in the dish and serve it. _to make an apple-tansey._ pare your apples and cut them in thin round slices, then fry them in good sweet butter, then take ten eggs, sweet cream, nutmeg, cinamon, ginger, sugar, with a little rose-water, beat all these together, and poure it upon your apples and fry it. _the french-barly-cream._ take a quart of cream, and boyle in a porrenger of french-barley, that hath been boyled in a nine waters, put in some large mace and a little cinamon, boyling it a quarter of an hour; then take two quarts of almonds blanched, and beat it very small with rose-water, or orange-water, and some sugar; and the almonds being strained into the liquor, put it over the fire, stirring it till it be ready to boyle; then take it off the fire, stirring it till it be halfe cold; then put to it two spoonfuls of sack or white-wine, and when it is cold, serve it in, remembring to put in some salt. _to make a chicken or pigeon-pye._ take your pigeons (if they be not very young) cut them into four quarters, one sweet-bread sliced the long way, that it may be thin, and the pieces not too big, one sheeps tongue, little more then parboyl'd, and the skin puld off, and the tongue cut in slices, two or three slices of veale, as much of mutton, young chicken (if not little) quarter them, chick-heads, lark, or any such like, pullets, coxcombs, oysters, calves-udder cut in pieces, good store of marrow for seasoning, take as much pepper and salt as you think fit to season it slightly; good store of sweet marjoram, a little time and lemon-pill fine sliced; season it well with these spices as the time of the year will afford; put in either of chesnuts (if you put in chesnuts they must first be either boyl'd or roasted) gooseberries or guage, large mace will do well in this pye, then take a little piece of veale parboyl'd and slice it very fine, as much marrow as meat stirred amongst it, then take grated bread, as much as a quarter of the meat, four yolks of eggs or more according to the stuffe you make, shred dates as small as may be, season it with salt, but not too salt. nutmeg as much as will season it, sweet marjoram pretty store very small shred, work it up with as much sweet creame as will make it up in little puddings, some long, some round, so put as many of them in the pye as you please; put therein two or three spoonfulls of gravy of mutton, or so much strong mutton broth before you put it in the oven, the bottome of boyled artichokes, minced marrow over and in the bottom of the pye after your pye is baked; when you put it up, have some five yolks of eggs minced, and the juyce of two or three oranges, the meat of one lemon cut in pieces, a little white and claret wine; put this in your pye being well mingled, and shake it very well together. _to boyle a capon or hen._ take a young capon or hen, when you draw them, take out the fall of the leafe clean away, and being well washed, fill the belly with oysters; prepare some mutton, the neck, but boyle it in smal peices and skim it well, then put your capon into the pipkin, and when it is boyled, skim it again; be sure you have no more water then will cover your meat, then put it into a pint of white wine, some mace, two or three cloves and whole pepper; a quarter of an hour before your meat be boyled enough, put into the pipkin, three anchoves stript from the bones and washed, and be sure you put salt at the first to your meat; a little parsley spinage, endive, sorrell, rose-mary, or such kind of herbs will do well to boyle with the broth, and being ready to dish it, having sippets cut then take the oysters out of the capon, and lay them in the dish with the broth, and put some juyce of lemons and orange into it according to your taste. _to make balls of veale._ take the lean of a leg of veal, and cut out the sinews, mince it very small, and with it some fat of beef suet; if the leg of veal be of a cow calfe, the udder will be good instead of beef suet; when it is very well beaten together with the mincing knife, have some cloves, mace, and pepper beaten, and with salt season your meat, putting in some vinegar, then make up your meat into little balls, and having very good strong broth made of mutton, set your balls to boyle in it; when they are boyled enough, take the yolks of five or six eggs well beaten with as much vinegar as you please to like, and some of the broth mingled together, stir it into all your balls and broth, give it a waume on the fire, then dish up the balls upon sippits and pour the sauce on it. _to make mrs._ shellyes _cake._ take a peck of fine flower, and three pound of the best butter, work your flower and butter very well together, then take ten eggs, leave out six whites, a pint and a halfe of ale-yeast: beat the eggs and yeast together, and put them to the flower; take six pound of blanched almonds, beat them very well, putting in sometime rosewater to keepe them from oyling; adde what spice you please; let this be put to the rest, with a quarter of a pint of sack, and a little saffron; and when you have made all this into past, cover it warme before the fire, and let it rise for halfe an hour, then put in twelve pound of currans well washed and dryed, two pound of raisins of the sun stoned and cut small, one pound of sugar; the sooner you put it into the oven after the fruit is put in, the better. _to make almond jumballs._ take a pound of almonds to halfe a pound of double refined sugar beaten and searced, lay your almonds in water a day before you blanch them, and beat them small with your sugar; and when it is beat very small, put in a handfull of gum-dragon, it being before over night steeped in rose-water, and halfe a white of an egge beaten to froth, and halfe a spoonfull of coriander-seed as many fennell and ani-seeds, mingle these together very well, set them upon a soft fire till it grow pretty thick, then take it off the fire, and lay it upon a clean paper, and beat it well with a rowling pin till it work like a soft past, and so make them up, and lay them upon papers oyld with oyle of almonds, then put them in your oven, and so soon as they be throughly risen, take them out before they grow hard. _to make cracknels._ take halfe a pound of fine flower, dryed and searced, as much fine sugar searced, mingled with a spoonfull of coriander-seed bruised, halfe a quarter of a pound of butter rubbed in the flower and sugar, then wet it with the yolks of two eggs, and halfe a spoonfull of white rose-water, a spoonfull or little more of cream as will wet it; knead the past till it be soft and limber to rowle well, then rowle it extreame thin, and cut them round by little plates; lay them up on buttered papers, and when they goe into the oven, prick them, and wash the top with the yolk of an egg beaten, and made thin with rose-water or faire water; they will give with keeping, therefore before they are eaten, they must be dryed in a warme oven to make them crisp. _to pickle oysters._ take oysters and wash them cleane in their own liquor, and let them settle, then strain it, and put your oysters to it with a little mace and whole pepper, as much salt as you please, and a little wine-vinegar, then set them over the fire, and let them boyle leisurely till they are pretty tender; be sure to skim them still as the skim riseth; when they are enough, take them out till the pickle be cold, then put them into any pot that will lye close, they will keep best in caper barrels, they will keep very well six weeks. _to boyle cream with codlings._ take a quart of cream and boyle it with some mace and sugar, and take two yolks of eggs, and beat them well with a spoonfull of rose-water and a grain of amber-greece, then put it into the cream with a piece of sweet butter as big as a wall-nut, and stir it together over the fire untill it be ready to boyle, then set it some time to coole, stirring it continually till it be cold; then take a quarter of a pound of codlings strained, and put them into a silver dish over a few coales till they be almost dry, and being cold, and the cream also, poure the cream upon them, and let them stand on a soft fire covered an hour, then serve them in. _to make the lady albergaveres cheese._ to one cheese take a gallon of new milk, and a pint of good cream, and mix them well together, then take a skillet of hot water as much as will make it hotter then it comes from the cow, then put in a spoonfull of rennet, and stir it well together and cover it, and when it is come, take a wet cloth and lay it on your cheese-mot, and take up the curd and not break it; and put it into your mot; and when your mot is full, lay on the suiker, and every two hours turn your cheese in wet cloathes wrung dry; and lay on a little more wet, at night take as much salt as you can between your finger and thumb, and salt your cheese on both sides; let them lye in presses all night in a wet cloth; the next day lay them on a table between a dry cloth, the next day lay them in grasse, and every other day change your grasse, they will be ready to eat in nine dayes; if you will have them ready sooner, cover them with a blanket. _to dresse snayles._ take your snayles (they are no way so as in pottage) and wash them well in many waters, and when you have done put them in a white earthen pan, or a very wide dish, and put as much water to them as will cover them, and then set your dish or pan on some coales, that it may heat by little and little, and then the snayles will come out of the shells and so dye, and being dead, take them out, and wash them very well in water and salt twice or thrice over; then put them in a pipkin with water and salt, and let them boyle a little while in that, so take away the rude slime they have, then take them out againe and put them in a cullender; then take excellent sallet oyle and beat it a great while upon the fire in a frying pan, and when it boyls very fast, slice two or three onyons in it, and let them fry well, then put the snayles in the oyle and onyons, and let them stew together a little, then put the oyle, onyons, and snayles altogether in an earthen pipkin of a fit size for your snayles, and put as much warm water to them as will serve to boyle them, and make the pottage and season them with salt, and so let them boyle three or foure hours; then mingle parsly, pennyroyall, fennell, tyme, and such herbs, and when they are minced put them in a morter, and beat them as you doe for green-sauce, and put in some crums of bread soaked in the pottage of the snayles, and then dissolve it all in the morter with a little saffron and cloves well beaten, and put in as much pottage into the morter as will make the spice and bread and herbs like thickning for a pot, so put them all into the snayles and let them stew in it, and when you serve them up, you may squeeze into the pottage a lemon, and put in a little vinegar, or if you put in a clove of garlick among the herbs, and beat it with them in the morter; it will not tast the worse; serve them up in a dish with sippets of bread in the bottom. the pottage is very nourishing, and they use them that are apt to a consumption. _to boyle a rump of beefe after the french fashion._ take a rump of beef, or the little end of the brisket, and parboyle it halfe an houre, then take it up and put it in a deep dish, then slash it in the side that the gravy may come out, then throw a little pepper and salt betweene every cut, then fill up the dish with the best claret wine, and put to it three or foure pieces of large mace, and set it on the coales close covered, and boyle it above an houre and a halfe, but turn it often in the mean time; then with a spoon take of the fat and fill it with claret wine, and slice six onyons, and a handfull of cappers or broom buds, halfe a dozen of hard lettice sliced, three spoonfuls of wine-vinegar and as much verjuyce, and then set it a boyling with these things in it till it be tender, and serve it up with brown bread and sippets fryed with butter, but be sure there be not too much fat in it when you serve it. _an excellent way of dressing fish._ take a piece of fresh salmon, and wash it clean in a little vinegar and water, and let it lye a while in it, in a great pipkin with a cover, and put to it six spoonfuls of water and four of vinegar, as much of white wine, a good deale of salt, a bundle of sweet herbs, a little whole spice, a few cloves, a little stick of cinamon, a little mace, take up all these in a pipkin close, and set in a kettle of seething water and there let it stew three hours, you may doe carps, eeles, trouts, &c. this way, alter the tast to your mind. _to make fritters of sheeps-feet._ take your sheeps feet, slit them and set them a stewing in a silver dish, with a little strong broth and salt, with a stick of cinamon, two or three cloves, and a piece of an orange pill; when they are stewed, take them from the liquor and lay them upon a pye-plate cooling; when they are cold, have some good fritter-batter made with sack, and dip them therein; then have ready to fry them, some excellent clarified butter very hot in a pan, and fry them therein; when they are fryed wring in the juyce of three or four oranges, and toss them once or twice in a dish, and so serve them to the table. _to make dry salmon calvert in the boyling._ take a gallon of water, put to it a quart of wine or vinegar, verjuyce or sour beer, and a few sweet herbs and salt, and let your liquor boyle extream fast, and hold your salmon by the tayle, and dip it in, and let it have a walme, and so dip it in and out a dozen times, and that will make your salmon calvert, and so boyle it till it be tender. _to make bisket bread._ take a pound of sugar searced very fine, and a pound of flower well dryed, and twelve eggs, a handfull of carroway-seed, six whites of eggs, a very little salt, beat all these together, and keep them with beating till you set them in the oven, then put them into your plates or tin things, and take butter and put into a cloth and rub your plate; a spoonfull into a plate is enough, and so set them in the oven, and let your oven be no hotter then to bake small pyes; if your flower be not dryed in the oven before, they will be heavy. _to make an almond pudding._ take your almonds when they are blanched, and beat them as many as will serve for your dish, then put to it foure or five yolks of eggs, rose-water, nutmeg, cloves and mace, a little sugar, and a little salt and marrow cut into it, and so set it into the oven, but your oven must not be hotter then for bisket bread; and when it is half baked, take the white of an egg, rose-water and fine sugar well beaten together and very thick, and do it over with a feather, and set it in againe, then stick it over with almonds, and so send it up. _this you may boyle in a bag if you please, and put in a few crums of bread into it, and eat it with butter and sugar without marrow._ _to make an almond caudle._ take three pints of ale, boyle it with cloves and mace, and sliced bread in it, then have ready beaten a pound of almonds blanched, & strain them out with a pint of white wine, and thicken the ale with it, sweeten it if you please, and be sure you skim the ale well when it boyles. _to make almond bread._ take almonds and lay them in water all night, then blanch them and slice them, to every pound of almonds, a pound of fine sugar finely beaten, so mingle them together, then beat the whites of three egs to high froth, and mix it well with the almonds & sugar, then have some plates and strew some flower on them, and lay wafers on them, and lay your almonds with the edges upwards, lay them as round as your can, scrape a little sugar on them, when they are ready to set in the oven, which must not be so hot as to colour white paper, and when they are a little baked, take them out, and them from the plates, and set them in again, you must keepe them in a stove. _to make almond cakes._ take halfe a pound of almonds blanched in cold water, beat them with some rose-water till they doe not glister, then they will be beaten; if you think fit, lay seven or eight musque comfits dissolved in rosewater which must not be above six or seven spoonfuls for fear of spoyling the colour; when they be thus beaten, put in half a pound of sugar finely sifted, beat them and the almonds together till it be well mixed, then take the whites of two eggs, and two spoonfuls of fine flower that hath been dried in an oven; beat these wel together and poure it to your almonds, then butter your plates and dust your cakes with sugar and flower, and when they are a little brown, draw them, and when the oven is colder set them in again on browne papers, and they will looke whiter. _master_ rudstones _posset._ take a pint of sack, a quarter of a pint of ale three quarters of a pound of sugar, boyle all these well together, take two yolks of eggs and sixteen whites very well beaten, put this to your boyling sack & slice it very well together till it be thick on the coales; then take the three pints of milk or cream being boyled to a quart, it must stand and cool till the eggs thicken, put it to your sack and eggs, and stir them well together, then cover it with a plate and so serve it. _to boyle a capon with ranioles._ take a good young capon, trusse it and draw it to boyle, and parboyle it a little, then let it lye in fair water being pickt very cleane and white, then boyle it in strong broth while it be enough, but first prepare your ranioles as followeth; take a good quantity of beet leaves, and boyle them in water very tender, then take them out, and get all the water very cleane out of them, then take six sweet breads of veale, and boyle and mince them white, mince them small, and then boyl herbs also, and four or five marrow bones, break them and get all the marrow out of them, and boyle the bigger peice of them in water by it selfe, and put the other into the minced herbs, then take halfe a pound of raisins of the sun stoned, and mince them small, and halfe a pound of dates the skin off, and mince them also, and a quarter of a pound of pomecitron minced small, then take of naples-bisket a good quantity, and put all these together on a charger or a great dish with halfe a pound of sweet butter, and worke it together with your hands as you do a peice of past, and season it with a little nutmeg, ginger, cinamon, and salt, & permasan cheese grated with hard sugar grated also, then mingle all together well, and make a past with the finest flower, six yolks of eggs, a little saffron beaten small, halfe a pound of sweet butter, a little salt, with some faire water hot (not boyling) and make up your past, then drive out a long sheet of past with an even rowling pin as thin as possible you can, and lay your ingredients in small heaps, round or long which you please in the past, then cover them with the past & cut them with a jag asunder and so make more or more till you have made two hundred or more, then have a good broad pan or kettle halfe full of strong broth, boyling leisurely, and put in your ransoles one by one, and let them boyle a quarter of an hour, then take up your capon, lay it in a great dish, and put one the ransoles, & strew on them grated cheese, naples-bisket grated, cinamon and sugar, then more and more cinamon & cheese, while you have filled your dish; then put softly on melted butter with a little strong broth, your marrow pomecitron, lemons sliced and serve it up, and so put it into the dish so ransoles may be part fryed with sweet but clarified butter, either a quarter of them or halfe as you please; if the butter be not clarified, it will spoile your ransoles. _to make a bisque of carps._ take twelve small carps, and one great one, all male carps, draw them and take out all the melts, flea the twelve small carps, cut off their heads and take out their tongues and take the fish from the bones of the flead carps, and twelve oysters, two or three yelks of hard eggs, mash altogether, season it with cloves, mace and salt, and make thereof a stiffe searce, add thereto the yolks of foure or five eggs to bind it, fashion that first into bals or lopings as you please, lay them into a deep dish or earthen pan, and put thereto twenty or thirty great oysters, two or three anchoves, the milts and tongues of your twelve carps, halfe a pound of fresh butter, the liquor of your oysters, the juyce of a lemon or two; a little white-wine some of corbilion wherein your great carpe is boyled, and a whole onyon, so set them a stewing on a soft fire and make a hoop therewith; for the great carp you must scald him and draw him, and lay him for half an hour with the other carps heads in a deep pan with so much white wine vinegar as will cover and serve to boyle him, and the other heads in; put therein pepper, whole mace, a race of ginger, nutmeg, salt sweet herbs, an onyon or two sliced, a lemon; when you boyle your carps, poure your liquor with the spice into the kettle wherein you will boyle him; when it is boyled put in your carp, let it not boyle too fast for breaking; after the carp hath boyled a while put in the head, when it is enough take off the kettle, and let the carps and the heads keep warme in the liquor till you goe to dish them. when you dresse your bisque, take a large silver dish, set it on the fire, lay therein sippets of bread, then put in a ladle-full of your corbilion, then take up your great carp and lay him in the midst of the dish, then range the twelve heads about the carp, then lay the searce of the carp, lay that in, then your oysters, milts, and tongues, then poure on the liquor wherein the searce was boyled, wring in the juyce of a lemon and two oranges; garnish your dish with pickled barberries, lemons and oranges, and serve it very hot to the table. _to boyle a pike and eele together._ take a quart of white-wine and a pint and a halfe of white-wine-vinegar, two quarts of water, and almost a pint of salt, a handfull of rose-mary and tyme; the liquor must boyle before you put in your fish and herbs; the eele with the skins must be put in a quarter of an hour before the pike, with a little large mace, and twenty cornes of pepper. _to make an outlandish dish._ take the liver of a hogg, and cut it in small pieces about the bigness of a span, then take anni-seed, or french-seed, pepper and salt, and season them therewithall, and lay every piece severally round in the caule of the hogg, and so roast them on a bird-spit. _to make a portugall dish._ take the guts, gizards and liver of two fat capons, cut away the galles from the liver, and make clean the gizards and put them into a dish of clean water, slit the gut as you do a calves chaldron but take off none of the fat, then lay the guts about an hour in white-wine, as the guts soke, half boyle gizards and livers, then take a long wooden broach, and spit your gizards and liver thereon, but not close one to another, then take and wipe the guts somewhat dry in cloth, and season them with salt and beaten pepper, cloves and mace, then wind the guts upon the wooden broach about the liver, and gizards, then tye the wooden broach to spin, and lay them to the fire to roast, and roast them very brown, and bast them not at all till they be enough, then take the gravy of mutton, the juyce of two or three oranges, and a grain of saffron, mix all well together, and with a spoon bast your roast, let it drop into the same dish. then draw it, and serve it to the table with the same sauce. _to dresse a dish of hartichoaks._ take and boyle them in the beef-pot, when they are tender sodden, take off the tops, leaving the bottoms with some round about them, then put them into a dish, put some fair water to them, two or three spoonfuls of sack, a spoonfull of sugar, and so let them boyle upon the coales, still pouring on the liquor to give it a good tast, when they have boyled halfe an hour take the liquor from them, and make ready some cream boyled and thickned with the yolk of an egge or two, whole mace, salt, and sugar with some lumps of marrow, boyle it in the cream, when it is boyled put a good piece of sweet butter into it, and toast some toasts, and lay them under your hartichoaks, and poure your cream, and butter on them, garnish it, &c. _to dresse a fillet of veale the italian way._ take a young tender fillet of veale, pick away all the skins in the fold of the flesh, after you have picked it out clean, so that no skins are left, nor any hard thing; put to it some good white-wine (that is not too sweet) in a bowl & wash it, & crush it well in the wine; doe so twice, then strew upon it a powder that is called _tamara_ in _italy_, and so much salt as will season it well, mingle the powder well upon the pasts of your meat, then poure to it so much white-wine as will cover it when it is thrust down into a narrow pan; lay a trencher on it and a weight to keep it downe, let it lye two nights and one day, put a little pepper to it when you lay it in the sauce, and after it it is sowsed so long, take it out and put it into a pipkin with some good beef-broth, but you must not take any of the pickle to it, but onely beef-broth that is sweet and not salt; cover it close and set it on the embers, onely put into it with the broth a few whole cloves and mace, and let it stew till it be enough. it will be very tender and of an excellent taste; it must be served with the same broth as much as will cover it. to make the italian, take coriander seed two ounces, aniseed one ounce, fennel-seed one ounce, cloves two ounces, cinamon one ounce; these must be beaten into a grosse powder, putting into it a little powder of winter-savoury; if you like it, keep this in a vial-glasse close stopt for your use. _to dresse soales._ take a pair of soales, lard them through with watered fresh salmon, then lay your soales on a table, or pie-plate, cut your salmon, lard all of an equal length on each side, and leave the lard but short, then flower the soales, and fry them in the best ale you can get; when they are fryed lay them in a warme pie-plate, and so serve them to the table with a sallet dish full of anchovy sauce, and three or four oranges. _to make furmity._ take a quart of creame, a quarter of a pound of french-barley the whitest you can get, and boyle it very tender in three or four severall waters, and let it be cold, then put both together, put in it a blade of mace, a nutmeg cut in quarters, a race of ginger cut in three or five pieces, and so let it boyle a good while, still stirring, and season it with sugar to your tast, then take the yolks of four eggs and beat them with a little cream, and stir them into it, and so let it boyle a little after the egs are in, then have ready blanched and beaten twenty almonds kept from oyling, with a little rose-water, then take a boulter, strainer, and rub your almonds with a little of your furmity through the strainer, but set on the fire no more, and stir in a little salt and a little sliced nutmeg, pickt out of the great peices of it, and put it in a dish, and serve it. _to make patis, or cabbage cream._ take thirty ale pints of new milke, and set it on the fire in a kettle till it be scalding hot, stirring it oft to keep it from creaming, then put in forth, into thirty pans of earth, as you put it forth, take off the bubbles with a spoon, let it stand till it be cold, then take off the cream with two such slices as you beat bisket bread with, but they must be very thin and not too broad, then when the milk is dropped off the cream, you must lay it upon a pye-plate, you must scour the kettle very clean and heat the milk again, and so four or five times. in the lay of it, first lay a stalk in the midst of the plate, let the rest of the cream be laid upon that sloping, between every laying you must scrape sugar and sprinkle rose-water, and if you will, the powder of musk, and amber-greece, in the heating of the milk be carefull of smoak. _to make pap._ take three quarts of new milk, set it on the fire in a dry silver dish, or bason, when it begins to boyle skim it, then put thereto a handfull of flour & yolks of three eggs, which you must have well mingled together with a ladle-full of cold milk, before you put it to the milk that boyles, and as it boyles, stir it all the while till it be enough, and in the boyling, season it with a little salt, and a little fine beaten sugar and so keeping it stirred till it be boyled as thick as you desire, then put it forth into another dish and serve it up. _to make spanish pap._ take three spoonfuls of rice-floure, finely beaten and searced, two yolks of eggs, three spoonfuls of sugar, three or foure spoonfuls of rose-water. temper these fouer together, then put them to a pint of cold cream, then set it on the fire and keep it stirred till it come to a reasonable thicknesse, then dish it and serve it up. _to poach eggs._ take a dozen of new laid eggs and flesh of foure or five partridges, or other; mince it so small as you can season it with a few beaten cloves, mace, and nutmeg, into a silver dish, with a ladlefull or two of the gravy of mutton, wherein two or three anchoves are dissolved; then set it a stewing on a fire of char-coales, and after it is halfe stewed, as it boyles, break in your eggs, one by one, and as you break them, poure away most part of the whites, and with one end of your egg-shell, make a place in your dish of meat, and therein put your yolks of your eggs, round in order amongst your meat, and so let them stew till your eggs be enough, then grate in a little nutmeg, and the juyce of a couple of oranges; have a care none of the seeds goe in, wipe your dish and garnish your dish, with four or five whole onions,&c. _a pottage of beef pallats._ take beefe pallats after they be boyled tender in the beefe kettle, or pot among some other meat, blanch and serve them cleane, then cut each pallat in two, and set them a stewing between two dishes with a piece of leer bacon, an handful of champignions, five or six sweetbreads of veale, a ladle-full or two of strong broth, and as much gravy of mutton, an onion or two, five or six cloves, and a blade or two of mace, and a piece of orange pils; as your pallats stew, make ready your dish with the bottoms and tops of two or three cheat loaves dryed and moystned with some gravy of mutton, and the broth your palats stew in, you must have the marrow of two or three beef-bones stewed in a little broth between two dishes in great pieces; when your pallats and marrow iss stewed, and you ready to dish it, take out all the spices, onyon and bacon, and lay it in your plates, sweetbread, and champigneons, pour in the broath they were stewed in & lay on your peices of marrow, wring the juyce of two or three oranges; and so serve it to the table very hot. _the jacobins pottage_. take the flesh of a washed capon or turkey cold, mince it so small as you can, then grate or scrape among the flesh two or three ounces of parmasants or old holland cheese, season it with beaten cloves, nutmeg, mace, and salt, then take the bottoms and tops of foure or five new rowles, dry them before the fire, or in an oven, then put them into a faire silver dish set it upon the fire, wet your bread in a ladle full of strong broth, and a ladle-full of gravy of mutton then strow on your minced meat all of an equall thicknesse in each place, then stick twelve or eighteen peices of marrow as bigge as walnuts, and pour on an handfull of pure gravy of mutton then cover your dish close, and as it stews adde now and then some gravy of mutton there to, thrust your knife sometimes to the bottome, to keep the bread from sticking to the dish, let it so stew stil, till you are ready to dish it away, and when you serve it, if need require, ad more gravy of mutton, wring the juyce of two or three oranges, wipe your dishes brims, and serve it to the table in the same dish. _to salt a goose._ take a fat goose and bone him, but leave the brest bone, wipe him with a clean cloath, then salt him one fortnight, then hang him up for one fortnight or three weeks, then boyl him in running water very tender, and serve him with bay-leaves. _a way of stewing chickens or rabbets._ take two three or foure chickens, and let them be about the bigness of a partridge, boyl them til they be half boyled enough, then take them off and cut them into little peices, putting the joynt bone one from another, and let not the meat be minced, but cut into great bits, not so exactly but more or lesse, the brest bones are not so proper to be put in, but put the meat together with the other bones (upon which there must also be some meat remaining) into a good quantity of that water or broth wherein the chickens were boyled, and set it then over a chaffing-dish of coales betweeen two dishes, that so it may stew on till it be fully enough; but first season it with salt and gross pepper, and afterwards add oyl to it, more or lesse according to the goodnesse thereof; and a little before you take it from the fire, you must adde such a quantity of juyce of lemons as may best agree with your taste. this makes an excellent dish of meat, which must be served up in the liquor; and though for a need it may be made with butter instead of oyl, and with vinegar in stead of juyce of lemons, yet is the other incomparably better for such as are not enemies to oyle. the same dish may be made also of veal, or partridge, or rabbets, and indeed the best of them all, is rabbets, if they be used so before michaelmas, for afterwards me-thinkes they grow ranke; for though they be fatter, yet the flesh is more hard and dry. _a pottage of capons._ take a couple of young capons, trusse and set them and fill their bellies with marrow, put them into a pipkin with a knuckle of veale, a neck of mutton, and a marrow bone, and some sweet bread of veale; season your broth with cloves, mace, and a little salt, set it to the fire, and let it boyle gently till your capons be enough, but boyle them not too much; as your capons boyle, make ready the bottomes and tops of eight or ten new rowles, and put them dryed into a faire silver dish wherein you serve the capons; set it on the fire, and put to your bread, two ladlefuls of broth wherein your capons are boyled and a ladlefull of the gravy of mutton; so cover your dish, and let it stand till you dish up yovr capons if need require, adde now and then a ladlefull of broth and gravy, least the bread grow dry; when you are ready to serve it, first lay in the marrow bone, then the capons on each side, then fill up your dish with the gravy of mutton, wherein you must wring the juyce of a lemon or two, then with a spoon take off all the fat that swimmeth on the pottage, then garnish your capon with the sweet breads and some lemons, and so serve it. _to dresse soales another way._ take soales, fry them halfe enough, then take wine seasoned with salt, grated ginger, and a little garlick, let the wine, and seasoning boyle in a dish, when that boyles and your soales are halfe fry'd, take the soales and put them into the wine, when they are sufficiently stewed, upon their backs, lay the two halfs open on the one side and on the other, then lay anchoves finely washed along, and on the sides over again, let them stew till they be ready to be eaten, then take them out, lay them on the dish, pour some of the clear liquor which they stew in upon them, and squeeze an orange in. _a carpe pye._ take carps scald them, take out the great bones, pound the carps in a stone morter pound some of the blood with the flesh which must be at the discretion of the cook because it must not be too soft, then lard it with the belly of a very fat eale, season it, and bake it like red deere and eat it cold. _this is meat for a pope._ _to boyle ducks after the french fashion._ take and lard them and put them upon a spit, and halfe roast them, then draw them & put them into a pipkin, and put a quart of clarit wine into it, and chesnuts, & a pint of great oysters taking the beards from them, and three onyons minced very small, some mace and a little beaten ginger, a little tyme stript, a crust of a french rowle grated put into it to thicken it, and so dish it upon sops. this may be diversified, if there be strong broth there need not be so much wine put in, and if there be no oysters or chesnuts you may put in hartichoak bottoms, turnips, colliflowers, bacon in thin slices, sweet bread's, &c. _to boyle a goose with sausages._ take your goose and salt it two or three dayes, then trusse it to boyle, cut lard as big as the top of your finger, as much as will lard the flesh of the brest, season your lard with pepper, mace, and salt; put it a boyling in beefe broth if you have any, or water, season your liquor with a little salt, and pepper grosly beaten an ounce or two, a bundle of bay-leaves, rosemary and tyme, tyed altogether; you must have prepared your cabbage or sausages boyl'd very tender, squeese all the water from them, then put them into a pipkin, put to them a little strong broth or claret wine, an onyon or two; season it with pepper, salt and mace to your tast; six anchoves dissolved, put altogether, and let them stew a good while on the fire; put a ladle of thicke butter, a little vinegar, when your goose is boyled enough, and your cabbage on sippets of bread and the goose on the top of your cabbage, and some on the cabbage on top of your goose, serve it up. _to fry chickens._ take five or six and scald them, and cut them in pieces, then flea the skin from them, fry them in butter very brown, then take them out, and put them between two dishes with the gravy of mutton, butter, and an onyon, six anchoves, nutmeg, and salt to your taste, then put sops on your dish, put fryed parsley on the top of your chicken being dished, and so serve them. _to make a battalia pye._ take four tame pigeons and trusse them to bake, and take foure oxe pallats well boyled and blanched, and cut it in little pieces; take six lamb stones, and as many good sweet breads of veale cut in halfs and parboyl'd, and twenty cockscombs boyled add blanched, and the bottoms of four hartichoaks, and a pint of oysters parboyled and bearded, and the marrow of three bones, so season all with mace, nutmeg and salt; so put your meat in a coffin of fine paste proportionable to your quantity of meat; put halfe a pound of butter upon your meat, put a little water in the pye, before it be set in the oven, let it stand in the oven an houre and a halfe, then take it out, pour out the butter at the top of the pye, and put it in leer of gravy, butter, and lemons, and serve it up. _to make a chicken pye._ take four or five chickens, cut them in peices, take two or three sweet-breads parboyl'd and cut the peices as big as walnuts; take the udder of veal cut in thin slices, or little slices of bacon, the bottom of hartichoaks boyl'd, then make your coffin proportionable to your meat, season your meat with nutmeg, mace and salt, then some butter on the top of the pye, put a little water into it as you put it into the oven, and let it bake an hour, then put in a leer of butter, gravy of mutton, eight lemons sliced; so serve it. _to make a pye of a calves head._ take a calves head, cleane it and wash it very well, put it a boyling till it be three quarters boyled, then cut off the flesh from the bones, and cut it in peices as big as walnuts. blaunch the tongue and cut it in slices, take a quart of oysters parboil'd and bearded, take the yolks of twelve eggs, put some thin slices of bacon among the meat, and on the top of the meat, when it is in the pye cut an onion small, and put it in the bottome of your pye, season it with pepper, nutmeg, mace, and salt, make your coffin to your meat what fashion you please. let it bake an hour and a half, put butter on the bottome and on the top of your pye before you close it, put a little water in before you put it into the oven, when you draw it out take off the lid, and put away all the fat on the top and put in a leer of thick butter, gravy of mutton, a lemon pared and sliced with two or three anchoves dissolved. so stew these together, and cut your lid in handsome peices, and lay it round the pye, so serve it. _to make creame with snow._ take three pints of creame, and the whites of seven or eight eggs and strain them together, and a little rose-water, and as much sugar as will sweeten it, then take a sticke as big as a childs arme, cleave one end of it a crosse, and widen your peices with your finger, beat your cream with this sticke, or else with a bundle of reeds tyed together, and rowl between your hand standing upright in your creame, now as the snow ariseth take it up with a spoon in a cullender that the thin may run out, and when you have sufficient of this snow; take the cream that is left, & seeth it in the skellet, and put thereto whole cloves, stickes of cinnamon, a little ginger bruised, and seeth it till it be thick, then strain it, and when it is cold put it into your dish, and lay your snow upon it. _to make minced pies._ take a large neats tongue, shread it very well, three pound and a halfe of suet very well shread, currans three pound, halfe an ounce of beaten cloves and mace, season it with salt when you think't fit, halfe a preserved orange, or instead of it orange pils, a quarter of a pound of sugar, and a little lemon pill sliced very thin, put all these together very well, put to it two spoonfull of verjuyce, and a quarter of a pint of sack, _&c_. _to dry neats tongues._ take bay salt beaten very fine, and salt-peeter of each a like, and rub your tongues very well with that, and cover all over with it, and as it wasts put on more, and when they are very hard and stiffe they are enough, then rowle them in bran, and dry them before a soft fire, and before you boyle them, let them lie one night in pompe water, and boyle them in the same sort of water. _to make jelly of harts horn._ take six ounces of hart-horn, three ounces of ivory both finely carped, boyle it in two quarts of water in a pipkin close covered, and when it is three parts wasted, you may try it with a spoon if it will be jelly, you may know by the sticking to your lips, then straine it through a jelly bag; season it with rose-water, juyce of lemons and double refined sugar, each according to your taste, then boyle altogether two or three walmes, so put in the glasse and keep for your use. _to make chickens fat in four or five dayes._ take a pint of french wheat and a pint of wheat flower, halfe a pound of sugar, make it up into a stiff paste, and rowle it into little rowles, wet them in warme milk, and so cram them, and they will be fat in four or five dayes, if you please you may sow them up behind one or two of the last dayes. _to make angelot._ take a gallon of stroakings and a pint of creame as it comes from the cow, and put it together with a little rennet; when you fill, turne up the midst side of the cheese-fat, fill them a little at once, and let it stand all that day and the next, then turn them, and let them stand til they will slip out of the fat, salt them on both sides, and when the coats begin to come on them, neither wipe nor scrape them, for the thicker the coat is the better. _a persian dish._ take the fleshly part of a leg of mutton stript from the fat and sinews, beat that well in a morter with pepper and salt, and a little onyon or garlick water by it selfe, or with herbs according to your taste, then make it up in flat cakes and let them be kept twelve houres betweene two dishes before you use them, then fry them with butter in a frying pan and serve them with the same butter, and you will find it a dish of savory meat. _to roast a shoulder of mutton in blood._ when your sheepe is killed save the blood, and spread the caule all open upon a table that is wet, that it may not stick to it; as soone as you have flead your sheepe, cut off a shoulder, and having tyme picked, shred and cut small into some of your blood, stop your shoulder with it, inside and outside, and into every hole with a spoone, put some of the blood; after you have put in the tyme, then lay your shoulder of mutton upon the caule and wrap that about it, then lay it into a tray, and pour all the rest of the blood upon it; so let it lie all night, if it be in winter, you may let it lie twenty foure hours, then roast it. _to roast a leg of mutton to be eaten cold._ first take so much lard as you thinke sufficient to lard your leg of mutton withall, cut your lard in grosse long lardors; season the lard very deep with beaten cloves, pepper, nutmeg, and mace, and bay salt beaten fine and dryed, then take parsley, tyme, marjoram, onion, and the out-rine of an orange, shred all these very small, and mix them with the lard, then lard your legge of mutton therewith, if any of the herbs and spice remaine, put them on the legge of mutton; then take a silver dish, lay two stickes crosse the dish to keepe the mutton from sopping in the gravy and fat that goes from it, lay the legge of mutton upon the stickes, and set it into an hot oven, there let it roast, turne it once but baste it not at all, when it is enough and very tender, take it forth but serve it not till it be throughly cold; when you serve it, put in a saucer or two of mustard, and sugar, and two or three lemons whole in the same dish. _to roast oysters._ take the greatest oysters you can get, and as you open them, put them into a dish with their own liquor, then take them out of the dish, and put them into another, and pour the liquor to them, but be sure no gravell get amongst them; then set them covered on the fire, and scald them a little in their owne liquor, and when they are cold, draw eight or ten lards through each oyster; season your lard first with cloves, nutmeg beaten very small, pepper; then take two woodden lard spits, and spit your oysters thereon, then tye them to another spit, and roast them. in the roasting bast them with anchovy sauce, made with some of the oyster liquor, and let them drip into the same dish where the anchovy sauce is; when they be enough, bread them with the crust of a roul grated on them, and when they be brown, draw them off, then take the sauce wherewith you basted your oysters, and blow off the fat, then put the same to the oysters, wring in it the juyce of a lemon, so serve it. _to make a sack posset._ take a quart of cream and boyle it very well with sugar, mace, and nutmeg, take half a pint of sack, and as much ale, and boyle them well together with some sugar, then put your cream into your bason to your sacke, then heat a pewter dish very hot, and cover your bason with it, and set it by the fire side, and let it stand there two or three houres before you eat it. _another sack posset._ take eight eggs, yolks and whites, and beat them well together, straine them into a quart of cream, season them with nutmeg and sugar, put to them a pint of sack, stir them altogether, and put them into your bason, and set them in the oven no hotter then for a custard, let it stand two hours. _to make a sack posset without milk or cream_. take eighteen eggs wites and all, taking out the treads, let them be beaten very well, take a pint of sack and a quart of ale boyled, and scum it, then put in three quarters of a pound of sugar and a little nutmeg, let it boyle a little together, then take it off the fire stirring the eggs still, put into them two or three ladle-fulls of drink, then mingle all together and set it on the fire, and keepe it stirring till you finde it thick, then serve it up. _to make a stump pye._ take a leg of mutton, one pound and a half of the best suet, mince both small together, then season it with a quarter of a pound of sugar, and a small quantity of salt, and a little cloves & mace, then take a good handful of parsly half as much tyme, and mince them very small, and mingle them with the rest; then take six new laid eggs and break them into the meat and worke it well together, and put it into the past; then upon the top put raisins, currans and dates a good quantity, cover and bake it, when it is baked, and when it is very hot, put into it a quarter of a pint of white wine vinegar, and strow sugar upon it, and so serve it. _to make mrs._ leeds _cheese cakes._ take six quarts of milk and ren it prety cold, and when it is tender come drayn from it your whey in a strainer, then hang it up till all the whey be dropt from it, then presse it, change it into dry cloaths till it wet the cloth no longer, then beat it in a stone morter till it be like butter, then straine it through a thin strayner, mingle it with a pound and a halfe of butter with your hands, take one pound of almonds, and heat them with rosewater till they are like your curd, then mingle them with the yolks of twenty eggs and a quart of cream, two great nutmegs, one pound and a half of sugar, when your coffins are ready and going to set in the oven; then mingle them together, let your oven be made hot enough for a pigeon pye, and let a stone stand up till the scorcthing be past, then set them in, half an hour will bake them well, your coffins must be made with milk and butter as stiffe as for other past, then you must set them into a pretty hot oven, and fill them full of bran, and when they are harded, take them out, and with a wing, brush out the bran, they must be pricked. _to make tarts called taffaty tarts._ first wet your past with butter and cold water, and rowle it very thin, also then lay them in layes, and between every lay of apples strew some sugar, and some lemon pill, cut very small, if you please put some fennell-seed to them; then put them into a stoak hot oven, and let them stand an hour in or more, then take them out, and take rose-water and butter beaten together, and wash them over with the same, and strew fine sugar upon them; then put them into the oven again, let them stand a little while and take them out. _to make fresh cheese._ take three pints of raw cream and sweeten it well with sugar, and set it over the fire, let it boyle a while, then put in some damask-rose-water, keep it still stirring least it burn too, and when you see it thickned and turned, take it from the fire, and wash the strainer and cheesefat with rose-water, then rowl it too and fro in the strainer to draine the whey from the curd, then take up the curd with a spoon and put them into the fat, let it stand till it be cold, then put it into the cheese dish with some of the whey, and so serve it up. _to make sugar cakes or jumbals._ take two pound of flower, dry it and season it very fine, then take a pound of loaf sugar, and beat it very fine, and searce it, mingle your flower and sugar very well, then take a pound and a halfe of sweet butter and wash out the salt, and breake it into bits with your flower and sugar, then take yolks of foure new laid eggs, and four or five spoonfuls of sack, and four spoonfuls of creame; beat all these together, then put them into your flower, and knead them to a past, and make them into what fashion you please, and lay them upon paper or plates, and put them into the oven, and be carefull of them, for a very little thing bakes them. _for jumbals you must only adde the whites of two or three eggs._ _to hash a shoulder of mutton._ take a shoulder of mutton and slice it very thin till you have almost nothing but the bone, then put to the meat some claret wine, a great onion, some gravy of mutton, six anchoves, a hand full of capers, the tops of a little tyme, mince them very well together, then take nine or tenne egges, the juyce of one or two lemons, to make it tart, and make leere of them, then put the meat all in a frying-pan over the fire till it be very hot; then put in the leere of eggs and soak altogether over the fire till it be very thick; then boyle your bone, and put it on the top of your meat being dished, garnish your dish with lemons, serve it up. _to dresse flounders or playce with garlick and mustard._ take flounders very new, and cut all the fins and tailes, then take out the guts and wipe them very clean, they must not be at all washt, then with your knife scorch them on both sides very grosely; then take the tops of tyme and cut them very small, and take a little salt, mace, and nutmeg, and mingle the tyme and them together, and season the flounders; then lay them on the grid-iron and bast them with oyle or butter, let not the fire be too hot, when that side next the fire is brown; turn it, and when you turn it, bast it on both sides till you have broyl'd them brown, when they are enough make your sauce with mustard two or three spoonfull according to discretion, six anchoves dissolved very well, about halfe a pound of butter drawn up with garlick, vinegar, or bruised garlick in other vinegar, rubb the bottome of your dish with garlick. so put your sauce to them, and serve them, you may fry them if you please. _a turkish dish._ take fat of beefe or mutton cut in thin slices, wash it well, put it into a pot that hath a close cover, then put into it a good quantity of clean pick'd rice, skim it very well; then put into it a quantity of whole pepper, two or three whole onyons; let all this boyle very well, then take out the onyon and dish it in sippets, the thicker it is the better. _to dresse a pyke._ cut him in peices, and strew upon him salt and scalding vinegar, boyle him in water and white wine, when he is boyling put in sweet herbs, onyon, garlick, ginger, nutmeg, and salt; when he is boyled take him out of the liquor, and let him drayn, in the mean time beat butter and anchoves together, and pour it on the fish, squeezing a little orange and lemon upon it. _to dresse oysters._ take oysters and open them, and save the liquor, and when you have opened so many as you please, adde to this liquor, some white-wine, wherein you must wash your oysters one by one very clean, and lay them in another dish; then strain to them that mixed wine and liquor wherein they were washed, adding a little more wine to them with an onion divided with some salt and pepper, so done, cover the dish and stew them till they be more then halfe done; then take them and the liquor, and pour it in to a frying-pan, wherein they must fry a pretty while, then put into them a good peice of sweet butter, and fry them therein so much longer; in the mean time you must have beaten the yolks of some eggs, as four or five to a quart of oysters; these eggs must be beaten with some vinegar, wherein you must put some minced parsly and nutmeg finely scraped, and put therein the oysters in the pan, which must still be kept stirring least the liquor make the eggs curddle, let this all have a good warme on the fire, and serve it up. _to dresse flounders._ flea of the black skin, and scowre the fish over on that side with a knife, lay them in a dish, and poure on them some vinegar, and strew good store of salt, let them lie for halfe an houre; in the mean time set on the fire some water with a little white-wine, garlick, and sweet herbs as you please, putting into it the vinegar and salt wherein they lay, when it boyles put in the biggest fish, then the next till all be in; when they are boyled, take them out and drain them very well, then draw some sweet butter thick, and mix with it some anchoves shred small, which being dissolved in the butter, poure it on the fish, strewing a little sliced nutmeg, and minced oranges and barberries. _to dresse snails._ take snailes, and put them in a kettle of water, and let them boyle a little, then take them out, and shake them out of the shels into a bason; then take some salt and scoure them very well, and wash them in warme water, untill you find the slime cleane gone from them; then put them into a cullender and let them draine well, then mince some sweet hearbs, and put them into a dish with a little pepper and sallet-oyle together, then let them stand an hour or two; then wash the shels very well and dry them, and put into every shell a snail, and fill up the shell with sallet-oyle and herbs, then set them on a gridiron upon a soft fire, and so let them stew a little while, and dish them up warm and serve them up. _to dresse pickle fish._ wash them well while they are in the shell in salt water, put them into a kettle over the fire with out water; and stirre them till they are open, then take them out of their shels, and wash them in hot water and salt, then take some of their owne liquor that they have made in the kettle, a little white wine, butter, vinegar, spice, parsley; let all these boyle together, and when it is boyled, take the yolk of three or four eggs and put into the broth. scollops may be dressed on this manner or broiled like oysters with oyle or juyce of lemons. _to fricate beefe pallats._ take beefe pallats after they be boyled very tender, blaunch and pare them clean, season them with fine beaten cloves nutmeg, pepper, salt and some grated bread; then have some butter in a frying pan, put your pallats therein, and so fricate them till they be browne on both sides, then take them forth and put them on a dish, and put thereto some gravy of mutton, wherein two or three anchoves are dissolved, grate in your sauce a little nutmeg, wring in the juyce of a lemon, so serve them. _a spanish olio._ take a peice of bacon not very fat, but sweet and safe from being rusty, a peice of fresh beefe, a couple of hoggs eares, and foure feet if they can be had, and if not, some quantity of sheeps feet, (calves feet are not proper) a joynt of mutton, the leg, rack, or loyne, a hen, halfe a dozen pigeons, a bundle of parsley, leeks, and mint, a clove of garlick when you will, a small quantity of pepper, cloves, and saffron, so mingled that not one of them over-rule, the pepper and cloves must be beaten as fine as possible may be, and the saffron must be first dryed, and then crumble in powder and dissolved apart in two or three spoonfuls of broth, but both the spices and the saffron may be kept apart till immediately before they be used, which must not be, till within a quarter of a houre before the olio be taken off from the fire; a pottle of hard dry pease, when they have first steept in water some dayes, a pint of boyl'd chesnuts: particular care must be had that the pot wherein the olio is made, be very sweet; earthen i thinke is the best, and judgement is to be had carefully both in the size of the pot, and in the quantity of the water at the first, that so the broth may grow afterwards to be neither too much nor too little, nor too grosse, nor too thin; thy meat must be long in boyling, but the fire not too fierce, the bacon, the beef, the pease, the chesnuts, the hogs eares may be put in at the first. i am utterly against those confused olios into which men put almost all kinds of meats and roots, and especially against putting of oyle, for it corrupts the broath, instead of adding goodnesse to it. to do well, the broth is rather to be drunk out of a porringer then to be eaten with a spoon, though you add some smal slices of bread to it, you wil like it the worse. the sauce for thy meat must be as much fine sugar beaten smal to powder, with a little mustard, as can be made to drink the sugar up, and you wil find it to be excellent, but if you make it not faithfully and justly according to this prescript, but shall neither put mace, or rosemary, or tyme to the herbs as the manner is of some, it will prove very much the worse. _to make metheglin._ take all sorts of herbs that are good and wholesome, as balme, mint, fennell, rosemary, angelica, wilde tyme, isop, burnet, egrimony, and such other as you think fit; some field herbs, but you must not put in too many, but especially rosemary or any strong hearb, lesse then halfe a handfull will serve of every sort, you must boyle your herbs and straine them, and let the liquor stand till to morrow and settle them, take off the clearest liquor, two gallons and a halfe to one gallon of honey, and that proportion as much as you will make, and let it boyle an houre, then set it a cooling as you doe beere, when it is cold take some very good ale barme, and put into the bottome of the tubb a little and a little as they doe beere, keeping backe the thicke setling, that lyeth in the bottome of the vessell that it is cooled in, and when it is all put together, cover it with a cloth, and let it worke very neere three dayes, and when you mean to put it up, skim off all the barme clean, put it up into the vessell, but you must not stop your vessell very close in three or four dayes, but let it have all the vent, for it will worke, and when it is close stopped, you must looke very often to it, and have a peg in the top to give it vent; when you heare it make a noyse, as it will do, or else it will breake the vessell; sometime i make a bag and put in good store of ginger sliced, some cloves and cinnamon, and boyl it in, and other times i put it into the barrel and never boyle it, it is both good, but nutmeg and mace do not well to my tast. _to make a sallet of smelts._ take halfe a hundred of smelts, the biggest you can get, draw them and cut off their heads, put them into a pipkin with a pint of white wine, and a pint of white wine vinegar, an onion shred a couple of lemons, a race of ginger, three or foure blades of mace, a nutmeg sliced, whole pepper, a little salt, cover them, and let them stand twenty foure houres; if you will keep them three or four dayes, let not your pickle be to strong of the vinegar, when you will serve them, take them out one by one, scrape and open them as you do anchoves, but throw away the bones, lay them close one by one, round a silver dish, you must have the very utmost rind of a lemon or orange so small as grated bread and the parsley, then mix your lemon pill, orange and parsley together with a little fine beaten pepper, and strew this upon the dish of smelts with the meat of a lemon minced very small, also then power on excellent sallet oile, and wring in the juyce of two lemons, but be sure none of the lemon-seed be left in the sallet, so serve it. _to roast a fillet of veal._ take a fillet of beefe which is the tenderest part of the beast, and lieth only in the inward part of the surloyne next to the chine, cut it as big as you can, then broach it on a broach not too big, and be carefull you broach it not thorow the best of the meat, roast it leasurely and baste it with sweet butter. set a dish under it to save the gravy while the beefe is roasting, prepare the sauce for it, chop good store of parsley with a few sweet herbs shred small, and the yolks of three or foure eggs, and mince among them the pill of an orange, and a little onyon, then boyle this mixture, putting into it sweet butter, vinegar, and gravy, a spoonfull of strong broth, when it is well boyled, put it into your beef, and serve it very warm, sometimes a little grosse pepper or ginger into your sauce, or a pill of an orange or lemon. _to make a sallet of a cold hen or a capon._ take the breast of a hen or capon, and slice it as thin as you can in steaks, put therein vinegar, and a little sugar as you thinke fit, then take six anchoves, and a handfull of capers, a little long, grosse or a carrigon, and mince them together, but not too small, strew them on the sallet, garnish it with lemons, oranges or barberies, so serve it up with a little salt. _to stew mushrums._ take them fresh gathered and cut off the hard end of the stalk, & as you pil them throw them into a dish of white wine, after they have lain half an houre or thereupon draine them from the wine, and put them between two silver dishes, then set them on a soft fire without any liquor, and when they have so stewed a while, pour away the liquor that comes from them which will be very black, then put your mushrums into another clean dish with a sprig or two of tyme, an onion whole, four or five cornes of whole pepper, two or three cloves, a bit of an orange, a little salt, a bit of sweet butter, and some pure gravy of mutton, cover them, and set them on a gentle fire, so let them stew softly till they be enough and very tender, when you dish them blow off all the fat from them, and take out the time, spice, and orange, then wring in the juyce of a lemon, and grate a little nutmeg among the mushrums, tosse them two or three times; put them in a clean dish, and serve them hot to the table. _the lord_ conway _his lordships receipt for the making of amber puddings._ first take the guts of a young hog, and wash them very clean, and then take two pound of the best hogs fat, and a pound and a halfe of the best jurden almonds, the which being blancht, take one half of them, & beat them very small, and the other halfe reserve whole unbeaten, then take a pound and a halfe of fine sugar and four white loaves, and grate the loaves over the former composition, and mingle them well together in a bason having so done, put to it halfe an ounce of ambergreece, the which must be scrapt very small over the said composition, take halfe a quarter of an ounce of levant musk and bruise it in a marble morter, with a quarter of a pint of orange flower water, then mingle these all very well together, and having so done, fill the said guts therwith, this receipt was given his lordship by an italian for a great rariety, and has been found so to be by those ladies of honour to whom his lordship has imparted the said reception. _to make a partridge tart._ take the flesh of four or five partridges minced very small with the same weight of beef marrow as you have partridge flesh, with two ounces of orangeadoes and green citron minced together as small as your meate, season it with cloves and mace and nutmeg and a little salt and sugar, mix all together, and bake it in puff past; when it is baked, open it, and put in halfe a grain of muske or amber braid in a morter or dish, and with a spoonfull of rosewater and the juyce of three or four oranges, when you put all these therein, stir the meat and cover it again, and serve it to the table. _to keepe venison all the yeare._ take the hanch, and parboyle it a while, then season it with two nutmegs, a spoonfull of pepper, and a good quantity of salt, mingle them altogether, then put two spoonfulls of white wine-vinegar, and having made the venison full of holes, as you do when you lard it, when it is larded, put in the venison at the holes, the spice and vinegar, and season it therewith, then put part into the pot with the fat side downwards, cover it with two pound of butter, then close it up close with course past, when you take it out of the oven take away the past, and lay a round trencher with a weight on the top of it to keep it down till it be cold, then take off the trencher, and lay the butter flat upon the venison, then cover it close with strong white pepper, if your pot be narrow at the bottom it is the better, for it must be turned upon a plate, and stuck with bayleaves when you please to eat it. _to bake brawn._ take two buttocks and hang them up two or three dayes, then take them down and dip them into hot water, and pluck off the skin, dry them very well with a clean cloth, when you have so done, take lard, cut it in peices as big as your little finger, and season it very well with pepper, cloves, mace, nutmeg, and salt, put each of them into an earthen pot, put in a pint of claret wine, a pound of mutton suet. so close it with past let the oven be well heated; and so bake them, you must give them time for the baking according to the bignesse of the haunches, and the thicknesse of the pots, they commonly allot seven hours for the baking of them; let them stand three dayes, then take off their cover, and poure away all the liquor, then have clarified butter, and fill up both the pots, to keep it for the use, it will very well keep two or three moneths. _to roast a pike._ take a pike, scoure off the slime, take out the entralls, lard it with the backs of pickled herrings, you must have a sharp bodkin to make the holes, no larding pins will go thorow, then take some great oysters, claret wine, season it with pepper, salt, and nutmeg, stuff the belly of the pike with these oysters, intermix with them rosemary, tyme, winter-savory, sweet marjoram, a little onyon and garlick, sow these in the belly of the pike, prepare two sticks about the breadth of a lath, these two sticks and the spit must be as broad as the pike being tyed on the spit, tye the pike on, winding pack-thread about the pike along, but there must be tyed by the pack-thred all a long the side of the pike which is not defended by the spit, and the lathes rosemary and bayes, bast the pike with butter and claret-wine, with some anchoves dissolved in it, when it is wasted, rip up the belly of the pike and the oyster will be the same, but the herbs which are whole must be taken out. _to sauce eeles._ take two or three great eeles, rubb them in salt, draw out the guts, wash them very clean, cut them a thwart on both sides found deep, and cut them again cross way, then cut them through in such pieces as you think fit, and put them into a dish with a pint of wine-vinegar, and a handfull of salt, have a kettle over the fire with faire water, and a bundle of sweet herbs, two or thee great onyons, some mace, a few cloves, you must let these lie in wine-vinegar and salt, and put them into boyling liquor, there let them boyl according to cookery, when enough, take out the eeles, and drain them from the liquor, when they are cold, take a pint of white-wine, boyle it up with saffron to colour the wine, then take out some of the liquor, and put it in an earthen pan take out the onyons and all the herbs, only let the cloves and mace remaine, you must beat the saffron to powder, or else it will not colour. _to make sausages without skins._ take a leg of young pork, two pound of beef-suet, two handfuls of sage, two loaves of white bread, salt and pepper to your tast, halfe the pork, and halfe the suet, must be very well beat in a stone morter, the rest cut very small, be sure to cut out all the gresles and lenets in the pork, when you have mixed these altogether, knead them into a stiffe past with the yolks of two or three eggs, so rowle them into sausages. _to dresse a pike._ take a male pike, rub his skin off whil'st he lives, with bay salt, having well cleared the outside, lay him in a large dish or tray, open him so as you break not his gall, cut him according to the size of the fish, in two or three peices, from the head to the taile must be slit, this done, they are to be layd as flat as you can, in a great dish or tray, poure upon it halfe a pint of white wine-vinegar, more or lesse, according to the size of the fish, then strew upon the inside of the fish, white salt plentifully, bay salt beaten very small is better, whilest this is a doing, let a skellet with a sufficient quantity of renish wine, or good white wine be pat over the fire, with the wine, salt, ginger, nutmeg, an onion, foure or five cloves of garlick, a bunch of sweet herbs, _viz_. sweet marjoram, rosemary, peel of halfe a lemon, let these boyl to the heighth, put in the pike, with the vinegar, in such manner as not to quench or allay, if possibly the heat of the liquor, but the thickest peece first that will aske most boyling, and the vinegar last of all; while the pike boyles, take two quarters of a pound of anchoves, one quarter of very good butter, a saucer of the liquor your pike was boyled in, dissolved anchoves. note that the liquor, sauce, the spice, and the other ingredients must follow the proportion of the pike; if your sauce be too strong of the anchoves, adde more faire water to it. note also that the liquor wherein this pike was dressed, is better to boyle a second pike therein, then it was at the first. _to dresse eeles._ cut two or three eeles into pieces of a convenient length, set them end-wayes in a pot of earth, put in a spoolful or two of water, and to them put some herbs and sage chopt small, some garlick pepper, and salt, so let them be baked in an oven. _to boyle a pudding after the french fashion_. take a turkey that is very fat, and being pul'd and drest, lard him with long pieces of lard, first wholed in seasoning of salt, pepper, nutmegs, cloves and mace, then take one piece of lard whole in the seasoning, put it into the belly with a sprig of rosemary and bayes, sow it very close in a clean cloth, and let it lye all night covered with white-wine, let it be put into a pot with the same liquor, and no more, let it be close stopped, then hang it over a very soft and gentle fire, there to continue six houres in a simpering boyle, when it is cold, take it out of the cloth, not before, put it in a pye-plate, and stick it full of rosemary and bayes, so serve it up with mustard and sugar, they are wont to lay it on a napkin folded square, and lay it corner wise. _to make a fricake._ take three chickens, and pull off the skins, and cut them into little pieces then put them into water with two or three onions, and a bunch of parsly, and when it hath stewed a little, put in some salt and pepper, and a pint of white wine, so let them stew till they be enough, then take some verjuyce, and nutmegs, and three or foure yolks of eggs, beat them well together, and when you take off the chicken, put them into a frying-pan altogether with some butter, scald it well over the fire and serve it in. _to make a dish called olives._ take a fillet of veale, and the flesh frow the bones, and the fat and skin from either, cut it into very thin slices, beat them with the back of your knife, lay then abroad on a dish, season them with nutmeg, pepper, salt and sugar, chop halfe a pound of beefe-suet very small, and strew upon the top of the meat, then take a good handfull of herbs as parsly, time, winter-savoury, sorrell, and spinage, chop them very small, and strew over it, and four egges with the whites, mingle all these well together with your hands, then roul it up peice by peice, put it upon the spit, roasting it an hour and half, and if it grow dry, baste it with a little sweet butter, the sauce is verjuyce or clarret-wine with the gravy of the meat and sugar, take a whole onyon and stew it on a chafing dish of coales, and when it tastes of the onyon, pour the liquor from it on the meat, setting it a while on the coales, and serve it in. _to make an olive pye._ this you may take in a pye, putting raisins of the sun stoned and some currants in every olive, first strowing upon the meat the whites and yolks of two boyled eggs shred very small, make your olives round, and put them into puff paste, when it is halfe baked, put in a good quantity of verjuyce or clarret wine sweetned with sugar, putting it in again till it be thorow baked. _the countesse of_ rutlands _receipt of making the rare_ banbury _cake which was so much praised at her daughters (the right honourable the lady_ chawerths) _wedding._ _imprimis_ take a peck of fine flower, and halfe an ounce of large mace, halfe an ounce of nutmegs, and halfe an ounce of cinnamon, your cinnamon and nutmegs must be sifted through a searce, two pounds of butter, halfe a score of eggs, put out four of the whites of them, something above a pint of good ale-yeast, beate your eggs very well and straine them with your yeast, and a little warme water into your flowre, and stirre them together, then put your butter cold in little lumpes: the water you knead withall must be scalding hot, if you will make it good past, the which having done, lay the past to rise in a warme cloth a quarter of an hour, or thereupon; then put in ten pounds of currans, and a little muske and ambergreece dissolved in rosewater; your currans must be made very dry, or else they will make your cake heavy, strew as much sugar finely beaten amongst the currans, as you shall think the water hath taken away the sweetnesse from them; break your past into little pieces, into a kimnell or such like thing, and lay a layer of past broken into little pieces, and a layer of currans, untill your currans are all put in, mingle the past and the currans very well, but take heed of breaking the currans, you must take out a piece of past after it hath risen in a warme cloth before you put in the currans to cover the top, and the bottom, you must roule the cover something thin, and the bottom likewise, and wet it with rosewater, and close them at the bottom of the side, or the middle which you like best, prick the top and the sides with a small long pin, when your cake is ready to go into the oven, cut it in the midst of the side round about with a knife an inch deep, if your cake be of a peck of meale, it must stand two hours in the oven, your oven must be as hot as for manchet. _an excellent sillabub._ fill your sillabub-pot with syder (for that is the best for a sillabub) and good store of sugar and a little nutmeg; stir it well together, put in as much thick cream by two or three spoonfuls at a time, as hard as you can, as though you milke it in, then stir it together exceeding softly once about, and let it stand two hours at least ere it is eaten, for the standing makes the curd. _to sauce a pig._ take a faire large pigge and cut off his head, then slit him through the midst, then take forth his bones, then lay him in warme water one night, then collar him up like brawne; then boyle him tender in faire water, and when he is boyled put him in an earthen pot or pan into water and salt, for that will make him white, and season the flesh, for you must not put salt in the boyling, for that will make it black, then take a quart of the same broth, and a quart of white wine; boyl them together to make some drink for it, put into it two or three bay leaves, when it is cold uncloathe the pig, and put it into the same drink, & it will continue a quarter of a year. it is a necessary dish in any gentlemans house; when you serve it in, serve it with greene fennell, as you doe sturgion with vinegar in saucers. _to make a virginia trout._ take pickled herrings, cut off their heads, and lay the bodies two dayes and nights in water, then wash them well, then season them with mace, cinamon, cloves, pepper, and a little red saunders, then lay them close in a pot with a little onyon strewed small upon them, and cast between every layer; when you have thus done, put in a pint of clarret-wine to them, and cover them with a double paper tyed on the pot, and set them in the oven with houshould-bread. they are to be eaten cold. _to make a fat lamb of a pig._ take a fat pig and scald him, and cut off his head, slit him and trusse him up like a lamb, then being slit through the middle, and flawed, then parboyle him a little, then draw him with parsley as you do a lamb, then roast it and dridge it, and serve it up with butter, pepper, and sugar. _to make rice pancakes._ take a pound of rice, and boyle it in three quarts of water till it be very tender, then put it into a pot covered close, and that will make a jelly, then take a quart of cream or new milk, put it scalding hot to the rice, then take twenty eggs, three quarters of a pound of melted butter, a little salt, stirre all these well together, put as much flowre to them as will make them hold frying, they must be fryed with butter, they must be made overnight, best. _mrs._ dukes _cake._ take a quarter of a peck of the finest flour, a pint of cream, ten yolks of eggs well beaten, three quarters of a pound of butter gently melted, pour on the floure a little ale-yeast, a quarter of a pint of rose water, with some muske, and amber-grece dissolved in it, season all with a penny worth of mace and cloves, a little nutmeg finely beaten, currans one pound and a halfe, raisins of the sun stoned, and shred small one pound, almonds blanch'd and beaten, halfe a pound, beat them with rosewater to keep them from oyling: sugar beaten very small, half a pound; first mingle them, knead all these together, then let them lie a full houre in the dough together, then the oven being made ready, make up your cake, let not the oven be too hot, nor shut up the mouth of it too close, but stir the cake now and then that it may bake all a like, let it not stand a full hour in the oven. against you draw it have some rose water and sugar finely beaten, and well mixed together to wash the upper side of it, then set it in the oven to dry, when you draw it out, it will shew like ice. _to make fine pancakes fryed without butter, or lard._ take a pint of creame, six new layd eggs, beat them very well, put in a quarter of a pound of sugar, one nutmeg or beaten mace which you please, as much floure as will thicken them almost as thick as for ordinary pancakes, your pan must be cleane wiped with a cloth, when it is reasonably hot, put in your butter, or thick or thin as you please, to fry them. _to pot venison._ take a haunch of venison not hunted, and bone it, then take three ounces of pepper beaten, twelve nutmegs, with a handfull of salt, and mince them together with wine vinegar, then wet your venison with wine vinegar and season it, then with a knife make holes on the lean sides of the hanch, and stuff it as you would stuff beef with parsley, then put it into the pot with the fat side downward then clarifie three pound of butter, and put it thereon, and past upon the pot, and let it stand in the oven five or six hours, then take it out, and with a vent presse it down to the bottom of the pot, and let it stand till it be cold, then take the gravy of the top of the pot and melt it, and boyle it halfe away and more, then put it in again with the butter on the top of the pot. _to make a marchpan; to ice him, &c._ take two pound of almonds blanched, & beaten in a stone morter till they begin to come to a fine past, and take a pound of sifted sugar, and put it in the morter with the almonds, and so leave it till it come to a perfect past, putting in now and then a spoonfull of rosewater to keep them from oyling; when you have beaten them to a perfect past cover the marchpan in a sheet, as big as a charger, and set an edge about as you do about a tart, and a bottome of wafers under him; thus bake it in an oven or baking pan, when you see your marchpan is hard and dry, take it out and ice him with rosewater and sugar being made as thick as butter for fritters; so spread it on him with a wing-feather; so put it into the oven againe, and when you see it rise high, then take it out and garnish it with some pretty conceits made part of the same stuff, stick long cumfets uprigh in him so serve it. _to make jelly the best manner._ take a leg of veale, and pare away the fat as clean as you can, wash it throughly, let it lie soaking a quarter of an hour or more, provided you first breake the bones, then take foure calves feet, scald off the hair in boyling water, then slit them in two and put them to your veale, let them boyle over the fire in a brasse pot with two gallons of water or more acording to the proportion of your veale, scum it very clean and often; so let it boyle till it comes to three pintes or little more, then strain it through a cleane strainer, into a bason, and so let it stand till it be through cold and well jellied, then cut it in peices with a knife, and pare the top and the bottome of them, put it into a skellet, take two ounces of cynamon broken very small with your hand, three nutmegs sliced, one race of ginger, a large mace or two, a little quantity of salt, one spoonfull of wine vinegar, or rose-vinegar, one pound and three quarters of sugar, a pint of renish-wine, or white wine, and the whites of fifteen eggs, well beaten; put all these to the jelly, then set it on the fire, and let it seeth two or three walmes, ever stirring it as it seeths, then take a very clean jelly bag, wash the bottom of it in a little rose water, and wring it so hard that their remaine none behind, put a branch of rosemary in the bottom of the bag, hang it up before the fire over a bason; and pour the jelly-bag into the bason, provided in any case you stir not the bag, then take jelly in the bason and put it into your bag again, let it run the second time, and it will be very much the clearer; so you may put it into your gally-pots or glasles which you please, and set them a cooling on bay salt, and when it is cold and stiffe you may use it at your pleasure, if you will have the jelly of a red colour use it as before, onely instead of renish wine, use claret. _to make poore knights._ cut two penny loaves in round slices, dip them in half a pint of cream or faire water, then lay them abroad in a dish, and beat three eggs and grated nutmegs and sugar, beat them with the cream then melt some butter in a frying pan, and wet the sides of the toasts and lay them in on the wet side, then pour in the rest upon them, and so fry them, serve them in with rosewater, sugar and butter. _to make shrewsbury cakes._ take two pound of floure dryed in the oven and weighed after it is dryed, then put to it one pound of butter that must be layd an hour or two in rose-water, so done poure the water from the butter, and put the butter to the flowre with the yolks and whites of five eggs, two races of ginger, and three quarters of a pound of sugar, a little salt, grate your spice, and it well be the better, knead all these together till you may rowle the past, then roule it forth with the top of a bowle, then prick them with a pin made of wood, or if you have a comb that hath not been used, that will do them quickly, and is best to that purpose, so bake them upon pye plates, but not too much in the oven, for the heat of the plates will dry them very much, after they come forth of the oven, you may cut them without the bowles of what bignesse or what fashion you please. _to make beef like red deer to be eaten cold._ take a buttock of beef, cut it the long wayes with the grain, beat it well with a rowling pin, then broyl it upon the coals, a little after it is cold, draw it throw with lard, then lay in some white wine vinegar, pepper, salt, cloves, mace and bay-leaves, then let it lie three or four dayes, then bake it in rye past, and when it is cold fill it up with butter, after a fortnight it will be eaten. _to make puffs._ take a pint of cheese curds and drain them dry, bruise them small with the hand, put in two handfulls of floure, a little sugar, three or four yolks of egs, a little nutmeg and salt, mingle these together and make them little, like eyes, fry them in fresh butter, serve them up with fresh butter and sugar. _to make a hash of chickens._ take six chickens, quarter them, cover them almost with water, and season them with pepper and salt, and a good handfull of minced parsly, and a little white-wine, when they are boyled enough, put six eggs onely the yolks, put to them a little nutmeg and vinegar, give them a little wame or two with the chickens, pour them altogether into the dish and serve them in, when you put on the eggs, and a good piece of butter. _to make an almond caudle._ take three pints of ale, boyle it with cloves, mace and sliced bread into it, then have ready beaten a pound of blanched almonds stamped in a mortar with a little white-wine, then strain them out with a pint of white-wine, thick your ale with it, sweeten it as you please, and be sure you skim the ale well when it boyles. _to make scalding cheese towards the latter end of_ may. take your evening milke and put it into boules, or earthen pans, then in the morning, fleet off the cream in a boule by it selfe, put the fleet milke into a tub with the morning milk, then put in the nights cream, and stir it together, and heat the milk, and put in the rennet; as for ordinary new milk cheese, it is to be made thick; when the cheese is come, gather the curd into a cheese-cloath, and set the whey on the fire till it be seething hot, put the cheese in a cloth into a killar that hath a wafle in the bottome, and poure in the hot whey, then let out that, and put in more till your curd feele hard, then break the curd with your hands, as small as you can, and put an handfull of salt to it then put it into the fat, thrune it at noon and at night, and next day put it into a trough where cheese is salted every day, and turne it as long as any will enter, then lay it on a table or shelfe all summer; if you will have it mellow to eate within an yeare, it must be laid in hay in the spring; if to keep two yeares, let it dry on a shelfe out of the wind all the next summer, and in winter lay them in hay a while, or lay them close one to another; i seldome lay any in hay, i turne and rub them with a rotten cloth especially when they are old, once a week least they rot. _to pickle purslaine._ take purslaine, stalks and all, boyl them tender in faire water, then lay them drying upon linning cloaths, then being dryed, put them into the galley-pots and cover them with wine vinegar mixt with salt, and not make the pickle so strong as for cucumbers. _finis._ the table to the compleat cook. _to make a posset the earle of_ arundels way. _to boyle a capon larded with lemons._ _to bake red deer._ _to make fine pancakes fryed without butter or lard._ _to dresse a pig the french manner._ _to make a steak pye with a french pudding in the pye._ _an excellent way for dressing fish._ _to fricate sheeps feet._ _to fricate calves chaldrons._ _to fricate campigneons._ _to make buttered_ loaves. _to marine carps, mullet, gormet, rochet, or wale._ _to make a calves chaldron pye._ _to make a pudding of calves chaldron._ _to make a_ banbury _cake._ _to make a_ devonshire _white pot._ _to make rice cream._ _to make a very good_ oxfordshire _cake._ _to make a pompion pye._ _to make the best sausages._ _to boyle fresh fish._ _to make friters._ _to make loaves of cheese curd._ _to make fine pyes after the french fashion._ _a singular good receipt for making a cake._ _to make a great curd loafe._ _to make buttered loaves of cheese curds._ _to make cheese loaves._ _to make puffe._ _to make elder vinegar._ _to make good vinegar._ _to make a collar of beefe._ _to make an almond pudding._ _to boyle creame with french barly._ _to make cheese cakes._ _to make a quaking pudding._ _to pickle cucumbers._ _to pickle broom buds._ _to keep quinces all the yeare._ _to make a goosberry fool._ _to make an oatmeale pudding._ _to make a green pudding._ _to make good sausages._ _to make toasts._ _a spanish cream._ _to make clouted cream._ _a good cream._ _to make pyramids cream._ _to make a sack cream._ _to boyl pigeons._ _to make an apple tansey._ _a french barly cream._ _to make a chicken or pigeon pye._ _to boyle a capon or hen._ _to make bals of veal._ _to make mrs._ shelleyes _cake._ _to make almond jumbals._ _to make cracknels._ _to pickle oysters._ _to boyl cream with codlings._ _to make the lady_ abergaveers cheese. _to dresse snails._ _to boyl a rump of beefe after the french fashion._ _an excellent way of dressing fish._ _to make fritters of sheeps feet._ _to make dry salmon calvert in the boyling._ _to make bisket bread._ _to make an almond pudding._ _to make an almond caudle._ _to make almond bread._ _to make almond cakes._ _master_ rudstones _posset._ _to boyle a capon with ranioles._ _to make a bisque of carps._ _to boyle a pike and an eele together._ _to make an outlandish dish._ _to make a portugal dish._ _to dresse a dish of hartichockes._ _to dresse a fillet of veal the italian way._ _to dresse soals._ _to make furmity._ _to make a patis or cabbage cream._ _to make pap._ _to make spanish pap._ _to poach eggs._ _a pottage of beefe pallats._ _the_ jacobins _pottage_ _to salt a goose._ _a way of stewing chickens or rabbets._ _a pottage of capons._ _a carp pye._ _to boyle ducks after the french fashion._ _to boyle a goose with sausages._ _to fry chickens._ _to make a battalia pye._ _to make a chicken pye._ _to make a pye of a calves head._ _to make cream with snow._ _to make minced pyes._ _to drye neates tongues._ _to make jelly of harts horn._ _to make chickens fat in four or five dayes._ _to make angelot._ _a persian dish._ _to roast a shoulder of mutton._ _to roast a leg of mutton to be eaten cold._ _to roast oysters._ _to make a sack posset._ _another_ _to make a sack posset without milk or creame._ _to make a stump pye._ _to make mrs._ leed _cheese cakes._ _to make taffaty tarts_ _to make fresh cheese_ _to make sugar cakes or jumballs_ _to hash a shoulder of mutton_ _to dresse flounders or plaice with garlick and mustard_ _a turkish dish_ _to dresse a pike_ _to dresse oysters_ _to dresse flounders_ _to dresse snailes_ _to dresse pickle fish_ _to fricate beef pallats_ _a spanish olio_ _to make a spanish olio._ _to make metheglin_ _to make a sallet of smelts_ _to roast a fillet beefe_ _to make a sallet of a cold hen or capon._ _to stew mushrumps_ _the lord_ conway _his receipt for the makeing of amber-puddings_ _to make a partridge tart_ _to keep venison all the yeare_ _to make brawn_ _to roast a pike_ _to sauce eeles_ _to make sausages without skins_ _to dresse a pike._ _to dresse eeles_ _to boyle a pudding after the french fashion,_ _to make a fricate_ _to make a dish called olives_ _to make an olive pye_ _the countesse of_ rutlands _receipt of makeing a rare_ banbury _cake_ _an excellent syllabub_ _to sauce a pig_ _to make a virginia trout_ _to make a fat lamb of a pig._ _to make rice pancakes_ _mrs._ dukes _cakes._ _to make fine pancakes._ _to pot venison_ _to make a marchpan to ice him_ _to make jelly the best manner_ _to make poor knights_ _to make shrewsberry cakes_ _to make beefe like red deere to be eaten cold_ _to make puffe_ _to make a hash of chicken_ _to make an almond caudle_ _to make scalding cheese towards the latter end of_ may _to pickle purslain_ finis. _courteous_ reader, _these books following are printed for_ nath. brook, _and are to be sold at his shop at the angell in_ cornhill. * * * * * _excellent tracts in divinity, controversies, sermons, devotions._ the catholique history collected and gathered out of scripture, councels, and antient fathers, in answer to dr. _vanes_ lost sheep returned home: by _edward chesensale_ esq; _octavo_. . bishop _morton_ on the sacrament, in _folio_. . the grand sacriledge of the church of _rome_, in taking away the sacred cup from the laity at the lords table; by dr. _featly_ d.d. _quarto._ . the quakers cause at second hearing, being a full answer to their tenets. . re-assertion of grace: _vindiciae evangelii_, or the vindication of the gospell: a reply to mr. _anthony burghess vindiciae legis_, and to mr. _ruthford_: by _robert town_. . anabptists anatomized and silenced: or a dispute with master _tombs_, by mr. _j. crag_: where all may receive cleare satisfaction in that controversie, the best extant. _octavo._ . a glimpse of divine light, being an explication of some passages exhibited to the commissioners of _white hall_ for approbation of publique preachers, against _john harrison_ of _land chap. lancash._ . the zealous magistrate: a sermon by _t. threscos_. _quarto._ . new jerusalam, in a sermon for the society of astrologers, _quarto_. in the year . . divinity no enemy to astrology: a sermon for the society of astrologers, in the year . by d. _thomas swadling_. . _britannia rediviva_, a sermon before the judges, _august_ . by _j shaw_ minister of _hull_. . the princess royal, in a sermon before the judges, _march_ . by _j shaw_. . judgement set, and books opened, religion tried whether it be of god or man, in severall sermons: by _j webster, quarto_. . israels redemption, or the prophetical history of our saviours kingdome on earth: by _k. marton_. . the cause and cure of ignorance, error and prophaness: or a more hopefull way to grace and salvation: by k. _young, octavo_. . a bridle for the times, tending to still the murmuring, to settle the wavering, to stay the wandring, and to strengthen the fainting: by _j brinsley_ of _yarmouth_. . comforts against the fear of death; wherein are discovered severall evidences of the work of grace: by _j collins_ of _norwich_. . _jacobs_ seed: or, the excellency of seeking god by prayer, by _jer burroughs_. . the form of practical divinity; or, the grounds of religion in a chatechistical way, by mr. _christopher love_ late minister of the gospel: a useful piece. . heaven and earth shaken; a treatice shewing how kings and princes, their governments are turned and changed, by _j davis_ minister in _dover_: admirably useful and seriously to be considered in these times. . the treasure of the soul; wherein we are taught, by dying to sin, to attain to the perfect love of god. . a treatise of contestation fit for these sad & troublesome times by _j. hall_ bishop of _norwich_. . select thoughts: or, choice helps for a pious spirit, beholding the excellency of her lord jesus; by _j. hall_ bishop of _norwich_. . the holy order, or fraternity of mourners in zion; to which is added, songs in the night, or chearfulness under afflictions; by _j. hall_ bishop of _norwich_. . the celestial lamp, enlightening every distressed soul from the depth of everlasting darkness; by _t. fetisplace_. _admirable and learned treatises of occult sciences in philosophy, magick, astrology, geomancy, chymistry, physiognomy, and chyromancy._ . magick & astrology vindicated by _h. warren_ . _lux veritatis_, judicall astrology vindicated and demonology confuted; by _w. ramsey_ gent. . an introduction to the tentonick philosophy; being a determination of the original of the soul: by _c. hotham_ fellow of _peter-house_ in _cambridge_. . _curnelius agrippa_, his fourth book of occult philosophy, or geomancy: magical elements o _peter de abona_, the nature of spirits: made english by _r turner_. . _paracelsus_ occult philosophy, of the misteries of nature, and his secret alchimy. . an astrological discourse with mathematical demonstrations; proving the influence of the planets and fixed stars upon elementary bodies: by sir _chr. heydon_ knight. . _merlinus anglicus junior_; the english merlin revived: or a prediction upon the affairs of christendome, for the year , by _w. lilly_. . englands prophetical merlin; foretelling to all nations of _europe_, till _ _. the actions depending upon the influences of the conjunction of _saturn_ and _jupiter_ . by _w. lilly_. . the starry messenger: or an interpretation of that strange apparition of three suns seen in _london_, the of _november_ , being the birthday of king _charles_: by _w. lilly_. . the worlds catastrophe: or _europes_ many mutations, untill , by _w. lilly_. . an astrological prediction of the occurrences in _england_; part of the years , , . by _w. lilly_. . monarchy or no monarchy in _england_: the prophesie of the white king, _grebner_ his prophesie, concerning _charles_, son of _charles_, his greatness; illustrated with several hieroglyphicks: by _w. lilly_. . _annus tenebrosus_, or the dark year, or astrological judgements upon two lunary eclipses, and one admirable eclipse of the sun in _england_ . by _w. lilly_. . an easie and familiar method, whereby to judge the effects depending on eclipses: by _w. lilly_. . supernatural sights and apparitions seen in _london, june _ . by _w. lilly_: as also all his works in a volumn. . _catastrophe magnatum_: an ephemerides for the year . by _n. culpeper_. . _teratologia_; or, a discovery of gods wonders, manifested by bloody raine and waters, by _i.s._ . chyromancy; or the art of divining by the lines egraven in the hand of man, by dame nature in . genitures; with a learned discourse of the soul of the world; by _g. wharton_ esq. . the admired piece of physiognomy, and chyromancy, metoposcopy, and simmetricall proportions, and signal moles of the body, and interpretation of dreams: to which is added the art of memory, illustrated with figures: by _r. sanders_, in _folio_. . the no less exquisite then admirable work, _the atrum chemicum britannicum_; containing several poetical pieces of our famous english philosophers, who have written the hermitique mysteries in their own antient language; faithfully collected into one volumn, with annotations thereon: by the indefatigable industry of _elias ashmole_ esq; illustrated with figures. _excellent treatises in the mathematicks, geometry of arithmetick, surveying, and other arts or mechannicks._ . the incomparable treatise of _tactometria, sev. tetagmenometria_; or, the geometry of regulars, practically proposed, after a new and most expeditious manner, (together with the natural or vulgar, by way of mensural comparison) and in the solids, not only in respect of magnitude or demension, but also of gravity or ponderosity, according to any metall assigned: together with useful experiments of measures & weights, observations on gauging, useful for those are practised in the art metricald: by _t. wibard_. . _tectonicon_, shewing the exact measuring of all manner of land, squares, timber stone, steeples, pillars, globes; as also the making and use of the carpenters rule &c. fit to be known by all surveyors, land-meters, joyners, carpenters, and masons: by _l. digges_. . the unparalleld work for ease & expedition, instituted, the exact surveyor: or, the whole art of surveying of land, shewing how to plot all manner of grounds, whether small inclosures, champain, plain, wood-lands, or mountains, by the plain table; as also how to finde the area, or content of any land, to protect, reduce or divide the same; as also to take the plot or cart, to make a map of any manner, whether according to _rathburne_, or any other eminent surveyors method: a booke excellently useful for those that sell, purchase, or are otherwise employed about buildings; by _j. eyre_. . _moor's_ arithmetick: discovering the secrets of that art, in number and species; in two books, the first teaching by precept and example, the operations in numbers, whole and broken. the rules of practice, interest, and performed in the more facil manner by decimals, then hitherto hath been published; the excellency and new practice and use of logarithmes, _nepayres bones_. the second the great rule of _algebra_, in species, resolving all arithmetical questions by supposition. . the golden treatise of arithmetick, natural and artificial, or decimals; the theory & practice united in a simpathetical proportion, betwixt lines and numbers, in their quantities and qualities, as in respect of form, figure, magnitude and affection; demonstrated by geometry, illustrated by calculations, and confirmed with variety of examples in every species; made compendious and easie for merchants, citizens, sea-men, accomptants, &c. by _th. wilsford_ corrector of the last edition of record. . semigraphy, or the art of short-writing, as it hath been proved by many hundreds in the city of _london_, and other places, by them practised, and acknowledged to be the easiest, exactest, and swiftest method; the meanest capacity by the help of this book, with a few hours practice, may attaine to a perfection in this art: by _jer. rich_ author and teacher thereof, dwelling in _swithings lane_ in _london_. . milk for children; a plain and easie method teaching to read and write, usefull for schools and families, by _l. thomas_, d.d. . the painting of the ancients; the history of the beginning, progress, and consummating of the practice of that noble art of painting; by _f. junius_ _excellent and approved treatises in physick, chyrurgery, & other more familiar experiments in cookery, preserving, &c._ . _culpeper's semiatica uranica_, his astrological judgement of diseases from the decumbiture of the sick, much enlarged: the way and manner of finding out the cause, change, and end of the disease; also whether the sick be likely to live or dye, & the time when recovery or death is to be expected, according to the judgement of _hipocrates_, and _hermes trismegistus_; to which is added mr. _culpeper_'s censure of urines. . _culpeper_'s last legacy, left to his wife for the publick good, being the choicest and most profitable of those secrets in physick and chyrurgery; which whilst he lived, were lockt up in his breast, and resolved never to be published till after his death. . the yorkshire spaw; or the virtue and use of that water in curing of desperate diseases, with directions and rules necessary to be considered by all that repair thither. . most approved medicines and remedies for the diseeses in the body of man: by _a. read_ dr. in physick. . the art of simpling: an introduction to the knowledg of gathering of plants, wherein, the definitions, divisions, places, descriptions, differences, names, virtues, times of gathering, uses, tempratures of them are compendiously discoursed of: also a discovery of the lesser world, by _w. coles_. . _adam_ in eden, or natures paradise: the history of plants, herbs and flowers, with their several original names, the places where they grow, their descriptions and kindes, their times of flourishing and decreasing; as also their several signatures, anatomical appropriations, and particular physical virtues; with necessary observations on the seasons of planting and gathering of our english plants. a work admirably useful for apothecaries, chyrurgeons, and other ingenuous persons, who may in this herbal finde comprised all the english physical simples, that _gerard_ or _parkinson_, in their two voluminous herbals have discoursed of, even so as to be on emergent occasions their own physitians, the ingredients being to be be had in their own fields & gardens, published for the general good by _w. coles_ m.d. . the compleat midwive's practice, in the high & weighty concernments of the body of mankinde: or perfect rules derived from the experiences and writings, not onely of our english, but the most accomplisht and absolute practices of the french, spanish, italians, and other nations; so fitted for the weakest capacities, that they may in a short time attain to the knowledge of the whole art; by _dr._ t.c. with the advice of others, illustrated with copper figures. . the queens closet opened: incomparable secrets in physick, chyrurgery, preserving, candying, and cookery; as they were presented to the queen by the most experienced persons of our times; many whereof were honour'd with her own practice. _elegant treatises in humanity, history, romances, & poetry_. , times treasury, or academy, for the accomplishment of the english gentry in arguments of discourse, habit, fashion, behaviour, &c. all summed up in characters of honour: by _r. brathwait_, esq. . _oedipus_, or the resolver of the secrets of love, and other natural problemes, by way of question and answer. . the admirable and most impartial history of _new england_, of the first plantation there, in the year . brought down to these times; all the material passages performed there, exactly related. . the tears of the indians: the history of the bloody and most cruel proceedings of the spaniards in the islands of _hispaniola, cuba, jamaica, mexico, peru_, and other places of the west indies; in which to the life, are discovered the tyrannies of the spaniards, as also the justnesse of our war so successfully managed against them. . the illustrious sheperdess. the imperious brother: written originally in spanish by that incomparable wit, _don john perez de montalban_; translated at the request of the marchioness of _dorchester_, and the countess of _strafford_: by _e.p._ . the history of the golden ass, as also the loves of cupid and his mistress _psiche_: by _l. apulcius_ translated into english. . the unfortunate mother: a tragedy by _t.n._ . the rebellion, a comedy by _t. rawlins_. . the tragedy of _messalina_ the insatiate roman empress: by _n. richards_. . the floating island: a trage-comedy, acted before the king, by the students of christs-church in _oxon_; by that renowned wit, _w. strode_ the songs were set by mr. _henry lawes_. . _harvey's_ divine poems: the history of _balaam_, of _jonah_, and of st. _john_ the evangelist. . _fons lachrymarum_, or a fountain of tears; the lamentations of the prophet _jeremiah_ in verse, with an elegy on sir _charles lucas_; by _i. quarles_. . nocturnal lucubrations, with other witty epigrams and epitaphs; by _r. chamberlain_. . the admirable ingenuous satyr against hypocrites. _poetical, with several other accurately ingenious treatises, lately printed._ . wits interpreter, the english parnassus: or a sure guide to those admirable accomplishments that compleat the english gentry, in the most acceptable qualifications of discourse or writing. an art of logick, accurate complements, fancies, and experiments, poems, poetical fictions, and _all-a-mode_ letters by j.c. . wit and drollery; with other jovial poems: by sir _i.m.m.l.m.s.w.d._ . sportive wit, the muses merriment; a new sprint of drollery; jovial fancies, &c. . the conveyancer of light, or the compleat clerk, & scriviners guide; being an exact draught of all presidents and assurances now in use; as they were penned, and perfected by diverse learned judges, eminent lawyers, & great conveyancers, both ancient and modern: whereunto is added a concordance from _k. rich _. to this present. . _themis aurea_, the daws of the fraternity of the rosie cross; in which the occult secrets of their philosophical notions are brought to light: written by _count mayerus_, and now englisht by _t.h._ . the iron rod put into the lord protectors hand; a phrophetical treatise. . _medicina magica tamen physica_; magical but natural physick: containing the general cures of infirmities and diseases belonging to the bodies of men, as also to other animals and domistick creatures, by way of transplantation: with a description of the most excellent cordial out of gold; by _sam. boulton of salop_. . _i. tradiscan's_ rareties, published by himself. . the proceedings of the high court of justice against the late king charles, with his speech upon the scaffold, and other proceedings, _jan._ , . . the perfect cook; a right method in the art of cookery, whether for pastery, or all other manner af _all-a-mode_ kick shaws; with the most refined ways of dressing of flesh, fowl, or fish; making of the most poinant sawces, whether after the french or english manner, together with fifty five ways of dressing of eggs; by _m. m._ _admirable usefull treatises newly printed._ . the expert doctors dispensatory: the whole art of phisick restored to practise: the apothecaries shop, and chyrurgeons closet opened; with a survey, as also a correction of most dispensatories now extant, with a judicious cencure of their defects; & a supply of what they are deficient in: together with a learned account of the virtues and quantities, and uses of simples, and compounds; with the symptoms of diseases; as also prescriptions for their several cures: by that renowned _p. morellus_ physician to the king of _france_; a work for the order, usefulness, and plainness of the method, not to be parallel'd by any dispensatory, in what language soever. . cabinet of jewels, mans misery, gods mercy, christs treasury, &c. in eight sermons; with an appendix of the nature of tithes under the gospel; with an expediency of marriage in publique assemblies, by _i. crag_ minister of the gospel. . natures secrets; or the admirable and wonderful history of the generation of meteors; discribing the temperatures of the elements, the heights, magnitudes, and influences of stars; the causes of comets, earthquakes, deluges, epidemical diseases and prodigies of precedent times, with presages of the weather, and descriptions of the weather-glass: by _t. wilsford_. . the mysteries of love and eloquence; or the arts of wooing and complementing; as they are managed in the _spring garden, hide-park, the new exchange_, and other eminent places. a work in which are drawn to the life and deportments of the most accomplisht persons; the mode of their courtly entertainments, treatment of their ladies at balls, their accustomed sports, drolls & fancies; the witchcrafts of their perswasive language, in their approaches, or other more secret dispatches, _&c_. by _e.p._ . _helmont_ disguised; or the vulgar errors of imperical and unskilful practicers of physick confuted; more especially as they concern the cures of feavers, the stone, the plague, and some other diseases by way of dialogue; in which the chief rarities of physick are admirably discoursed by _i.t_. _books in the press, and ready for printing_. . the scales of commerce and trade: by _t. wilsford_. . geometry demonstrated by lines & numbers; from thence, astronomy, cosmgraphy, and navigation proved and delineated by the doctrine of plane and spherical trangles: by _t. wilsford_. . the english annals, from the invasion made by julius cesar to these times: by _t. wilsford_. . the fool tranformed: a comedy. . the history of _lewis_ the eleventh king of _france_: a trage-comedy. . the chast woman against her will: a comedy. . the tooth-drawer: a comedy. . honour in the end: a comedy. . the tell tale: a comedy . the history of _donquixiot_, or the knight of the illfavour'd face: a comedy. . the fair spanish captive: a trage-comedy. . sir _kenelm digby_ & other persons of honour, their rare and incomparable secrets of physick, chyrurgery, cookery, preserving, conserving, candying, distilling of waters, extraction of oyls, compounding of the costliest perfumes, with other admirable inventions, and select experiments, as they offered themselves to their observations, whether here or in forrein countreys. . the so much desired & deeply learned commentary on _psalme_ . by that reverend and eminent divine mr. _christopher carthwright_ minister of the gospel in _york_. . the soul's cordial in two treatises, the first teaching how to be eased of the guilt of sin, the second, discovering advantages by christs ascention: by that faithful labourer in the lord's vineyard mr. _christopher love_, late parson of _laurance jury_: the third volumn. . jacobs seed, the excellency of seeking god by prayer, by the late reverend divine _i. burroughs_. . the saints tombe-stone: or the remains of the blessed: a plain narrative of some remarkable passages, in the holy life, & happy death, of mrs. _dorothy shaw_, wife of mr. _john shaw_ preacher of the gospel at _kingston_ on _hull_ collected by her dearest friends especially for her sorrowful husband and six daughters consolation and invitation. . the accomplisht cook, the mistery of the whole art of cookery, revealed in a more easie and perfect method then hath been publisht in any language: expert and ready wayes for the dressing of flesh, fowl and fish, the raising of pastes, the best directions for all manner of kickshaws and the most poinant sauces, with the termes of carveing and sewing: the bills of fare, an exact account of all dishes for the season, with other all-a-mode curiosities, together with the lively illustrations of such necessary figures, as are referred to practise: approoved by the many years experience and carefull industry of _robert may_, in the time of his attendance on several persons of honor. . the exquisite letters of mr. _robert loveday_, the late admired translater of the volumes of the famed romance cleopatra, for the perpetrating of his memory, publisht by his dear brother mr. _a.l._ . the new world of english words, or a general dictionary containing the termes, dignities, definitions, and perfect interpretations of the proper significations of hard english words throughout the arts and sciences, liberal or mechannick, as also all other subjects that are useful or appertain to the language of our nation, by _i.t._ & others in _folio_. _finis._ distributed proofreaders team note: project gutenberg also has an html version of this file which includes the original illustrations. see -h.htm or -h.zip: (http://www.gutenberg.net/dirs/ / / / / / -h/ -h.htm) or (http://www.gutenberg.net/dirs/ / / / / / -h.zip) mary at the farm and book of recipes compiled during her visit among the "pennsylvania germans" by edith m. thomas with illustrations we love our pennsylvania, grand old keystone state; land of far famed rivers, and rock-ribbed mountains great. with her wealth of "dusky diamonds" and historic valleys fair, proud to claim her as our birthplace; land of varied treasures rare. preface the incidents narrated in this book are based on fact, and, while not absolutely true in every particular, the characters are all drawn from real life. the photographs are true likenesses of the people they are supposed to represent, and while in some instances the correct names are not given (for reasons which the reader will readily understand), the various scenes, relics, etc., are true historically and geographically. the places described can be easily recognized by any one who has ever visited the section of pennsylvania in which the plot (if it can really be called a plot) of the story is laid. many of the recipes given mary by pennsylvania german housewives, noted for the excellence of their cooking, have never appeared in print. the author. this book is dedicated to my friends with gratitude for their many helpful kindnesses. [illustration] "he who has a thousand friends, has never a one to spare." the housekeeper's symphony "to do the best that i can, from morn till night. and pray for added strength with coming light; to make the family income reach alway, with some left over for a rainy day; to do distasteful things with happy face, to try and keep the odds and ends in place. to smile instead of frown at fate, which placed me in a family always late for meals; to do the sewing, mending and the thousand small things always near at hand, and do them always with a cheerful heart, because in life they seem to be my part; to know the place of everything and keep it there, to think, to plan, to cook, to sweep, to brew, to bake, to answer questions, to be the mainspring of the family clock. (or that effect) and see that no tick, tock is out of time or tune, or soon or late, this is the only symphony which i can ever hope to operate." marion wiley. contents i mary's letter received at clear spring farm ii mary's arrival at the farm iii schuggenhaus township iv john landis v the old farm-house and garden vi mary confides in "aunt sarah" and gives her views on suffrage for women vii professor schmidt viii uses of an old-fashioned wardrobe ix poetry and pie x sibylla linsabigler xi new colonial rag rugs xii mary imitates navajo blankets xiii "the girls' camp fire" organized by mary xiv mary makes "violet and rose leaf" beads xv mary and elizabeth visit sadie singmaster xvi the old parlor made beautiful (modernized) xvii an old song evening xviii a visit to the "pennsylvania palisades" xix mary is taught to make pastry, patties and rosenkuchcen xx old potteries and decorated dishes xxi the value of wholesome, nutritious food xxii a variety of cakes evolved from one recipe xxiii the old "taufschien" xxiv the old store on the ridge road xxv an elbadritchel hunt xxvi the old shanghai rooster xxvii a "potato pretzel" xxviii faithful service xxix mary, ralph, jake and sibylla visit the allentown fair xxx fritz schmidt explores durham cave xxxi mary's marriage illustrations mary aunt sarah the old spring house the old mill wheel the old mill old corn crib the new red barn the old farm-house ralph jackson rocky valley professor schmidt frau schmidt old time patch-work quilts old time patch-work home-made rag carpet a hit-and-miss rug a brown and tan rug a circular rug imitation of navajo blankets rug with design rug with swastika in centre home manufactured silk prayer rug elizabeth schmidt--"laughing water" articles in the old parlor before it was modernized other articles in the old parlor before it was modernized palisades, or narrows of nockamixon the canal at the narrows the narrows, or pennsylvania palisades top rock ringing rocks of bucks county, pennsylvania high falls big rock at rocky dale the old towpath at the narrows old earthenware dish igraffito plate old plates fund in aunt sarah's corner cupboard old style lamps old taufschien the old store on ridge road catching elbadritchels old egg basket at the farm a potato pretzel loaf of rye bread a "brod corvel," or bread basket church which sheltered liberty bell in - liberty bell tablet durham cave the woodland stream polly schmidt an old-fashioned bucks county bake-oven [illustration: mary] chapter i. mary's letters received at clear spring farm. one morning in early spring, john landis, a pennsylvania german farmer living in schuggenhaus township, bucks county, on opening his mail box, fastened to a tree at the crossroads (for the convenience of rural mail carriers) found one letter for his wife sarah, the envelope addressed in the well-known handwriting of her favorite niece, mary midleton, of philadelphia. [illustration] a letter being quite an event at "clear spring" farm, he hastened with it to the house, finding "aunt sarah," as she was called by every one (great aunt to mary), in the cheery farm house kitchen busily engaged kneading sponge for a loaf of rye bread, which she carefully deposited on a well-floured linen cloth, in a large bowl for the final raising. carefully adjusting her glasses more securely over the bridge of her nose, she turned at the sound of her husband's footsteps. seeing the letter in his hand she inquired: "what news, john?" quickly opening the letter handed her, she, after a hasty perusal, gave one of the whimsical smiles peculiar to her and remarked decisively, with a characteristic nod of her head: "john, mary midleton intends to marry, else why, pray tell me, would she write of giving up teaching her kindergarten class in the city, to spend the summer with us on the farm learning, she writes, to keep house, cook, economize and to learn how to get the most joy and profit from life?" "well, well! mary is a dear girl, why should she not think of marrying?" replied her husband; "she is nineteen. quite time, i think, she should learn housekeeping--something every young girl should know. we should hear of fewer divorces and a less number of failures of men in business, had their wives been trained before marriage to be good, thrifty, economical housekeepers and, still more important, good homemakers. to be a helpmate in every sense of the word is every woman's duty, i think, when her husband works early and late to procure the means to provide for her comforts and luxuries and a competency for old age. write mary to come at once, and under your teaching she may, in time, become as capable a housekeeper and as good a cook as her aunt sarah; and, to my way of thinking, there is none better, my dear." praise from her usually reticent husband never failed to deepen the tint of pink on aunt sarah's still smooth, unwrinkled, youthful looking face, made more charming by being framed in waves of silvery gray hair, on which the "hand of time," in passing, had sprinkled some of the dust from the road of life. in size, sarah landis was a little below medium height, rather stout, or should i say comfortable, and matronly looking; very erect for a woman of her age. her bright, expressive, gray eyes twinkled humorously when she talked. she had developed a fine character by her years of unselfish devotion to family and friends. her splendid sense of humor helped her to overcome difficulties, and her ability to rise above her environment, however discouraging their conditions, prevented her from being unhappy or depressed by the small annoyances met daily. she never failed to find joy and pleasure in the faithful performance of daily tasks, however small or insignificant. aunt sarah attributed her remarkably fine, clear complexion, seldom equalled in a woman of her years, to good digestion and excellent health; her love of fresh air, fruit and clear spring water. she usually drank from four to five tumblerfuls of water a day. she never ate to excess, and frequently remarked: "i think more people suffer from over-eating than from insufficient food." an advocate of deep breathing, she spent as much of her time as she could spare from household duties in the open air. [illustration: aunt sarah] sarah landis was not what one would call beautiful, but good and whole-souled looking. to quote her husband: "to me sarah never looks so sweet and homelike when all 'fussed up' in her best black dress on special occasions, as she does when engaged in daily household tasks around home, in her plain, neat, gray calico dress." this dress was always covered with a large, spotlessly clean, blue gingham apron of small broken check, and she was very particular about having a certain-sized check. the apron had a patch pocket, which usually contained small twists or little wads of cord, which, like "the old ladies in cranford," she picked up and saved for a possible emergency. one of aunt sarah's special economies was the saving of twine and paper bags. the latter were always neatly folded, when emptied, and placed in a cretonne bag made for that purpose, hanging in a convenient corner of the kitchen. aunt sarah's gingham apron was replaced afternoons by one made from fine, lonsdale cambric, of ample proportions, and on special occasions she donned a hemstitched linen apron, inset at upper edge of hem with crocheted lace insertion, the work of her own deft fingers. aunt sarah's aprons, cut straight, on generous lines, were a part of her individuality. sarah landis declared: "happiness consists in giving and in serving others," and she lived up to the principles she advocated. she frequently quoted from the "sons of martha," by kipling: "lift ye the stone or cleave the wood, to make a path more fair or flat, not as a ladder from earth to heaven, not as an altar to any creed, but simple service, simply given, to his own kind in their human need." "i think this so fine," said aunt sarah, "and so true a sentiment that i am almost compelled to forgive kipling for saying 'the female of the species is more deadly than the male.'" aunt sarah's goodness was reflected in her face and in the tones of her voice, which were soft and low, yet very decided. she possessed a clear, sweet tone, unlike the slow, peculiar drawl often aiding with the rising inflection peculiar to many country folk among the "pennsylvania germans." the secret of aunt sarah's charm lay in her goodness. being always surrounded by a cheery atmosphere, she benefited all with whom she came in contact. she took delight in simple pleasures. she had the power of extracting happiness from the common, little every-day tasks and frequently remarked, "don't strive to live without work, but to find more joy in your work." her opinions were highly respected by every one in the neighborhood, and, being possessed of an unselfish disposition, she thought and saw good in every one; brought out the best in one, and made one long to do better, just to gain her approval, if for no higher reward. sarah landis was a loyal friend and one would think the following, by mrs. craik, applied to her: "oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort, of feeling safe with a person--having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are--chaff and grain together, certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping and then with the breath of kindness blow the rest away." she was never so happy as when doing an act of kindness for some poor unfortunate, and often said. "if 'twere not for god and good people, what would become of the unfortunate?" and thought like george mcdonald, "if i can put one touch of rosy sunset into the life of any man or woman (i should add child) i shall feel that i have worked with god." aunt sarah's sweet, lovable face was the first beheld by many a little, new-born infant; her voice, the first to hush its wailing cries as she cuddled it up to her motherly breast, and oft, with loving hands, softly closed the lids over eyes no longer able to see; whom the gracious master had taken into his keeping. one day i overheard aunt sarah quote to a sorrowing friend these fine, true lines from longfellow's "resignation": "let us be patient, these severe afflictions not from the ground arise, but celestial benedictions assume the dark disguise." [illustration: the old spring house] chapter ii. mary's arrival at the farm. the day preceding that of mary's arrival at the farm was a busy one for aunt sarah, who, since early morning, had been preparing the dishes she knew mary enjoyed. pans of the whitest, flakiest rolls, a large loaf of sweetest nut-brown, freshly-baked "graham bread," of which mary was especially fond; an array of crumb-cakes and pies of every description covered the well-scrubbed table in the summer kitchen, situated a short distance from the house. a large, yellow earthenware bowl on the table contained a roll of rich, creamy "smier kase" just as it had been turned from the muslin bag, from which the "whey" had dripped over night; ready to be mixed with cream for the supper table. pats of sweet, freshly-churned butter, buried in clover blossoms, were cooling in the old spring-house near by. the farm house was guiltless of dust from cellar to attic. aunt sarah was a model housekeeper; she accomplished wonders, yet never appeared tired or flurried as less systematic housekeepers often do, who, with greater expenditure of energy, often accomplish less work. she took no unnecessary steps; made each one count, yet never appeared in haste to finish her work. said aunt sarah, "the lack of system in housework is what makes it drudgery. if young housekeepers would sit down and plan their work, then do it, they would save time and labor. when using the fire in the range for ironing or other purposes, use the oven for preparing dishes of food which require long, slow cooking, like baked beans, for instance. bake a cake or a pudding, or a pan of quickly-made corn pone to serve with baked beans, for a hearty meal on a cold winter day. a dish of rice pudding placed in the oven requires very little attention, and when baked may be placed on ice until served. if this rule be followed, the young housewife will be surprised to find how much easier will be the task of preparing a meal later in the day, especially in hot weather." * * * * * the day following, john landis drove to the railroad station, several miles distant, to meet his niece. as mary stepped from the train into the outstretched arms of her waiting uncle, many admiring glances followed the fair, young girl. her tan-gold naturally wavy, masses of hair rivaled ripened grain. the sheen of it resembled corn silk before it has been browned and crinkled by the sun. her eyes matched in color the exquisite, violet-blue blossoms of the chicory weed. she possessed a rather large mouth, with upturned corners, which seemed made for smiles, and when once you had been charmed with them, she had made an easy conquest of you forever. there was a sweet, winning personality about mary which was as impossible to describe as to resist. one wondered how so much adorable sweetness could be embodied in one small maid. but mary's sweetness of expression and charming manner covered a strong will and tenacity of purpose one would scarcely have believed possible, did they not have an intimate knowledge of the young girl's disposition. her laugh, infectious, full of the joy of living, the vitality of youth and perfect health and happiness, reminded one of the lines: "a laugh is just like music for making living sweet." seated beside her uncle in the carriage, mary was borne swiftly through the town out into the country. it was one of those preternaturally quiet, sultry days when the whole universe appears lifeless and inert, free from loud noise, or sound of any description, days which we occasionally have in early spring or summer, when the stillness is oppressive. frequently at such times there is borne to the nostrils the faint, stifling scent of burning brush, indicating that land is being cleared by the forehanded, thrifty farmer for early planting. often at such times, before a shower, may be distinctly heard the faintest twitter and "peep, peep" of young sparrows, the harsh "caw, caw" of the crow, and the song of the bobolink, poised on the swaying branch of a tall tree, the happiest bird of spring; the dozy, drowsy hum of bees; the answering call of lusty young chanticleers, and the satisfied cackle of laying hens and motherly old biddies, surrounded by broods of downy, greedy little newly-hatched chicks. the shrill whistle of a distant locomotive startles one with its clear, resonant intonation, which on a less quiet day would pass unnoticed. mary, with the zest of youth, enjoyed to the full the change from the past months of confinement in a city school, and missed nothing of the beauty of the country and the smell of the good brown earth, as her uncle drove swiftly homeward. "uncle john," said mary, "'tis easy to believe god made the country." "yes," rejoined her uncle, "the country is good enough for me." "with the exception of the one day in the month, when you attend the 'shriners' meeting' in the city," mischievously supplemented mary, who knew her uncle's liking for the masonic lodge of which he was a member, "and," she continued, "i brought you a picture for your birthday, which we shall celebrate tomorrow. the picture will please you, i know. it is entitled, 'i love to love a mason, 'cause a mason never tells.'" they passed cultivated farms. inside many of the rail fences, inclosing fields of grain or clover, were planted numberless sour cherry trees, snowy with bloom, the ground underneath white with fallen petals. the air was sweet with the perfume of the half-opened buds on the apple trees in the near-by orchards and rose-like pink blossoms of the "flowering" crab-apple, in the door yards. swiftly they drove through cool, green, leafy woods, crossing a wooden bridge spanning a small stream, so shallow that the stones at the bottom were plainly to be seen. a loud splash, as the sound of carriage wheels broke the uninterrupted silence, and a commotion in the water gave evidence of the sudden disappearance of several green-backed frogs, sunning themselves on a large, moss-grown rock, projecting above the water's edge; from shady nooks and crevices peeped clusters of early white violets; graceful maidenhair ferns, and hardier members of the fern family, called "brake," uncurled their graceful, sturdy fronds from the carpet of green moss and lichen at the base of tree trunks, growing along the water's edge. partly hidden by rocks along the bank of the stream, nestled a few belated cup-shaped anemones or "wind flowers," from which most of the petals had blown, they being one of the earliest messengers of spring. through the undergrowth in the woods, in passing, could be seen the small buds of the azalea or wild honeysuckle, "sheep's laurel," the deep pink buds on the american judas tree, trailing vines of "tea berry," and beneath dead leaves one caught an occasional glimpse of fragrant, pink arbutus. in marshy places beside the creek, swaying in the wind from slender stems, grew straw-colored, bell-shaped blossoms of "adder's tongue" or "dog tooth violet," with their mottled green, spike-shaped leaves. in the shadow of a large rock grew dwarf huckleberry bushes, wild strawberry vines, and among grasses of many varieties grew patches of white and pink-tinted alsatian clover. leaving behind the spicy, fragrant, "woodsy" smell of wintergreen, birch and sassafras, and the faint, sweet scent of the creamy, wax-like blossoms of "mandrake" or may apple, peeping from beneath large, umbrella-like, green leaves they emerged at last from the dim, cool shadows of the woods into the warm, bright sunlight again. almost before mary realized it, the farm house could be seen in the distance, and her uncle called her attention to his new, red barn, which had been built since her last visit to the farm, and which, in her uncle's estimation, was of much greater importance than the house. mary greeted with pleasure the old landmarks so familiar to her on former visits. they passed the small, stone school house at the crossroads, and in a short time the horses turned obediently into the lane leading to the barn a country lane in very truth, a tangle of blackberry vines, wild rose bushes, by farmers called "pasture roses," interwoven with bushes of sumach, wild carrots and golden rod. mary insisted that her uncle drive directly to the barn, as was his usual custom, while she was warmly welcomed at the farm house gate by her aunt. as her uncle led away the horses, he said, "i will soon join you, mary, 'to break of our bread and eat of our salt,' as they say in the 'shrine.'" on their way to the house, mary remarked: "i am so glad we reached here before dusk. the country is simply beautiful! have you ever noticed, aunt sarah, what a symphony in green is the yard? look at the buds on the maples and lilacs--a faint yellow green--and the blue-green pine tree near by; the leaves of the german iris are another shade; the grass, dotted with yellow dandelions, and blue violets; the straight, grim, reddish-brown stalks of the peonies before the leaves have unfolded, all roofed over with the blossom-covered branches of pear, apple and 'german prune' trees. truly, this must resemble paradise!" "yes," assented her aunt, "i never knew blossoms to remain on the pear trees so long a time. we have had no 'blossom shower' as yet to scatter them, but there will be showers tonight, i think, or i am no prophet. i feel rain in the atmosphere, and sibylla said a few moments ago she heard a 'rain bird' in the mulberry tree." "aunt sarah," inquired mary, "is the rhubarb large enough to use?" "yes, indeed, we have baked rhubarb pies and have had a surfeit of dandelion salad or 'salat,' as our neighbors designate it. your uncle calls 'dandelion greens' the farmers' spring tonic; that and 'celadine,' that plant you see growing by the side of the house. later in the season it bears small, yellow flowers not unlike a very small buttercup blossom, and it is said to be an excellent remedy for chills and fevers, and it tastes almost as bitter as quinine. there are bushels of dandelion blossoms, some of which we shall pick tomorrow, and from them make dandelion wine." "and what use will my thrifty aunt make of the blue violets?" mischievously inquired mary. "the violets," replied her aunt, "i shall dig up carefully with some earth adhering to their roots and place them in a glass bowl for a centrepiece on the table for my artistic and beauty-loving niece; and if kept moist, you will be surprised at the length of time they will remain 'a thing of beauty' if not 'a joy forever.' and later, mary, from them i'll teach you to make violet beads." "aunt sarah, notice that large robin endeavoring to pull a worm from the ground. do you suppose the same birds return here from the south every summer?" "certainty, i do." "that old mulberry tree, from the berries of which you made such delicious pies and marmalade last summer, is it dead?" "no; only late about getting its spring outfit of leaves." chapter iii. schuggenhaus township. "schuggenhaus," said sarah landis, speaking to her niece, mary midleton, "is one of the largest and most populous townships in bucks county, probably so named by the early german settlers, some of whom, i think, were my father's ancestors, as they came originally from zweibrucken, germany, and settled in schuggenhaus township. schuggenhaus is one of the most fertile townships in bucks county and one of the best cultivated; farming is our principal occupation, and the population of the township today is composed principally of the descendants of well-to-do germans, frequently called 'pennsylvania dutch.'" "i have often heard them called by that name," said mary. "have you forgotten, aunt sarah, you promised to tell me something interesting about the first red clover introduced in bucks county?" "red clover," replied her aunt, "that having bright, crimson-pink heads, is the most plentiful and the most common variety of clover; but knowing how abundantly it grows in different parts of the country at the present time, one would scarcely have believed, in olden times, that it would ever be so widely distributed as it now is. "one reason clover does so well in this country is that the fertilization of the clover is produced by pollenation by the busy little bumble-bee, who carries the pollen from blossom to blossom, and clover is dependent upon these small insects for fertilization, as without them clover would soon die out." "i admire the feathery, fuzzy, pink-tipped, rabbit-foot clover," said mary; "it is quite fragrant, and usually covered with butterflies. it makes such very pretty bouquets when you gather huge bunches of it." [illustration: the old mill wheel] "no, mary, i think you are thinking of alsatian clover, which is similar to white clover. the small, round heads are cream color, tinged with pink; it is very fragrant and sweet and grows along the roadside and, like the common white clover, is a favorite with bees. the yellow hop clover we also find along the roadside. as the heads of clover mature, they turn yellowish brown and resemble dried hops; sometimes yellow, brown and tan blossoms are seen on one branch. the cultivation of red clover was introduced here a century ago, and when in bloom the fields attracted great attention. being the first ever grown in this part of bucks county, people came for miles to look at it, the fence around the fields some days being lined with spectators, i have been told by my grandfather. i remember when a child nothing appeared to me more beautiful than my father's fields of flax; a mass of bright blue flowers. i also remember the fields of broom-corn. just think! we made our own brooms, wove linen from the flax raised on our farm and made our own tallow candles. mary, from what a thrifty and hard-working lot of ancestors you are descended! you inherit from your mother your love of work and from your father your love of books. your father's uncle was a noted shakespearean scholar." many old-time industries are passing away. yet sarah landis, was a housewife of the old school and still cooked apple butter, or "lodt varrik," as the germans call it; made sauerkraut and hard soap, and naked old-fashioned "german" rye bread on the hearth, which owed its excellence not only to the fact of its being hearth baked but to the rye flour being ground in an old mill in a near-by town, prepared by the old process of grinding between mill-stones instead of the more modern roller process. this picture of the old mill, taken by fritz schmidt, shows it is not artistic, but, like most articles of german manufacture, the mill was built more for its usefulness than to please the eye. [illustration: the old mill] "aunt sarah, what is pumpernickel?" inquired mary, "is it like rye bread?" "no, my dear, not exactly, it is a dark-colored bread, used in some parts of germany. professor schmidt tells me the bread is usually composed of a mixture of barley flour and rye flour. some i have eaten looks very much like our own brown bread. pumpernickel is considered a very wholesome bread by the germans--and i presume one might learn to relish it, but i should prefer good, sweet, home-made rye bread. i was told by an old gentleman who came to this country from germany when a boy, that pumpernickel was used in the german army years ago, and was somewhat similar to 'hard tack,' furnished our soldiers in the civil war. but i cannot vouch for the truth of this assertion." "aunt sarah," said mary later, "frau schmidt tells me the professor sends his rye to the mill and requests that every part of it be ground without separating--making what he calls 'whole rye flour,' and from this frau schmidt bakes wholesome, nutritious bread which they call 'pumpernickel,' she tells me she uses about one-third of this 'whole rye flour' to two-thirds white bread flour when baking bread, and she considers bread made from this whole grain more wholesome and nutritious than the bread made from our fine rye flour." chapter iv. john landis. the bucks county farmer, john landis, rather more scholarly in appearance than men ordinarily found in agricultural districts, was possessed of an adust complexion, caused by constant exposure to wind and weather; tall and spare, without an ounce of superfluous fat; energetic, and possessed of remarkable powers of endurance. he had a kindly, benevolent expression; his otherwise plain face was redeemed by fine, expressive brown eyes. usually silent and preoccupied, and almost taciturn, yet he possessed a fund of dry humor. an old-fashioned democrat, his wife was a republican. he usually accompanied aunt sarah to her church, the methodist, although he was a member of the german reformed, and declared he had changed his religion to please her, but change his politics, never. a member of the masonic lodge, his only diversion was an occasional trip to the city with a party of the "boys" to attend a meeting of the "shriners." aunt sarah protested. "the idea, john, at your age, being out so late at night and returning from the city on the early milk train the following morning, and then being still several miles from home. it's scandalous!" he only chuckled to himself; and what the entertainment had been, which was provided at lulu temple, and which he had so thoroughly enjoyed, was left to her imagination. his only remark when questioned was: "sarah, you're not in it. you are not a 'shriner.'" and as john had in every other particular fulfilled her ideal of what constitutes a good husband, sarah, like the wise woman she was, allowed the subject to drop. a good, practical, progressive farmer, john landis constantly read, studied and pondered over the problem of how to produce the largest results at least cost of time and labor. his crops were skillfully planted in rich soil, carefully cultivated and usually harvested earlier than those of his neighbors. one summer he raised potatoes so large that many of them weighed one pound each, and new potatoes and green peas, fresh from the garden, invariably appeared on aunt sarah's table the first of july, and sometimes earlier. i have known him to raise cornstalks which reached a height of thirteen feet, which were almost equaled by his wife's sunflower stalks, which usually averaged nine feet in height. aunt sarah, speaking one day to mary, said: "your uncle john is an unusually silent man. i have heard him remark that when people talk continuously they are either _very_ intelligent or tell untruths." he, happening to overhear her remark, quickly retorted: "the man who speaks a dozen tongues, when all is said and done, don't hold a match to him who knows how to keep still in one." when annoyed at his wife's talkativeness, her one fault in her husband's eyes, if he thought she had a fault, he had a way of saying, "alright, sarah, alright," as much as to say "that is final; you have said enough," in his peculiar, quick manner of speaking, which aunt sarah never resented, he being invariably kind and considerate in other respects. john landis was a successful farmer because he loved his work, and found joy in it. while not unmindful of the advantages possessed by the educated farmer of the present day, he said, "'tis not college lore our boys need so much as practical education to develop their efficiency. while much that we eat and wear comes out of the ground, we should have more farmers, the only way to lower the present high cost of living, which is such a perplexing problem to the housewife. there is almost no limit to what might be accomplished by some of our bright boys should they make agriculture a study. luther burbank says, 'to add but one kernel of corn to each ear grown in this country in a single year would increase the supply five million bushels.'" chapter v. the old farm house and garden. the old unpainted farm house, built of logs a century ago, had changed in the passing years to a grayish tint. an addition had been built to the house several years before aunt sarah's occupancy, the sober hue of the house harmonized with the great, gnarled old trunk of the meadow willow near-by. planted when the house was built, it spread its great branches protectingly over it. a wild clematis growing at the foot of the tree twined its tendrils around the massive trunk until in late summer they had become an inseparable part of it, almost covering it with feathery blossoms. [illustration: old corn crib] [illustration: the new barn] near by stood an antique arbor, covered with thickly-clustering vines, in season bending with the weight of "wild-scented" grapes, their fragrance mingling with the odor of "creek mint" growing near by a small streamlet and filling the air with a delicious fragrance. the mint had been used in earlier years by aunt sarah's grandfather as a beverage which he preferred to any other. from a vine clambering up the grape arbor trellies, in the fall of the year, hung numerous orange-colored balsam apples, which opened, when ripe, disclosing bright crimson interior and seeds. these apples, aunt sarah claimed, if placed in alcohol and applied externally, possessed great medicinal value as a specific for rheumatism. [illustration: the old farm house] a short distance from the house stood the newly-built red barn, facing the pasture lot. on every side stretched fields which, in summer, waved with wheat, oats, rye and buckwheat, and the corn crib stood close by, ready for the harvest to fill it to overflowing. beside the farm house door stood a tall, white oleander, planted in a large, green-painted wooden tub. near by, in a glazed earthenware pot, grew the old-fashioned lantana plant, covered with clusters of tiny blossoms, of various shades of orange, red and pink. in flower beds outlined by clam shells which had been freshly whitewashed blossomed fuchsias, bleeding hearts, verbenas, dusty millers, sweet clove-scented pinks, old-fashioned, dignified, purple digitalis or foxglove, stately pink princess feather, various brilliant-hued zinnias, or more commonly called "youth and old age," and as gayly colored, if more humble and lowly, portulacas; the fragrant white, star-like blossoms of the nicotiana, or "flowering tobacco," which, like the yellow primrose, are particularly fragrant at sunset. geraniums of every hue, silver-leaved and rose-scented; yellow marigolds and those with brown, velvety petals; near by the pale green and white-mottled leaves of the plant called "snow on the mountain" and in the centre of one of the large, round flower beds, grew sturdy "castor oil beans," their large, copper-bronze leaves almost covering the tiny blue forget-me-nots growing beneath. near the flower bed grew a thrifty bush of pink-flowering almonds; not far distant grew a spreading "shrub" bush, covered with fragrant brown buds, and beside it a small tree of pearly-white snowdrops. sarah landis loved the wholesome, earthy odors of growing plants and delighted in her flowers, particularly the perennials, which were planted promiscuously all over the yard. i have frequently heard her quote: "one is nearer god's heart in a garden than any place else on earth." and she would say, "i love the out-of-door life, in touch with the earth; the natural life of man or woman." inside the fence of the kitchen garden were planted straight rows of both red and yellow currants, and several gooseberry bushes. in one corner of the garden, near the summer kitchen, stood a large bush of black currants, from the yellow, sweet-scented blossoms of which aunt sarah's bees, those "heaven instructed mathematicians," sucked honey. think of aunt sarah's buckwheat cakes, eaten with honey made from currant, clover, buckwheat and dandelion blossoms! her garden was second to none in bucks county. she planted tomato seeds in boxes and placed them in a sunny window, raising her plants early; hence she had ripe tomatoes before any one else in the neighborhood. her peas were earlier also, and her beets and potatoes were the largest; her corn the sweetest; and, as her asparagus bed was always well salted, her asparagus was the finest to be had. through the centre of the garden patch, on either side the walk, were large flower beds, a blaze of brilliant color from early spring, when the daffodils blossomed, until frost killed the dahlias, asters, scarlet sage, sweet williams, canterbury bells, pink and white snapdragon, spikes of perennial, fragrant, white heliotrope; blue larkspur, four o'clocks, bachelor buttons and many other dear, old-fashioned flowers. the dainty pink, funnel-shaped blossoms of the hardy swamp "rose mallow'" bloomed the entire summer, the last flowers to be touched by frost, vying in beauty with the pink monthly roses planted near by. children who visited aunt sarah delighted in the small jerusalem cherry tree, usually covered with bright, scarlet berries, which was planted near the veranda, and they never tired pinching the tiny leaves of the sensitive plant to see them quickly droop, as if dead, then slowly unfold and straighten as if a thing of life. visitors to the farm greatly admired the large, creamy-white lily-like blossoms of the datura. farthest from the house were the useful herb beds, filled with parsley, hoarhound, sweet marjoram, lavender, saffron, sage, sweet basil, summer savory and silver-striped rosemary or "old man," as it was commonly called by country folk. tall clusters of phlox, a riot of color in midsummer, crimson-eyed, white and rose-colored blossoms topping the tall steins, and clusters of brilliant-red bergamot near by had been growing, from time immemorial, a cluster of green and white-striped grass, without which no door yard in this section of bucks county was considered complete in olden times. near by, silvery plumes of pampas grass gently swayed on their reed-like stems. even the garden was not without splashes of color, where, between rows of vegetables, grew pale, pink-petaled poppies, seeming to have scarcely a foothold in the rich soil. but the daintiest, sweetest bed of all, and the one that mary enjoyed most, was where the lilies of the valley grew in the shade near a large, white lilac bush. here, on a rustic bench beneath an old apple tree, stitching on her embroidery, she dreamed happy dreams of her absent lover, and planned for the life they were to live together some day, in the home he was striving to earn for her by his own manly exertions; and she assiduously studied and pondered over aunt sarah's teaching and counsel, knowing them to be wise and good. a short distance from the farm house, where the old orchard sloped down to the edge of the brook, grew tall meadow rue, with feathery clusters of green and white flowers; and the green, gold-lined, bowl-shaped blossoms of the "cow lily," homely stepsisters of the fragrant, white pond lily, surrounded by thick, waxy, green leaves, lazily floated on the surface of the water from long stems in the bed of the creek, and on the bank a carpet was formed by golden-yellow, creeping buttercups. in the side yard grew two great clumps of iris, or, as it is more commonly called, "blue flag." its blossoms, dainty as rare orchids, with lily-like, violet-veined petals of palest-tinted mauve and purple. on the sunny side of the old farm house, facing the east, where at early morn the sun shone bright and warm, grew aunt sarah's pansies, with velvety, red-brown petals, golden-yellow and dark purple. they were truly "heart's ease," gathered with a lavish hand, and sent as gifts to friends who were ill. the more she picked the faster they multiplied, and came to many a sick bed "sweet messengers of spring." if aunt sarah had a preference for one particular flower, 'twas the rose, and they well repaid the time and care she lavished on them. she had pale-tinted blush roses, with hearts of deepest pink; rockland and prairie and hundred-leaf roses, pink and crimson ramblers, but the most highly-prized roses of her collection were an exquisite, deep salmon-colored "marquis de sinety" and an old-fashioned pink moss rose, which grew beside a large bush of mock-orange, the creamy blossoms of the latter almost as fragrant as real orange blossoms of the sunny southland. not far distant, planted in a small bed by themselves, grew old-fashioned, sweet-scented, double petunias, ragged, ripple, ruffled corollas of white, with splotches of brilliant crimson and purple, their slender stems scarcely strong enough to support the heavy blossoms. in one of the sunniest spots in the old garden grew aunt sarah's latest acquisition. "the butterfly bush," probably so named on account of its graceful stems, covered with spikes of tiny, lilac-colored blossoms, over which continually hovered large, gorgeously-hued butterflies, vying with the flowers in brilliancy of color, from early june until late summer. aunt sarah's sunflowers, or "sonnen blume," as she liked to call them, planted along the garden fence to feed chickens and birds alike, were a sight worth seeing. the birds generally confiscated the larger portion of seeds. a pretty sight it was to see a flock of wild canaries, almost covering the tops of the largest sunflowers, busily engaged picking out the rich, oily seeds. aunt sarah loved the golden flowers, which always appeared to be nodding to the sun, and her sunflowers were particularly fine, some being as much as fifty inches in circumference. a bouquet of the smaller ones was usually to be seen in a quaint, old, blue-flowered, gray jar on the farm house veranda in summertime. earlier in the season blossoms of the humble artichoke, which greatly resemble small sunflowers, or large yellow daisies, filled the jar. failing either of these, she gathered large bouquets of golden-rod or wild carrot blossoms, both of which grew in profusion along the country lanes and roadside near the farm. but the old gray jar never held a bouquet more beautiful than the one of bright, blue "fringed gentians," gathered by aunt sarah in the fall of the year, several miles distant from the farm. chapter vi. mary confides in aunt sarah and gives her views on suffrage for women. "there's no deny'n women are foolish, god a'mighty made them to match the men." a short time after her arrival at the farm mary poured into the sympathetic ear of aunt sarah her hopes and plans. her lover, ralph jackson, to whom she had become engaged the past winter, held a position with the philadelphia electric company, and was studying hard outside working hours. his ambition was to become an electrical engineer. he was getting fair wages, and wished mary to marry him at once. she confessed she loved ralph too well to marry him, ignorant as she was of economical housekeeping and cooking. mary, early left an orphan, had studied diligently to fit herself for a kindergarten teacher, so she would be capable of earning her own living on leaving school, which accounted for her lack of knowledge of housework, cooking, etc. aunt sarah, loving mary devotedly, and knowing the young man of her choice to be clean, honest and worthy, promised to do all in her power to make their dream of happiness come true. learning from mary that ralph was thin and pale from close confinement, hard work and study, and of his intention of taking a short vacation, she determined he should spend it on the farm, where she would be able to "mother him." "you acted sensibly, mary," said her aunt, "in refusing to marry ralph at the present time, realizing your lack of knowledge of housework and inability to manage a home. neither would you know how to spend the money provided by him economically and wisely, and, in this age of individual efficiency, a business knowledge of housekeeping is almost as important in making a happy home as is love. i think it quite as necessary that a woman who marries should understand housekeeping in all its varied branches as that the man who marries should understand his trade or profession; for, without the knowledge of means to gain a livelihood (however great his love for a woman), how is the man to hold that woman's love and affection unless he is able by his own exertions to provide her with necessities, comforts, and, perhaps, in later years, luxuries? and in return, the wife should consider it her duty and pleasure to know how to do her work systematically; learn the value of different foods and apply the knowledge gained daily in preparing them; study to keep her husband in the best of health, physically and mentally. then will his efficiency be greater and he will be enabled to do his 'splendid best' in whatever position in life he is placed, be he statesman or hod-carrier. what difference, if an honest heart beat beneath a laborer's hickory shirt, or one of fine linen? 'one hand, if it's true, is as good as another, no matter how brawny or rough.' mary, do not think the trivial affairs of the home beneath your notice, and do not imagine any work degrading which tends to the betterment of the home. remember, 'who sweeps a room as for thy law, makes that and the action fine.' "our lives are all made up of such small, commonplace things and this is such a commonplace old world, mary. 'the commonplace earth and the commonplace sky make up the commonplace day,' and 'god must have loved common people, or he would not have made so many of them.' and, what if we are commonplace? we cannot all be artists, poets and sculptors. yet, how frequently we see people in commonplace surroundings, possessing the soul of an artist, handicapped by physical disability or lack of means! we are all necessary in the great, eternal plan. 'tis not good deeds alone for which we receive our reward, but for the performance of duty well done, in however humble circumstances our lot is cast. is it not lord houghton who says: 'do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things of life.' i consider a happy home in the true sense of the word one of the greatest of blessings. how important is the work of the housemother and homemaker who creates the home! there can be no happiness there unless the wheels of the domestic machinery are oiled by loving care and kindness to make them run smoothly, and the noblest work a woman can do is training and rearing her children. suffrage, the right of woman to vote; will it not take women from the home? i am afraid the home will then suffer in consequence. will man accord woman the same reverence she has received in the past? should she have equal political rights? a race lacking respect for women would never advance socially or politically. i think women could not have a more important part in the government of the land than in rearing and educating their children to be good, useful citizens. in what nobler work could women engage than in work to promote the comfort and well-being of the ones they love in the home? i say, allow men to make the laws, as god and nature planned. i think women should keep to the sphere god made them for--the home. said gladstone, 'woman is the most perfect when most womanly.' there is nothing, i think, more despicable than a masculine, mannish woman, unless it be an effeminate, sissy man. dr. clarke voiced my sentiments when he said: 'man is not superior to woman, nor woman to man. the relation of the sexes is one of equality, not of better or worse, of higher and lower. the loftiest ideal of humanity demands that each shall be perfect in its kind and not be hindered in its best work. the lily is not inferior to the rose, nor the oak superior to the clover; yet the glory of the lily is one and the glory of the oak is another, and the use of the oak is not the use of the clover.' "this present-day generation demands of women greater efficiency in the home than ever before. and mary, many of the old-time industries which i had been accustomed to as a girl have passed away. electricity and numerous labor-saving devices make household tasks easier, eliminating some altogether. when housekeeping you will find time to devote to many important questions of the day which we old-time housekeepers never dreamed of having. considerable thought should be given to studying to improve and simplify conditions of the home-life. it is your duty. obtain books; study food values and provide those foods which nourish the body, instead of spending time uselessly preparing dainties to tempt a jaded appetite. don't spoil ralph when you marry him. give him good, wholesome food, and plenty of it; but although the cooking of food takes up much of a housekeeper's time, it is not wise to allow it to take up one's time to the exclusion of everything else. mary, perhaps my views are old-fashioned. i am not a 'new woman' in any sense of the word. the new woman may take her place beside man in the business world and prove equally as efficient, but i do not think woman should invade man's sphere any more than he should assume her duties." "aunt sarah, i am surprised to hear you talk in that manner about woman's sphere," replied mary, "knowing what a success you are in the home, and how beautifully you manage everything you undertake. i felt, once you recognized the injustice done woman in not allowing them to vote, you would feel differently, and since women are obliged to obey the laws, should they not have a voice in choosing the lawmakers? when you vote, it will not take you out of the home. you and uncle john will merely stop on your way to the store, and instead of uncle john going in to write and register what he thinks should be done and by whom it should be done, you too will express your opinion. this will likely be twice a year. by doing this, no woman loses her womanliness, goodness or social position, and to these influences the vote is but another influence. i know there are many things in connection with the right of equal suffrage with what you do not sympathize. "aunt sarah, let me tell you about a dear friend of mine who taught school with me in the city. emily taught a grammar grade, and did not get the same salary the men teachers received for doing the same work, which i think was unfair. emily studied and frequently heard and read about what had been done in colorado and other states where women vote. she got us all interested, and the more we learned about the cause the harder we worked for it. emily married a nice, big, railroad man. they bought a pretty little house in a small town, had three lovely children and were very happy. more than ever as time passed emily realized the need of woman's influence in the community. it is true, i'll admit, aunt sarah, housekeeping and especially home-making are the great duties of every woman, and to provide the most wholesome, nourishing food possible for the family is the duty of every mother, as the health, comfort and happiness of the family depend so largely on the _common sense_ (only another name for efficiency) and skill of the homemaker, and the wise care and though she expends on the preparation of wholesome, nutritious food in the home, either the work of her own hands or prepared under her direction. you can _not_ look after these duties without getting _outside_ of your home, especially when you live like emily, in a town where the conditions are so different from living as you do on a farm in the country. milk, bread and water are no longer controlled by the woman in her home, living in cities and towns; and just because women want to look out for their families they should have a voice in the larger problems of municipal housekeeping. to return to emily, she did not bake her own bread, as you do, neither did she keep a cow, but bought milk and bread to feed the children. wasn't it her duty to leave the home and see where these products were produced, and if they were sanitary? and, knowing the problem outside the home would so materially affect the health, and perhaps lives, of her children, she felt it her distinctive duty to keep house in a larger sense. when the children became old enough to attend school, emily again took up her old interest in schools. she began to realize how much more just it would be if an equal number of women were on the school board." "but what did the husband think of all this?" inquired aunt sarah, dubiously. "oh, tom studied the case, too, at first just to tease emily, but he soon became as enthusiastic as emily. he said, 'the first time you are privileged to vote, emily, i will hire an automobile to take you to the polls in style.' but poor emily was left alone with her children last winter. tom died of typhoid fever. contracted it from the bad drainage. they lived in a town not yet safeguarded with sewerage. now emily is a taxpayer as well as a mother, and she has no say as far as the town and schools are concerned. there are many cases like that, where widows and unmarried women own property, and they are in no way represented. and think of the thousands and thousands of women who have no home to stay in and no babies to look after." "mercy, mary! do stop to take breath. i never thought when i started this subject i would have an enthusiastic suffragist with whom to deal." "i am glad you started the subject, aunt sarah, because there is so much to be said for the cause. i saw you glance at the clock and i see it is time to prepare supper. but some day i'm going to stop that old clock and bring down some of my books on 'woman's suffrage' and you'll he surprised to hear what they have done in states where equal privileges were theirs. i am sure 'twill not be many years before every state in the union will give women the right of suffrage." * * * * * after mary retired that evening aunt sarah had a talk with her john, whom she knew needed help on the farm. as a result of the conference, mary wrote to ralph the following day, asking him to spend his vacation on the farm as a "farm hand." needless to say, the offer was gladly accepted by ralph, if for no other reason than to be near the girl he loved. ralph came the following week--"a strapping big fellow," to quote uncle john, being several inches over six feet. "all you need, young chap," said mary's uncle, "is plenty of good, wholesome food of sarah's and mary's preparing, and i'll see that you get plenty of exercise in the fresh air to give you an appetite to enjoy it, and you'll get a healthy coat of tan on your pale cheeks before the summer is ended." ralph jackson, or "jack," as he was usually called by his friends, an orphan like mary, came of good, old quaker stock, his mother having died immediately after giving birth to her son. his father, supposed to be a wealthy contractor, died when ralph was seventeen, having lost his fortune through no fault of his own, leaving ralph penniless. ralph jackson possessed a good face, a square, determined jaw, sure sign of a strong will and quick temper; these berserker traits he inherited from his father; rather unusual in a quaker. he possessed a head of thick, coarse, straight brown hair, and big honest eyes. one never doubted his word, once it had been given. 'twas good as his bond. this trait he inherited also from his father, noted for his truth and integrity. ralph was generous to a fault. when a small boy he was known to take off his shoes and give them to a poor little italian (who played a violin on the street for pennies) and go home barefoot. ralph loved mary devotedly, not only because she fed him well at the farm, as were his forefathers, the "cave men," fed by their mates in years gone by, but he loved her first for her sweetness of disposition and lovable ways; later, for her quiet unselfishness and lack of temper over trifles--so different from himself. when speaking to mary of his other fine qualities, aunt sarah said: "ralph is a manly young fellow; likeable, i'll admit, but his hasty temper is a grave fault in my eyes." mary replied, "don't you think men are very queer, anyway, aunt sarah? i do, and none of us is perfect." [illustration: ralph jackson] to mary, ralph's principal charm lay in his strong, forceful way of surmounting difficulties, she having a disposition so different. mary had a sweet, motherly way, seldom met with in so young a girl, and this appealed to ralph, he having never known "mother love," and although not at all inclined to be sentimental, he always called mary his "little mother girl" because of her motherly ways. [illustration: rocky valley] "well," continued mary's aunt, "a quick temper is one of the most difficult faults to overcome that flesh is heir to, but ralph, being a young man of uncommon good sense, may in time curb his temper and learn to control it, knowing that unless be does so it will handicap him in his career. still, a young girl will overlook many faults in the man she loves. mary, ere marrying, one should be sure that no love be lacking to those entering these sacred bonds. 'tis not for a day, but for a lifetime, to the right thinking. marriage, as a rule, is too lightly entered into in this twentieth century of easy divorces, and but few regard matrimony in its true holy relation, ordained by our creator. if it be founded on the tower of enduring love and not ephemeral passion, it is unassailable, lasting in faith and honor until death breaks the sacred union and annuls the vows pledged at god's holy altar." "well," replied mary, as her aunt paused to take breath, "i am sure of my love for ralph." "god grant you may both be happy," responded her aunt. "mary, did you ever hear this persian proverb? you will understand why i have so much to say after hearing it." "'says a proverb of persia provoking mirth; when this world was created by order divine. ten measures of talk were put down on the earth, and the woman took nine.'" speaking to mary of life on the farm one day, ralph laughingly said: "i am taught something new every day. yesterday your uncle told me it was 'time to plant corn when oak leaves were large as squirrels' ears.'" ralph worked like a trojan. in a short time both his hands and face took on a butternut hue. he became strong and robust. mary called him her "cave man," and it taxed the combined efforts of aunt sarah and mary to provide food to satisfy the ravenous appetite mary's "cave man" developed. and often, after a busy day, tired but happy, mary fell asleep at night to the whispering of the leaves of the carolina poplar outside her bedroom window. but country life on a farm has its diversions. one of mary's and ralph's greatest pleasures after a busy day at the farm was a drive about the surrounding country early summer evenings, frequently accompanied by either elizabeth or pauline schmidt, their nearest neighbors. one of the first places visited by them was a freak of nature called "rocky valley," situated at no great distance from the farm. [illustration: professor schmidt] chapter vii professor schmidt. a small country place named "five oaks," a short distance from "clear spring" farm, was owned by a very worthy and highly-educated, but rather eccentric, german professor. he came originally from heidelberg, but had occupied the position of professor of german for many years in a noted university in a near by town. a kind, warm-hearted, old-fashioned gentleman was the professor; a perfect lord chesterfield in manners. very tall, thin almost to emaciation, although possessed of excellent health; refined, scholarly looking: a rather long, hooked nose, faded, pale-blue eyes; snowy, flowing "lord dundreary" whiskers, usually parted in the centre and twisted to a point on either side with the exceedingly long, bony fingers of his well-kept, aristocratic-looking white hands. he had an abrupt, quick, nervous manner when speaking. a fringe of thin, white hair showed at the lower edge of the black silk skull cap which he invariably wore about home, and in the absence of this covering for his bald head, he would not have looked natural to his friends. the professor always wore a suit of well-brushed, "shiny" black broadcloth, and for comfort old-fashioned soft kid "gaiters," with elastic in the sides. he was a man with whom one did not easily become acquainted, having very decided opinions on most subjects. he possessed exquisite taste, a passionate love of music, flowers and all things beautiful; rather visionary, poetical and a dreamer; he was not practical, like his wife; warm-hearted, impulsive, energetic frau schmidt, who was noted for her executive abilities. i can imagine the old professor saying as mohammed has been quoted as saying, "had i two loaves, i would sell one and buy hyacinths to feed my soul." impulsive, generous to a fault, quick to take offense, withal warm-hearted, kind and loyal to his friends, he was beloved by the students, who declared that "old snitzy" always played fair when he was obliged to reprimand them for their numerous pranks, which ended sometimes, i am obliged to confess, with disastrous results. the dignified old professor would have raised his mild, blue, spectacled eyes in astonishment had he been so unfortunate as to have overheard the boys, to whom he was greatly attached, call their dignified preceptor by such a nickname. the professor's little black-eyed german wife, many years younger than her husband, had been, before her marriage, teacher of domestic science in a female college in a large city. "she was a most excellent housekeeper," to quote the professor, and "a good wife and mother." the family consisted of "fritz," a boy of sixteen, with big, innocent, baby-blue eyes like his father, who idolized his only son, who was alike a joy and a torment. fritz attended the university in a near-by town, and was usually head of the football team. he was always at the front in any mischief whatever, was noted for getting into scrapes innumerable through his love of fun, yet he possessed such a good-natured, unselfish, happy-go-lucky disposition that one always forgave him. black-eyed, red-cheeked elizabeth was quick and impulsive, like her mother. a very warm and lasting friendship sprung up between merry elizabeth and serious mary midleton during mary's summer on the farm, although not at all alike in either looks or disposition, and elizabeth was mary's junior by several years. the third, last and least of the professor's children was pauline, or "pollykins," as she was always called by her brother fritz, the seven-year-old pet and baby of the family. a second edition of fritz, the same innocent, questioning, violet-blue eyes, fair complexion, a kissable little mouth and yellow, kinky hair, she won her way into every one's heart and became greatly attached to mary, who was usually more patient with the little maid (who, i must confess, was sometimes very willful) than was her sister elizabeth. mary, who had never been blessed with a sister, dearly loved children, and thought small "polly" adorable, and never wearied telling her marvelous fairy tales. [illustration: frau schmidt] chapter viii. uses of an old-fashioned wardrobe. shortly after mary's advent at the farm she one day said: "aunt sarah, the contents of this old trunk are absolutely worthless to me; perhaps they may be used by you for carpet rags." "mary midleton!" exclaimed aunt sarah, in horrified tones, "you extravagant girl. i see greater possibilities in that trunk of partly-worn clothing than, i suppose, a less economically-inclined woman than i ever would have dreamed of." mary handed her aunt two blue seersucker dresses, one plain, the other striped. "they have both shrunken, and are entirely too small for me," said mary. "well," said her aunt, considering, "they might be combined in one dress, but you need aprons for kitchen work more useful than those little frilly, embroidered affairs you are wearing. we should make them into serviceable aprons to protect your dresses. mary, neatness is an attribute that every self-respecting housewife should assiduously cultivate, and no one can be neat in a kitchen without a suitable apron to protect one from grime, flour and dust." "what a pretty challis dress; its cream-colored ground sprinkled over with pink rose buds!" mary sighed. "i always did love that dress, aunt sarah, 'twas so becoming, and he--he--admired it so!" "and he, can do so still," replied aunt sarah, with a merry twinkle in her kind, clear, gray eyes, "for that pale-green suesine skirt, slightly faded, will make an excellent lining, with cotton for an interlining, and pale green germantown yarn with which to tie the comfortable. at small cost you'll have a dainty, warm spread which will be extremely pretty in the home you are planning with him. i have several very pretty-old-style patchwork quilts in a box in the attic which i shall give you when you start housekeeping. that pretty dotted, ungored swiss skirt will make dainty, ruffled sash curtains for bedroom windows. mary, sometimes small beginnings make great endings; if you make the best of your small belongings, some day your homely surroundings will be metamorphosed into what, in your present circumstances, would seem like extravagant luxuries. an economical young couple, beginning life with a homely, home-made rag carpet, have achieved in middle age, by their own energy and industry, carpets of tapestry and rich velvet, and costly furniture in keeping; but, never--never, dear, are they so valued, i assure you, as those inexpensive articles, conceived by our inventive brain and manufactured by our own deft fingers during our happy springtime of life when, with our young lover husband, we built our home nest on the foundation of pure, unselfish, self-sacrificing love." aunt sarah sighed; memory led her far back to when she had planned her home with her lover, john landis, still her lover, though both have grown gray together, and shared alike the joys and sorrows of the passing years. aunt sarah had always been the perfect "housemother" or "haus frau," as the germans phrase it, and on every line of her matured face could be read an anxious care for the family welfare. truly could it be said of her, in the language of henry ward beecher: "whoever makes home seem to the young dearer and happier is a public benefactor." aunt sarah said earnestly to mary, "i wish it were possible for me to impart to young, inexperienced girls, about to become housewives and housemothers, a knowledge of those small economics, so necessary to health and prosperity, taught me by many years of hard work, mental travail, experience and some failures. in this extravagant twentieth century economy is more imperative than formerly. we feel that we need so much more these days than our grandmothers needed; and what we need, or feel that we need, is so costly. the housemother has larger problems today than yesterday. "every husband should give his wife an allowance according to his income, so that she will be able to systematize her buying and occasionally obtain imperishable goods at less cost. being encouraged thus to use her dormant economical powers; she will become a powerful factor in the problem of home-making along lines that will essentially aid her husband in acquiring a comfortable competency, if not a fortune. then she will have her husband's interest truly at heart; will study to spend his money carefully, and to the best advantage; and she herself, even, will be surprised at the many economies which will suggest themselves to save his hard-earned money when she handles that money herself, which certainly teaches her the saving habit and the value of money. "the majority of housewives of today aren't naturally inclined to be extravagant or careless. it is rather that they lack the knowledge and experience of spending money, and spending it to the best advantage for themselves and their household needs. "'tis a compulsory law in england, i have heard, to allow a wife pin money, according to a man's means. 'tis a most wise law. to a loyal wife and mother it gives added force, dignity and usefulness to have a sufficient allowance and to be allowed unquestioningly to spend that money to her best ability. her husband, be he a working or professional man, would find it greatly to his advantage in the home as well as in his business and less of a drain on his bank account should he give his wife a suitable allowance and trust her to spend it according to her own intelligence and thrift. "child, many a man is violently prejudiced against giving a young wife money; many allow her to run up bills, to her hurt and to his, rather than have her, even in her household expenditure, independent of his supervision. i sincerely hope, dear, that your intended, ralph jackson, will be superior to this male idiosyncrasy, to term it mildly, and allow you a stated sum monthly. the home is the woman's kingdom, and she should be allowed to think for it, to buy for it, and not to be cramped by lack of money to do as she thinks best for it." "but, aunt sarah, some housewives are so silly that husbands cannot really be blamed for withholding money from them and preventing them from frittering it away in useless extravagance." "mary, wise wives should not suffer for those who are silly and extravagant. i don't like to be sarcastic, but with the majority of the men, silliness appeals to them more than common sense. men like to feel their superiority to us. however, though inexperienced, mary, you aren't silly or extravagant, and ralph could safely trust you with his money. it makes a woman so self-respecting, puts her on her mettle, to have money to do as she pleases with, to be trusted, relied upon as a reasoning, responsible being. a man, especially a young husband, makes a grave mistake when he looks upon his wife as only a toy to amuse him in his leisure moments and not as one to be trusted to aid him in his life work. a trusted young housewife, with a reasonable and regular allowance at her command, be she ever so inexperienced, will soon plan to have wholesome, nutritious food at little cost, instead of not knowing until a half hour before meal time what she will serve. she would save money and the family would be better nourished; nevertheless, i would impress it on the young housewife not to be too saving or practice too close economy, especially when buying milk and eggs, as there is nothing more nutritious or valuable. a palatable macaroni and cheese; eggs or a combination of eggs and milk, are dishes which may be substituted occasionally, at less expense, for meat. a pound of macaroni and cheese equals a pound of steak in food value. take time and trouble to see that all food be well cooked and served, both in an attractive and appetizing manner. buy the cheaper cuts of stewing meats, and by long, slow simmering, they will become sweet and tender and of equal nutritive value as higher priced sirloins and tenderloins. "but, mary, i've not yet finished that trunk and its contents. that slightly-faded pink chambray i'll cut up into quilt blocks. made up with white patches, and quilted nicely, a pretty quilt lined with white, will be evolved. i have such a pretty design of pink and white called the 'winding way,' very simple to make. the beauty of the quilt consists altogether in the manner in which the blocks are put together, or it might be made over the pattern called 'the flying dutchman.' from that tan linen skirt may be made a laundry bag, shoe pocket, twine bag, a collar bag and a table runner, the only expense being several skeins of green embroidery silk, and a couple yards of green cord to draw the bags up with, and a couple of the same-hued skirt braids for binding edges, and," teasingly, "mary, you might embroider ralph jackson's initials on the collar and laundry bag." [illustration: a- pine tree quilt a- tree of life a- pineapple a- enlarged block of winding way quilt a- lost rose in the wilderness a- tree quilt] mary blushed rosily red and exclaimed in an embarrassed manner, most bewitchingly, "oh!" aunt sarah laughed. she thought to have mary look that way 'twas worth teasing her. "well, mary, we can in leisure moments, from that coarse, white linen skirt which you have discarded, make bureau scarfs, sideboard cover, or a set of scalloped table mats to place under hot dishes on your dining-room table. i will give you pieces of asbestos to slip between the linen mats when finished. they are a great protection to the table. you could also make several small guest towels with deep, hemstitched ends with your initials on. you embroider so beautifully, and the drawn work you do is done as expertly as that of the mexican women." "oh, aunt sarah, how ingenious you are." "and, mary, your rag carpet shall not be lacking. we shall tear up those partly-worn muslin skirts into strips one-half inch in width, and use the dyes left over from dyeing easter eggs. i always save the dye for this purpose, they come in such pretty, bright colors. the rags, when sewed together with some i have in the attic, we'll have woven into a useful carpet for the home you are planning.' "oh! aunt sarah," exclaimed mary, "do you mean a carpet like the one in the spare bedroom?" "yes, my dear, exactly like that, if you wish." "indeed i do, and i think one like that quite good enough to have in a dining-room. i think it so pretty. it does not look at all like a common rag carpet." "no, my dear, it is nothing very uncommon. it is all in the way it is woven. instead of having two gay rainbow stripes about three inches wide running through the length of the carpet, i had it woven with the ground work white and brown chain to form checks. then about an inch apart were placed two threads of two shades of red woolen warp, alternating with two threads of two shades of green, across the whole width, running the length of the carpet. it has been greatly admired, as it is rather different from that usually woven. all the rag carpets i found in the house when we moved here, made by john's mother, possessed very wide stripes of rainbow colors, composed of shaded reds, yellows, blues and greens. you can imagine how very gorgeous they were, and so very heavy. many of the country weavers use linen chain or warp instead of cotton, and always use wool warp for the stripes." "aunt sarah, i want something so very much for the colonial bedroom i should like to have when i have a home of my very own." "what is it, dear? anything, e'en to the half of my kingdom," laughingly replied her aunt. "why, i'd love to have several rag rugs like those in your bedroom, which you call 'new colonial' rugs." "certainly, my dear. they are easily made from carpet rags. i have already planned in my mind a pretty rag rug for you, to be made from your old, garnet merino shirtwaist, combined with your discarded cravenette stormcoat. "and you'll need some pretty quilts, also," said her aunt. "i particularly admire the tree quilts," said mary. "you may have any one you choose; the one called 'tree of paradise,' another called 'pineapple design,' which was originally a border to 'fleur de lis' quilt or 'pine tree,' and still another called 'tree of life,' and 'the lost rose in the wilderness.'" "they are all so odd," said mary, "i scarcely know which one i think prettiest." "all are old-fashioned quilts, which i prize highly," continued her aunt. "several i pieced together when a small girl, i think old-time patchwork too pretty and useful an accomplishment to have gone out of fashion. "you shall have a small stand cover like the one you admired so greatly, given me by aunt cornelia. it is very simple, the materials required being a square of yard-wide unbleached muslin. in the centre of this baste a large, blue-flowered handkerchief with cream-colored ground, to match the muslin. turn up a deep hem all around outside edge; cut out quarter circles of the handkerchief at each of four corners; baste neatly upon the muslin, leaving a space of muslin the same width as the hem around each quarter circle; briarstitch all turned-in edges with dark-blue embroidery silk, being washable, these do nicely as covers for small tables or stands on the veranda in summertime." "aunt sarah," ecstatically exclaimed mary, "you are a wizard to plan so many useful things from a trunk of apparently useless rags. what a treasure uncle has in you. i was fretting about having so little to make my home attractive, but i feel quite elated at the thought of having a carpet and rugs already planned, besides the numerous other things evolved from your fertile brain." aunt sarah loved a joke. she held up an old broadcloth cape. "here is a fine patch for ralph jackson's breeches, should he ever become sedentary and need one." mary reddened and looked almost offended and was at a loss for a reply. [illustration: a- fleur delys quilt a- oak leaf quilt a- one block of fleur delys quilt a- winding way quilt a- tulip quilt a- flower pot quilt] greatly amused, aunt sarah quoted ex-president roosevelt: "'tis time for the man with the patch to come forward and the man with the dollar to step back,'" and added, "never mind, mary, your ralph is such an industrious, hustling young man that he will never need a patch to step forward, i prophesy that with such a helpmeet and 'haus frau' as you, mary, he'll always be most prosperous and happy. kiss me, dear." mary did so, and her radiant smile at such praise from her honored relative was beautiful to behold. [illustration: old rag carpet] chapter ix. poetry and pie. "aunt sarah," questioned mary one day, "do you mind if i copy some of your recipes?" "certainly not, my dear," replied her aunt. "and i'd like to copy some of the poems, also, i never saw any one else have so much poetry in a book of cooking recipes." "perhaps not," replied her aunt, "but you know, mary, i believe in combining pleasure with my work, and our lives are made up of poetry and prose, and some lives are so very prosy. many times when too tired to look up a favorite volume of poems, it has rested me to turn the pages of my recipe book and find some helpful thought, and a good housewife will always keep her book of recipes where it may be readily found for reference. i think, mary, the poem 'pennsylvania,' by lydia m.d. o'neil, a fine one, and i never tire of reading it over and over again. i have always felt grateful to my old schoolmaster. professor t----, for teaching me, when a school girl, to love the writing of longfellow, whittier, bryant, tennyson and other well-known poets. i still, in memory, hear him repeat 'thanatopsis,' by bryant and 'the builders,' by longfellow. the rhymes of the 'fireside poet' are easily understood, and never fail to touch the heart of common folk. i know it appears odd to see so many of my favorite poems sandwiched in between old, valued cooking recipes, but, mary, the happiness of the home life depends so largely on the food we consume. on the preparation and selection of the food we eat depends our health, and on our health is largely dependent our happiness and prosperity. who is it has said, 'the discovery of a new dish makes more for the happiness of man than the discovery of a star'? so, dearie, you see there is not such a great difference between the one who writes a poem and the one who makes a pie. i think cooking should be considered one of the fine arts--and the woman who prepares a dainty, appetizing dish of food, which appeals to the sense of taste, should be considered as worthy of praise as the artist who paints a fine picture to gratify our sense of sight. i try to mix all the poetry possible in prosaic every-day life. we country farmers' wives, not having the opportunities of our more fortunate city sisters, such as witnessing plays from shakespeare, listening to symphony concerts, etc., turn to 'the friendship of books,' of which washington irving writes: 'cheer us with the true friendship, which never deceived hope nor deserted sorrow.'" "yes," said mary, "but remember, aunt sarah, chautauqua will be held next summer in a near-by town, and, as uncle john is one of the guarantors, you will wish to attend regularly and will, i know, enjoy hearing the excellent lectures, music and concerts." "yea," replied her aunt, "chautauqua meetings will commence the latter part of june, and i will expect you and ralph to visit us then. i think chautauqua a godsend to country women, especially farmers' wives; it takes them away from their monotonous daily toil and gives them new thoughts and ideas." "i can readily understand, aunt sarah, why the poem, 'life's common things,' appeals to you; it is because you see beauty in everything. aunt sarah, where did you get this very old poem, 'the deserted city'?" "why, that was given me by john's uncle, who thought the poem fine." "sad is the sight, the city once so fair! an hundred palaces lie buried there; her lofty towers are fallen, and creepers grow o'er marbled dome and shattered portico. "once in the gardens, lovely girls at play, culled the bright flowers, and gently touched the spray; but now wild creatures in their savage joy tread down the flowers and the plants destroy. "by night no torches in the windows gleam; by day no women in their beauty beam; the smoke has ceased--the spider there has spread his snares in safety--and all else is dead." "indeed, it is a 'gem,'" said mary, after slowly reading aloud parts of several stanzas. "yes," replied her aunt, "professor schmidt tells me the poem was written by kalidasa (the shakespeare of hindu literature), and was written years before goldsmith gave us his immortal work, 'the deserted village.'" "i like the poem, 'abou ben adhem and the angel,'" said mary, "and i think this true by henry ward beecher:" "'do not be troubled because you have not great virtues, god made a million spears of grass where he made one tree; the earth is fringed and carpeted not with forests but with grasses, only have enough of little virtues and common fidelities, and you need not mourn because you are neither a hero nor a saint.' "this is a favorite little poem of mine, aunt sarah. i'll just write it on this blank page in your book." there's a little splash of sunshine and a little spot of shade, always somewhere near, the wise bask in the sunshine, but the foolish choose the shade. the wise are gay and happy, on the foolish, sorrow's laid, and the fault's their own, i fear. for the little splash of sunshine and the little spot of shade are here for joint consumption, for comparison are made; we're all meant to be happy, not too foolish or too staid. and the right dose to be taken is some sunshine mixed with shade. "aunt sarah, i see there is still space on this page to write another poem, a favorite of mine. it is called, 'be strong,' by maltbie davenport." be strong! we are not here to play, to dream, to drift; we have hard word to do, and loads to lift, shun not the struggle; face it, 'tis god's gift. be strong! say not the days are evil--who's to blame? and fold the hands and acquiesce--oh, shame! stand up, speak out, and bravely, in god's name. be strong! it matters not how deep intrenched the wrong, how hard the battle goes, the day how long; faint not, fight on! tomorrow comes the song, life's common things. how lovely are life's common things. when health flows in the veins; the golden sunshine of the days when phoebus holds the reins; the floating clouds against the blue; the fragrance of the air; the nodding flowers by the way; the green grass everywhere; the feathery beauty of the elm, with graceful-swaying boughs. where nesting songbirds find a home and the night wind sighs and soughs; the hazy blue of distant hill, with wooded slope and crest; the crimson sky when low at night the sun sinks in the west; the thrilling grandeur of the storm, the lightning's vivid flash, the mighty rush of wind and rain, the thunder's awful crash. and then the calm that follows storm, and rainbow in the sky; the rain-washed freshness of the earth-- a singing bird near by. and oh, the beauty of the night! its hush, its thrill, its charm; the twinkling brilliance of its stars; its tranquil peace and calm. oh, loving fatherhood of god to give us every day the lovely common things of life to brighten all the way! (susan m. perkins, in the boston transcript) abou ben adhem and the angel. abou ben adhem--may his tribe increase-- awoke one night from a deep dream of peace and saw, within the moonlight of his room, making it rich and like a lily in bloom, an angel writing in a book of gold. exceeding peace had made ben adhem bold, and to the presence in the room he said: "what writest thou?" the vision raised his head, and with a look made of all sweet accord, answered: "the names of those who love the lord." "and is mine one?" said abou. "nay, not so," replied the angel. abou spoke low, but cheerily still, and said, "i pray thee, then, write me as one that loves his fellow-men." the angel wrote and vanished. the next night it came again, with a great, wakening light, and showed the names whom love of god had blessed, and, lo! ben adhem's name led all the rest. leigh hunt. chapter x. sibylla linsabigler. a very original character was sibylla linsabigler, who had been a member of the landis household several years. she was aunt sarah's only maid servant, but she disliked being referred to as a servant, and when she overheard "fritz" schmidt, as he passed the landis farm on his way to the creek for a days fishing, call to mary: "miss midleton, will you please send the butter over with the servant today, as i shall not return home in time for dinner" sibylla said, "i ain't no servant. i'm hired girl what does that make out if i do work here? pop got mad with me 'cause i wouldn't work at home no more for him and mom without they paid me. they got three more girls to home yet that can do the work. my pop owns a big farm and sent our 'chon' to the college, and it's mean 'fer' him not to give us girls money for dress, so i work out, 'taint right the way us people what has to work are treated these days," said sibylla to herself, as she applied the broom vigorously to the gay-flowered carpet in the landis parlor. "because us folks got to work ain't no reason why them tony people over to the perfessor's should call me a 'servant.' i guess i know i milk the cows, wash dishes, scrub floors, and do the washin' and ir'nin' every week, but i'm no 'servant,' i'm just as good any day as that good-fer-nothin' perfesser's son," continued sibylla, growing red in the face with indignation. "didn't i hear that worthless scamp, fritz schmidt, a-referrin' to me and a-sayin' to miss midleton fer the 'servant' to bring over the butter? betch yer life this here 'servant' ain't a-goin' to allow eddicated people to make a fool of her. first chance i get i'll give that perfesser a piece of my mind." sibylla's opportunity came rather unexpectedly. the gentle, mild-mannered professor was on good terms with his sturdy, energetic neighbor, john landis, and frequently visited him for a neighborly chat. on this particular day he called as usual and found sibvlla in the mood described. "good afternoon, sibylla," said the professor, good-naturedly. "how are you today?" "i'd be a whole lot better if some people weren't so smart," replied sibylla, venting her feelings on the broom. "should think a perfesser would feel himself too big to talk to a 'servant'." "on the contrary, my dear girl, i feel honored. i presume you are not feeling as well as usual. what makes you think it is condescension for me to address you?" asked the genial old man, kindly. "well, since you ask me, i don't mind a-tellin' you. yesterday your son insulted me, i won't take no insult from nobody, i am just as good as what you are, even if i hain't got much book larnin'." with this deliverance, sibylla felt she had done full justice to the occasion and would have closed the interview abruptly had not the professor, with a restraining hand, detained her. "we must get to the bottom of this grievance, sibylla. i am sure there is some mistake somewhere. what did my son say?" "well, if you want to know," replied the irate domestic, 'i'll tell you. he called me a 'servant.' i know i'm only a working girl, but your son nor nobody else ain't got no right to abuse me by callin' me a 'servant'." "ah! i see. you object to the term 'servant' being applied to you," said the professor, comprehendingly. "the word 'servant' is distasteful to you. you feel it is a disgrace to be called a servant. i see! i see!" in a fatherly way, the old man resumed: "in a certain sense we are all servants. the history of human achievements is a record of service. the men and women who have helped the world most were all servants--servants to humanity. the happiest man is he who serves. god calls some men to sow and some to reap; some to work in wood and stone; to sing and speak. work is honorable in all, regardless of the capacity in which we serve. there is no great difference, after all, between the ordinary laborer and the railroad president; both are servants, and the standard of measurement to be applied to each man is the same. it is not so much a question of station in life as it is the question of efficiency. best of all, work is education. there is culture that comes without college and university. he who graduates from the college of hard work is as honorable as he who takes a degree at yale or harvard; for wisdom can be found in shop and foundry, field and factory, in the kitchen amid pots and kettles, as well as in office and school. the truly educated man is the man who has learned the duty and responsibility of doing something useful, something helpful, something to make this old world of ours better and a happier place in which to live. the word 'servant,' sibylla, is a beautiful one, rightly understood. the greatest man who ever lived was a servant. all his earthly ministry was filled with worthy deeds. when man pleaded with him to rest, he answered: 'my father worketh hitherto, and i work.' when one of christ's followers desired to express the true nature of his work and office, he called himself a servant. he used a word, 'doulos,' which means, in the greek language, a slave or a bond-servant. by the word 'doulos' he meant to say that his mission in life was to work, to do good, to serve. this man was a great preacher, but it is possible for any one to become a 'doulos' in so far as he is willing to serve god and his fellowman. you see, sibylla, the spirit of christian work and brotherly love is the spirit of 'doulos.' the word has been transformed by service and unselfish devotion to duty. great men who have blessed the world, and good and noble women who have helped to uplift humanity, have done it through service. it is just as honorable to bake well, and cook well, and to do the humblest daily tasks efficiently, as it is to play well on the piano and talk fluently about the latest books." at the conclusion of the professor's little talk on the dignity of labor, a new light shone in sibylla's eyes and a new thought gripped her soul. the spirit of "doulos" had displaced her antipathy toward the word servant. "i'll take that butter over to the professer's home right away," she said, to herself. before leaving sibylla, the professor quoted from the "toiling of felix," by henry vandyke: "hewing wood and drawing water, splitting stones and cleaving sod, all the dusty ranks of labour, in the regiment of god, march together toward his triumph, do the task his hands prepare; honest toil is holy service, faithful work is praise and prayer." they who work without complaining, do the holy will of god. heaven is blest with perfect rest, but the blessing of earth is toil. sibylla linsabigler was a healthy, large-boned, solidly-built, typical "pennsylvania german" girl. her clear, pinkish complexion looked as if freshly scrubbed with soap and water. a few large, brown freckles adorned the bridge of her rather broad, flat nose. she possessed red hair and laughing, red-brown eyes, a large mouth, which disclosed beautiful even, white teeth when she smiled, extraordinary large feet and hands, strong, willing and usually good-natured, although possessed of a quick temper, as her red hair indicated. kind-hearted to a fault, she was of great assistance to aunt sarah, although she preferred any other work to that of cooking or baking. she kept the kitchen as well as other parts of the house, to quote aunt sarah, "neat as a pin," and did not object to any work, however hard or laborious, as long as she was not expected to do the thinking and planning. she was greatly attached to both aunt sarah and mary, but stood rather in awe of john landis, who had never spoken a cross word to her in the three years she had lived at the farm. sarah landis, knowing sibylla to be an honest, industrious girl, appreciated her good qualities, thought almost as much of sibylla as if she had been her daughter, and treated her in like manner, and for this reason, if for no other, she received willing service from the girl. sibylla, a swift worker at all times, never finished work so quickly as on wednesday and saturday evenings, when she "kept company" with jake crouthamel. "chake," as sibylla called him, was a sturdy, red-faced young farmer, all legs and arms. he appeared to be put together loosely at the joints, like a jumping-jack, and never appeared at ease in his ill-fitting "store clothes." he usually wore gray corduroy trousers and big cowhide boots, a pink and white striped shirt and red necktie. sibylla did not notice his imperfections, and thought him handsome as a greek god. jake, an honest, industrious young fellow, worked on a near-by farm, owned his own carriage, and had the privilege of using one of the farm horses when he wished, so he and sibylla frequently took "choy rides," as sibylla called them. jake crouthamel was usually called "boller-yockel," this name having been accorded him on account of his having delivered to a purchaser a load of hay largely composed of rag-weed. the man called him an old "boller-yockel," and the name had clung to jake for years. chapter xi. "new colonial" rag rugs. several days had elapsed since that on which mary's aunt had planned to use the contents of her trunk to such good advantage, when mary, coming into the room where her aunt was busily engaged sewing, exclaimed: "don't forget, auntie, you promised to teach me to crochet rag rugs!" [illustration: a "hit-and-miss" rug] "indeed, i've not forgotten, and will make my promise good at once," said aunt sarah. "we shall need quantities of carpet rags cut about one-half inch in width, the same as those used for making rag carpet. of course, you are aware, mary, that heavier materials should be cut in narrower strips than those of thinner materials. you will also require a long, wooden crochet needle, about as thick as an ordinary wooden lead pencil, having a hook at one end, similar to a common bone crochet needle, only larger. for a circular rug, crochet about twelve stitches (single crochet) over one end of a piece of candle wick or cable cord; or, lacking either of these, use a carpet rag of firm material; then draw the crocheted strip into as small a circle as possible, fasten and crochet round and round continuously until finished. the centre of a circular or oblong rug may be a plain color, with border of colored light and dark rags, sewed together promiscuously, called 'hit and miss.' [illustration: a brown and tan rug] "or you might have a design similar to a 'pin-wheel' in centre of the circular rug, with alternate stripes, composed of dark and light-colored rags." "i'd like one made in that manner from different shades that harmonize, browns and tans, for instance," said mary. "you may easily have a rug of that description," continued her aunt. "with a package of brown dye, we can quickly transform some light, woolen carpet rags i possess into pretty shades of browns and tans." [illustration: rug] "for a circular rug, with design in centre resembling a pin-wheel, commence crocheting the rug same as preceding one. crochet three rows of one color, then mark the rug off into four parts, placing a pin to mark each section or quarter of the rug. at each of four points crochet one stitch of a contrasting shade. crochet once around the circle, using a shade similar to that of the centre of rug for design, filling in between with the other shade. for the following row, crochet two stitches beneath the one stitch (not directly underneath the stitch, but one stitch beyond), filling in between with the other color. the third row, add three stitches beneath the two stitches in same manner as preceding row, and continue, until design in centre is as large as desired, then crochet 'hit or miss' or stripes. do not cut off the carpet rags at each of the four points after crocheting stitches, but allow each one to remain and crochet over them, then pick up on needle and crochet every time you require stitches of contrasting shade. then crochet several rows around the rug with different shades until rug is the required size. the under side should be finished off as neatly as the right, or upper side. mary, when not making a design, sew the rags together as if for weaving carpet. when crocheting circular rugs, occasionally stretch the outside row to prevent the rug from curling up at edges when finished, as it would be apt to do if too tightly crocheted. if necessary, occasionally add an extra stitch. avoid also crocheting it too loosely, as it would then appear like a ruffle. the advantage of crocheting over a heavy cord is that the work may be easily drawn up more tightly if too lose." chapter xii. mary imitates navajo blankets. on her return from an afternoon spent at professor schmidt's, mary remarked to aunt sarah, "for the first time in my life i have an original idea!" "do tell me child, what it is!" "the 'new colonial' rag rugs we have lately finished are fine, but i'd just love to have a navajo blanket like those owned by professor schmidt; and i intend to make a rag rug in imitation of his navajo blanket." "yes," answered her aunt, "i have always greatly admired them myself, especially the large gray one which covers the professor's own chair in the library. the professor brought them with him when he returned from 'cutler's ranch' at rociada, near las vegas, new mexico, where he visited his nephew, poor raymond, or rather, i should say, fortunate raymond, an only child of the professor's sister. a quiet, studious boy, he graduated at the head of his class at an early age, but he inherited the weak lungs of his father, who died of consumption. raymond was a lovable boy, with a fund of dry humor and wit--the idol of his mother, who, taking the advice of a specialist, accompanied her boy, as a last resort, to new mexico, where, partly owing to his determination to get well, proper food and daily rides on the mesa, on the back of his little pinto pony, he regained perfect health, and today is well, happily married and living in pasadena, california, so i have been told by frau schmidt, who dearly loves the boy." "but mary, forgive an old woman for rambling away from the subject in which you are interested--navajo blankets. ever since we planned to make a rug with a swastika in the centre, i nave been trying to evolve from my brain (and your uncle john says my bump of inventiveness is abnormally large) a navajo rag rug for the floor of the room you intend to furnish as ralph's den, in the home you are planning. well, my dear, a wooden crochet hook in your deft fingers will be the magic wand which will perform a miracle and transform into navajo blankets such very commonplace articles as your discarded gray eiderdown kimona, and a pair of your uncle's old gray trousers, which have already been washed and ripped by sibylla, to be used for making carpet rags. these, combined with the gray skirt i heard you say had outlived its day of usefulness, will furnish the background of the rug. the six triangles in the centre of the rug, also lighter stripes at each end of the rug, we will make of that old linen chair-cover and your faded linen skirt, which you said i might use for carpet rags; and, should more material be needed, i have some old, gray woolen underwear in my patch bag, a gray-white, similar to the real navajo. the rows of black with which we shall outline the triangles may be made from those old, black, silk-lisle hose you gave me, by cutting them round and round in one continuous strip. heavy cloth should be cut in _very_ narrow strips. sibylla will do that nicely; her hands are more used to handling large, heavy shears than are yours. the linen-lawn skirt you may cut in strips about three-fourths of an inch in width, as that material is quite thin. i would sew rags of one color together like carpet rags, not lapping the ends more than necessary to hold them together. the rug will be reversible, both sides being exactly alike when finished. i should make the rug about fifty-three stitches across. this will require about six and one-fourth yards of carpet rags, when sewed together, to crochet once across. i think it would be wise to cut all rags of different weight materials before commencing to crochet the rug, so they may be well mixed through. i will assist you with the work at odd moments, and in a short time the rug will be finished." the rug, when finished, was truly a work of art, and represented many hours of labor and thought. but mary considered it very fascinating work, and was delighted with the result of her labor--a rug the exact imitation of one of the professor's genuine indian navajo blankets, the work of her own hands, and without the expenditure of a penny. mary remarked: "i do not think all the triangles in my rug are the exact size of the paper pattern you made me, aunt sarah. the two in the centre appear larger than the others." "well," remarked her aunt, "if you examine closely the blankets owned by professor schmidt, you will find the on the ones woven by navajo indians are not of an equal size." 'tis said navajo blankets and serapes will become scarce and higher in price in the future, on account of the numerous young indians who have been educated and who prefer other occupations to that of weaving blankets, as did their forefathers; and the present disturbance in mexico will certainly interfere with the continuance of this industry for a time. [illustration: imitation of navajo blanket] [illustration: rug with design] "mary, while you have been planning your navajo rug, i have been thinking how we may make a very attractive as well as useful rug. you remember, we could not decide what use to make of your old, tan cravenette stormcoat? i have been thinking we might use this, when cut into carpet rags, for the principal part of the rug, and that old, garnet merino blouse waist might be cut and used for the four corners of a rug, and we might have gay stripes in the centre of the rug to form a sort of design, and also put gay stripes at each end of the rug. "and you might crochet a rug, plain 'hit or miss,' of rather bright-colored rags." "yes," said mary, "i think i will crochet a swastika in the centre of a rug, as you suggest, of bright orange, outlined with black, and a stripe of orange edged with black at each end of the rug to match the centre. don't you think that would be pretty, aunt sarah?" [illustration: "hit-or-miss" rug with swastika centre] "yes indeed, but mary, don't you think the swastika would show more distinctly on a rug with a plain background?" "perhaps it would," replied mary, "but i think i'll crochet one of very gayly-colored rags, with a swastika in the centre." [illustration: a "prayer rug" of silk scraps.] "aunt sarah," said mary, "do tell me how that pretty little rug composed of silk scraps is made." "oh, that _silk_ rug; 'twas given me by aunt cornelia, who finished it while here on a visit from new york. i never saw another like it, and it has been greatly admired. although possessed of an ordinary amount of patience, i don't think i'll ever make one for myself. i don't admire knitted rugs of any description, neither do i care for braided rugs. i think the crocheted ones prettier. but, mary, this small silk rug is easily made should you care to have one. i will commence knitting one for you at once. you will then find a use for the box of bright-colored silks you possess, many of which are quite too small to be used in any other manner. professor schmidt calls this a 'prayer rug.' he said: 'this rug, fashioned of various bright-hued silks of orange, purple and crimson, a bright maze of rich colors, without any recognizable figure or design, reminds me of the description of the 'prayer carpet' or rugs of the mohammedans. they are composed of rich-hued silks of purple, ruby and amber. 'tis said their delicacy of shade is marvelous and was suggested by the meadows of variegated flowers.' but this is a digression; you wished directions for making the rug. "use tiny scraps of various bright-hued silks, velvets and satins, cut about - / inches long and about one-half inch in width. ends should always be cut slanting or bias; never straight. all you will require besides the silk scraps, will be a ball of common cord or twine, or save all cord which comes tied around packages, as i do, and use that and two ordinary steel knitting needles. when making her rug, aunt cornelia knitted several strips a couple of inches in width and the length she wished the finished rug to be. the strips when finished she sewed together with strong linen thread on the wrong side of the rug. she commenced the rug by knitting two rows of the twine or cord. (when i was a girl we called this common knitting 'garter stitch.') then, when commencing to knit third row, slip off first stitch onto your other needle; knit one stitch, then lay one of the tiny scraps of silk across or between the two needles; knit one stitch with the cord. this holds the silk in position. then fold or turn one end of silk back on the other piece of silk and knit one stitch of cord to hold them in place, always keeping silk on one side, on the top of rug, as this rug is not reversible. continue in this manner until one row is finished. then knit once across plain with cord, and for next row lay silk scraps in and knit as before. always knit one row of the cord across plain after knitting in scraps of silk, as doing this holds them firmly in position. of course, mary, you will use judgment and taste in combining light and dark, bright and dull colors. also, do not use several scraps of velvet together. use velvet, silk and satin alternately. should any scraps of silk be longer than others after knitting, trim off evenly so all will be of uniform size. when her rug was finished, aunt cornelia spread it, wrong side uppermost, on an unused table, covered it with a thick boiled paste, composed of flour and water, allowed it to dry thoroughly, then lined the rug with a heavy piece of denim. this was done to prevent the rug from curling up at edges, and caused it to lie flat on floor; but i think i should prefer just a firm lining or foundation of heavy burlap or denim." "thank you, aunt sarah, for your explicit directions. i cannot fail to know just how to knit a silk rug, should i ever care to do so. i think the work would be simply fascinating." chapter xiii. the girls' campfire, organized by mary. one day in early june, when all nature seemed aglow with happiness, we find mary earnestly discussing with elizabeth schmidt the prosaic, humdrum life of many of the country girls, daughters of well-to-do farmers in the vicinity. "i wish," said mary, wrinkling her forehead thoughtfully, "i could think of some new interest to introduce into their lives; some way of broadening their outlook; anything to bring more happiness into their commonplace daily toil; something good and helpful for them to think about." all at once mary, who was not usually demonstrative, clapped her hands, laughed gleefully and said: "i have it, elizabeth. the very thing! suppose we start a 'girls' campfire,' right here in the country? i don't think we shall have any trouble to organize." "and you, because you understand all about it, will be the guardian," said elizabeth. at first mary demurred, but, overcome by elizabeth's pleading, finally gave a reluctant consent. they then made out a list of the girls they thought might be willing to join, mary promising to write at once for a handbook. they separated, elizabeth to call to see the girls, and mary to interview their parents. their efforts were rewarded with surprisingly gratifying results, for many of the girls had read about the "campfire girls" and were anxious to become members. * * * * * one afternoon, several weeks later, had you gone into the old apple orchard, at the farm, you would have seen thirteen eager young girls, ranging in age from fourteen to sixteen, listening intently to mary, who was telling them about the "campfire girls." what she told them was something like this: "now girls, we are going to have a good time. some of our good times will be play and some work. when you join, you will become a 'wood gatherer,' and after three months' successful work, if you have met certain qualifications, you will be promoted to the rank of 'fire maker.' later on, when you come to realize what it means to be a 'torch bearer,' you will be put in that rank. the first law which you learn to follow is one which you must apply to your daily life. it is: seek beauty, give service, pursue knowledge, be trustworthy, hold on to health, glorify work, be happy. 'the camp fire' has meant so much to girls i have known, for their betterment, and has been so helpful in many ways, you surely will never regret becoming a member of the organization, or be anything but happy if you keep their laws. there will be no dues, except what is collected for good times, and no expense except the cost of your ceremonial costume, epaulettes and honor beads. the latter are quite inexpensive. the honors are divided into several classes, and for each honor a bead is given as a symbol of your work. a special colored bead is given for each class. we shall meet about once every week. the monthly meeting is called the 'council fire.' i will tell you later about the 'wohelo' ceremony. by the way, girls, 'wohelo' stands for work, health and love. you see, the word is composed of the first two letters of each word." the girls appeared to be greatly interested, and mary felt very much encouraged. some of the girls left to talk it over with the homefolks, while others, wishing to learn more of the organisation, plied mary with numerous questions. finally, in desperation, she said: "girls, i will read you the following from the 'camp fire girls' handbook, which i received this morning:" 'the purpose of this organization is to show that the common things of daily life are the chief means of beauty, romance and adventure; to aid in the forming of habits making for health and vigor, the out-of-door habit and the out-of-door spirit; to devise ways of measuring and creating standards to woman's work, and to give girls the opportunity to learn how to "keep step," to learn team work, through doing it; to help girls and women serve the community, the larger home, in the same way they have always served the individual home; to give status and social recognition to the knowledge of the mother, and thus restore the intimate relationship of mothers and daughters to each other.' "well, girls," said mary, as she laid aside the book, "i think you all understand what a benefit this will be to you, and i will do all in my power to help you girls, while i am at the farm this summer. it is too late to tell you any more today. the information i have given you will suffice for the present. three cheers for our camp fire! which will be under way in two months, i trust." * * * * * the members of "shawnee" camp fire held their first council fire, or ceremonial meeting, the second week in july. the girls, all deeply interested, worked hard to secure honors which were awarded for engaging in domestic duties well known to the home, for studying and observing the rules of hygiene and sanitation, and for learning and achievements in various ways. they held weekly meetings and studied diligently to win the rank of fire maker. a girl, when she joins, becomes a wood gatherer; she then receives a silver ring. the weeks pass swiftly by, and it is time for another camp fire. the girls selected as their meeting place for this occasion farmer druckenmuller's peach orchard, to which they walked, a distance of about three miles from the home of elizabeth schmidt. they left about two o'clock in the afternoon, intending to return home before nightfall, a good time being anticipated, as they took with them lunch and materials for a corn-roast. the peach orchard in question, covering many acres, was situated at the foot of a low hill. between the two flowed an enchanting, fairy-like stream, the cultivated peach orchard on one side, and on the opposite side the forest-like hill, covered with an abundance of wild flowers. when the afternoon set for the council fire arrived, had you happened to meet the fifteen merry, chattering girls, accompanied by two older girls, mary and lucy robbins (the country school teacher), as chaperones, wending their way to the orchard, you, without a doubt, would have smiled and a question might naturally have arisen regarding their sanity. they certainly possessed intelligent faces, but why those queer-shaped indian dresses? and such an awkward length for a young girl's dress! and why was their hair all worn hanging in one braid over each shoulder, with a band over the forehead? why so many strings of gaudy beads around their necks? these questions may all be answered in one single sentence: the girls are dressed in ceremonial costume. [illustration: elizabeth schmidt "laughing water"] a great many delays along the way were caused by girls asking the names of the different wild flowers and weeds they noticed in passing. one of the girls stopped to examine a prickly-looking plant about two feet high, with little, blue flowers growing along the stem, and asked if any one knew the name of it. they were about to look it up in a small "flower guide" owned by one of the girls, when some one said: "why, that is a weed called 'vipers bougloss,'" they also found cardinal flower, thorn apple, monkey flower and jewel-weed in abundance, wild sunflower, ginseng, early golden rod, "joe-pie-weed," marshallow, black cohosh and purple loose-trifle. the girls also noticed various birds. on a tall tree one of the girls espied a rose-breasted grosbeak, rare in this part of bucks county. they all stopped and watched for a short time a white-bellied nut-hatch. the girls were startled as a scarlet tanger flew past to join his mate, and they at last reached their rendezvous, the orchard. by half-past three they were all seated in a circle waiting for the ceremonies to begin. mary midleton, their guardian, stepped to the front, saying: "sunflower, light the fire." sunflower, through several months of daily attainment, had become a fire-maker and was very proud of the fire-maker's bracelet she was entitled to wear. sunflower was given that name because she always looked on the bright side of everything; she looked like a sunflower, too, with her tanned face and light, curly hair. all the girls had symbolical names given them. "lark" was so named because of her sweet voice and because she loved to sing; "sweet tooth," on account of her love for candy; "quick silver," because she was quick, bright and witty; "great buffalo," a girl who was very strong; elizabeth schmidt, "laughing water," so named because she laughed and giggled at everybody and everything; "babbling brook," because it seemed an utter impossibility for her to stop talking; "burr," because she sticks to ideas and friends; "faith," quiet and reserved; "comet," comes suddenly and brings a lot of light; "black hawk," always eager at first, but inclined to let her eagerness wear off: "pocahontas," because she never can hurry; "ginger foot," a fiery temper, "gypsy," so named on account of her black hair; "bright eyes," for her bright, blue eyes; "rainbow," for her many ways, and because she is pretty. as "sunflower" took the matches and knelt by the pile of wood and lighted the fire, she recited the ode to the fire: "oh, fire! long years ago, when our fathers fought with great beasts, you were their protector. from the cruel cold of winter you saved. when they needed food, you changed the flesh of beasts into savory meat for them. through all ages your mysterious flame has been a symbol of the great spirit to them. tonight we light this fire in remembrance of the great spirit who gave you to us." then the girls sang the chant or chanted: wohelo for aye, wohelo for aye, wohelo for aye, wohelo for work, wohelo for health, wohelo, wohelo for love. then they recited the wood-gatherer's desire: "it is my desire to be a campfire girl and keep the law of the camp fire, which is 'to seek beauty, give service, pursue knowledge, be trustworthy, hold onto health, glorify work, be happy,'" none had yet attained the highest rank, that of torch bearer, won by still greater achievement, the camp having been organized so recently. their motto was "the light which has been given to me, i desire to pass undimmed to others." "gypsy," the secretary, then read the "count" for the last meeting and called the roll, and the girls handed in the list of honors they had won in the last month. some amused themselves playing games, while others gathered more wood. at five o'clock the corn and white and sweet potatoes were in the fire roasting. a jolly circle of girls around the fire were busily engaged toasting "weiners" for the feast, which was finally pronounced ready to be partaken of. the hungry girls "fell to" and everything eatable disappeared as if by magic; and last, but not least, was the toasting of marshmallows, speared on the points of long, two-pronged sticks (broken from near-by trees), which were held over the fire until the marshmallows turned a delicate color. when everything had been eaten, with the exception of several cardboard boxes, corn cobs and husks, the girls quickly cleared up. then, seated around the fire, told what they knew of indian legends and folklore. noticing the sun slowly sinking in the west, they quickly gathered together their belongings and started homeward singing, "my country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty." thus broke up the second council fire, and in the heart of each girl was the thought of how much the campfire was helping them to love god and his works. chapter xiv. mary makes "violet" and "rose leaf" beads. "aunt sarah," exclaimed mary one day, "you promised to tell me exactly how you made those 'rose beads' you have." "yes, my dear, and you must make the beads before the june roses are gone. the process is very simple. if you would have them very sweet, get the petals of the most fragrant roses. i used petals of the old-fashioned, pink 'hundred leaf' and 'blush roses.' gather a quantity, for you will need them all. grind them to a pulp in the food chopper, repeat several times and place the pulp and juice into an _iron_ kettle or pan. this turns the pulp black, which nothing but an iron kettle will do; cook, and when the consistency of dough it is ready to mold into beads. take a bit of the dough, again as large as the size you wish your beads to be when finished, as they shrink in size when dried, and make them of uniform size, or larger ones for the centre of the necklace, as you prefer. roll in the palms of your hands, until perfectly round, stick a pin through each bead, then stick the pins into a bake board. be careful the bead does not touch the board, as that would spoil its shape. allow the beads to remain until perfectly dry. if they are to have a dull finish, leave as they are. if you wish to polish them, take a tiny piece of vaseline on the palm of the hand and rub them between the palms until the vaseline is absorbed. then string them on a linen thread. keep in a closed box to preserve their fragrance. those i showed you, mary, i made many years ago, and the scent of the roses clings 'round them still.'" "did you know, mary, that beads may be made from the petals of the common wild blue violet in exactly the same manner as they are made from rose leaves?" "no, indeed, but i don't think the making of beads from the petals of roses and violets as wonderful as the beads which you raise in the garden. those shiny, pearl-like seeds or beads of silvery-gray, called 'job's tears,' which grow on a stalk resembling growing corn; and to think professor schmidt raised those which elizabeth strung on linen thread, alternately with beads, for a portiere in their sitting-room." "yes, my dear, the beads must be pierced before they become hard; later they should be polished. did you ever see them grow, mary? the beads or 'tears' grow on a stalk about fifteen inches high and from the bead or 'tear' grows a tiny, green spear resembling oats. they are odd and with very little care may he grown in a small garden." "they certainly are a curiosity," said mary. chapter xv. mary and elizabeth visit sadie singmaster. farmer landis, happening to mention at the breakfast table his intention of driving over to the "ax handle factory" to obtain wood ashes to use as a fertilizer, his wife remarked, "why not take mary with you, john? she can stop at singmaster's with a basket of carpet rags for sadie. i've been wanting to send them over for some time." turning to mary, she said: "poor little, crippled sadie! on account of a fall, which injured her spine, when a small child, she has been unable to walk for years. she cuts and sews carpet rags, given her by friends and neighbors, and from their sale to a carpet weaver in a near-by town, helps her widowed mother eke out her small income." "i'd love to go see her," said mary. elizabeth schmidt also expressed her willingness to go, when asked, saying: "i am positive mother will add her contribution to the carpet rags for sadie, i do pity her so very much." "yes," said mary's aunt, "she is poor and proud. she will not accept charity, so we persuade her to take carpet rags, as we have more than we can possibly use." on reaching the singmaster cottage, the girls alighted with their well-filled baskets, mary's uncle driving on to the "ax handle factory," promising to call for the girls on his return. the sad, brown eyes of sadie, too large for her pinched, sallow face, shone with pleasure at sight of the two young girls so near her own age, and she smiled her delight on examining the numerous bright-colored patches brought by them. thinking the pleasure she so plainly showed might appear childish to the two girls, she explained: "i do get so dreadfully tired sewing together so many dull homely rags. i shall enjoy making balls of these pretty, bright colors." "sadie," mary inquired, "will you think me inquisitive should i ask what the carpet weaver pays you for the rags when you have sewed and wound them into balls?" "certainly not," replied sadie. "four cents a pound is what he pays me. it takes two of these balls to make a pound," and she held up a ball she had just finished winding. "is _that all_ you get?" exclaimed elizabeth. "have you ever made rag rugs?" inquired mary. "no, i have never even seen one. are they anything like braided mats?" "yes, they are somewhat similar to them, but i crochet mine and think them prettier. i have made several, with aunt sarah's assistance. i'll come over and teach you to make them one of these days, should you care to learn, and i'm positive you will find ready sale for them. in fact, i've several friends in the city who have admired the ones i have, and would like to buy rugs for the colonial rooms they are furnishing. sadie, can you crochet?" "oh, yes. i can do the plain stitch very well." "that is all that will be necessary. you will become very much interested in inventing new designs, it is very fascinating work, and it will be more remunerative than sewing carpet rags. aunt sarah will send you more carpet rags if you require them, and should you wish dull colors of blue or pink, a small package of dye will transform white or light-colored rags into any desired shade, to match the furnishings of different rooms. i think the crocheted rugs much prettier than the braided ones, which are so popular in the 'nutting' pictures, and the same pretty shades may be used when rugs are crocheted." when farmer landis came for the girls, he found them too busily engaged talking to hear his knock at the door. during the drive home mary could think and talk of nothing but sadie singmaster, and the rugs she had promised to teach her to make at an early day. elizabeth, scarcely less enthusiastic, said: "i've a lot of old things i'll give her to cut up for carpet rags." reaching home, mary could scarcely wait an opportunity to tell aunt sarah all her plans for sadie's betterment. when she finally did tell her aunt, she smiled and said: "mary, i'm not surprised. you are always planning to do a kind act for some one. you remind me of the lines, 'if i can live,' by helen hunt jackson." and she repeated the following for mary: if i can live. if i can live to make some pale face brighter and to give a second luster to some tear-dimmed eye, or e'en impart one throb of comfort to an aching heart, or cheer some wayworn soul in passing by; if i can lend a strong hand to the fallen, or defend the right against a single envious strain, my life, though bare, perhaps, of much that seemeth dear and fair to us of earth, will not have been in vain. the purest joy, most near to heaven, far from earth's alloy, is bidding cloud give way to sun and shine; and 'twill be well if on that day of days the angels tell of me, she did her best for one of thine. chapter xvi. old parlor made beautiful (modernized). when john landis came into possession of "clear spring" farm, where his mother had lived during her lifetime, she having inherited it from her father, the rooms of the old farm house were filled with quaint, old-fashioned furniture of every description. "aunt sarah," on coming to the farm to live, had given a personal touch and cheery, homelike look to every room in the house, with one exception, the large, gloomy, old-fashioned parlor, which was cold, cheerless and damp. she confessed to mary she always felt as if john's dead-and-gone ancestors' ghostly presences inhabited the silent room. the windows were seldom opened to allow a ray of sunlight to penetrate the dusk with which the room was always enveloped, except when the regular weekly sweeping day arrived; when, after being carefully swept and dusted, it was promptly closed. a room every one avoided, aunt sarah was very particular about always having fresh air and sunlight in every other part of the house but his one room. the old fireplace had been boarded up many years before aunt sarah's advent to the farm, so it could not be used. one day mary noticed, while dusting the room (after it had been given a thorough sweeping by sibylla, aunt sarah's one maid servant), that the small, many-paned windows facing the east, at one end of the parlor, when opened, let in a flood of sunshine; and in the evening those at the opposite end of the long room gave one a lovely view of the setting sun--a finer picture than any painted by the hand of a master. mary easily persuaded her aunt to make some changes in the unlivable room. she suggested that they consult her uncle about repapering and painting the room and surprise him with the result when finished. aunt sarah, who never did things by halves, said: "mary, i have long intended 'doing over' this room, but thought it such a great undertaking. now, with your assistance, i shall make a sweep of these old, antiquated heirlooms of a past generation. this green carpet, with its gorgeous bouquets of roses, we shall have combined with one of brown and tan in the attic. your uncle shall take them with him when he drives to town and have them woven into pretty, serviceable rugs for the floor." "and, oh! aunt sarah," cried mary, "do let's have an open fireplace. it makes a room so cheery and 'comfy' when the weather gets colder, on long winter evenings, to have a fire in the grate. i saw some lovely, old brass andirons and fender in the attic, and some brass candlesticks there also, which will do nicely for the mantel shelf over the fireplace. i'll shine 'em up, and instead of this hideously-ugly old wall paper with gay-colored scrawley figures, aunt sarah, suppose we get an inexpensive, plain, tan felt paper for drop ceiling and separate it from the paper on the side wall, which should be a warm, yellow-brown, with a narrow chestnut wood molding. then this dull, dark, gray-blue painted woodwork; could any one imagine anything more hideously ugly? it gives me the 'blues' simply to look at it. could we not have it painted to imitate chestnut wood? and don't you think we might paint the floor around the edges of the rug to imitate the woodwork? just think of those centre panels of the door painted a contrasting shade of pale pink. the painter who did this work certainly was an artist. a friend of mine in the city, wishing to use rugs instead of carpets on her floors, and not caring to go to the expense of laying hardwood floors, gave the old floors a couple of coats of light lemon, or straw-colored paint, then stained and grained them a perfect imitation of chestnut, at small expense. the floors were greatly admired when finished, and having been allowed to dry thoroughly after being varnished, proved quite durable. i will write to my friend at once and ask her exactly how her floors were treated." "now, mary, about this old-style furniture. the old grandfather clock standing in the corner, at the upper end of the room, i should like to have remain. it is one hundred and fifty years old and belonged to my folks, and, although old-fashioned, is highly valued by me." "of course," said mary, "we'll certainly leave that in the room." "also," said aunt sarah, "allow the old cottage organ and large, old-fashioned bookcase belonging to your uncle to remain. he has frequently spoken of moving his bookcase into the next room, when he was obliged to come in here for books, of which he has quite a valuable collection." [illustration: a- seed wreath a- wax fruit a- old parlor mantel a- old clock a- boquet of hair flowers ] "oh," said mary, "no need of that. we will move uncle john in here, near the bookcase, when we get our room fixed up. aunt sarah, we will leave that old-fashioned table, also, with one leaf up against the wall, and this quaint, little, rush-bottomed rocker, which i just dote on." "why, dear," exclaimed aunt sarah, "there are several chairs to match it in the attic, which you may have when you start housekeeping for your very own. and," laughingly, said her aunt, "there is another old, oval, marble-topped table in the attic, containing a large glass case covering a basket of wax fruit, which you may have." "no, aunt sarah," said mary, "i don't believe i want the fruit, but i will accept your offer of the table. well, aunt sarah, i know you won't have this old, black what-not standing in the corner of the room. i do believe it is made of spools, strung on wire, as supports for the shelves; then all painted black, imitation of ebony, i suppose. it must have been made in the black age, at the same time the old corner cupboard was painted, as uncle john told me he scraped off three different layers of paint before doing it over, and one was black. it was originally made of cherry. it certainly looks fine now, with those new brass hinges and pretty, old-fashioned glass knobs." "yes, mary," replied her aunt, "and there is an old corner cupboard in the attic which belonged to my father, that you may have, and, with a very little labor and expense, ralph can make it look as well as mine. it has only one door and mine possesses two." "aunt sarah," exclaimed mary, "you are a dear! how will i ever repay you for all your kindness to me?" "by passing it on to some one else when you find some one needing help," said aunt sarah. "such a collection of odd things, aunt sarah, as are on this what-not i never saw. old ambrotypes and daguerreotypes of gone and forgotten members of the 'freinshoft,' as you sometimes say. i don't believe you know any of them." "yes, the red plush frame on the mantel shelf contains a picture of john's uncle, a fine-looking man, but he possessed 'wanderlust' and has lived in california for many years. "oh, you mean the picture on the mantel standing near those twin gilded china vases, gay with red and blue paint?" "yes; and that small china and gilt stand with little bowl and pitcher was given me when a small child." "suppose i bring a basket and we will fill it with articles from the mantel and what-not," said mary, "and carry them all to the attic, until you have a rummage sale some day. we'll burn these 'everlasting' and 'straw' flowers, and pampas grass, and this large apple stuck full of cloves. here is a small china dog and a little china basket with a plaited china handle decorated with gilt, and tiny, pink-tinted china roses. and these large, glass marbles containing little silver eagles inside; also this small, spun-glass ship and blue-and-pink-striped glass pipe. aunt sarah, some of your ancestors must have attended a glass blowers' exhibition in years past." "this branch of white coral, these large snail shells (when a child i remember holding them to my ear to hear a noise resembling the roar of the ocean), and this small basket, fashioned of twigs and tendrils of grape vine, then dipped in red sealing wax, certainly is a good imitation of coral, and this plate, containing a miniature ship composed of green postage stamps, we will place in your corner cupboard." "and, aunt sarah, i suppose this deep, glass-covered picture frame containing a bouquet of hair flowers, most wonderfully and fearfully made, was considered a work of art in days past and gone, as was also the crescent in a frame on the opposite side of the room, composed of flowers made of various seeds of grain and garden vegetables. those daisies, made of cucumber seeds with grains of red corn for centres, and those made of tiny grains of popcorn with a watermelon seed in centre, are cute. the latter look like breastpins with a circle of pearls around the edge. and this glass case on the table, containing a white cross, covered with wax tube roses, ivy leaves and fuchsias drooping from the arms of the cross, sparkling with diamond dust! the band of green chenille around its base matches the mat underneath, composed of green zephyr of different shades, knitted, then raveled to imitate moss, i suppose; and, no doubt, this marble-topped table has stood here for fifty years, in this same spot, for the express purpose of holding this beautiful (?) work of art." "the hair flowers and the seed wreath were made by john's sister," replied aunt sarah. "aunt sarah," exclaimed mary, "i've an original idea. this oval, marble-topped table has such strong, solid legs of black walnut, suppose we remove the marble slab and have a large, circular top made of wood at the planing mill? wait; i'll get my tape measure. about thirty-two inches in diameter will do. the new top we shall stain to match the walnut frame, and it could be easily fastened to the table with a couple of screws; and, after the marble top has been well scoured, we'll use it in the kitchen as a bake board on which to roll out pie crust." her aunt as usual acquiesced to all mary's suggestions. "you're a dear, aunt sarah!" exclaimed mary, as she gave her a hug, "and i'll embroider big, yellow daisies with brown centres of french knots on gray linen for a new table cover. won't they look just sweet?" "yes, mary, and i'll buy a large, new lamp with a pretty shade, as i feel sure your uncle will like to sit here evenings to read his papers and farm journals." "and don't forget the shriners' little magazine, _the crescent_, which amuses him so greatly. aunt sarah, i do wish those stiff, starchy-looking, blue-white nottingham lace curtains at the windows had grown yellow with age. they would be ever so much prettier and softer looking, and they are such a pretty, neat design, too." "oh!" replied her aunt, "that may be easily remedied. i'll just dip them into a little weak liquid coffee and that will give them a creamy tint, and take out the stiffness." "now," said mary, "what shall we do with these stiff, ugly, haircloth-covered chairs and sofa?" "why," replied aunt sarah, "we shall buy cretonne or art cloth, in pretty shades of brown and tan or green, to harmonize with the wall paper, and make slip covers for them all. we could never think of dispensing with the sofa. it is a very important article of furniture in german households. the hostess usually gives the person of greatest distinction among her guests the place of honor beside her on the sofa." "these chairs have such strong, well-made, mahogany frames it would be a pity not to use them. now," continued mary, "about the pictures on the wall. can't we consign them all to the attic? we might use some of the frames. i'll contribute unframed copies of 'the angelus' and 'the gleaners,' by millet; and i think they would fit into these plain mahogany frames which contain the very old-fashioned set of pictures named respectively 'the lovers,' 'the declaration,' 'the lovers' quarrel' and 'the marriage.' they constitute a regular art gallery. i'll use a couple of the frames for some small colonial and apple blossom pictures i have, that i just love, by wallace nutting. mine are all unframed; 'maiden reveries,' 'a canopied roof' and a 'ton of bloom,' i think are sweet. those branches of apple trees, covered with a mass of natural-looking pink blossoms, are exquisite." "yes," remarked aunt sarah, "they look exactly like our old baldwin, winesap and cider apple trees in the old, south meadow in the spring. and, mary, we'll discard those two chromos, popular a half century ago, of two beautiful cherubs called respectively, 'wide awake' and 'fast asleep,' given as premiums to a popular magazine. i don't remember if the magazine was 'godey's,' 'peterson's' or 'home queen'; they have good, plain, mahogany frames which we can use." "and, aunt sarah," said mary, "we can cut out the partition in this large, black-walnut frame, containing lithograph pictures of general george washington, 'the father of his country' (we are informed in small letters at the bottom of the picture), and of general andrew jackson, 'the hero of new orleans.' both men are pictured on horseback, on gayly-caparisoned, prancing white steeds, with scarlet saddle cloth, edged with gold bullion fringe. the generals are pictured clad in blue velvet coats with white facings of cloth or satin vest and tight-fitting knee breeches, also white and long boots reaching to the knee. gold epaulettes are on their shoulders, and both are in the act of lifting their old-fashioned continental hats, the advancing army showing faintly in the background. how gorgeously they are arrayed! we will use this frame for the excellent, large copy you have of 'the doctor' and the pictured faces of the german composers--beethoven, wagner, mendelssohn, haydn, schubert and mozart, which i have on a card with a shaded brown background, will exactly fit into this plain frame of narrow molding, from which i have just removed the old cardboard motto, 'no place like home,' done with green-shaded zephyr in cross-stitch." [illustration: a- an old sampler a- old woven basket a- wax cross a- old spinning wheel] "now, mary, with the couple of comfortable rockers which i intend purchasing, i think we have about finished planning our room." "if you are willing, aunt sarah, i should like to make some pretty green and brown cretonne slips to cover those square sofa pillows in place of the ones made of small pieces of puffed silk and the one of colored pieces of cashmere in log cabin design, i do admire big, fat, plain, comfortable pillows, for use instead of show. and we must have a waste paper basket near the table beside uncle john's chair. i shall contribute green satin ribbon for an immense bow on the side of the basket. oh! aunt sarah! you've forgotten all about this odd, woven basket, beside the what-not, filled with sea shells. i don't care for the shells, but the basket would make a lovely sewing basket." "you may have the basket, mary, if you like it. it came from panama, or perhaps it was bought at aspinwall by john's uncle, many years ago, when he came home on a visit from california, by way of the isthmus, to visit old friends and relatives. john's mother always kept it standing on the floor in one corner of the room beside the what-not." "aunt sarah, why was straw ever put under this carpet?" "the straw was put there, my dear, to save the carpet, should the boards on the floor be uneven. my mother was always particular about having _cut rye straw_, because it was softer and finer than any other. it was always used in those days instead of the carpet linings we now have. i remember sometimes, when the carpet had been newly laid, in our home, immediately after house cleaning time, the surface of the floor looked very odd; full of bumps and raised places in spots, until frequent walking over it flattened down the straw. this room happens to have a particularly good, even floor, as this part of the house was built many years later than the original, old farm house, else it would not do to have it painted." "aunt sarah, may i have the old spinning wheel in the attic? i'd love to furnish an old colonial bedroom when i have a home of my very own. i'll use the rag carpet you made me for the floor, the old-fashioned, high-post bed uncle john said i might have, and the 'new colonial' rugs you taught me to make. "yes, my dear, and there is another old grandfather's clock in the attic which you may have; and a high-boy also, for which i have no particular use." "aunt sarah, we shall not put away this really beautiful old sampler worked in silk by uncle john's grandmother when a girl of nine years. it is beautifully done, and is wonderful, i think. and what is this small frame containing a yellowed piece of paper cut in intricate designs, presumably with scissors?" "look on the back of the picture and see what is written there, my dear," said her aunt. mary slowly read: "'this is the only picture i owned before my marriage. i earned the money to buy it by gathering wheat heads.'" "it belonged to my grandmother," said aunt sarah. "in old times, after the reapers had left the field, the children were allowed to gather up the wheat remaining, and, i suppose, grandmother bought this picture with the money she earned herself, and considered it quite a work of art in her day. it is over one hundred years old." chapter xvii. an old song evening. aunt sarah and mary spent few idle moments while carrying out their plans for "doing over" the old parlor. finally, 'twas finished. mary breathed a sigh of satisfaction as the last picture was hung on the wall. she turned to her aunt, saying, "don't you think the room looks bright, cheery and livable?" "yes," replied her aunt, "and what is more essential, homey, i have read somewhere, 'a woman's house should be as personal a matter as a spider's web or a snail's shell; and all the thought, toil and love she puts into it should be preserved a part of its comeliness and homelikeness forever, and be her monument to the generations.'" "well, aunt sarah," replied mary, "i guess we've earned our monument. the air that blows over the fields, wafted in from the open window, is sweet with the scent of grain and clover, and certainly is refreshing. i'm dreadfully tired, but so delighted with the result of our labors. now we will go and 'make ready,' as sibylla says, before the arrival of ralph from the city. i do hope the ice cream will be frozen hard. the sunshine sponge cake, which i baked from a recipe the professor's wife gave me, is light as a feather. 'tis ralph's favorite cake. let's see; besides ralph there are coming all the schmidts, lucy robbins, the school teacher, and sibylla entertains her jake in the kitchen. i promised to treat him to ice cream; sibylla was so good about helping me crack the ice to use for freezing the cream. we shall have an 'old song evening' that will amuse every one." quite early, as is the custom in the country, the guests for the evening arrived; and both mary and aunt sarah felt fully repaid for their hard work of the past weeks by the pleasure john landis evinced at the changed appearance of the room. the professor's wife said, "it scarcely seems possible to have changed the old room so completely." aunt sarah replied, "paint and paper do wonders when combined with good taste, furnished by mary." during the evening one might have been forgiven for thinking professor schmidt disloyal to the mother country (he having been born and educated in heidelberg) had you overheard him speaking to ralph on his favorite subject, the "pennsylvania german." during a lull in the general conversation in the room mary heard the professor remark to ralph: "the pennsylvania germans are a thrifty, honest and industrious class of people, many of whom have held high offices. the first germans to come to america as colonists in pennsylvania were, as a rule, well to do. experts, when examining old documents of colonial days, after counting thousands of signatures, found the new york 'dutch' and the pennsylvania 'germans' were above the average in education in those days. their dialect, the so-called 'pennsylvania german' or 'dutch,' as it is erroneously called by many, is a dialect which we find from the tauber grund to frankfurt, a.m. as the german language preponderated among the early settlers, the language of different elements, becoming amalgamated, formed a class of people frequently called 'pennsylvania dutch'." professor harbaugh, d.d., has written some beautiful poems in pennsylvania german which an eminent authority, professor kluge, a member of the freiburg university, germany, has thought worthy to be included among the classics. they are almost identical with the poems written by nadler in heidelberger mundart, or dialect. mary, who had been listening intently to the professor, said, when he finished talking to ralph: "oh, please, do repeat one of professor harbaugh's poems for us." he replied, "i think i can recall several stanzas of 'das alt schulhaus an der krick.' another of professor harbaugh's poems, and i think one of the sweetest i have ever read, is 'heemweeh.' both poems are published in his book entitled 'harbaugh's harfe,' in pennsylvania german dialect, and possess additional interest from the fact that the translations of these poems, in the latter part of the same book, were made by the author himself." "oh, do repeat all that you remember of both the poems," begged mary. the professor consented, saying: "as neither you nor mr. jackson understand the pennsylvania german dialect, i shall translate them for you, after repeating what i remember. 'heemweeh' means homesickness, but first i shall give you 'das alt schulhaus an der krick'." [a]das alt schulhaus an der krick. heit is 's 'xactly zwansig johr, dass ich bin owwe naus; nau bin ich widder lewig z'rick un schteh am schulhaus an d'r krick, juscht neekscht an's dady's haus. ich bin in hunnert heiser g'west, vun marbelstee' un brick, un alles was sie hen, die leit, dhet ich verschwappe eenig zeit for's schulhaus an der krick. * * * * * der weisseech schteht noch an der dhier-- macht schatte iwwer's dach: die drauwerank is ah noch grie'-- un's amschel-nescht--guk juscht mol hi'-- o was is dess en sach! * * * * * do bin ich gange in die schul, wo ich noch war gans klee'; dort war der meeschter in seim schtuhl, dort war sei' wip, un dort sei' ruhl,-- ich kann's noch alles sch'. die lange desks rings an der wand-- die grose schieler drum; uf eener seit die grose mad, un dort die buwe net so bleed-- guk, wie sie piepe rum! * * * * * oh horcht, ihr leit, wu nooch mir lebt, ich schreib eich noch des schtick: ich warn eich, droll eich, gebt doch acht, un memmt uf immer gut enacht, des schulhaus an der krick! [footnote a: from "harbaugh's harfe." published by the publication and sunday school board of the reformed church, philadelphia, pa. used by permission.] the old school-house at the creek. today it is just twenty years, since i began to roam; now, safely back, i stand once more, before the quaint old school-house door, close by my father's home. i've been in many houses since, of marble built, and brick; though grander far, their aim they miss, to lure heart's old love from this old school-house at the creek. * * * * * the white-oak stands before the door, and shades the roof at noon; the grape-vine, too, is fresh and green; the robin's nest!--ah, hark!--i ween that is the same old tune! * * * * * 'twas here i first attended school, when i was very small; there was the master on his stool, there was his whip and there his rule-- i seem to see it all. the long desks ranged along the walls, with books and inkstands crowned; here on this side the large girls sat, and there the tricky boys on that-- see! how they peep around! * * * * * ye, who shall live when i am dead-- write down my wishes quick-- protect it, love it, let it stand, a way-mark in this changing land-- that school-house at the creek. heemweh. ich wees net was die ursach is-- wees net, warum ich's dhu: 'n jedes johr mach ich der weg der alte heemet zu; hab weiter nix zu suche dort-- kee' erbschaft un kee' geld; un doch treibt mich des heemgefiehl so schtark wie alle welt; nor'd schtart ich ewe ab un geh, wie owe schun gemeldt. wie nacher dass ich kumm zum ziel, wie schtarker will ich geh, for eppes in mei'm herz werd letz un dhut m'r kreislich weh. der letschte hiwel schpring ich nuf; un ep ich drowe bin, schtreck ich mich uf so hoch ich kann un guk mit luschte hin; ich seh's alt schtee'haus dorch die beem, un wott ich war schunm drin. * * * * * wie gleich ich selle babble beem, sie schtehn wie brieder dar; un uf'm gippel--g'wiss ich leb! hockt alleweil 'n schtaar! 's gippel biegt sich--guk, wie's gaunscht-- 'r hebt sich awer fescht; ich seh sei' rothe fliegle plehn, wann er sei' feddere wescht; will wette, dass sei' fraale hot uf sellem baam 'n nescht! * * * * * guk! werklich, ich bin schier am haus!-- wie schnell geht doch die zeit! wann m'r so in gedanke geht. so wees m'r net wie weit. dort is d'r schhap, die walschkornkrip, die seiderpress dort draus; dort is die scheier, un dort die schpring-- frisch quellt des wasser raus; un guk! die sehm alt klapbord-fens, un's dheerle vor'm haus. * * * * * zwee blatz sin do uf dare bortsch, die halt ich hoch in acht, bis meines lebens sonn versinkt in schtiller dodtes-nacht! wo ich vum alte vaterhaus 's erscht mol bin gange fort. schtand mei' mammi weinend da, an sellem rigel dort: un nix is mir so heilig nau als grade seller ort. * * * * * was macht's dass ich so dort hi' guk, an sell end vun der bank! weescht du's? mei' herz is noch net dodt, ich wees es, got sei dank! wie manchmal sass mai dady dort, am summer-nochmiddag, die hande uf der schoos gekreizt, sei schtock bei seite lag. was hot er dort im schtille g'denkt? wer mecht es wisse--sag? home-sick ness. i know not what the reason is: where'er i dwell or roam, i make a pilgrimage each year, to my old childhood home. have nothing there to give or get-- no legacy, no gold-- yet by some home-attracting power i'm evermore controlled; this is the way the homesick do, i often have been told. * * * * * as nearer to the spot i come more sweetly am i drawn; and something in my heart begins to urge me faster on. ere quite i've reached the last hilltop-- you'll smile at me, i ween!-- i stretch myself high as i can, to catch the view serene-- the dear old stone house through the trees with shutters painted green! * * * * * how do i love those poplar trees; what tall and stalely things! see! on the top of one just now a starling sits and sings. he'll fall!--the twig bends with his weight! he likes that danger best. i see the red upon his wings,-- dark shining is the rest. i ween his little wife has built on that same tree her nest. * * * * * see! really i am near the house; how short the distance seems! there is no sense of time when one goes musing in his dreams. there is the shop--the corn-crib, too-- the cider-press--just see! the barn--the spring with drinking cup hung up against the tree. the yard-fence--and the little gate just where it used to be. * * * * * two spots on this old friendly porch i love, nor can forget, till dimly in the night of death my life's last sun shall set! when first i left my father's house, one summer morning bright, my mother at that railing wept till i was out of sight! now like a holy star that spot shines in this world's dull night. * * * * * what draws my eye to yonder spot-- that bench against the wall? what holy mem'ries cluster there, my heart still knows them all! how often sat my father there on summer afternoon; hands meekly crossed upon his lap, he looked so lost and lone, as if he saw an empty world, and hoped to leave it soon. at the conclusion of his recital, mary heartily thanked the professor, and, at his request, obediently seated herself at the old, but still sweet-toned cottage organ, and expressed her willingness to play any old-time songs or hymns requested, and saying, "i know aunt sarah's favorite," commenced playing, "my latest sun is sinking fast," followed by "this old-time religion," "jesus, lover of my soul," "one of the sweet old chapters," "silver threads among the gold" and the sweet old hymn, "in the summer land of song," by fanny crosby. at john landis' request, she played and sang "auld lang syne." "when you and i were young, maggie," "old folks at home" and "old black joe." lucy robbins, when asked for her favorites, replied; "in the gloaming," "the old, old home'" "the lost chord" and "better bide a wee." the professor then asked his daughter elizabeth to give them the music of a song from german volkslied, or folk song, with the words of which all except mary and ralph were familiar. professor schmidt sang in his high, cracked voice to elizabeth's accompaniment the words of the german song, beginning: du, du liegest mir in herzen du, du liegst mir in sinn du, du machst mir viel schmerzen weist nicht wie gut ich dir binn ja, ja, ja, ja, du weist nicht wie gut ich dir bin. the young folks all joined in the chorus. fritz schmidt asked elizabeth to play "polly wolly doodle" for little pollykins, which frit sang with gusto. fritz then sang the rollicking german song, "lauderbach," to an accompaniment played by mary, and followed by singing "johnny schmoker," with appropriate gestures in the chorus commencing "my pilly, willy wink, das is mein fifa," etc., ending with "my fal, lal, lal, my whach, whach, das ist mein doodle soch," which he emphasised by shrugging his shoulders, to the no small enjoyment of the young folks, who thought the silly, old german song no end of fun. this was followed by a favorite college song, "mandalay," by fritz. then elizabeth schmidt played and sang a pretty little german song called "meuhlen rad," meaning the mill wheel, taught her by her mother. meuhlen rad. in einen kuhlen grunde da steht ein meuhlen rad; mein libste ist versch wunden, die dort gewhoned hat; sie sat mir treu versprochen, gab ihr ein ring dabei; sie hat die treu gebrochen, das ringlein sprang entzwei. she translated it for the benefit of ralph and mary: "in a cool, pleasant spot, stands a mill. my loved one, who lived there, has disappeared. she promised to be true to me, and i gave her a ring. she broke her promise and the ring broke in two." fritz then caught his little sister pauline around the waist and waltzed her to one end of the long room, saying: "mary, play the piece, 'put on your old gray bonnet,' and pollykins and i will do the cakewalk for you." polly, who had become quite a proficient little dancer under her sister's teaching, was very willing to do her share in the evening's entertainment, and it was pronounced a decided success. mary then said, "i'll play my favorite schottische, composed by our old friend, the professor. i have not yet procured a copy of his latest piece of music, 'the passing of the dahlias.' i think it is still with the publishers." mary, after playing "rock of ages," left the room to see about serving refreshments, when elizabeth schmidt took her place at the instrument. after playing "the rosary," she turned to ralph, who had been greatly amused by the german songs on the program, all of which were quite new to him, and said: "what shall i play for you?" he replied, "'my little irish rose'--no, i mean 'the river shannon.'" "don't you mean 'that grand old name called mary?'" mischievously inquired fritz schmidt, who could not refrain from teasing ralph, which caused a laugh at his expense, as all present were aware of his love for mary. elizabeth, to cover ralph's confusion, quickly replied: "i'll play my favorite, 'the end of a perfect day.'" the party was pronounced a success, and broke up at a late hour for country folks. before leaving, mary's uncle said: "now, let's sing 'home, sweet home,' and then all join in singing that grand old hymn, 'my country, 'tis of thee,' to the new tune by our friend, the bucks county editor." [illustration: palasades or narrows of nockamixon] chapter xviii. a visit to the "pennsylvania palisades," as the "narrows" of the delaware river are called. all hailed with delight aunt sarah's proposal that the schmidt and landis families, on the fourth of july, drive over to the narrows, visit aunt sarah's old home at nockamixon, and see the "ringing rocks" and "high falls," situated a short distance from the rocks, near which place picnics were frequently held. john landis readily agreed to the proposed plan, saying, "the meadow hay and clover are cut, and i'll not cut the wheat until the fifth day of july." the third of july was a busy day at both farm houses, preparing savory food of every description with which to fill hampers for the next day's outing. small polly schmidt was so perfectly happy, at the thought of a proposed picnic, she could scarcely contain herself, and as her sister elizabeth said, "did nothing but get in every one's way." little polly, being easily offended, trudged over to the landis farm to see mary, with whom she knew she was a great favorite. the morning of the fourth dawned bright and clear. quite early, while the earth was still enveloped in a silvery mist, and on the lattice work of filmy cobwebs, spun over weeds and grass, dewdrops, like tiny diamonds, sparkled and glistened, until dissolved by the sun's warm rays, the gay party left home, for the "palisades" were quite a distance from the farm, to drive being the only way of reaching the place, unless one boarded the gasoline motorcar, called the "cornfield express" by farmers living in the vicinity of schuggenhaus township. there is something indescribably exhilarating about starting for an early drive in the country before sunrise on a bright, clear morning in midsummer, when "the earth is awaking, the sky and the ocean, the river and forest, the mountain and plain." who has not felt the sweet freshness of early morning before "the sunshine is all on the wing" or the birds awaken and begin to chatter and to sing? there is a hush over everything; later is heard the lowing of cattle, the twitter of birds and hum of insect life, proclaiming the birth of the new day. passing an uncultivated field, overgrown with burdock, wild carrots, mullein, thistle and milk weed, mary alighted and gathered some of the pods of the latter, inclosing imitation of softest down, which she used later for filling sofa pillows. "look at those pretty wild canaries!" exclaimed aunt sarah, "yellow as gold, swinging on the stem of a tall weed." "professor schmidt, can you tell me the name of that weed?" questioned mary. "i have always admired the plant, with its large leaves and long, drooping racemes of crimson seeds. "that," replied the professor, "is a foreign plant, a weed called equisetum from 'equi,' a horse, and 'setum'--tail. the country folk hereabout call it 'horsetail.' it belongs to the crptogamous or flowerless plants. there are only four specimens of this plant in america. i, too, have always greatly admired the plant." the professor was quite a noted botanist. there were few flowers, plants or weeds of which he was ignorant of the name or medicinal value. another bird lazily picked seeds from the thistle blossoms. "see," exclaimed aunt sarah, "one bird has a spear of grass in its mouth!" "yellow star grass," said the professor, "with which to make a nest. they never mate until the last of june, or first part of july. the tiny, little robbers ate up nearly all my sunflower seeds in the garden last summer." "well," replied mary, "you know, professor, the birds must have food. they are the farmer's best friend. i hope you don't begrudge them a few sunflower seeds, i love birds. i particularly admire the 'baltimore oriole,' with their brilliant, orange-colored plumage; they usually make their appearance simultaneously with the blossoms in the orchard in the south meadow; or so aunt sarah tells me. i love to watch them lazily swinging on the high branches of tall trees. on the limb of a pear tree in the orchard one day, i saw firmly fastened, a long, pouch-like nest, woven with rare skill. securely fastened to the nest by various colored pieces of twine and thread was one of smaller size, like a lean-to added to a house, as if the original nest had been found too small to accommodate the family of young birds when hatched. the oriole possesses a peculiar, sweet, high-whistled trill, similar to this--'la-la-la-la,' which always ends with the rising inflection." fritz schmidt, who had been listening intently to mary, gravely remarked, "an oriole built a nest on a tall tree outside my bedroom window, and early every morning, before the family arise, i hear it sing over and over again what sounds exactly like 'lais die beevil!' which translated means 'read your bible'." "even the birds are 'dutch,' i believe, in bucks county," said fritz. "i think these must be german mennonites, there being quite a settlement of these honest, god-fearing people living on farms at no great distance from our place." [illustration: the canal at the narrows] as they drove along the country road, parallel with the delaware river, just before reaching the narrows. mary was greatly attracted by the large quantities of yellow-white "sweet clover," a weed-like plant found along the delaware river, growing luxuriantly, with tall, waving stems two to four feet high. the clover-like flowers, in long, loose racemes, terminating the branches, were so fragrant that, like the yellow evening primrose, the scent was noticeable long before one perceived the flowers. and, strange to tell, sweet clover was never known to grow in this locality until the seed was washed up on the bank of the river some ten or twelve years previous to the date of my story, when the delaware river was higher than it was ever before known to be. "the first place we shall visit," said aunt sarah, "will be my grandmother's old home, or rather, the ruins of the old home. it passed out of our family many years ago; doors and windows are missing and walls ready to tumble down. you see that old locust tree against one side the ruined wall of the house?" and with difficulty she broke a branch from the tree saying, "look, see the sharp, needle-shaped thorns growing on the branch! they were used by me when a child to pin my dolls' dresses together. in those days, pins were too costly to use; and look at that large, flat rock not far distant from the house! at the foot of that rock, when a child of ten, i buried the 'schild krote family' dolls, made from punk (when told i was too big a girl to play with dolls). i shed bitter tears, i remember. alas! the sorrows of childhood are sometimes deeper than we of maturer years realize." "why did you give your family of dolls such an odd name, aunt sarah?" questioned mary. "i do not remember," replied her aunt. "schild krote is the german name for turtle. i presume the name pleased my childish fancy." "suppose we visit my great-great-grandfather's grave in the near-by woods. i think i can locate it, although so many years have passed since i last visited it." passing through fields overgrown with high grass, wild flowers and clover, they came to the woods. surprising to say, scarcely any underbrush was seen, but trees everywhere--stately lebanon cedars, spruce and spreading hemlock, pin oaks, juniper trees which later would be covered with spicy, aromatic berries; also beech trees. witch hazel and hazel nut bushes grew in profusion. john landis cut a large branch from a sassafras tree to make a new spindle on which to wind flax, for aunt sarah's old spinning wheel (hers having been broken), remarking as he did so, "my mother always used a branch of sassafras wood, having five, prong-like branches for this purpose, when i was a boy, and she always placed a piece of sassafras root with her dried fruit." the professor's wife gathered an armful of yarrow, saying, "this is an excellent tonic and should always be gathered before the flowers bloom. i wonder if there is any boneset growing anywhere around here." boneset, a white, flowering, bitter herb, dearly beloved and used by the professor's wife as one of the commonest home remedies in case of sickness, and equally detested by both fritz and pauline. [illustration: the narrows or pennsylvania palisades] mary gathered a bouquet of wild carrot, or "queen anne's lace," with its exquisitely fine, lace-like flowers with pale green-tinted centres. mary's uncle could not agree with her in praise of the dainty wild blossoms. he said: "mary, i consider it the most detested weed with which i am obliged to contend on the farm." [illustration: top rock] after quite a long, tiresome walk in the hot sun, they discovered the lonely grave, covered with a slab of granite surrounded by a small iron railing and read the almost illegible date--"seventeen hundred and forty." ralph said, "if he ever sighed for a home in some vast wilderness, his wish is granted." it certainly was a lonely grave in the deep woods, and gave all the members of the party a sad and eerie feeling as they wended their way out into the sunlight again, to the waiting carriages, and were soon driving swiftly along the narrows, as they have been called from time immemorial by the inhabitants, although i prefer the name of pennsylvania palisades, as they are sometimes called. said professor schmidt: "numerous tourists visit the narrows every year. the narrows are said to resemble somewhat the palisades on the hudson. i have seen, the latter and think these greatly resemble them and are quite as interesting and picturesque." "the name narrows is derived from the fact that at this place the delaware river has forced itself through the rocky barrier," continued the professor, "hedged in on one side by cliffs of perpendicular rock, three hundred feet high, extending some distance along the river, leaving scarcely room at some places for the river and the canal. some quite rare plants grow here, said to be found in few other localities in the united states. you see the highest flat rock along the narrows? it is called 'top rock' and rises to a height of more than three hundred feet. we shall drive around within a short distance of it; then, after passing a small house, we are obliged to walk across a field of ploughed ground; follow the well-beaten path between trees and undergrowth, and 'top rock' is before us. stepping upon the high ledge of rock projecting out over the road beneath, we discover it may also be reached by following a precipitous path and clinging to bushes and trees, but none of the party venture. recently the body of a man who had been searching for rare birds' eggs on the side of this self-same rock was found dead on the path below the rocks. what caused his fall is not known. no wonder aunt sarah says it makes her dizzy when you boys skip stones across the river while standing on the rock." the beautiful view of the delaware river and the scenery on the opposite side was something long to be remembered. while the party were going into raptures over the beautiful sight, professor schmidt turned to mary and remarked: "in those rocks which rise in perpendicular bluffs, several hundred feet above the level of the river, are evidence that prehistoric man may have inhabited the caves in these same walls of rock along the delaware. from implements and weapons found, it does not require any great effort of imagination to believe the 'cave man' dwelt here many centuries ago." fritz schmidt was much interred in his father's conversation, and from that time on called ralph jackson mary's "cave man." leaving top rock, the party wended their way back to the waiting carriages in the road, and drove to the "ringing or musical rocks." they had been informed that their nearest approach to the rocks was to drive into the woods to reach them. passing a small shanty at the roadside, where a sign informed the passerby that soft drinks were to be obtained, the party dismounted and found, to their surprise, a small pavilion had been erected with bench, table and numerous seats composed of boards laid across logs, where camp meetings had formerly been held. as the large trees furnished shade, and a spring of fresh water was near by, they decided to "strike" camp and have lunch before going farther into the woods. aunt sarah and the professor's wife spread a snowy cloth over the rough wooden table, quickly unpacked the hampers, and both were soon busily engaged preparing sandwiches of bread, thinly sliced, pink cold ham and ground peanuts, fried chicken and beef omelette; opening jars of home-made pickles, raspberry jam and orange marmalade. "oh!" said pauline, "i'm so hungry for a piece of chocolate cake. let me help shell the eggs, so we can soon have dinner." "here's your fresh spring water," called fritz, as he joined the party, a tin pail in his hand, "we had such an early breakfast, i'm as hungry as a bear." the party certainly did full justice to the good things provided with a lavish hand by frau schmidt and aunt sarah. all were in high spirits. the professor quoted from the rubaiyat of omar khayyam-- here with a loaf of bread beneath the bough. a flask of wine, a book of verse and thou, beside me singing in the wilderness, and wilderness is paradise enow. ralph cast a look at marry, unnoticed by any one else, as much as to say, "the old tentmaker voiced my sentiments." [illustration: ringing rocks of bridgton township bucks county. pa.] [illustration: high falls] after the hampers had been repacked and stowed away in the carriages, they with the horses were left in the shade while the party walked to "high falls," at no great distance from the camp. "high falls," a beautiful waterfall about thirty feet high and fifty feet wide, is situated several hundred feet east of the ringing rocks. the water, before dashing below, passes over a large, solid, level floor of rock. after gazing at the falls and picturesque surroundings, they searched through the woods for the ringing rocks, a peculiar formation of rocks of irregular shape and size, branching out from a common centre in four directions. the rocks vary in size from a few pounds to several tons in weight. arriving there, aunt sarah said: "ralph, you will now find use for the hammer which i asked you to bring." ralph struck different rocks with the hammer, and fritz schmidt struck rocks with other pieces of rock, and all gave a peculiar metallic sound, the tones of each being different. the rocks are piled upon each other to an unknown depth, not a particle of earth being found between them, and not a bush or spear of grass to be seen. they occupy a space of about four and a half acres and are a natural curiosity well worth seeing. the young folks scrambled over the rocks for a time, and, having made them ring to their hearts' content, were satisfied to return to camp and supper. [illustration: big rock at rocky dale] "not far distant from high falls," said john landis, when all were comfortably seated near the table, with a sandwich in hand, "is a place called roaring rocks, also a freak of nature. i remember, when a boy, i always went there in the fall of the year, after the first hard frost, to pick persimmons. the water could he distinctly heard running underneath the rocks at a considerable depth." ralph jackson remarked to aunt sarah: "i never imagined there were so many interesting, natural features right here in bucks county." "oh, yes," exclaimed the impressible fritz schmidt, "we have a few things besides pigs and potatoes." "yes, ralph," said the professor, "there are still several places of interest you will like to see. 'stony garden' is another very interesting freak of nature. it is about two and a half miles from the small town of 'snitzbachsville,' as fritz calls the hamlet, and 'tis a wild spot. about an acre is covered with trap rock. the stones are of odd shapes and sizes and appear as if thrown into the forest in the wildest confusion. no earth or vegetation is found about them. 'tis said the rocks are similar to those found at fingal's cave, ireland, and also at the palisades on the hudson, and are not found anywhere else in this section of the country." "and ralph," said fritz, "i want to show you 'big rock,' at avondale, where a party of us boys camped one summer for two weeks. oh! but i remember the good pies given us by a farmer's wife who sold us milk and eggs, and who lived just across the fields from our camp." "i think," said john landis, "it is time we began hitching up our horses and starting for home. we have a long drive before us, and, therefore, must make an early start. sarah, get the rest of the party together and pack up your traps." at that moment the professor came in sight with an armful of ferns, the rich loam adhering to their roots, and said: "i'm sure these will grow." later he planted them on a shady side of the old farm house at "five oaks," where they are growing today. professor schmidt, after a diligent search, had found clinging to a rock a fine specimen of "seedum rhodiola," which he explained had never been found growing in any locality in the united states except maine. little pauline, with a handful of flowers and weeds, came trotting after mary, who carried an armful of creeping evergreen called partridge berry, which bears numerous small, bright, scarlet berries later in the season. ralph walked by her side with a basket filled to overflowing with quantities of small ferns and rock moss, with which to border the edge of the waiter on which mary intended planting ferns; tree moss or lichens, hepaticas, wild violets, pipsissewa or false wintergreen, with dark green, waxy leaves veined with a lighter shade of green; and wild pink geraniums, the foliage of which is prettier than the pink blossoms seen later, and they grow readily when transplanted. aunt sarah had taught mary how to make a beautiful little home-made fernery. by planting these all on a large waiter, banking moss around the edges to keep them moist and by planting them early, they would be growing finely when taken by her to the city in the fall of the year--a pleasant reminder of her trip to the "narrows" of the delaware river. frau schmidt brought up the rear, carrying huge bunches of mint, pennyroyal and the useful herb called "quaker bonnet." [illustration: the old towpath at the narrows] driving home at the close of the day, the twinkling lights in farm house windows they swiftly passed, were hailed with delight by the tired but happy party, knowing that each one brought them nearer home than the one before. to enliven the drowsy members of the party, fritz schmidt sang the following to the tune of "my old kentucky home," improvising as he sang: the moon shines bright on our "old bucks county home," the meadows with daisies are gay, the song of the whipporwill is borne on the breeze, with the scent of the new mown hay. oh! the narrows are great with their high granite peaks, and ringing rocks for ages the same; but when daylight fades and we're tired and cold, there's no place like "hame, clear alt hame." the last lingering rays of the sun idealized the surrounding fields and woods with that wonderful afterglow seen only at the close of day. the saffron moon appeared to rise slowly from behind the distant tree-tops, and rolled on parallel with them, and then ahead, as if to guide them on their way, and the stars twinkled one by one from out the mantle of darkness which slowly enveloped the earth. the trees they swiftly passed, when the moonbeams touched them, assumed gigantic, grotesque shapes in the darkness. mary quoted from a favorite poem, "the huskers," by whittier: 'till broad and red as when he rose, the sun sank down at last, and, like a merry guest's farewell, the day in brightness passed. and lo! as through the western pines, on meadow, stream and pond, flamed the red radiance of a sky, set all afire beyond. slowly o'er the eastern sea bluffs, a milder glory shone, and the sunset and the moon-rise were mingled into one! as thus into the quiet night, the twilight lapsed away, and deeper in the brightening moon the tranquil shadows lay. from many a brown, old farm house and hamlet without name, their milking and their home tasks done, the merry huskers came. "you mean 'the merry picknickers came,'" said fritz schmidt, as mary finished, "and here we are at home. good night, all." chapter xix. mary is taught to make pastry, patties and "rosen kuchen." mary's aunt taught her to make light, flaky pastry and pies of every description. in this part of bucks county a young girl's education was considered incomplete without a knowledge of pie-making. some of the commonest varieties of pies made at the farm were "rivel kuchen," a pie crust covered with a mixture of sugar, butter and flour crumbled together; "snitz pie," composed of either stewed dried apples or peaches, finely mashed through a colander, sweetened, spread over a crust and this covered with a lattice-work of narrow strips of pastry laid diamond-wise over the top of the pie; "crumb" pies, very popular when served for breakfast, made with the addition of molasses or without it; cheese pies, made of "smier kase;" egg custard, pumpkin and molasses pie. pies were made of all the different fruits and berries which grew on the farm. when fresh fruits were not obtainable, dried fruits and berries were used. pie made from dried, sour cherries was an especial favorite of farmer landis, and raisin or "rosina" pie, as it was usually called at the farm, also known as "funeral" pie, was a standby at all seasons of the year, as it was invariably served at funerals, where, in old times, sumptuous feasts were provided for relatives and friends, a regular custom for years among the "pennsylvania germans," and i have heard aunt sarah say, "in old times, the wives of the grave-diggers were always expected to assist with the extra baking at the house where a funeral was to be held." it would seem as if bucks county german housewives did not like a dessert without a crust surrounding it. the pennsylvania german farmers' wives, with few exceptions, serve the greatest variety of pies at a meal of any class of people i know; not alone as a dessert at twelve o'clock dinner, but frequently serve several different varieties of pie at breakfast and at each meal during the day. no ill effects following the frequent eating of pie i attribute to their active life, the greater part of which, during the day, was usually spent in the open air, and some credit may he due the housewife for having acquired the knack of making _good_ pie crust, which was neither very rich nor indigestible, if such a thing be possible. the combination of fruit and pastry called pie is thought to be of american invention. material for pies at a trifling cost were furnished the early settlers in bucks county by the large supply of fruit and vegetables which their fertile farms produced, and these were utilized by the thrifty german housewives, noted for their wise management and economy. the professor's wife taught mary to make superior pastry, so flaky and tender as to fairly melt in one's mouth; but mary never could learn from her the knack of making a dainty, crimped edge to her pies with thumb and forefinger, although it looked so very simple when she watched "frau schmidt" deftly roll over a tiny edge as a finish to the pie. mary laughingly told the professor's wife (when speaking of pies) of the brilliant remark she made about lard, on first coming to the farm. her aunt sarah, when baking pies one day, said to her, "look, mary, see this can of snowy lard, rendered from pork, obtained from our fat pigs last winter!" "why, aunt sarah!" exclaimed mary, "is lard made from pork fat? i always thought lard was made from milk and butter was made from cream." the professor's wife possessed, besides a liking for pies, the german's fondness for anything pertaining to fritters. she used a set of "wafer and cup irons" for making "rosen kuchen," as she called the flat, saucer-like wafer; and the cup used for serving creamed vegetables, salads, etc., was similar to pattie cases. "the 'wafer and cup irons,'" said frau schmidt, "were invented by a friend of mine, also a teacher and an excellent cook, besides; she gave me several of her original recipes, all to be served on wafers or in patties. you shall have a set of the irons when you start housekeeping. mary. you will be surprised at the many uses you will find for them. they are somewhat similar to rosette irons, but i think them an improvement. they are pieces of fluted steel fastened to a long handle and one is cup-shaped. this latter is particularly fine for making patties. then the cup may be filled and served on saucer-like wafers, which i call 'rosen kuchen,' or the 'rosen kuchen' may be simply dusted with a mixture consisting of one cup of sugar, one teaspoonful of cinnamon and a quarter teaspoonful of powdered cardamon seed, and served on a plate, as dainty cakes or wafers." aunt sarah, when cooking fritters, always used two-thirds lard and one-third suet for deep frying, but "frau schmidt" taught mary to use a good brand of oil for this purpose, as she thought food fried in oil more digestible and wholesome than when fried in lard. the patties or wafers were easily made. "frau schmidt" placed the long-handled iron in hot fat, the right temperature for frying fritters. when the iron was heated she quickly and carefully wiped off any surplus fat, then at once dipped the hot wafer iron into a bowl containing the batter she had prepared (the recipe for which she gave mary), then dipped the iron into the hot fat; when the batter had lightly browned she gently dropped it from the iron onto brown paper, to absorb any fat which might remain. these are quickly and easily prepared and, after a few trials, one acquires proficiency. pattie cases or cup-shapes are made in a similar manner. they are not expensive and may be kept several weeks in a cool, dry place. when wanted for table use, place in a hot oven a few minutes to reheat. they make a dainty addition to a luncheon by simply dusting the "rosen kuchen" with pulverised sugar. creamed vegetables of any variety may be served on them by placing a spoon of cream dressing on top of each, over which grate yolk of hard boiled egg; or use as a foundation on which to serve salads; or serve fruit on them with whipped cream. the patties or cups may be used to serve creamed chicken, oysters, or sweetbreads if no sugar be used in the batter. these pattie cases are exactly like those sold at delicatessen counters, in city stores, and are considered quite an addition to a dainty luncheon. they are rather expensive to buy, and we country housewives cannot always procure them when wanted, and they may be made at home with a small amount of labor and less expense. "the germans make fritters of almost everything imaginable," continued the professor's wife. "one day in early spring i saw a german neighbor gathering elderberry blossoms, of which she said she intended making fritters. i asked her how they were made, being curious, i will confess. she sent me a plate of the fritters and they were delicious. i will give you her recipe should you care for it. mary, have you ever eaten a small, sweet wafer called 'zimmet waffle?' my mother made them at christmas time, in germany. should i be able to procure a small 'waffle,' or i should call it wafer, iron, in the city, i will teach you how they are made. i think them excellent. my mother made a cake dough similar to that of pound cake. to one portion she added cinnamon, to the other chocolate, and the last portion was flavored with vanilla. a piece of dough the size of a small marble was placed in the wafer iron, which was then pressed together and held over the fire in the range, by a long handle, until the wafer was crisp and brown. they are delicious and will keep indefinitely." the professor's wife finished speaking to mary, and turned to her daughter elizabeth, saying, "it is time i mix the dough if we are to have 'boova shenkel' for dinner today. i see the potatoes have steamed tender." "oh, goody!" said pauline, "i just love 'boova shenkel!'" "then," said her mother, "run down into the cellar and get me three eggs for them, and mary, i'll write off the recipe for you, if you wish it, as i feel sure you'll like them as well as pauline. and elizabeth, dust powdered sugar over this plate of 'rosen kuchen,' and you, mary and pauline, leave this hot kitchen and have lunch out in the 'espalier,' as your father calls it." "i think," said mary to elizabeth, after they were seated in the shade, prepared to enjoy the "rosen kuchen," "this little, natural, home-grown summer-house is the oddest and prettiest little place i've ever seen." "yes," assented elizabeth, "father said he made it as nearly like as possible to a large one at weisbaden, no great distance from his old home in germany. he says the 'frauer esche,' meaning weeping ash, at weisbaden, had tables and benches placed beneath spreading branches of the tree, and picnics were frequently held there. this one was made by the larger branches of the weeping ash, turning downward, fastened by pieces of leather to a framework nailed to the top of posts in the ground, about two yards apart, surrounding the tree. the posts, you notice, are just a little higher than an ordinary man, and when the leaves thickly cover the tops and sides, protecting one from the sun's rays, it is an ideal summer-house. we frequently sit here evenings and afternoons; mother brings her sewing and pauline her doll family, which, you know, is quite numerous." "i never saw a summer-house at all like it," said mary. the professor's wife not only taught mary the making of superior pastry and the cooking of german dishes, but what was of still greater importance, taught her the value of different foods; that cereals of every description, flour and potatoes, are starchy foods; that cream, butter, oil, etc., are fat foods; that all fruits and vegetables contain mineral matter; and that lean meat, eggs, beans, peas and milk are muscle-forming foods. these are things every young housekeeper should have a knowledge of to be able to plan nourishing, wholesome, well-balanced meals for her family. and not to serve at one time a dish of rice, cheese and macaroni, baked beans and potatoes. serve instead with one of these dishes fruit, a vegetable or salad. she said, "beans have a large percentage of nutriment and should be more commonly used." she also said graham and corn bread are much more nutritious than bread made from fine white flour, which lacks the nutritious elements. indian corn is said to contain the largest amount of fat of any cereal. it is one of our most important cereal foods and should be more commonly used by housewives; especially should it be used by working men whose occupation requires a great amount of physical exercise. particularly in cold weather should it be frequently served, being both cheap and wholesome. the professor's wife laughingly remarked to mary, "when i fry fritters or 'fast nacht' cakes, fritz and pauline usually assist such a large number of them in disappearing before i have finished baking, i am reminded of 'doughnutting time,' by j.w. foley. have you never read the poem? i sometimes feel that it must have been written by me." [a]"doughnutting time." wunst w'en our girl wuz makin' pies an' doughnuts--'ist a lot-- we stood around with great, big eyes, 'cuz we boys like 'em hot; and w'en she dropped 'em in the lard, they sizzled 'ist like fun, and w'en she takes 'em out, it's hard to keep from takin' one. and 'en she says: "you boys'll get all spattered up with grease." and by-um-by she says she'll let us have 'ist one apiece; so i took one for me, and one for little james mcbride, the widow's only orfunt son, 'ats waitin' there outside. an' henry, he took one 'ist for himself an' nellie flynn, 'at's waitin' at the kitchen door and dassent to come in, becuz her mother told her not; and johnny, he took two, 'cus amey brennan likes 'em hot, 'ist like we chinnern do. 'en henry happened 'ist to think he didn't get a one for little ebenezer brink, the carpet beater's son, who never gets 'em home, becuz he says, he ain't quite sure, but thinks perhaps the reason wuz, his folkeses are too poor. an 'en i give my own away to little willie biggs 'at fell down his stairs one day, an' give him crooked legs, 'cuz willie always seems to know w'en our girl's goin' to bake. he wouldn't ast for none. oh, no! but, my! he's fond of cake. so i went back an' 'en i got another one for me, right out the kittle smokin' hot, an' brown as it could be; an' john he got one, too, becuz he give his own to clare, an' w'en our girl she looked, there wuz 'ist two small doughnuts there. my! she wuz angry w'en she looked an' saw 'ist them two there, an' says she knew 'at she had cooked a crock full an' to spare; she says it's awful 'scouragin' to bake and fret an' fuss, an' w'en she thinks she's got 'em in the crock, they're all in us. [footnote a: the poem "doughnutting time," from "boys and girls," published by e.p. dutton, by permission of the author, james w. foley.] * * * * * * * the professor's wife gave mary what she called her most useful recipe. she said, "mary, this recipe was almost invaluable to me when i was a young housekeeper and the strictest economy was necessary. sift into a bowl, one cup of flour, one even teaspoonful of baking powder (i use other baking powders occasionally, but prefer 'royal'), then cut through the flour either one tablespoonful of butter or lard, add a pinch of salt, and mix into a soft dough with about one-half cup of sweet milk. mix dough quickly and lightly, handling as little as possible. drop large spoonfuls of the batter in muffin pans and bake in a quick oven for tea biscuits; or, sift flour thickly over the bread board, turn out the dough, roll several times in the flour, give one quick turn with the rolling-pin to flatten out dough, and cut out with small cake cutter, (i prefer using a small, empty tin, / pound baking powder can, to cut out cakes.) place close together in an agate pan and bake, or bake in one cake in a pie tin and for shortcake; or place spoonfuls of the dough over veal or beef stew and potatoes or stewed chicken, and cook, closely covered, about fifteen minutes. of course, you will have sufficient water in the stew pan to prevent its boiling away before the pot-pie dumplings are cooked, and, of course, you know, mary, the meat and potatoes must be almost ready to serve when this dough is added. then i frequently add one teaspoonful of sugar to the batter and place spoonfuls over either freshly stewed or canned sour cherries, plums, rhubarb or apples. in fact, any tart fruit may be used, and steam, closely covered, or place large tablespoonful of any fruit, either canned or stewed, in small custard cups, place tablespoonfuls of batter on top and steam or bake, and serve with either some of the stewed fruit and fruit juice, sugar and cream, or any sauce preferred." "the varieties of puddings which may be evolved from this one formula," continued the professor's wife, "are endless, and, mary, i should advise you to make a note of it. this quantity of flour will make enough to serve two at a meal, and the proportions may be easily doubled if you wish to serve a large family." "then, mary, i have a recipe taken from the 'farmers' bulletin' for dumplings, which i think fine. you must try it some time. your aunt sarah thinks them 'dreadfully extravagant.' they call for four teaspoonfuls of baking powder to two cups of flour, but they are perfect puff balls, and this is such a fast age, why not use more baking powder if an advantage? i am always ready to try anything new i hear about." "yes," replied mary, "i just love to try new recipes, i will experiment with the dumplings one of these days. aunt sarah says i will never use half the recipes i have; but so many of them have been given me by excellent and reliable old bucks county cooks, i intend to copy them all in a book, and keep for reference after i leave the farm." chapter xx. old potteries and decorated dishes. one day, looking through the old corner cupboard, mary exclaimed, "aunt sarah, you certainly possess the finest collection of quaint old china dishes i have ever seen. i just love those small saucers and cups without handles; yes, and you have plates to match decorated with pinkish, lavender peacock feathers, and those dear little cups and saucers, decorated inside with pink and outside with green flowers, are certainly odd; and this queerly-shaped cream jug, sugar bowl and teapot, with pale green figures, and those homely plates, with dabs of bright red and green, they surely must be very old!" [illustration: old earthenware dish] "yes, dear, they all belonged to either john's mother or mine. all except this one large, blue plate, which is greatly valued by me, as it was given me many years ago by a dear old friend, mary butler, a descendant of one of the oldest families in wyoming valley, whose, forefathers date back to the time of the 'wyoming massacre,' about which so much has been written in song and story. "the very oddest plates in your collection are those two large earthenware dishes, especially that large circular dish, with sloping sides and flat base, decorated with tulips." [illustration: sgraffito plate manufactured by one of the oldest pennsylvania german potterers in ] "yes, mary, and it is the one i value most highly. it is called sgraffito ware. a tulip decoration surrounds a large red star in the centre of the plate. this belonged to my mother, who said it came from the headman pottery at rockhill township, about the year . i know of only two others in existence at the present time; one is in a museum in the city of philadelphia and the other one is in the bucks county historical society at doylestown, pa. the other earthenware plate you admire, containing marginal inscription in german which when translated is 'this plate is made of earth, when it breaks the potter laughs,' is the very oldest in my collection, the date on it, you see, is . those curved, shallow earthenware pie plates, or 'poi schissel,' as they are frequently called in this part of bucks county, i value, even if they are quite plain and without decoration, as they were always used by my mother when baking pies, and i never thought pies baked in any other shaped dish tasted equally as good as hers. these pie plates were manufactured at one of the old potteries near her home. all the old potters have passed away, and the buildings have crumbled to the ground. years ago, your mother and i, when visiting the old farm where the earlier years of our childhood were passed, stopped with one of our old-time friends, who lived directly opposite the old herstine pottery, which was then in a very dilapidated condition; it had formerly been operated by cornelius herstine (we always called him 'neal' herstine)." [illustration: old plates found in aunt sarah's corner cupboard] "together we crossed the road, forced our way through tangled vines and underbrush, and, peering through windows guiltless of glass, we saw partly-finished work of the old potters crumbling on the ground. the sight was a sad one. we realized the hand of time had crumbled to dust both the potter and his clay. still nearer my old home was the mcentee pottery. from earliest childhood our families were friends. we all attended the 'crossroads' school, where years later a more modern brick structure was built, under the hill; not far distant from 'the narrows' and the 'ringing rocks.' yes, mary, my memory goes back to the time when the mcentee pottery was a flourishing industry, operated by three brothers, john, patrick and michael. when last i visited them but few landmarks remained." "was there a pottery on your father's farm, aunt sarah?" inquired mary. "no. the nearest one was the mcentee pottery, but the grandson of the old man who purchased our old farm at my father's death had a limekiln for the purpose of burning lime, and several miles distant, at the home of my uncle, was found clay suitable for the manufacture of bricks. only a few years ago this plant was still in operation. my father's farm was situated in the upper part of bucks county, in what was then known as the nockamixon swamp, and at one time there were in that neighborhood no less than seven potteries within two miles of each other." "why," exclaimed mary, "were there so many potteries in that locality?" "'twas due, no doubt, to the large deposits of clay found there, well suited to the manufacture of earthenware. the soil is a clayey loam, underlaid with potter's clay. the old german potters, on coming to this country, settled mostly in eastern pennsylvania, in the counties of bucks and montgomery. the numerous small potteries erected by the early settlers were for the manufacture of earthenware dishes, also pots of graded sizes. these were called nests, and were used principally on the farm for holding milk, cream and apple-butter. jugs and pie plates were also manufactured. the plates were visually quite plain, but they produced occasionally plates decorated with conventionalized tulips, and some, more elaborate, contained besides figures of animals, birds and flowers. marginal inscriptions in english and german decorate many of the old plates, from which may be learned many interesting facts concerning the life and habits of the early settlers. i think, judging from the inscriptions i have seen on some old plates, it must have taxed the ingenuity of the old german potters to think up odd, original inscriptions for their plates." "aunt sarah, how was sgraffito ware made? is it the same as slip-decorated pottery?" "no, my dear, the two are quite different. the large plate you so greatly admired is called sgraffito or scratched work, sometimes called slip engraving. it usually consists of dark designs on a cream-colored ground. after the plates had been shaped over the mold by the potter, the upper surface was covered by a coating of white slip, and designs were cut through this slip to show the earthenware underneath. this decoration was more commonly used by the old potters than slip decorating, which consisted in mixing white clay and water until the consistency of cream. the liquid clay was then allowed to run slowly through a quill attached to a small cup, over the earthenware (before burning it in a kiln) to produce different designs. the process is similar to that used when icing a cake, when you allow the icing to run slowly from a pastry tube to form fanciful designs. i have watched the old potters at their work many a time when a child. the process employed in the manufacture of earthenware is almost the same today as it was a century ago, but the appliances of the present day workmen are not so primitive as were those of the old german potters. mary, a new pottery works has been started quite lately in the exact locality where, over one hundred years ago, were situated the dichl and headman potteries, where my highly-prized, old sgraffito plate was manufactured. i hear the new pottery has improved machinery for the manufacture of vases, flower pots, tiles, etc. they intend manufacturing principally 'spanish tiles' from the many acres of fine clay found at that place. the clay, it is said, burns a beautiful dark, creamy red. as you are so much interested in this subject, mary, we shall visit this new pottery some day in the near future, in company with your uncle john. it is no great distance from the farm. quite an interesting story i have heard in connection with a pottery owned by a very worthy quaker in a near-by town may interest you, as your father was a philadelphia quaker and ralph's parents were quakers also." [illustration: a- schmutz amschel] [illustration: a- antiquated tin lantern] [illustration: a- schmutz amschel] [illustration: a- fluid lamp] [illustration: a- candle mould] "yes, indeed, aunt sarah! i'd love to hear the story." "this quaker sympathized with the colored race, or negroes, in the south. this was, of course, before slavery was abolished. you don't remember that time, mary, you are too young. it is only history to you, but i lived it, and when the slaves ran away from their owners and came north to philadelphia they were sent from there, by sympathizers, to this quaker, who kept an underground station. the slaves were then placed, under his direction, in a high 'pot wagon,' covered with layers or nests of earthenware pots of graduated sizes. i heard the driver of one of these pot wagons remark one time that when going down a steep hill, he put on the brake and always held his breath until the bottom of the hill was reached, fearing the pots might all be broken. the wagon-load containing earthenware and slaves was driven to stroudsburg, where the pots were delivered to a wholesale customer. here the runaways were released from their cramped quarters and turned over to sympathizing friends, who assisted them in reaching canada and safety. i have frequently met the fine-looking, courtly old gentleman who owned the pottery, and old zacariah mast, the skilled german potter whom he employed. they were for many years familiar figures in the little quaker town, not many miles distant. both passed away many years ago." mary, who still continued her explorations of the corner cupboard, exclaimed: "oh! aunt sarah! here is another odd, old plate, way back on the lop shelf, out of sight." "yes, dear, that belonged to your uncle john's mother. it has never been used and was manufactured over one hundred years ago at an old pottery in bedminister township, bucks county. some of those other quaint, old-fashioned plates also belonged to john's mother. your uncle loves old dishes and especially old furniture; he was so anxious to possess his grandfather's old 'solliday' clock. in the centre of the face of the clock a hand indicated the day of the month and pictures of two large, round moons on the upper part of the clock's face (resembling nothing so much as large, ripe peaches) represented the different phases of the moon. if new moon, or the first or last quarter, it appeared, then disappeared from sight. it was valued highly, being the last clock made by the old clockmaker; but john never came into possession of it, as it was claimed by an elder sister. i value the old clock which stands in the parlor because 'twas my mother's, although it is very plain. this old cherry, corner cupboard was made for my grandmother by her father, a cabinetmaker, as a wedding gift, and was given me by my mother. did you notice the strong, substantial manner in which it is made? it resembles mission furniture." "do tell me, aunt, what this small iron boat, on the top shelf, was ever used for? it must be of value, else 'twould not occupy a place in the cupboard with all your pretty dishes." "yes, dearie, 'twas my grandmother's lamp, called in old times a 'schmutz amschel' which, translated, means a grease robin, or bird. i have two of them. i remember seeing my grandmother many a time, when the 'amschel' was partly filled with melted lard or liquid fat, light a piece of lamp wick hanging over the little pointed end or snout of the lamp. the lamp was usually suspended from a chain fastened to either side. a spike on the chain was stuck into the wall, which was composed of logs. this light, by the way, was not particularly brilliant, even when one sat close beside it, and could not be compared with the gas and electric lights of our present day and generation. that was a very primitive manner of illumination used by our forefathers. "mary, did you notice the gayly-decorated, old-fashioned coffee pot and tea caddy in the corner cupboard? they belonged to my grandmother; also that old-fashioned fluid lamp, used before coal-oil or kerosene came into use; and that old, perforated tin lantern also is very ancient. "mary, have you ever read the poem, the potter and the clay?' no? then read it to me, dear, i like it well; 'tis a particular favorite of mine, i do not remember by whom it was written." the potter and the clay. (jeremiah xviii - .) the potter wrought a work in clay, upon his wheel; he moulded it and fashioned it, and made it feel, in every part, his forming hand, his magic skill, until it grew in beauty fair beneath his will. when lo! through some defect, 'twas marred and broken lay, its fair proportions spoiled, and it but crumbling clay; oh, wondrous patience, care and love, what did he do? he stooped and gathered up the parts and formed anew. he might have chosen then a lump of other clay on which to show his skill and care another day, but no; he formed it o'er again, as seemed him good; and who has yet his purpose scanned, his will withstood? learn thou from this a parable of god's great grace toward the house of israel, his chosen race; he formed them for his praise; they fell and grieved him sore, but he will yet restore and bless them evermore. and what he'll do for israel, he'll do for thee; oh soul, so marred and spoiled by sin, thou yet shall see that he has power to restore, he will receive, and thou shall know his saving grace, only believe. despair not, he will form anew thy scattered life, and gather up the broken parts, make peace from strife; only submit thou to his will of perfect love, and thou shall see his fair design in heaven above. chapter xxi. the value of wholesome, nutritious food. "yes, my dear," said frau schmidt (continuing a conversation which had occurred several days previously between herself and mary), "we will have more healthful living when the young housewife of the present day possesses a knowledge of different food values (those food products from which a well-balanced meal may be prepared) for the different members of her household. she should endeavor to buy foods which are most nourishing and wholesome; these need not necessarily consist of the more expensive food products. cheaper food, if properly cooked, may have as fine a flavor and be equally as nutritious as that of higher price. "and, mary, when you marry and have a house to manage, if possible, do your own marketing, and do not make the mistake common to so many young, inexperienced housewives, of buying more expensive food than, your income will allow. some think economy in purchasing food detrimental to their dignity and to the well-being of their families; often the ones most extravagant in this respect are those least able to afford it. frequently the cause of this is a lack of knowledge of the value of different foods. the housewife with a large family and limited means should purchase cheaper cuts of meat, which become tender and palatable by long simmering. combine them with different vegetables, cooked in the broth, and serve as the principal dish at a meal, or occasionally serve dumplings composed of a mixture of flour and milk, cooked in the broth, to extend the meat flavor. frequently serve a dish of rice, hominy, cornmeal and oatmeal, dried beans and peas. these are all nutritious, nourishing foods when properly cooked and attractively served. and remember, mary, to always serve food well seasoned. many a well-cooked meal owes its failure to please to a lack of proper seasoning. this is a lesson a young cook must learn. neither go to the other extreme and salt food too liberally. speaking of salt, my dear, have you read the poem, 'the king's daughters,' by margaret vandegrift? if not, read it, and then copy it in your book of recipes." "the king's daughters." the king's three little daughters, 'neath the palace window straying, had fallen into earnest talk that put an end to playing; and the weary king smiled once again to hear what they were saying; "it is i who love our father best," the eldest daughter said; "i am the oldest princess," and her pretty face grew red; "what is there none can do without? i love him more than bread." then said the second princess, with her bright blue eyes aflame; "than bread, a common thing like bread! thou hast not any shame! glad am i, it is i, not thou, called by our mother's name; i love him with a better love than one so tame as thine, more than--oh! what then shall i say that is both bright and fine? and is not common? yes, i know. i love him more than wine." then the little youngest daughter, whose speech would sometimes halt, for her dreamy way of thinking, said, "nay, you are both in fault. 'tis i who love our father best, i love him more than salt." shrill little shrieks of laughter greeted her latest word, as the two joined hands exclaiming. "but this is most absurd!" and the king, no longer smiling, was grieved that he had heard, for the little youngest daughter, with her eyes of steadfast grey, could always move his tenderness, and charm his care away; "she grows more like her mother dead," he whispered day by day, "but she is very little and i will find no fault, that while her sisters strive to see who most shall me exalt, she holds me nothing dearer than a common thing like salt." the portly cook was standing in the courtyard by the spring, he winked and nodded to himself, "that little quiet thing knows more than both the others, as i will show the king." that afternoon, at dinner, there was nothing fit to eat. the king turned angrily away from soup and fish and meat, and he found a cloying sweetness in the dishes that were sweet; "and yet," he muttered, musing, "i cannot find the fault; not a thing has tasted like itself but this honest cup of malt." said the youngest princess, shyly: "dear father, they want salt." a sudden look of tenderness shone on the king's dark face, as he sat his little daughter in the dead queen's vacant place, and he thought: "she has her mother's heart; ay, and her mother's grace; great love through channels will find its surest way. it waits not state occasions, which may not come or may; it comforts and it blesses, hour by hour, and day by day." chapter xxii. a variety of cakes evolved from one "aunt sarah," questioned mary one day, "will you tell me how it is possible to evolve a number of cakes from one recipe?" "certainly i will, my dear," said her aunt. "for instance, take the simple recipe from which i have for years baked layer cake. you may have other recipes given you, equally as good, but i feel positive none better. the cake made from this recipe is not rich enough to be unwholesome, but a good, reliable, inexpensive, easily-made cake, with which i have never had a failure. "the recipe, as you know, consists of - / cups of granulated sugar, / cup of a mixture of butter and sweet lard (or use all butter), / cup sweet milk, cups flour and teaspoonfuls baking powder. eggs. "the simplest manner of baking this cake is in two square cake pans. when baked, take from pans and ice each cake with a boiled chocolate icing and put together as a layer cake, or ice each cake with a plain, boiled white icing and, when this is cold, you may spread over top of each cake unsweetened chocolate, which has been melted over steam after being grated. when cake is to be served, cut in diamonds or squares. or add to the batter cup of chopped hickory nut meats, bake in layers and cut in squares. "for a chocolate loaf cake, add two generous tablespoonfuls of unsweetened melted chocolate to the batter just before baking. if you wish a chocolate layer cake, use the same batter as for the chocolate loaf cake, bake in two layer pans and put together with white boiled icing. "or, add to this same batter one scant teaspoonful of cinnamon, ginger, / teaspoonful of grated nutmeg and cloves, a cup of raisins or dried currants, and you have a small fruit cake. "or, add a small quantity of thinly-shaved citron to the original recipe, flavor with lemon, bake in a loaf and spread a white icing flavored with lemon extract over top of cake, and you have a lemon cake. "or, add chocolate and spices to one-half the batter (about one-half as much chocolate and spices as were used in batter for fruit cake) and place spoonfuls of the light and dark batter alternately in a cake pan, until all batter has been used, and you will have a cheap, old-fashioned marble cake. "or, bake cake over original recipe, in two-layer pans, placing between layers either tart jelly, a creamy cornstarch filling, grated cocoanut, apple cream filling, or you might even use half the recipe given for the delicious icing or filling for lady baltimore cake. "lastly, bake small cakes from this same recipe. mary, you should have small pans for baking these delicious little cakes, similar to those i possess, which i ordered made at the tinsmith's. i took for a pattern one frau schmidt loaned me. they are the exact size of one-quarter pound boxes of royal baking powder. cut the box in three pieces of equal height, and your cakes will be equally as large in diameter as the baking powder box, but only one-third as high. i think i improved on frau schmidt's cake tins, as hers were all separate, i ordered twelve tins, similar to hers, to be fastened to a piece of sheet iron. i had two of these iron sheets made, containing twenty-four little pans. i place a generous tablespoonful of the batter in each of the twenty-four small pans, and cakes rise to the top of pans. usually i have batter remaining after these are filled. ice all the cake except the top with a white boiled icing or chocolate icing. these small cakes keep exceedingly well, and are always liked by young folks and are particularly nice for children's parties". "speaking of cakes, aunt sarah," said mary, "have you ever used swansdown cake flour? i have a friend in the city who uses it for making the most delicious angel cake, and she gave me a piece of gold cake made over a recipe in 'cake secrets,' which comes with the flour, and it was fine. i'll get a package of the flour for you the first time i go to the city. the flour resembles a mixture of ordinary flour and cornstarch. it is not a prepared flour, to be used without baking powder, and you use it principally for baking cakes. i have the recipe for both the gold and angel cakes, with the instructions for baking same. they are as follows:" angel cake. "for the angel cake, use one even cupful of the whites of egg (whites of either eight large or nine small eggs); a pinch of salt, if added when beating eggs, hastens the work. one and one-quarter cups granulated sugar, cup of iglehart's swansdown cake flour. sift flour once, then measure and sift three times. beat whites of eggs about half, add / teaspoonful of cream of tartar then beat whites of eggs until they will stand of their own weight. add sugar, then flour, not by stirring, but by folding over and over, until thoroughly mixed. flavor with / teaspoonful of vanilla or a few drops of almond extract. as much care should be taken in baking an angel food cake as in mixing. bake in an ungreased patent pan. place the cake in an oven that is just warm enough to know there is a fire inside the range. let the oven stay just warm through until the batter has raised to the top of the cake pan, then increase the heat gradually until the cake is well browned over. if by pressing the top of the cake with the finger it will spring back without leaving the impression of the finger, the cake is done through. great care should be taken that the oven is not too hot to begin with, as the cake will rise too fast and settle or fall in the baking. it should bake in from to minutes' time. when done, invert the pan and let stand until cold before removing it. should you see cake browning before it rises to top of pan, throw your oven door open and let cold air rush in and cool your oven instantly. be not afraid. the cold air will not hurt the cake. two minutes will cool any oven. watch cake closely. don't be afraid to open oven door every three or four minutes. this is the only way to properly bake this cake. when cake has raised above top of pan, increase your heat and finish baking rapidly. baking too long dries out the moisture, makes it tough and dry. when cake is done it begins to shrink. let it shrink back to level of pan. watch carefully at this stage and take out of oven and invert immediately. rest on centre tube of pan. let hang until perfectly cold, then take cake carefully from pan. when baking angel cake always be sure the oven bakes good brown under bottom of cake. if cake does not crust under bottom it will fall out when inverted and shrink in the fall." "i never invert my pans of angel cake on taking them from oven," said mary's aunt, "as the cakes are liable to fall out even if the pan is not greased. i think it safer to allow the pans containing the cakes to stand on a rack and cool without inverting the pan. "suppose, mary, we bake a gold cake over the recipe from 'cake secrets,' as eggs are plentiful; but we haven't any swansdown flour. i think we will wait until we get it from the city." gold cake. yolks of eggs; - / cups granulated sugar, / cup of butter, / cup water, - / cups of swansdown cake flour, heaping teaspoonfuls of baking powder, / teaspoonful lemon extract. sift flour once, then measure. add baking powder and sift three times. cream butter and sugar thoroughly; beat yolks to a stiff froth; add this to creamed butter and sugar, and stir thoroughly through. add flavor, add water, then flour. stir very hard. place in a slow oven at once. will bake in from to minutes. invert pan immediately it is taken from oven. mary, this batter may also be baked in layers with any kind of filling desired. the angel cake receipt is very similar to an original recipe frau schmidt gave me; she uses cornstarch instead of swansdown flour and she measures the eggs in a cup instead of taking a certain number; she thinks it more exact. "aunt sarah, did you know frau schmidt, instead of using flour alone when baking cakes, frequently uses a mixture of flour and cornstarch? she sifts together, several times, six cups of flour and one cup of cornstarch, and uses this instead of using flour alone. "i dearly love the professor's wife--she's been so very good to me," exclaimed mary. "yes," replied her aunt, "she has very many lovable qualities." mary's liking for bright, energetic frau schmidt was not greater than the affection bestowed on mary by the professor's wife, who frequently entertained mary with tales of her life when a girl in germany, to all of which mary never tired listening. one aunt, a most estimable woman, held the position of valued and respected housekeeper and cook for the lord mayor of the city wherein she resided. another relative, known as "schone anna," for many years kept an inn named "the four seasons," noted for the excellent fare served by the fair chatelaine to her patrons. the inn was made famous by members of the king's household stopping there while in the town during the summer months, which was certainly a compliment to her good cooking. one of the things in which she particularly excelled was potato cakes raised with yeast. frau schmidt had been given a number of these valuable recipes by her mother, all of which she offered to mary. one recipe she particularly liked was "fast nacht cakes," which the professor's wife baked always without fail on shrove tuesday (or "fast nacht" day), the day before the beginning of lent. this rule was as "unchangeable as the law of medes and persians," and it would have been a very important event, indeed, which would have prevented the baking of these toothsome delicacies on that day. chapter xxiii. the old "taufschien." [illustration: birth and christening certificate old taufschien] aunt sarah had long promised to show mary her grandmother's "taufschien," and she reverently handled the large old family bible, which contained between its sacred pages the yellowed paper, being the birth and christening certificate of her grandmother, whom we read was born in , in nockamixon township, was confirmed in , and was married in to the man who was later aunt sarah's grandfather. the old certificate was signed by a german reformed minister named wack, who history tells us was the first young man of that denomination to be ordained to the ministry in america. folded with this "taufschien" is another which has never been filled out. this is printed in german. pictures of women, perhaps they are intended to represent angels, with golden wings, clothed in loose-flowing crimson drapery and holding harps in their hands; birds with gayly-colored plumage of bluish green, crimson and yellow, perched on branches of what presumably represent cherry trees, also decorate the page. religious hymns printed on the "taufschiens," encircled with gay stripes of light blue and yellow, dotted with green, further embellish them. on one we read: "infinite joy or endless woe, attend on every breath; and yet, how unconcerned we go upon the brink of death." "mary, this old 'taufschien' of my grandmother's is one of my most cherished possessions. would you like to see your uncle's old deed, which he came into possession of when he inherited the farm from his father?" carefully unfolding the stiff old parchment or pigskin deed, yellowed and brown spotted with age, mary could faintly decipher the writing wherein, beautifully written, old-fashioned penmanship of two hundred years ago stated that a certain piece of land in bucks county, beginning at a chestnut oak, north to a post; then east to a large rock, and on the south unsettled land, which in later years was conveyed to john landis. "this deed," said mary's aunt, "was given in , nearly two hundred years ago, by john, thomas and richard penn, sons of william penn by his second marriage, which occurred in america. his eldest son, john penn, you have no doubt heard, was called 'the american,' he having been born in this country before william penn's return to europe, where he remained fifteen years, as you've no doubt heard." at the bottom of the deed a blue ribbon has been slipped through cuts in the parchment, forming a diamond which incloses what is supposed to be the signature of thomas penn. "aunt sarah, i am not surprised that you value this old deed of the farm and these 'taufschiens' of your grandmother i should frame them, so they may be preserved by future generations." chapter xxiv. the old store on the ridge road. aunt sarah found in mary a willing listener when talking of the time in years past when her grandfather kept a small "country store" on the ridge road in bucks county. she also remembered, when a child of ten, accompanying her grandfather on one of his trips when he drove to philadelphia to purchase goods for his store. "they had no trolley cars in those days?" asked mary. "no, my dear, neither did they have steam cars between the different towns and cities as we have now." "at grandfather's store could be bought both groceries and dry goods. the surrounding farmers' wives brought to the store weekly fresh print butter, eggs, pot cheese and hand-case, crocks of apple-butter, dried sweet corn, beans, cherries, peach and apple 'snitz,' taking in exchange sugar, starch, coffee, molasses, etc. my father tapped his sugar maples and mother cooked down the syrup until thick, and we used that in place of molasses. they also took in exchange shaker flannel, nankeen, indigo blue and 'simpson' gray calico, which mother considered superior to any other, both for its washing and wearing qualities. the farmers who came occasionally to the store to shop for different members of the family frequently bought whole pieces of calico of one pattern, and," affirmed aunt sarah, "i knew of one farmer who bought several whole pieces of one pattern with rather large figures on a dark wine ground, resembling somewhat the gay figures on an old paisley shawl. he said 'twas a good, serviceable color, and more economical to buy it all alike, and remarked: 'what's the difference, anyway? calico is calico.' from the same piece of calico his wife made dresses, aprons and sunbonnets for herself and daughters, shirts for the farmer and his sons (the boys were young, fortunately), and patchwork quilts and comfortables from the remainder." "rather monotonous, i should think," said mary. "i am surprised his wife did not make him wear coat and trousers made from the same piece of calico." [illustration: the old store on ridge road] "the dry goods," continued aunt sarah, "retained the scent of coffee, cheese and dried fruits some time after being purchased but no one minded that in those days. i still remember how perfectly wonderful to me when a child appeared the large, wide-mouthed glass jars containing candy. there were red and white striped mint sticks, striped yellow and white lemon sticks and hoarhound and clear, wine-colored sticks striped with lines of white, flavored with anise-seed. one jar contained clear lemon-colored 'sour balls,' preferred by us children on account of their lasting qualities, as also were the jujubees, which resembled nothing so much as gutta percha, and possessed equally as fine flavor; also pink and yellow sugar-frosted gumdrops. in a case at one end of the counter were squares of thick white paper covered with rows of small pink, also white, 'peppermint buttons,' small sticks, two inches in length, of chewing gum in waxed paper, a white, tasteless, crystalline substance resembling paraffine. what longing eyes i frequently cast at the small scalloped cakes of maple sugar, prohibitive as regards cost. they sold for a nickel, am i was always inordinately fond of maple sugar, but the price was prohibitive. i seldom possessed more than a penny to spend in those days, and not always that. father raised a large family, money was never plentiful, and we relished the plain, cheap candies usually sold in those days more than many children of the present day do the finest and most expensive cream chocolates, to many of whom in this extravagant age a dollar is not valued more highly than was a penny by us in years gone by. and 'candy secrets!' i don't believe you know what they are like. i've not seen any for years. they were small, square pieces of taffy-like candy, wrapped in squares of gilt or silver paper, inclosing a small strip of paper containing a couple of sentimental lines or jingle. later came 'french secrets.' they consisted of a small oblong piece of candy about an inch in length, wrapped in tissue paper of different colors, having fringed ends, twisted together at either end. these also inclosed a tiny strip of paper containing a line or two. small, white candy hearts contained the words in pink letters, 'little sweetheart,' 'i love you,' 'name the day,' etc. these were invariably distributed among the young folks at small parties and created no end of merriment." "mary, old as i am, i still remember the delight i experienced when a little, rosy-cheeked urchin surreptitiously passed me around the corner of my desk at the old 'cross roads school' a 'secret,' with the words, 'do you love me?' my grandmother always kept a supply of hoarhound and peppermint lozenges in her knitting basket to give us children should we complain of hoarseness. my, but 'twas astonishing to hear us all cough until grandmother's supply of mints was exhausted. i think. mary, i must have had a 'sweet tooth' when a child, as my recollections seem to be principally about the candy kept in my grandfather's store. i suppose in those early days of my childhood candy appealed to me more than anything else, as never having had a surfeit of sweets, candy to me was a rare treat. i remember, mary, when a little child, my thrifty mother, wishing to encourage me to learn to knit my own stockings, she, when winding the skein of german yarn into a ball, occasionally wound a penny in with the yarn. i was allowed to spend the penny only after i had knitted the yarn and the penny had fallen from the ball. what untold wealth that penny represented! and planning how to spend it was greater pleasure still. many a pair of long old-fashioned, dark blue and red-striped stockings, were finished more quickly than otherwise would have been done without the promised reward. i became proficient in knitting at an early age," continued aunt sarah; "a truly feminine occupation, and as i one time heard a wise old physician remark, 'soothing to the nerves,' which i know to be true, having knitted many a worry into the heel of a sock. i learned at an early age the value of money, and once having acquired the saving habit, it is not possible to be wasteful in later life." chapter xxv. an elbadritchel hunt. fritz schmidt, like many another bucks county boy, had frequently heard the rural tale of a mythical bird called the "elbadritchel," supposed to be abroad, particularly on cold, dark, stormy nights, when the wind whistled and blew perfect gales around exposed corners of houses and barns. 'twas a common saying among "pennsylvania germans," at such times, "'tis a fine night to catch 'elbadritchels.'" [illustration: catching elbadritchels] for the information of those who may not even have heard of this remarkable creature, it is described as being a cross between a swallow, a goose and a lyre bird. have you ever seen an "elbadritchel?" no one has to my certain knowledge, so i cannot vouch for the truth of this description of it. fritz schmidt had never taught to question the truth of the tale. so, when one cold, stormy night several boys from neighboring farms drove up to the schmidt homestead and asked fritz to join them in a hunt for "elbadritchels," he unhesitatingly agreed to make one of the number, unaware that he had been selected as the victim of a practical joke, and, as usual, was one of the jolliest of the crowd. they drove through a blinding downpour of rain and dismounted on reaching a lonely hill about three miles distant. they gave fritz a bag to hold. it was fashioned of burlap and barrel hoops, inside of which they placed a lighted candle, and fritz was instructed how to hold it in order to attract the "elbadritchel." they also gave him a club with which to strike the bird when it should appear. the boys scampered off in different directions, ostensibly to chase up the birds, but in reality they clambered into the waiting wagon and were rapidly driven home, leaving fritz alone awaiting the coming of the "elbadritchel." when fritz realized the trick played on him, his feelings may be better imagined than described. he trudged home, cold and tired, vowing vengeance on the boys, fully resolved to get even with them. chapter xxvi the old shanghai rooster. much of aunt sarah's spare time was devoted to her chickens, which fully repaid her for the care given them. she was not particular about fancy stock, but had quite a variety--white leghorns, brown leghorns, big, fat, motherly old brahma hens that had raised a brood of as many as thirty-five little chicks at one time, a few snow-white, large plymouth rocks and some gray barred one. the _latter_ she _liked_ particularly because she said they were much, more talkative than any of the others; they certainly did appear to chatter to her when she fed them. she gave them clean, comfortable quarters, warm bran mash on cold winter mornings, alternating with cracked corn and "scratch feed" composed of a mixture of cracked corn, wheat and buckwheat, scattered over a litter of dried leaves on the floor of the chicken house, so they were obliged to work hard for their food. [illustration: old egg basket] a plentiful supply of fresh water was always at hand, as well as cracked oyster shell. she also fed the chickens all scraps from the table, cutting all meat scraps fine with an old pair of scissors hung conveniently in the kitchen. she was very successful with the little chicks hatched out when she "set" a hen and the yield of eggs from her hens was usually greater and the eggs larger in size than those of any of her neighbors. this i attribute to her excellent care of them, generous diet, but principally to the fact of the elimination of all the roosters among the flock during the season between the "first of may and december first," with one exception. "brigham," an immensely large, old, red shanghai rooster, a most pompous and dignified old chap. a special pet of aunt sarah's, she having raised him from a valuable "setting" of eggs given her, and as the egg from which "brigham," as he was called, emerged, was the only one of the lot which proved fertile, he was valued accordingly and given a longer lease of life than the other roosters, and was usually either confined or allowed to roam outside the chicken yard during the summer months; in the winter, being a swift runner, he usually gobbled up two shares of food before the hens arrived. that accounted for his great size. the old rooster was also noted for his loud crowing. one day in early spring, john landis came into the house hurriedly, saying, "sarah, your old shanghai rooster is sick." "yes," answered his wife, "i missed hearing him crow this morning; he is usually as regular as an alarm clock." she hurried to the barnyard, picked up poor brigham, wrapped him carefully in a piece of blanket and laid him in a small shed. the next morning she was awakened by the lusty crowing of brigham, who was apparently as well as ever. the next day the same thing happened. aunt sarah found him, as she supposed, in a dying condition, and the following morning he was fully recovered. it was quite puzzling until one day john landis came into the kitchen laughing heartily and said, "sarah, i am sorry to inform you of the intemperate habits of your pet, brigham. he is a most disreputable old fellow, and has a liking for liquor. he has been eating some of the brandied cherries which were thrown into the barnyard when the jug containing them was accidentally broken at house cleaning time. "well, sarah, old brigham was not sick at all--only 'ingloriously' drunk." in the fall of the same year aunt sarah spied brigham one day on top of one of the cider barrels in the shed busily engaged eating the pummace which issued from the bung-hole of the barrel. john landis, on hearing of brigham's last escapade, decided, as the rooster was large as an ordinary-turkey, to serve him roasted at mary's wedding. fritz schmidt remarked one day in the presence of sibylla: "chickens must possess some little intelligence; they know enough to go to bed early. yes, and without an 'alarm clock,' too, sibylla, eh?" she walked away without a word to fritz. the alarm clock was a sore subject with her, and one about which she had nothing to say. sibylla had never quite forgiven fritz for the prank played on her. he, happening to hear john landis tell sibylla a certain hour he thought a proper time for jake crouthamel to take his departure sunday evenings, fritz conceived the brilliant (?) idea of setting the alarm clock to "go off" quite early in the evening. he placed the clock at the head of the stairs, and in the midst of an interesting conversation between the lovers the alarm sounded with a loud, whizzing noise, which naturally made quick-tempered sibylla very angry. she said on seeing fritz the next morning: "it was not necessary to set the 'waker' to go off, as i know enough to send 'chake' home when it's time." fritz, happening to tell the story to the editor of a small german mennonite paper, edited in a near-by town, it was printed in that paper in german, which caused sibylla, on hearing it, to be still more angry at the professor's son. chapter xxvii. "a potato pretzel." in the early part of september mary's aunt suggested she try to win the prize offered at the farmers' picnic in a near-by town for the best "raised potato cake." aunt sarah's rye bread invariably captured first prize, and she proposed sending both bread and cake with sibylla and jake, who never missed picnic or fair within a radius of one hundred miles. [illustration: "potato pretzel"] mary set a sponge the evening of the day preceding that of the picnic, using recipe for "perfection potato cake," which aunt sarah considered her best recipe for raised cakes, as 'twas one used by her mother for many years. on the day of the picnic, mary arose at five o'clock, and while her aunt was busily engaged setting sponge for her loaf of rye bread, mary kneaded down the "potato cake" sponge, set to rise the previous evening, now rounded over top of bowl and light as a feather. she filled a couple of pans with buns, molded from the dough, and set them to rise. she then, under her aunt's direction, fashioned the "pretzel" as follows: she placed a piece of the raised dough on a large, well-floured bake board, rolled it over and over with both hands until a long, narrow roll or strip was formed about the width of two fingers in thickness and placed this strip carefully on the baking sheet, which was similar to the one on which aunt sarah baked rye bread; shaped the dough to form a figure eight ( ) or pretzel, allowing about two inches of space on either side of baking sheet to allow for raising. she then cut a piece of dough into three portions, rolled each as thick as a finger, braided or plaited the three strips together and placed carefully on top of the figure eight, or pretzel, not meeting by a space of about two inches. this braided piece on the top should not be quite as thick as bottom or first piece of the pretzel. she then rolled three small pieces of dough into tiny strips or rolls the size of small lead pencils, wound them round and round and round into small scrolls, moistened the lower side with water to cause them to adhere, and placed them on the dividing line between the two halves of the figure eight. she placed an old china coffee cup without a handle, buttered on outside, in centre of each half of the figure eight, which kept the pretzel from spreading over the pan. with a small, new paint brush she brushed over the top of pretzel and buns, a mixture, consisting of one yolk of egg, an equal quantity of cream or milk (which should be lukewarm so as not to chill the raised dough) and one tablespoon of sugar. this causes the cakes, etc., to be a rich brown when baked, a result to be obtained in no other manner. when the pretzel was raised and had doubled in size 'twas baked in a moderately hot oven. mary's surprise and delight may easily be imagined when sibylla, on her return from the picnic, handed her the prize she had won, a two-pound box of chocolates, remarking, "mary, you and aunt sarah both got a prize--her's is in the box what jake's got." the box on being opened by aunt sarah contained a very pretty, silver-plated soup ladle, the prize offered for the best loaf of rye bread. "aunt sarah," inquired mary one day, "do you think it pays a housekeeper to bake her own bread?" [illustration: the old store on ridge road] "certainly, it pays, my dear. from a barrel of flour may be baked three hundred or more one-pound loaves of bread; should you pay five cents a loaf, the bread which may be made from one barrel of flour if bought from a bake shop would cost you fifteen dollars. now, you add to the cost of a barrel of flour a couple of dollars for yeast, salt, etc., which altogether would not possibly be more than ten dollars, and you see the housewife has saved five dollars. it is true it is extra work for the housewife, but good, wholesome bread is such an important item, especially in a large family, i should advise the thrifty housekeeper to bake her own bread and bake less pie and cake, or eliminate less important duties, to be able to find time to bake bread. from the bread sponge may be made such a number of good, plain cakes by the addition of currants or raisins, which are more wholesome and cheaper than richer cakes." "i think what you say is true, aunt sarah," said mary. "frau schmidt always bakes her own bread, and she tells me she sets a sponge or batter for white bread, and by the addition of graham flour, cornmeal or oatmeal, always has a variety on her table with a small expenditure of time and money." [illustration: a "brod corvel" or bread basket] chapter xxviii. faithful service. the home-making instinct was so strongly developed in mary that her share in the labor of cooking and baking became a pleasure. occasionally she had failures--what inexperienced cook has not?--yet they served only to spur her on to fresh efforts. she had several small scars on her wrist caused by her arm coming in contact with the hot oven when baking. she laughingly explained: "one bar on my arm represents that delicious 'brod torte' which frau schmidt taught me to bake; the other one i acquired when removing the sponge cake from the oven which uncle john said 'equaled aunt sarah's' (which i consider highest praise), and the third bar i received when taking from the oven the 'lemon meringue,' ralph's favorite pie, which he pronounced 'fine, almost too good to eat.'" mary was as proud of her scars as a young, non-commissioned officer of the chevron on his sleeve, won by deeds of valor. the lessons mary learned that summer on the farm while filling her hope chest and preparing her mind for wifehood were of inestimable value to her in later years. she learned not only to bake, brew and keep house, but from constant association with her aunt she acquired a self-poise, a calm, serene manner, the value of which is beyond price in this swift, restless age. one day, while having a little heart-to-heart talk with mary, her aunt said: "my dear, never allow an opportunity to pass for doing a kind act. if ever so small, it may cheer some sad, lonely heart. don't wait to do _big things_. the time may never come. if only a kind word, speak it at once. kind words cost so little, and we should all be more prodigal with them; and to a tired, sad, discouraged soul, a kind word or act means so very much; and who is there that has not at some time in life known sorrow and felt the need of sympathy? were our lives all sunshine we could not feel in touch with sorrowing friends. how natural it is for our hearts to go out in sympathy to the one who says 'i have suffered.' give to your friend the warm hand-clasp and cheery greeting' which cost us nothing in the giving. 'tis the little lifts which help us over stones in our pathway through life. we think our cross the heaviest when, did we but know the weight of others, we'd not willingly exchange; and remember mary, 'there are no crown-bearers in heaven that were not cross-bearers below.' have you ever read the poem, 'the changed cross?' no? well, i will give it to you to copy in your book of recipes. should you ever, in future years, feel your cross too heavy to bear, read the poem. how many brave, cheery little women greet us with a smile as they pass. but little do we or any one realize that instead of a song in their hearts the smiles on their lips conceal troubles the world does not suspect, seeking to forget their own sorrows while doing kindly acts for others. they are the real heroes whom the world does not reward with medals for bravery, 'to stand with a smile upon your face against a stake from which you cannot get away, that, no doubt, is heroic; but the true glory is not resignation to the inevitable. to stand unchained, with perfect liberty to go away, held only by the higher claims of duty, and let the fire creep up to the heart, that is heroism.' ah! how many good women have lived faithful to duty when 'twould have been far easier to have died!" "faithful over a few things." matt. xxv: . it may seem to you but a trifle, which you have been called to do; just some humble household labor, away from the public view, but the question is, are you faithful, and striving to do your best, as in sight of the blessed master, while leaving to him the rest? it may be but a little corner, which you have been asked to fill; what matters it, if you are in it, doing the master's will? doing it well and faithfully, and doing it with your might; not for the praise it may bring you, but because the thing is right. in the sight of man you may never win anything like success; and the laurel crown of the victor may never your temples press; if only you have god's approval, 'twill not matter what else you miss, his blessing is heaven beginning, his reward will be perfect bliss. be faithful in every service, obedient to every call; ever ready to do his bidding, whether in great things or small; you may seem to accomplish little, you may win the praise of none; but be sure you will win his favor, and the master's great "well done." and when at his blessed coming, you stand at his judgment seat; he'll remember your faithful service and his smile will be oh! so sweet! he will bid you a loving welcome, he'll make you to reign for aye, over great things and o'er many, with him, through eternal day. "the changed cross." it was a time of sadness, and my heart, although it knew and loved the better part, felt wearied with the conflict and the strife, and all the needful discipline of life. and while i thought on these as given to me, my trial tests of faith and love to be, it seemed as if i never could be sure that faithful to the end i should endure. and thus, no longer trusting to his might, who says, "we walk by faith and not by sight"; doubting and almost yielding to despair, the thought arose--my cross i cannot bear. far heavier its weight must surely be than those of others which i daily see; oh! if i might another burden choose, methinks i should not fear my crown to lose. a solemn silence reigned on all around, e'en nature's voices uttered not a sound; the evening shadows seemed of peace to tell, and sleep upon my weary spirit fell. a moment's pause and then a heavenly light beamed full upon my wondering, raptured sight; angels on silvery wings seemed everywhere, and angels' music filled the balmy air. then one more fair than all the rest to see-- one to whom all the others bowed the knee-- came gently to me as i trembling lay, and, "follow me!" he said, "i am the way." then speaking thus, he led me far above, and there, beneath a canopy of love, crosses of divers shapes and sizes were seen, larger and smaller than my own had been. and one there was, most beauteous to behold, a little one, with jewels set in gold; ah! this methought, i can with comfort wear, for it will be an easy one to bear. and so, the little cross i quickly took, but all at once, my frame beneath it shook; the sparkling jewels fair were they to see, but far too heavy was their weight for me. "this may not be," i cried, and looked again to see if there was any here could ease my pain; but one by one i passed them slowly by, till on a lovely one i cast my eye. fair flowers around its sculptured form entwined, and grace and beauty seemed in it combined; wondering, i gazed and still i wondered more, to think so many should have passed it o'er. but oh! that form so beautiful to see, soon made its hidden sorrows known to me; thorns lay beneath those flowers and colors fair; sorrowing, i said. "this cross i may not bear." and so it was with each and all around, not one to suit my need could there be found; weeping, i laid each heavy burden down, as my guide gently said: "no cross, no crown." at length to him i raised my saddened heart, he knew its sorrows, bid its doubts depart; "be not afraid," he said, "but trust in me, my perfect love shall now be shown to thee." and then with lightened eyes and willing feet, again i turned my earthly cross to meet; with forward footsteps, turning not aside for fear some hidden evil might betide. and there, in the prepared, appointed way, listening to hear, and ready to obey, a cross i quickly found of plainest form, with only words of love inscribed thereon. with thankfulness, i raised it from the rest, and joyfully acknowledged it the best; the only one of all the many there that i could feel was good for me to bear. and while i thus my chosen one confessed, i saw a heavenly brightness on it rest; and as i bent my burden to sustain, i recognized my own old cross again. but, oh! how different did it seem to be! now i had learned its preciousness to see; no longer could i unbelievingly say: "perhaps another is a better way." oh, no! henceforth my own desire shall be that he who knows me best should choose for me, and so whate'er his love sees good to send, i'll trust its best, because he knows the end. and when that happy time shall come of endless peace and rest, we shall look back upon our path and say: "it was the best." chapter xxix. mary, ralph, jake and sibylla visit the allentown fair. late in september jake and sibylla drove to the allentown fair. it was "big thursday" of fair week. they started quite early, long before ralph jackson, who had come from the city the day previous, to take mary to the fair, had arisen. [illustration: second church building sheltered liberty bell, - . photographed from the print of an old wood cut used in a german newspaper in the year ] mary, while appreciating sibylla's good qualities, never failed to be amused at her broad "pennsylvania german" dialect. the morning of the "fair," mary arose earlier than usual to allow sibylla and jake to get an early start, as it was quite a distance from the farm to the fair grounds. as they were about to drive away, sibylla, alighting from the carriage, said, "i forgot my 'schnupftuch.'" returning with it in her hand, she called, as she climbed into jake's buggy, "gut-by, mary, it looks fer rain." "yes" said jake, "i think it gives rain before we get back yet. the cornfodder in the barn this morning was damp like it had water on it." and said mary, "the fragrance of the flowers was particularly noticeable early this morning." jake, as it happened, was no false prophet. it did rain before evening. later in the day, mary and ralph drove to a near-by town, leaving horse and carriage at the hotel until their return in the evening, and boarded a train for allentown. on arriving there, they decided to walk up hamilton street, and later take a car out to the fair grounds. as they sauntered slowly up the main street, mary noticed a small church built between two large department stores and stopped to read a tablet on the church, which informed the passerby that "this is to commemorate the concealment of the liberty bell during the revolutionary war. this tablet was erected by the liberty bell chapter of the daughters of the revolution." the first zion's reformed church was founded in . in front of the church a rough block of granite, erected to the memory of john jacob mickley, contained the following inscription: "in commemoration of the saving of the liberty bell from the british in . under cover of darkness and with his farm team, he, john mickley, hauled the liberty bell from independence hall, philadelphia, through the british lines, to bethlehem, where the wagon broke down. the bell was transferred to another wagon, brought to allentown, placed beneath the floor of the _second_ church building of zion's reformed church, where it remained secreted nearly a year. this _tablet_ was placed by the order of the assembly of the commonwealth of pennsylvania, june nd, , under the auspices of the pennsylvania daughters of the revolution." this was all very interesting to a girl who had been born and reared in philadelphia; one who in earliest childhood had been taught to love and venerate the "old bell." ralph was quite as interested in reading about the old bell as was mary, and said; "did you know that the city of philadelphia purchased the state house property, which included the bell, in , in consideration of the sum of seventy thousand dollars? no building is ever to be erected on the ground inside the wall on the south side of the state house, but it is to remain a public green and walk forever?" [illustration] "no," replied mary, "i did not know that. i don't think we will see anything of greater interest than this at the fair." "i understand," said ralph, "this is the third church building built on this site, where the original church stood in which the bell was secreted." mary, possessing a fair share of the curiosity usually attributed to the "female of the species," on noticing the church door standing ajar, asked ralph to step inside with her, thinking to find the caretaker within; but no one was visible. a deep silence reigned in the cool, dim interior of the house of god. one could almost feel the silence, 'twas so impressive. slowly they walked up the wide church aisle and stood before the quaint baptismal font. a stray sunbeam glancing through one of the beautiful, variously-colored memorial windows, lighted up the pictured saint-like faces over the chancel, making them appear as if imbued with life. mary softly whispered to ralph, as if loath to profane the sacredness of the place by loud talking, "i seem to hear a voice saying, 'the lord is in his holy temple.'" quietly retracing their steps, they, without meeting any one, emerged into the bright sunlight and were soon in the midst of the turmoil and traffic incident to the principal business street of a city. the young folks boarded a trolley and in a short time reached the fair grounds, which offered many attractions to ralph as well as mary. the latter was interested in the fine display of needlework, fruits, flowers and vegetables of unusual size. aunt sarah's bread won a prize. a blue ribbon attached to frau schmidt's highly-prized, old-fashioned, patchwork quilt, showed it to be a winner. ralph, being interested in the pens of fancy chickens, prize cattle, etc., mary reluctantly left the woman's department of fancy work, and other interesting things, and accompanied him. on their way to the outlying cattle sheds they noticed two lovers sitting on a bench. upon a second glance they were convinced that it was jake and sibylla. jake, beaming with happiness, said, "sibylla vos side by me yet?" they were busily engaged eating a lunch consisting of rolls with hot "weiners" between the two halves, or, as jake called them, "doggies," munching pretzels and peanuts between sips of strong coffee, both supremely happy. a yearly visit to the allentown fair on "big thursday," was _the event_ in their dull, prosaic lives. [illustration: durham cave] chapter xxx. fritz schmidt explores durham cave. it appeared to be nothing new for fritz schmidt to get into trouble; rather the contrary. one day in early fall, after the first frost, he, in company with a number of boys, drove to durham, not many miles distant from his home, in search of persimmons, the crop of which, on account of the severity of the preceding winter, old farmers had predicted would be exceedingly heavy. fritz did not tell the boys of his intention to explore a cave which he had been told was in the neighborhood, thinking it would be a good joke to explore the cave first, then tell the boys later of his adventure. the old gentleman from whom fritz gained his information relative to the cave aroused the boy's curiosity by saying, "very many years ago, a skeleton was found in durham cave and one of the bones, on examination, proved to be the thigh bone of a human being. how he came there, or the manner of his death, was never known." a large room in the cave is known as "queen esther's drawing room," where, tradition has it "queen esther," or catharine montour, which was her rightful name, at one time inhabited this cave with some of her indian followers. fritz accidentally stumbled upon the mouth of the cave. none of the other boys being in sight, fritz quickly descended into the cave, which was dark as night. by lighting a second match as quickly as one was burned, he explored quite a distance, when, accidentally dropping his box of matches, the burning match in his hand, at the same moment, flickered faintly, then went out, leaving fritz in darkness. imagine the feelings of the boy, as he groped unsuccessfully on the floor of the cavern for the lost match box. finally, he gave up in despair. fritz was not a cowardly boy, but while searching for the matches, he, without thinking, had turned around several times, lost his bearings and knew not in which direction to go to reach the opening of the cave. he heard strange noises which he imagined were bats flopping their wings. there appeared to be something uncanny about the place, and fritz devoutly wished himself out in the sunshine, when a quotation he had frequently heard his father use came into his mind: "more things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of." so fritz knelt down and prayed as he had been taught to pray at his mother's knee, but more earnestly than he had ever prayed before in his life, that god would help him find his way out of the cave, believing that his prayer would be answered. and who shall say it was not answered? for, stumbling onward in the darkness, not knowing if he were coming toward the cave's entrance or going in the opposite direction, he eventually hailed with joy a faint streak of light which he followed, and it soon brought him to the mouth of the cave. he was surprised on joining his companions to find they had not been alarmed at his absence. he had been in the cave only thirty minutes, but to him it had seemed hours. fritz says to this day he has a horror of durham cave or "the devil's hole," as it was formerly called. [illustration: the woodland stream] chapter xxxi. mary's marriage. his vacation ended, after a busy season at the farm, ralph jackson returned to his work in the city, strong and robust. he had acquired the coat of tan which mary's uncle had predicted. physically strong as the "cave man" of old, he felt capable of moving mountains, and as was natural, he being only a human man, longed for the mate he felt god had intended should one day be his, as men have done since our first gardener, adam, and will continue to do until the end of time. when visiting the farm, an event which occurred about every two weeks, ralph constantly importuned mary to name an early day for their marriage. mary, with a young girl's impulsiveness, had given her heart unreservedly into the keeping of ralph jackson, her first sweetheart. mary was not naturally cold or unresponsive, neither was she lacking in passion. she had had a healthy girlhood, and a wholesome home life. she had been taught the conventional ideals of the marriage relations that have kept the race strong throughout the centuries. mary possessed great strength of character and fine moral courage. frequently, not wishing to show her real feeling for the young man; too well poised to be carried off into the wrong channel, defended and excused by many over-sentimental and light-headed novelists of the day, she sometimes appeared almost indifferent to the impetuous youth with warm, red blood leaping in his veins, who desired so ardently to possess her. mary's aunt had taught her the sanctity of parenthood, also that women are not always the weaker sex. there are times when they must show their superiority to "mere man" in being the stronger of the two, mentally if not physically, and ralph jackson knew when he called mary "wife" she would endow him with all the wealth of her pure womanhood, sacredly kept for the clean-souled young man, whose devotion she finally rewarded by promising to marry him the second week in october. sibylla linsabigler, a good but ignorant girl, accustomed to hearing her elder brothers speak slightingly regarding the sanctity of love and marriage, was greatly attached to mary, whom she admired exceedingly, and looked up to almost as a superior being. she unconsciously imitated many of mary's ways and mannerisms, and sought to adopt her higher ideals of life and standard of morals. one sunday, as jake crouthamel was spending the evening with sibylla, as was his usual custom, he attempted some slight familiarity, which annoyed sibylla greatly. jake, noticing the young girl's displeasure at his action, remarked, "i think me sibylla, you are stuck up yet" (a grave fault in the bucks county farm hand's opinion). "no, chake," sibylla replied, "i ain't, but mary, she say a man gives a girl more respect what keeps herself to herself before she is married, and i lofe you chake and want that you respect me if we marry." fritz and elizabeth schmidt, on hearing the news of mary's approaching marriage, promptly begged the privilege of decorating the old farm house parlor for the expected ceremony. they scoured the surrounding woods and countryside for decorations; along old stone fences and among shrubbery by the roadside they gathered large branches of bitter sweet. its racemes of orange-colored fruit, which later in the season becomes beautiful, when the orange gives place to a brilliant red, the outer covering of the berry turns back upon the stems, forming one of the prettiest pictures imaginable in late autumn. they also gathered branches of feathery wild clematis, which, after the petals had fallen, resembled nothing so much as a cluster of apple seeds, each seed tipped with what appeared like a tiny osprey feather. from the woods near the farm they gathered quantities of trailing ground pine and rainbow-tinted leaves from the numerous brilliant scarlet and yellow maples, which appeared brighter in contrast to the sober-hued trees of shellbark, oak and chestnut. [illustration: polly schmidt.] the wedding gifts sent to mary were odd, useful and numerous. the campfire girls, to whom she became endeared, gave her a "kitchen shower," consisting of a clothes basket (woven by an old basketmaker from the willows growing not far distant), filled to overflowing with everything imaginable that could possibly be useful to a young housekeeper, from the half dozen neatly-hemmed linen, blue ribbon tied, dish clothes, to really handsome embroidered articles from the girls to whom she had given instructions in embroidery during the past summer. sibylla's wedding present to mary was the work of her own strong, willing hands, and was as odd and original as useful. 'twas a "door mat" made from corn husks, braided into a rope, then sewed round and round and formed into an oval mat. mary laughingly told sibylla she thought when 'twas placed on her kitchen doorstep she'd ask every one to please step over it, as it was too pretty to be trod on, which greatly pleased the young girl, who had spent many hours of loving thought and labor on the simple, inexpensive gift. mary received from professor schmidt a small but excellent copy of one of the world's most famous pictures, "the night watch," painted by rembrandt, in . "my dear," said the old professor, "i saw what _was said to be_ the original of this painting, the property of queen wilhelmina of holland, at the st. louis exposition in . it was in a small, separate building. the size of the picture was fifteen feet by twenty feet. it is the largest and best known of rembrandt's works. it acquired the wrong title of 'night watch' in a period when, owing to the numerous coats of varnish and the effect of smoke and dust, it had gotten so dark in appearance that only the most lucid parts could be discerned. nowadays, nobody doubts that the light falling from the left on the boisterous company is that of the sun. the musketeers are remarching out of the high archway of their hall, crossing the street in front of it, and going up a bridge. the architecture of the building is a product of rembrandt's imagination. the steps, also, which we see the men descending, were put there simply to make those at the back show out above those in the front ranks. the march out was to be above all a portrait group. sixteen persons had each paid their contributions, a hundred guilders on the average, to have their likenesses transmitted to posterity, and every one of them was therefore to be fully visible." "it is certainly a wonderful picture," said mary, "and while i have seen few pictures painted by old masters, i think, even with my limited knowledge of art, i cannot fail to appreciate this excellent copy, and i thank you heartily. professor, and shall always be reminded of you when i look at this copy of a great work." mary would not go empty-handed to ralph at her marriage. her "hope chest" in the attic was full to overflowing, and quite unique in itself, as it consisted of an old, in fact ancient, wooden dough-tray used in times past by aunt sarah's grandmother. beside it stood a sewing table, consisting of three discarded broom handles supporting a cheese-box cover, with wooden cheese-box underneath for holding mary's sewing; stained brown and cretonne lined. mary valued it as the result of the combined labor of herself and ralph jackson. a roll of new, home-made rag carpet, patchwork quilts and "new colonial" rugs, jars of fruit, dried sweet corn, home-made soap, crocks of apple butter, jellies, jams and canned vegetables all bore evidence of mary's busy summer at the farm. the day of mary's marriage, the twelfth of october, dawned clear and bright, sunshine warm as a day in june. in the centre of the gayly-decorated old farm house parlor, wearing a simple, little, inexpensive dress of soft, creamy muslin, we find mary standing beside ralph, who is looking supremely satisfied and happy, although a trifle pale and nervous, listening to the solemn words of the minister. ralph's "i will" sounded clearly and distinctly through the long room. mary, with a sweet, serious, faraway look in her blue eyes, repeated slowly after the minister, "i promise to love, honor and"--then a long pause. she glanced shyly up at the young man by her side as if to make sure he was worth it, then in a low, clear tone, added, "obey." ralph jackson certainly deserved the appellation "cave man" given him by fritz schmidt. he was considerably more than six feet in height, with broad, square shoulders, good features, a clear brain and a sound body. he had never used intoxicants of any description. he sometimes appeared quite boyish in his ways, for on account of his matured look and great size he was frequently judged to be older than he really was. aunt sarah had provided a bounteous repast for the few friends assembled, and while looking after the comfort of her guests tears dimmed the kindly, gray eyes at the thought of parting from mary. small polly schmidt, as flower girl at the wedding, was so excited she scarcely knew if she should laugh or cry, and finally compromised by giving mary what she called a "bear hug," much to mary's amusement. fritz gravely said: "allow me to congratulate you, mr. jackson," and turning to mary, "i wish you a beautiful and happy life, mrs. jackson." mary blushed becomingly on hearing her new name for the first time. bidding farewell to friends, mary and ralph, accompanied by her uncle, were driven by "chake" to the depot in a near-by town, where they boarded the train for the little, newly-furnished home in the suburbs of philadelphia, the deed of which was mary's wedding gift from her uncle, in appreciation of her faithful service on the farm during the summer and for the brightness she had brought into his life and the lives of those with whom she had come in contact, as every one at the farm had felt the captivating charm and winning sweetness of the young girl. as the train came in sight, the old gentleman, in a voice husky with emotion, bade the young couple, just starting the journey of life together, an affectionate farewell, and repeated solemnly, almost as a benediction, "es salamu aleikum." [illustration] mary's collection of recipes small economies, "left-overs" or "iverich bleibst" as aunt sarah called them. "the young housewife," said aunt sarah to mary, in a little talk on small economies in the household, "should never throw away pieces of hard cheese. grate them and keep in a cool, dry place until wanted, then spread lightly over the top of a dish of macaroni, before baking; or sprinkle over small pieces of dough remaining after baking pies, roll thin, cut in narrow strips like straws, and bake light brown in a hot oven, as 'cheese straws.'" wash and dry celery tips in oven, and when not wished for soup they may be used later for seasoning. the undesirable outer leaves of a head of lettuce, if fresh and green, may be used if cut fine with scissors, and a german salad dressing added. the heart of lettuce should, after washing carefully, be placed in a piece of damp cheese cloth and put on ice until wanted, then served at table "au natural," with olive oil and vinegar or mayonnaise dressing to suit individual taste. should you have a large quantity of celery, trim and carefully wash the roots, cut them fine and add to soup as flavoring. almost all vegetables may be, when well cooked, finely mashed, strained, and when added to stock, form a nourishing soup by the addition of previously-cooked rice or barley. add small pieces of meat, well-washed bones cut from steaks or roasts, to the stock pot. small pieces of ham or bacon (left-overs), also bacon or ham _gravy_ not thickened with flour may be used occasionally, when making german salad dressing for dandelion, endive, lettuce or water cress, instead of frying fresh pieces of bacon. [illustration: an old fashioned bucks county bake oven] it is a great convenience, also economical, to keep a good salad dressing on hand, and when the white of an egg is used, the yolk remaining may he added at once to the salad dressing (previously prepared). mix thoroughly, cook a minute and stand away in a cool place. young housekeepers will be surprised at the many vegetables, frequently left-overs, from which appetizing salads may be made by the addition of a couple tablespoonfuls of mayonnaise, besides nut meats, lettuce, watercress, celery and fruit, all of which may be used to advantage. a good potato salad is one of the cheapest and most easily prepared salads. a german dressing for dandelions, lettuce or potatoes may be prepared in a few minutes by adding a couple of tablespoonfuls of salad dressing (which the forehanded housewife will always keep on hand) to a little hot ham or bacon gravy. stirring it while hot over the salad and serving at once. a cup of mashed potatoes, left over from dinner, covered and set aside in a cool place, may be used the next day, with either milk or potato water, to set a sponge for "dutch cake," or cinnamon buns with equally good results as if they had been freshly boiled (if the potatoes be heated luke-warm and mashed through a sieve); besides the various other ways in which cold boiled potatoes may be used. fruit juices or a couple tablespoonfuls of tart jelly or preserved fruit may be added to mincemeat with advantage. housewives should make an effort to give their family good, plain, nourishing, wholesome food. the health of the family depends so largely on the quality of food consumed. when not having time, strength or inclination to bake cake, pies or puddings, have instead good, sweet, home-made bread and fruit; if nothing else, serve stewed fruit or apple sauce. omit meat occasionally from the bill of fare and serve instead a dish of macaroni and cheese and fruit instead of other dessert. serve a large, rich, creamy rice pudding for the children's lunch. when eggs are cheap and plentiful make simple custards, old-fashioned cornmeal puddings, tapioca, bread puddings and gelatine with fruits. these are all good, wholesome, and not expensive, and in summer may be prepared in the cool of the early morning with small outlay of time, labor or money. plan your housework well the day before and have everything in readiness. the pudding may be placed in the oven and baked white preparing breakfast, economizing coal and the time required for other household duties. every wife and mother who does her own housework and cooking these days (and their number is legion) knows the satisfaction one experiences, especially in hot weather, in having dinner and luncheon planned and partly prepared early in the morning before leaving the kitchen to perform other household tasks. another small economy of aunt sarah's was the utilizing of cold mashed potatoes in an appetizing manner. the mashed potatoes remaining from a former meal were put through a small fruit press or ricer to make them light and flaky. to one heaped cup of mashed potatoes (measured before pressing them through fruit press) she added / cup of soft, stale bread crumbs, / cup of flour sifted with / teaspoonful of baking powder. mix in lightly with a fork yolk of one egg, then the stiffly beaten white, seasoned with salt and a little minced onion or parsley, or both. with well-floured hands she molded the mixture into balls the size of a shelled walnut, dropped into rapidly boiling water and cooked them uncovered from to minutes, then skimmed them from the water and browned in a pan with a little butter and served on platter with meat, a pot roast or beef preferred. from the above quantity of potatoes was made five potato balls. the many uses of stale bread never waste stale bread, as it may be used to advantage in many ways. the young housewife will be surprised at the many good, wholesome and appetizing dishes which may be made from stale bread, with the addition of eggs and milk. take a half dozen slices of stale bread of equal size and place in a hot oven a few minutes to become crisped on the outside so they may be quickly toasted over a hot fire, a delicate brown. butter them and for breakfast serve with a poached egg on each slice. a plate of hot, crisp, nicely-browned and buttered toast is always a welcome addition to the breakfast table. serve creamed asparagus tips on slices of toast for luncheon. the economical housewife carefully inspects the contents of her bread box and refrigerator every morning before planning her meals for the day, and is particular to use scraps of bread and left-over meat and vegetables as quickly as possible. especially is this necessary in hot weather. never use any food unless perfectly sweet and fresh. if otherwise, it is unfit for use. loaves of bread which have become stale can be freshened if wrapped in a damp cloth for a few minutes, then remove and place in a hot oven until heated through. for a change, toast slices of stale bread quite crisp and serve a plate of hot, plain toast at table, to be eaten broken in small pieces in individual bowls of cold milk. still another way is to put the stiffly-beaten white of an egg on the centre of a hot, buttered slice of toast, carefully drop the yolk in the centre of the beaten white and place in hot oven a few minutes to cook. serve with a bit of butter on top, season with pepper and salt. serve at once. another way to use stale bread is to toast slices of bread, spread with butter, pour over cup of hot milk, in which has been beaten egg and a pinch of salt. serve in a deep dish. or a cup of hot milk may be poured over crisply-toasted slices of buttered bread, without the addition of an egg. "brod grummella" in a bowl containing cup of soft bread crumbs pour cup of sweet milk, then add the slightly-beaten yolks of three eggs, a little pepper and salt, then the stiffly-beaten whites of the three eggs. place in a fry-pan a tablespoonful of butter and of lard or drippings; when quite hot pour the omelette carefully in the pan. when it begins to "set" loosen around the edges and from the bottom with a knife. when cooked turn one side over on the other half, loosen entirely from the pan, then slide carefully on a hot platter and serve at once. garnish with parsley. croutons and crumbs still another way is to make croutons. cut stale bread into small pieces, size of dice, brown in hot oven and serve with soup instead of serving crackers. small pieces of bread that cannot be used otherwise should be spread over a large pan, placed in a moderate oven and dried until crisp. they may then be easily rolled fine with a rolling-pin or run through the food chopper and then sifted, put in a jar, stood in a dry place until wanted, but not in an air-tight jar. tie a piece of cheese-cloth over the top of jar. these crumbs may be used for crumbing eggplant, oysters, veal cutlets or croquettes. all should be dipped in beaten white of eggs and then in the crumbs, seasoned with salt and pepper, then floated in a pan of hot fat composed of / lard and / suet. all except veal cutlets. they should be crumbed, not floated in deep fat, but fried slowly in a couple tablespoonfuls of butter and lard. also fry fish in a pan of hot fat. shad is particularly fine, prepared in this manner (when not baked). cut in small pieces, which when breaded are floated in hot fat. if the fat is the right temperature when the fish is put in, it absorbs less fat than when fried in a small quantity of lard and butter. "zweibach" cut wheat bread in slices not too thin. place in a warm, not hot, oven, and allow it to remain until thoroughly dry and crisp. place in a toaster or a wire broiler over a hot fire and toast a golden brown and allow it to remain in the oven until toasted. keep in cool place until used. zweibach is considered more wholesome than fresh bread. "german" egg bread cut stale bread into slices about / inch thick. cut slices in half, and soak for a few minutes, turning frequently, in the following mixtures: pint of sweet milk, eggs, teaspoonful flour mixed smooth with a little of the cold milk and a pinch of salt. fry half dozen slices of thinly-sliced bacon in a pan. put bacon, when fried, in oven to keep hot. dip the slices of soaked bread in fine, dried bread crumbs and fry quickly in the bacon fat (to which has been added one tablespoon of butter) to a golden brown. serve at once on the same platter with the bacon, or instead of using bacon fat, fry the crumbed bread in sweet drippings, or a tablespoonful each of lard and butter. this is an appetizing and wholesome breakfast or luncheon dish, served with a tart jelly, either currant or grape. creamed toast partly fill a large tureen with slices of crisply-browned and buttered toast. (slices of bread which have become dry and hard may be used for this dish.) when ready to serve, not before, pour over the toasted slices quart of hot milk to which teaspoonful of flour or cornstarch has been added, after being mixed smoothly with a little cold milk or water and cooked a few minutes until thick as cream. add also a pinch of salt. if milk is not plentiful, prepare one pint of milk and dip each slice of toasted bread quickly in a bowl of hot water; place in a deep dish and quickly pour over the hot milk, to which a tablespoonful of butter has been added, and serve at once. bread and rolls bread, called the "staff of life," on account of its nutritive value, should head the list of foods for human consumption. bread making should stand first in the "science of cooking," as there is no one food upon which the comfort, health and well-being of the average family so largely depends as upon good bread. there is absolutely no reason why the housewife of the present day should not have good, sweet, wholesome, home-made bread, if good yeast, good flour and common-sense are used. the milk or water used to mix with flour for making bread sponge should be lukewarm. if too hot, the loaves will be full of holes and coarse grained. if too cold the bread, chilled, will not rise as it should have done had the liquid used been the right temperature. good bread may be made by using milk, potato water or whey (drained from thick sour milk), and good bread may be made by simply using lukewarm water. i prefer a mixture of milk and water to set sponge. milk makes a fine-grained, white bread, but it soon dries out and becomes stale. bread rises more slowly when milk is used. when mashed potatoes are used, the bread keeps moist a longer time. should you wish extra fine, white, delicate bread, add one cup of sweet cream to the liquid when setting sponge. when milk is used the dough is slower in rising, but makes a creamy-looking and fine-flavored bread. when one fleischman yeast cake is used in any recipe the ordinary half-ounce cake of compressed yeast is intended, twenty-eight cakes in a pound. these are usually kept in a large refrigerator in a temperature of degrees and should not be kept longer in the home than three days in summer or six days in winter, and should always be kept in a cool place until used, if the cook would have success when using. use the best hard, spring wheat flour obtainable for baking bread, or any sponge raised with yeast, as this flour contains a greater quantity of gluten and makes bread of high nutritive value. winter wheat maybe used for cake-making and for baking pastry with excellent results, although costing less than spring wheat. always sift flour before using, when setting sponge for bread. when mixing sponge use one quart liquid to about three pounds of flour. "aunt sarah" always cut several gashes with a sharp knife on top of loaves when ready to be placed in oven. she also made several cuts across the top of loaves with a hot knife when set to rise to allow gas to escape. if an impression made on a loaf of bread with the finger remains, the bread is light. if the dent disappears, then the loaf is not light enough to be placed in the oven; give it more time to rise. an experienced cook, noted for the excellence and size of her loaves of bread, said she always inverted a pail over the pan containing loaves of bread when set to rise, and allowed the bread to remain covered after being placed in the oven. loaves will rise to a greater height if this is done. remove the covering to allow loaves to brown a short time before taking them from the oven. "aunt sarah" frequently placed four loaves in her large roasting pan, covered the pan, when set to rise, and allowed the cover to remain until loaves were nearly baked. she brushed the top and sides of loaves with melted butter when set to rise to allow of their being broken apart easily. a more crusty loaf is secured by placing each loaf singly in medium-sized bread tins. aunt sarah considered fleischman's compressed yeast the best commercial yeast in use, both quick and reliable, but thought better bread was never made than that made by her mother, as she had been taught to make it in years past, by the old-fashioned and slower "sponge method." she was invariably successful in making sweet, wholesome bread in that manner. she used home-made potato yeast or "cornmeal yeast cakes," under different names, always with good results. good bread may be made either by the old-fashioned "sponge" method or "straight." sponge method consists of a batter mixed from liquid yeast (usually home-made potato yeast is used) and a small part of the flour required for making the bread. this batter was usually set to rise at night and mixed up in the centre of a quantity of flour, in an old-fashioned wooden dough tray. the following morning enough flour was kneaded in to form a dough, and when well-raised and light, this dough was formed into loaves and placed in pans for the final rising. the more easily and more quickly made "straight" dough, when using fleischman's compressed yeast, is mixed in the morning and all the ingredients necessary are added at one time. it is then set to rise and, when the dough has doubled in bulk, it is kneaded down and when risen to once and half its size, shaped into loaves, placed in pans to rise and, when risen to top of pans, bake. better bread may be made from flour not freshly milled. flour should be kept in a dry place; it improves with moderate age. stand flour in a warm place to dry out several hours before using if you would have good bread. when baking bread the heat of the oven should not be _too great_ at _first_, or the outside of the bread will harden too quickly and inside the loaves will not be thoroughly baked before the crust is thick and dark. the temperature of the oven and time required for baking depend upon the size of the loaves, yet the bread should be placed in rather a quick oven, one in which the loaves should brown in about fifteen minutes, when the heat may be reduced, finishing the baking more slowly. small biscuits and rolls can stand a much hotter oven and quicker baking than large loaves, which must be heated slowly, and baked a longer time. a one-pound loaf should bake about one hour. on being taken from the oven, bread should be placed on a sieve, so that the air can circulate about it until it is thoroughly cooled. in the _farmers' bulletin_, we read: "the lightness and sweetness depend as much on the way bread is made as on the materials used." the greatest care should be used in preparing and baking the dough and in cooking and keeping the finished bread. though good housekeepers agree that light, well-raised bread can readily be made, with reasonable care and attention, heavy, badly-raised bread is unfortunately very common. such bread is not palatable and is generally considered to be unwholesome, and probably more indigestion has been caused by it than by any other badly-cooked food. as compared with most meats and vegetables, bread has practically no waste and is very completely digested, but it is usually too poor in proteins to be fittingly used as the sole article of diet, but when eaten with due quantities of other food, it is invaluable and well deserves its title of "staff of life." when the housewife "sets" bread sponge to rise over night, she should mix the sponge or dough quite late, and early in the morning mold it at once into shapely-looking loaves (should the sponge have had the necessary amount of flour added the night before for making a stiff dough). being aware of the great nutritive value of raisins and dried currants, aunt sarah frequently added a cup of either one or the other, well-floured, to the dough when shaping into loaves for the final rising. aunt sarah frequently used a mixture of butter and lard when baking on account of its being more economical, and for the reason that a lesser quantity of lard may be used; the shortening qualities being greater than that of butter. the taste of lard was never detected in her bread or cakes, they being noted for their excellence, as the lard she used was home-rendered, almost as sweet as dairy butter, free from taste or odor of pork. she always beat lard to a cream when using it for baking cakes, and salted it well before using, and i do not think the small quantity used could be objected to on hygienic principles. i have read "bread baking" is done once every three or four weeks, no oftener, in some of the farm houses of central europe, and yet stale bread is there unknown. their method of keeping bread fresh is to sprinkle flour into a large sack and into this pack the loaves, taking care to have the top crusts of bread touch each other. if they have to lie bottom to bottom, sprinkle flour between them. swing the sack in a dry place. it must swing and there must be plenty of flour between the loaves. it sounds more odd than reasonable, i confess. "bucks county" hearth-baked rye bread (as made by aunt sarah) quart sweet milk (scalded and cooled). tablespoonful lard or butter. table spoonsful sugar. / tablespoonful salt. cup wheat flour. quarts rye flour (this includes the one cup of wheat flour). fleischman yeast cake or cup of potato yeast. [illustration: "bucks county" rye bread] pour quart of luke-warm milk in a bowl holding quarts. add butter, sugar and salt, - / quarts rye flour and cup of yeast, or one fleischman's yeast cake, dissolved in a little lukewarm water. beat thoroughly, cover with cloth, and set in a warm place to rise about three hours, or until it almost reaches the top of bowl. when light, stir in the remaining - / quarts of rye flour, in which one cup of wheat is included; turn out on a well-floured bake board and knead about twenty minutes. shape dough into one high, round loaf, sprinkle flour _liberally_ over top and sides of loaf, and place carefully into the clean bowl on top of a _well-floured_ cloth. cover and set to rise about one hour, when it should be light and risen to top of bowl. turn the bowl containing the loaf carefully upside down on the centre of a hot sheet iron taken from the hot oven and placed on top of range. a tablespoonful of flour should have been sifted over the sheet iron before turning the loaf out on it. remove cloth from dough carefully after it has been turned from bowl and place the sheet iron containing loaf _immediately in the hot oven_, as it will then rise at once and not spread. bake at least sixty minutes. bread is seldom baked long enough to be wholesome, especially graham and rye bread. when baked and still hot, brush the top of loaf with butter and wash the bottom of loaf well with a cloth wrung out of cold water, to soften the lower, hard-baked crust. wrap in a damp cloth and stand aside to cool where the air will circulate around it. always set rye bread to rise early in the morning of the same day it is to be baked, as rye sponge sours more quickly than wheat sponge. the bread baked from this recipe has the taste of bread which, in olden times, was baked in the brick ovens of our grandmother's day, and that bread was unexcelled. i know of what i am speaking, having watched my grandmother bake bread in an old-fashioned brick oven, and have eaten hearth-baked rye bread, baked directly on the bottom of the oven, and know, if this recipe be closely followed, the young housewife will have sweet, wholesome bread. some germans use kumel or caraway seed in rye bread. aunt sarah's loaves of rye bread, baked from the above recipe, were invariably - / inches high, - / inches in diameter and inches in circumference and always won a blue ribbon at country fairs and farmers' picnics. in the oven of aunt sarah's range was always to be found a piece of sheet iron inches in length by inches in width. the three edges of the sheet iron turned down all around to a depth of half an inch, the two opposite corners being cut off about a half inch, to allow of its being turned down. it is a great convenience for young housewives to possess two of these sheet-iron tins, or "baking sheets," when baking small cakes or cookies, as being raised slightly from the bottom of the oven, cakes are less liable to scorch and bake more evenly. one sheet may be filled while baking another sheetful of cakes. in this manner a large number of cakes may be baked in a short time. this baking sheet was turned the opposite way, upside down, when baking a loaf of rye bread on it, and when the loaf of bread was partly baked the extra baking sheet was slipped under the bottom of the one containing the loaf, in case the oven was quite hot, to prevent the bottom of the bread scorching. wheat bread may be baked in the same manner as rye bread, substituting wheat flour for rye. these baking sheets may be made by any tinsmith, and young housewives, i know, would not part with them, once they realize how invaluable they are for baking small cakes on them easily and quickly. "frau schmidts" good white bread (sponge method) to one quart of potato water, drained from potatoes which were boiled for mid-day dinner, she added about / cup of finely-mashed hot potatoes and stood aside. about four o'clock in the afternoon she placed one pint of lukewarm potato water and mashed potatoes in a bowl with / cup of granulated sugar and / a dissolved fleischman's yeast cake, beat all well together, covered with a cloth and stood in a warm place until light and foamy. about nine o'clock in the evening she added the reserved pint of (lukewarm) potato water and / tablespoonful of salt to the yeast sponge, with enough warmed, well-dried flour to stiffen, and kneaded it until dough was fine-grained. she also cut through the dough frequently with a sharp knife. when the dough was elastic and would not adhere to molding-board or hands, she placed it in a bowl, brushed melted lard or butter over top to prevent a crust forming, covered warmly with a cloth and allowed it to stand until morning. frau schmidt always rose particularly early on bake day, for fear the sponge might fall or become sour, if allowed to stand too long. she molded the dough into four small loaves, placed it in pans to rise until it doubled its original bulk. when light she baked it one hour. bread made according to these directions was fine-grained, sweet and wholesome. she always cut several gashes across top of loaf with a sharp knife when loaves were set to rise, to allow gas to escape. excellent "graham bread" at . a.m. place in a quart measure / cup of sweet cream and - / cups of milk, after being scalded ( quart all together). when lukewarm, add fleischman yeast cake, dissolved in a little of the luke warm milk, tablespoonfuls sugar and tablespoonful salt. add cups each of white bread flour and cups of graham flour (in all cups or - / quarts of flour). mix well together and stand in a warm place, closely covered, a couple of hours, until well-risen. then stir sponge down and add about - / cups each of graham and of white flour. (sponge for graham bread should not be quite as stiff as a sponge prepared from white flour.) set to rise again for an hour, or longer; when light, stir down sponge and turn on to a well-floured board. knead well, divide into four portions, mold into four small, shapely loaves, brush with soft butter, place in well-greased pans, set to rise, and in about one hour they should be ready to put in a moderately-hot oven. bake about fifty minutes. graham bread should be particularly well-baked. brush loaves, when baked, with butter, which makes a crisp crust with a nutty flavor. should cream not be available, one quart of scalded milk, containing one tablespoonful of butter, may be used with good results. if cream be used with the milk, no shortening is required in the bread. bread is considered more wholesome when no shortening is used in its preparation. graham bread (an old recipe) cups sour milk cups sweet milk or water. teaspoon soda (salaratus) graham flour. / cup molasses. tablespoonful melted butter. pinch of salt. stiffen about as thick as ordinary molasses cake. bake at once. "mary's" recipe for wheat bread cup sweet milk (scalded). cup cold water. cake fleischman's yeast (dissolved in a small quantity of luke-warm water). - / teaspoonfuls sugar. rounded teaspoonful salt. tablespoonful butter. flour, about - / quarts. this makes good bread and, as bread is apt to chill if set over night in a cold kitchen, or sour if allowed to stand over night in summer, set this sponge early in the morning. stiffen with flour and knead about minutes; place the dough in a covered bowl in a warm place to rise about two hours and when well-risen and light, knead and stand one hour. then mold into shapely loaves, place in pans, brush tops of loaves with melted butter, and when doubled in bulk, in about minutes put in an oven which is so hot you can hold your hand in only while you count thirty, or if a little flour browns in the oven in about six minutes, it is hot enough for bread. the oven should be hot enough to brown the bread slightly five minutes after being put in. medium-sized loaves of bread require from / of an hour to one hour to bake. when bread is sufficiently baked it can be told by turning the loaf over and rapping with the knuckles on the bottom of the loaf. if it sounds hollow, it is thoroughly baked, and should be taken from the oven. stand loaves up on end against some object, where the air can circulate around them, and brush a little butter over the top to soften the crust. an authority on the chemistry of foods cautious housewives against cooling loaves of bread too rapidly after taking from the oven, and i should like to add a word of caution against eating fresh breads of any kind. bread should be baked at least twelve hours before being eaten. the sponge for this bread was set at o'clock in the morning; bread was baked at . . from pint of liquid, cake of yeast and about - / quarts of flour were made two loaves of bread. more yeast is required to raise a sponge containing sugar, eggs and shortening than is required to raise bread sponge containing only liquid, flour and yeast. "frau schmidts" easily-made graham bread should you care to have a couple of loaves of graham bread instead of all-wheat, take a generous cup of the above sponge before it is stiffened beyond a thick batter, and add one tablespoonful of brown sugar or molasses, stiffen with graham flour (not quite as stiff as when making wheat bread), rub butter or lard on top of dough, cover and set in a warm place to rise. when light, mold into one small loaf (never make graham bread into large loaves), place in oblong pan, cover, let stand until light, about - / hours, when it should have doubled in size; put in oven and bake thoroughly. when the loaf is taken from the oven, brush butter over the top. this keeps the crust moist. if a wholesome loaf of "corn bread" is wished, use fine, yellow, granulated cornmeal to stiffen the sponge instead of graham flour; do not make dough too stiff. whole-wheat bread pint boiling water. pint sweet milk. / fleischman's yeast cake dissolved in luke-warm water. / tablespoon salt. flour. when the milk and water are lukewarm add the yeast cake and salt. then add enough whole wheat flour to make a thin batter. let stand in a warm place three or four hours. then stir in as much wheat flour (whole wheat) as can be stirred in well with a large spoon, and pour into well-greased pans. let rise to double its bulk; then bake from three-fourths to one hour, according to the size of the loaves. this quantity makes three loaves. nut bread cups graham flour. cup wheat flour. teaspoons baking powder. cup chopped english walnuts. cup sugar. small teaspoon "mapleine" flavoring (if liked). / cup milk. pinch salt. / cup floured raisins (seeded). put in a good-sized bread pan and bake on hour in a moderate oven. strange as it may seem, this bread is lighter and better if allowed to stand a half hour before being placed in the oven to bake. frau schmidts "quick bread" the professor's wife seldom used any liquid except water to set a sponge for bread. she seldom used any shortening. she taught mary to make bread by the following process, which she considered superior to any other. from the directions given, housewives may think more time devoted to the making of a couple of loaves of bread than necessary; also, that too great a quantity of yeast was used; but the bread made by "frau schmidt" was excellent, quickly raised and baked. the whole process consumed only about four hours' time, and how could time be more profitably spent than in baking sweet, crusty loaves of bread, even in these strenuous days when the efficient housekeeper plans to conserve strength, time and labor? first, two fleischman's compressed yeast cakes were placed in a bowl and dissolved with tablespoonfuls of luke-warm water; she then added cup of lukewarm water, / tablespoonful of sugar and / teaspoonful of salt and stirred all well together. the bowl containing this yeast foam was allowed to stand in a warm place, closely covered, one hour. at the end of that time the yeast mixture should be light and foamy. it was then poured into the centre of a bowl containing about - / cups of _warmed_ flour, mixing the foamy yeast with a _portion_ of the flour to make a soft sponge, leaving a wall of flour around the inside edge of bowl, as our grandmothers used to do in olden times when they mixed a sponge for bread of liquid flour and yeast, in one end of the old-fashioned wooden "dough tray," using a wooden stick or small paddle for stirring together the mixture. the bowl containing the sponge was placed in a warm place to rise. in about or minutes / cup of lukewarm water was added to the sponge, stirring in all the outside wall of flour until a dough, the proper consistency for bread, was formed. the dough was turned out on the molding board and given a couple of quick, deft turns with the hands for several minutes, then placed in the bowl and again set to rise in a warm place, free from draughts, for or minutes. when light, with hands slightly greased with butter, she kneaded the dough a short time, until smooth and elastic, divided the dough into two portions, placed each loaf in warmed, well-greased bread pans and stood in a warm place about / hour. then turned the contents of bread pans onto bake-board, one at a time. cut each loaf into three portions, rolled each piece into long, narrow strips with the palms of the hands. pinched ends of the three strips together and braided or plaited them into a braid almost the length of bread pan. placed each braided loaf in a bread pan and set to raise as before. when well-raised, brush the top of loaves with melted butter. bake about three-quarters of an hour in a moderately-hot oven. an old-fashioned way of testing the heat of the oven was to hold the hand in the oven while counting thirty. should one be unable to bear the heat of oven a longer time, then the temperature was correct for baking bread. should one be able to allow the hand to remain in the oven a longer time, the heat of the oven should be increased. as a result of carefully following these minute directions, even an inexperienced housewife should have sweet, wholesome bread. frau schmidt insisted that rolling portions of dough separately before combining in a loaf, as for braided loaves, caused the bread to have a finer texture than if just shaped into round loaves. an "oatmeal loaf" for a loaf of oatmeal bread, place cup of crushed oats, or common oatmeal, in a bowl, pour over / cup of hot milk. when luke warm, add cup of sponge, or batter, reserved from that raised over night for making loaves of white bread; teaspoonful butter, teaspoonful sugar and / teaspoonful salt, and about scant cups of white flour. knead a few minutes, set to rise in a warm place, closely covered, about one hour or until doubled in bulk. then knead down and form into a shapely loaf, place in a pan, brush melted butter over lop (this improves crust), and when raised, doubled in bulk (in about one hour), place in a moderately hot oven and bake from to minutes. raisins may be added to this loaf, if liked. mary preferred this oatmeal loaf to graham bread. the sponge or batter from which this oatmeal-loaf was made had been prepared in the following manner: to - / cups of luke-warm potato water was added teaspoonful of sugar, cake of yeast; when dissolved, add - / cups of white bread flour. beat all together well, stand closely-covered in a warm place until the following morning. from one cup of this sponge was made one oatmeal loaf, and to the other cup of sponge white flour was added for a loaf of white bread or rolls. aunt sarah's white bread (sponge method) prepare the following "yeast sponge" at noon, the day preceding that on which you bake bread: place in a bowl (after the mid-day meal) quart of potato water (containing no salt), in which potatoes were boiled; also two medium-sized, finely-mashed potatoes, tablespoonful of sugar and, when luke warm, add cup of good home-made or baker's yeast. mix all well together; then divide this mixture and pour each half into each of two -quart glass fruit jars. place covers tightly on jars and shake each jar well, to mix yeast and potato-water thoroughly. stand yeast in a warm place near the kitchen range over night. jars should be _covered only_ with a napkin. the sponge should become light and foamy. in the morning use this freshly-prepared yeast to set sponge for bread. when preparing to set bread, place in a large bowl pint of potato water, tablespoonful of sugar, pint of the yeast sponge, / teaspoonful of salt, and use about pounds of sifted flour, well-dried and warmed. knead from to minutes, until a stiff dough is formed. the dough should be fine-grained and elastic and not stick to bake board. place dough in the bowl to rise; this should lake about four hours. when well-risen and light knead down and set to rise again, about - / hours. when light, mold into three large, shapely loaves; place in pans and allow to stand one hour. when loaves have doubled in bulk, are very light and show signs of cracking, invert a pan over top of loaves (if that was not done when loaves were put in pans), and place in a rather hot oven to bake. brush melted butter over loaves of bread when set to rise, it will cause bread to have a crisp crust when baked. the old-fashioned way of testing the heat of an oven was to hold the hand in the oven, if possible, while one counted thirty. the pint of yeast remaining in jar may be kept in a cool place one week, and may be used during this time in making fresh "yeast foam." this should always be prepared the day before baking bread. always prepare double the quantity of "yeast foam." use half to set bread, and reserve half for next baking. bread baked from this recipe has frequently taken first prize at county fairs and farmers' picnics. when baking bread, the oven should be quite hot when bread is first placed therein, when the bread should rise about an inch; then the heat of the oven should he lessened and in a half hour a brown crust should begin forming; and during the latter part of the hour (the time required for baking an ordinary-sized loaf) the heat of the oven should be less, causing the bread to bake slowly. should the heat of the oven not be great enough, when the loaves are placed within for baking, then poor bread would be the result. this method of making bread will insure most satisfactory results, although more troublesome than ordinary methods. recipe for "pulled bread" take a vienna loaf of bread, twelve-hours old, cut away all the crust with a clean-cut knife, then break away gently (with your fingers only) small finger-lengths of the bread, place in a moderate oven and brown a golden brown, and it is ready to serve. 'tis said six loaves will be required for one pound of this pulled bread. 'tis easily prepared in the home, but quite costly, when purchased. many people prefer "pulled bread" to fresh bread, as it is more wholesome. aunt sarah's "hutzel brod" pounds dried pears. pounds dried prunes. quarts juice of fruit and water. pound dried currants. pound seeded raisins. pound blanched and shredded almonds. pound chopped english walnut meats. - / ounces finely-shredded citron. - / ounces orange peel. / ounce chopped figs. ounce ground cinnamon. / ounce ground cloves. - / ounces anise seed. pounds flour (warmed and sifted). cakes compressed yeast. - / cups sugar. large tablespoon butter. tablespoon salt. tablespoons brandy or sherry. the whole recipe will make loaves of bread. this delicious german bread was usually made by "aunt sarah" one week before christmas. it may be kept two weeks, and at the end of that time still be good. it is rather expensive as regards fruit and nuts, but as no eggs are used, and a very small quantity of butter; and as bread containing fruit is so much more wholesome than rich fruit cake. i think american housewives would do well to bake this german bread occasionally. mary took one-fourth the quantity of everything called for in the recipe, except yeast. she used / of a cake of fleischman's yeast and / of each of the other ingredients, and from these baked three loaves of bread. the prunes and pears should be covered with cold water at night and allowed to stand until the following morning, when, after stewing until tender, the juice should be drained from the fruit and water added to the fruit-juice to measure two quarts. remove pits from prunes, cut pears and prunes in small pieces; stand aside. clean currants and raisins, blanch and shred almonds, chop walnut meats, citron, orange peel and figs; add cinnamon, cloves and anise seed. mix together flour and one quart of the fruit juice; add the compressed yeast cakes (dissolved in a little warm water), knead well, set a sponge as for ordinary bread; when raised, add the remaining quart of fruit juice, sugar, butter and salt. a small quantity of brandy or sherry may be added, but if not liked, fruit juice may be substituted. add the remaining ingredients, and knead thoroughly. allow dough to raise from two to three hours and when light form into loaves and allow to stand an hour, when bake. this quantity of dough should be made into twelve small loaves. should the flour and liquid used be warmed before mixing, the dough will raise more quickly. it simplifies the work if the fruits and nuts be prepared the day before the bread is baked. aunt sarah's white bread and rolls quart potato water. mashed potato. tablespoonful butter or lard. tablespoonful sugar. fleischman yeast cake, or cup good yeast. / tablespoonful salt. flour to stiffen (about three quarts). at o'clock in the evening put in a large bowl the mashed potato, the quart of luke-warm potato water (water in which potatoes were boiled for dinner), butter or sweet lard, sugar, salt, and mix with flour into a batter, to which add the fleischman's or any good yeast cake, dissolved in a little luke-warm water. beat well and stir in flour until quite stiff, turn out on a well-floured bake-board and knead well about minutes, until the dough is smooth, fine-grained and elastic, and does not stick lo the bake-board or hands. chop a knife through the dough several times; knead and chop again. this makes the bread finer and closer-grained, or, so aunt sarah thought. knead in all the flour necessary when first mixing the bread. when sufficiently kneaded, form into a large, round ball of dough, rub all over with soft lard, or butter, to prevent forming a crust on top and keep from sticking to bowl, and set to rise, closely-covered with a cloth and blanket, in a warm place until morning. in the morning the bread should be very light, doubled in quantity. take out enough dough for an ordinary loaf, separate this into three parts, roll each piece with the hand on the bake-board into long, narrow pieces. pinch the three pieces together at one end and braid, or plait, into a narrow loaf. brush over top with melted butter; set to rise in a warm place in a bread pan, closely-covered, until it doubles in size--or, if preferred, mold into ordinary-shaped loaves, and let rise until doubled in size, when bake in a moderately-hot oven with steady heat. frequently, when the "twist" loaves of bread were quite light and ready to be placed in the oven, aunt sarah brushed the tops with yolk of egg, or a little milk, then strewed "poppy seeds" thickly over. the poppy seeds give an agreeable flavor to the crust of the bread. aunt sarah's raised rolls (from bread dough) a portion of the white bread dough may be made into raised rolls. these rolls are excellent without additional shortening, or, in fact, without anything else being added. mold pieces of the bread dough into balls the size of a walnut; roll each piece flat with the rolling pin, dip in melted butter, fold and place close together in a bake pan. let rise _very_ light, then bake about minutes in a very hot oven. if a teaspoonful of flour browns in about two minutes in the oven, it is the right temperature for rolls. clover-leaf rolls take pieces of the bread dough, the size of a walnut, cut into three pieces, mold with the hand into round balls the size of small marbles; dip each one in melted butter, or butter and lard, and place three of these in each gem pan. (these pans may be bought six or twelve small pans fastened together, and are much more convenient than when each one must be handled separately when baking). allow small rolls to become _very light_, bake in a hot oven, and you will find them excellent. dipping the rolls in melted butter makes them crisp. serve hot, or place in a hot oven a few minutes until heated through, if served after they have become cold. "polish" rye bread (as made in bucks county) this excellent, nutritious bread, is made from the whole-ground grain. every part of the grain is used in the flour, when ground. to bake this bread, sift together one quart of this "whole-ground" rye flour and two quarts of white-bread flour. early in the morning of the day on which bread is to be baked, prepare a thick batter, or sponge, consisting of one quart of potato water (or the same quantity of luke-warm, scalded milk, or a mixture of the two); add one tablespoonful of a mixture of lard and butter and two boiled, mashed potatoes. two tablespoonfuls of sugar, one-half tablespoonful of salt and one fleischman's compressed yeast cake, dissolved in a small quantity of water; add about five cups of the mixed, sifted flour, beat the batter well, and stand in a warm place, covered, from one and a half to two hours. when well-risen and light, stir in balance of flour gradually, until all except one cup has been added; then turn onto a bake-board and knead well. this sponge should not be quite as stiff as for wheat bread. turn the dough onto a clean, well-floured cloth in a large bowl, set to rise and bake according to directions for baking "hearth-baked rye bread" or, if preferred, form into loaves, place in bread pans and, when light, bake. perfect breakfast rolls one quart of scalded milk, when lukewarm, add the following: / cup of butter and lard (mixed), egg, tablespoonful of sugar, teaspoonful of salt and fleischman's yeast cake; add flour to form a thick batter; beat all thoroughly. mix the above at . p.m., stand in a warm place, closely-covered, over night. the following morning add more flour; dough should not be mixed quite as stiff as for bread. allow it to raise in a warm place. when well-risen, place on bread board, roll, cut into small biscuits; dip each biscuit in melted butter, fold together, place in pans a distance apart, and when they have doubled in size, bake in a hot oven. "an old recipe" for good bread this country cook invariably baked good bread and always used potato-water in preference to any other liquid for setting sponge. she stood aside water, in which potatoes had been boiled for dinner (usually about one quart or less) and added two finely-mashed potatoes. about or o'clock in the afternoon of the day _before_ that on which she intended baking bread, she dissolved one cake of yeast (she used the small cornmeal commercial yeast cakes, sold under different names, such as national, magic, etc.) in a half-cup of luke-warm water, added / teaspoon of salt and sufficient warmed, well-dried flour to make a thin batter. she placed all in a bowl and stood it in a warm place, closely-covered, until about o'clock in the evening, when she added this sponge, which should be light and foamy, to the potato water, which should be lukewarm. she also added tablespoon of salt and enough flour to make a rather thick batter. heat thoroughly and allow this sponge to stand, well-covered, in a warm place until morning, when add tablespoon sugar, tablespoon butter or lard and warmed flour enough to make a stiff dough. turn out on the bread board and knead for about twenty minutes, until the dough does not stick to the hands. place stiffened dough into howl; allow it to rise until bulk is doubled. mold into loaves, adding as little extra flour as possible. cut several gashes on top of loaves, brush with melted butter, place in bread pans, and when loaves have doubled in bulk, place in moderately hot oven and bake about one hour. steamed brown bread place in a bowl / cup graham flour and / cup of yellow, granulated cornmeal. sift into this / cup of white flour, teaspoonful of baking powder and / teaspoonful of salt. mix all ingredients together to form a batter by adding cup of sour milk, in which has been dissolved / teaspoonful of soda. then add tablespoonfuls of molasses. pour into a well-greased quart can (the tin cans in which coffee is frequently sold will answer nicely), cover closely, place in a kettle of boiling water, steam about three hours; stand in oven a short time after being steamed. cut in slices and serve as bread, or, by the addition of raisins or currants, and a little grated nutmeg or other flavoring, a very appetizing and wholesome pudding may be served hot, with sugar and cream or any pudding sauce preferred. a wholesome bread (made from bran) place in a bowl cups of clean bran and cups of white flour, sifted with teaspoonfuls of baking powder, teaspoonful of salt, tablespoonful of melted butter. mix into a soft batter with cups of sweet milk; add / cup of molasses. fill two layer cake pans and bake in a hot oven about minutes. this is so easily and quickly made. the young housewife may mix, when commencing to prepare lunch, and when the meal is ready to serve the bread will be baked, and it is an excellent laxative. frau schmidt's "hutzel brod" quart dried pears. pint of pear juice. fleischman's yeast cake. scant cup brown sugar. eggs. / teaspoonful soda. pound of soaked raisins. / cup of a mixture of lard and butter. teaspoonful of fennel seed. pinch of salt. teaspoonfuls of ground cinnamon. flour to stiffen, as for ordinary bread. cover one quart of dried pears with cold water and cook slowly about minutes until they have cooked tender, but not soft (the night before the day on which the bread is to be baked). then drain the juice from stewed pears, which should measure pint; when lukewarm, add yeast cake, dissolved in a small quantity of lukewarm water, and about cups of flour and a pinch of salt. stand, closely-covered, in a warm place over night to raise. the following morning, add / teaspoonful of baking soda, dissolved in a little warm water, to counteract any acidity of batter. cream together sugar, butter and lard, add eggs one at a time, men the well-floured, diced pears, also raisins, cinnamon and fennel seed, and enough flour to stiffen as for ordinary bread. knead well, let rise; it will require some time, as the fruit retards the raising process. when light, turn onto a bake-board, cut into four portions, mold into four shapely loaves, place in pans, brush with melted butter and when quite light, place in a moderate oven and bake one hour. this bread will keep well several weeks, if kept in a tin cake box. this recipe is much simpler than aunt sarah's recipe for making "hutzel brod," but bread made from this recipe is excellent. "aunt sarah's" quickly-made brown bread cups of buttermilk, or thick, sour milk. / cup of sugar. / cup of molasses. tablespoonful of melted butter. egg. teaspoonful of soda. / teaspoonful of salt. - / cups of graham flour. / cup of white flour, sifted with / teaspoonful of baking powder. the egg was placed in a bowl, and not beaten separately; sugar and butter were creamed together, before being added; then mix in salt and molasses, and gradually add buttermilk, in which the soda had been dissolved; then add white and graham flour, / cups of raisins may be added, if liked. bake in a bread pan in a moderately hot oven. "stirred" oatmeal bread early in the morning cup of oatmeal porridge, left over from that which had been cooked for breakfast, was placed in a bowl and added gradually cups of scalded, luke-warm milk, tablespoon of a mixture of lard and butter, / cup new orleans molasses and one fleischman's yeast cake, dissolved in a little of the milk; stir in about cups of bread flour and stand in a warm place about - / hours to rise; then add - / cups more of bread flour and teaspoonful of salt. stir well with a spoon, and pour into three small bread tins; let rise, when well-risen, bake about / of an hour in a moderately hot oven. this is a delicious and wholesome bread and no kneading is necessary. - / cups of the cooked oatmeal might be used, then use less white bread flour when mixing. nut and raisin bread cups buttermilk, or sour milk. / cup brown sugar, cups graham flour. cup wheat flour. teaspoonful of soda, dissolved in a little of the milk. teaspoonful of baking powder, sifted with the wheat flour. mix all together, add one cup of seeded raisins, / cup of ground peanuts and / cup chopped walnut meats. bake in an ordinary bread pan. "saffron" raisin bread for this old-fashioned, "country" bread, set a sponge in the evening, consisting of cup of luke-warm water, fleischman's compressed yeast cake and tablespoonfuls of saffron water, obtained by steeping / tablespoonful of dried saffron flowers in a small quantity of boiling water a short time. use about cups of flour to stiffen the sponge. cover bowl containing sponge and stand in a warm place until morning, when add the following: / cup of soft a sugar, / cup lard and / cup of butter (beaten to a cream); then add one egg. beat again and add this mixture to the well-risen sponge. add also / cup of seeded raisins and about - / cups of flour. the dough should be almost as stiff as ordinary bread dough. set to rise about one hour. then divide the dough and mold into two shapely loaves. place in oblong bread pans. let rise about - / hours. brush melted butter over top of loaves and bake in a moderately hot oven, as one would bake ordinary bread. this bread is a rich, golden yellow, with a distinctive, rather bitter, saffron flavor, well-liked by some people; saffron is not unwholesome. "speaking of saffron bread," said john landis, to his niece, mary, "i am reminded of the lines i was taught when quite a small boy:" "wer will gute kuchen haben, der muss sieben sachen haben; eier, butter un schmalz, milch, zucker un mehl; un saffron mach die kuchen gehl." "of course, mary, you do not understand what that means. i will translate it for you. 'who would have good cakes, he must have seven things--eggs, butter and lard, milk, sugar and flour, and saffron makes the cakes yellow.'" raised rolls quarts of sifted flour. pint of boiled milk (lukewarm). tablespoon sugar. / cup butter and lard, mixed. / cake compressed yeast, or / cup yeast. teaspoon salt. at o'clock p.m. set sponge with half or three-fourths of the flour and all the other ingredients. about o'clock in the evening, knead well, adding the balance of the flour. cover and let stand in a warm place until morning. in the morning, roll out about / of an inch thick, cut into small rolls, place in baking pans far enough apart so they will not touch, and when raised quite light, bake. or, take the same ingredients as above (with one exception; take one whole cake of compressed yeast), dissolved in half a cup of luke-warm water, and flour enough to make a thin batter. do this at . in the morning and let rise until o'clock; then knead enough flour in to make a soft dough, as soft as can be handled. stand in a warm place until . , roll out quite thin; cut with small, round cake-cutter and fold over like a pocketbook, putting a small piece of butter the size of a pea between the folds; set in a warm place until . , or until very light; then bake a delicate brown in a hot oven. if made quite small, rolls may be made from this dough. to cause rolls of any kind to have a rich, brown glaze, when baked, before placing the pan containing them in the oven, brush over the top of each roll the following mixture, composed of--yolk of egg, tablespoon of milk, and teaspoon of sugar. "grandmother's" fine raised biscuits quart scalded milk (lukewarm). / cup of butter, or a mixture of butter and lard. / cup of sugar. teaspoonful of salt. fleischman's yeast cakes. whites of eggs. flour. quite early in the morning dissolve the two yeast cakes in a little of the milk; add these, with one-half the quantity of sugar and salt in the recipe, to the remainder of the quart of milk; add also cups of flour to form the yeast foam. beat well and stand in a warm place, closely-covered, one hour, until light and foamy. beat the sugar remaining and the butter to a cream; add to the yeast foam about to cups of flour, and the stiffly-beaten whites of the two eggs. turn out on a well-floured bread board and knead about five minutes. place in a bowl and let rise again (about one hour or longer) until double in bulk, when roll out about one inch in thickness. cut small biscuits with a / pound royal baking powder can. brush tops of biscuits with a mixture consisting of yolk of one egg, a teaspoonful of sugar and a little milk; this causes the biscuits to have a rich brown crust when baked. place biscuits on pans a short distance apart, let rise until doubled in bulk; bake in a rather quick oven. from this recipe was usually made biscuits. one-half of this recipe would be sufficient for a small family. mary's aunt taught her the possibilities of what she called a "dutch" sponge--prepared from one fleischman's yeast cake. and the variety a capable housewife may give her family, with the expenditure of a small amount of time and thought. about o'clock in the evening mary's aunt placed in a bowl cups of potato water (drained from potatoes boiled for dinner). in this she dissolved one fleischman's yeast cake, stirred into this about cups of well-warmed flour, beat thoroughly for about ten minutes. allowed this to stand closely covered in a warm place over night. on the following morning she added to the foamy sponge - / cups lukewarm, scalded milk, in which had been dissolved tablespoonful of a mixture of butter and lard, generous tablespoonfuls of sugar and teaspoonful of salt. about - / cups of well-dried and warmed flour; she stirred in a part of the flour, then added the balance. kneaded well a short time, then set to raise closely covered in a warm place - / to hours. when dough was light it was kneaded down in bowl and allowed to stand about one hour, and when well risen she placed cups of light bread sponge in a bowl, and stood aside in warm place; this later formed the basis of a "farmers' pound cake," the recipe for which may be found among recipes for "raised cakes." from the balance of dough, or sponge, after being cut into portions, she molded from the one portion small turn-over rolls, which were brushed with melted butter, folded together and placed on tins a distance apart and when _very_ light baked in a quick oven. from another portion of the sponge was made a twist or braided loaf. and to the remaining portion of dough was added / cup of currants or raisins, and this was called a "currant" or "raisin loaf," which she served for dinner the following day. the rolls were placed in the oven of the range a few minutes before breakfast and served hot, broken apart and eaten with maple syrup or honey and the delicious "farmers' pound cake" was served for supper. aunt sarah baked these on ironing day. the kitchen being unusually warm, as a result of the extra heat required in the range for heating flatirons, caused the dough to rise more quickly than otherwise would have been the case. stirred bread frau schmidt thought bread more easily digested and wholesome if ingredients of a loaf be stirred together instead of kneaded. this is the method she taught mary. she poured into a bowl cups of luke-warm water, added cake of fleischman's yeast, dissolved in a little of the water; sifted in gradually about - / cups of flour, added tablespoonful of sugar, / teaspoonful of salt, mixed all well together with a spoon until a stiff dough was formed, which she molded into two shapely loaves, handling as little as possible; placed in bread pans, allowed to stand several hours to raise, and when light baked. mary said, "this bread may be more wholesome than old-fashioned bread, which has been kneaded, but i prefer aunt sarah's bread, well-kneaded, fine-grained and sweet," but, she continued, "i will make an exception in favor of aunt sarah's 'stirred oatmeal' bread, which, i think, fine." potato biscuits at o'clock in the morning place in a bowl cup of finely-mashed (boiled) potatoes (the cup of left-over mashed potatoes may be used as a matter of economy). add cup of potato water (the water drained from boiled potatoes), in which / cake of fleischman's yeast had been dissolved, add cup of flour and teaspoon of sugar. stand in a warm place to raise, from to - / hours. at the expiration of that time add to the foamy sponge large tablespoonful of butter or lard, egg and / teaspoonful of salt, beaten together before adding. add about cups of flour, beat thoroughly and allow to raise another hour; then roll out the dough about inch in thickness and cut into small biscuits, dip each one in melted butter and place on pans, a short distance apart, stand about one hour to raise, when bake in a rather hot oven. these potato biscuits are particularly nice when freshly baked, and resemble somewhat biscuits made from baking powder. from this recipe was made two dozen biscuits. aunt sarah's potato yeast medium-sized potatoes. tablespoons sugar. tablespoons salt. quart water. grate the raw potatoes quickly, so they will not discolor, pour over the grated potato the quart of boiling water, add salt and sugar, cook several minutes until the consistency of boiled starch, let cool, and when lukewarm add cup of good yeast. stir all together in a crock, cover and let stand in a warm place three or four hours, when it is foamy and rises to top of crock, stir down several times, then fill glass fruit jars, cover and stand away in a cool place until needed. this yeast will keep about ten days. use one cup to about three pounds of flour, or one quart of liquid, when setting sponge for bread. save one cup of this yeast to start fresh yeast with. perfection potato cakes cup of boiled mashed potatoes. cup sweet milk. cup water in which fleischman yeast cake was dissolved. cups soft a sugar. / cup butter and lard mixed. eggs. a little salt. about cups of flour. cream the sugar, butter and eggs together. add mashed potatoes, milk and cup of water containing yeast, alternately with the flour, until about cups of flour have been used, making a dough as stiff as can be stirred with a spoon. stand, covered, in a warm place by the range until morning. these should be set to rise about nine o'clock in the evening. the following morning take pieces of the dough, on a well-floured bake board; roll about one inch thick, to fit in pie tins, place in pie tins to raise; when doubled in bulk spread with melted butter and sprinkle sugar thickly over top and bake in a moderately hot oven until lightly browned on top. this quantity of dough makes six cakes. instead of brushing the cakes with above mixture, place in a bowl / cup of soft a sugar, / cup flour, a tiny pinch of salt and baking powder each and tablespoonfuls of butter (not melted), mix all together as crumbly as possible, then the crumbs were sprinkled thickly over tops of cakes, which had been brushed with a mixture of milk and sugar. place cakes in oven when raised; bake minutes. this recipe was given mary by an old "bucks county" cook, noted for the excellence of her raised cakes. mary's recipe for cinnamon buns early in the morning mix a sponge or batter consisting of / cup of potato water (water drained from boiled potatoes) and / cup of lukewarm, scalded milk, one fleischman's compressed yeast cake, dissolved in the / cup of lukewarm potato water, teaspoonful sugar, pinch of salt and about - / cupfuls of warmed flour. stand this sponge in a warm place, closely covered, about / of an hour, to raise. at the end of that time add to the light, well-risen sponge, the following: tablespoonfuls of a mixture of lard and butter, and / cup of soft a sugar, creamed together. add one large egg. beat well. lastly, add about cupfuls of flour. mix all together thoroughly, and let raise again about - / hours. divide the well-risen sponge into four portions. roll each piece with rolling-pin into lengthwise pieces about / inch thick and spread with one tablespoonful of melted butter, scant tablespoonfuls of brown sugar, dust over this a small quantity of cinnamon, and tablespoonful of dried currants. shape into a long, narrow roll with the hands, on a well-floured bake-board. cut each roll into five pieces. pinch one end of each piece together and place each bun, cut side down, a short distance apart, in an iron pan which has been well greased, having brushed a little melted butter and a sprinkling of sugar over pan. allow these to rise in a warm place as before, about - / hours, until quite light, as having the extra sugar, butter and currants added retards their rising as quickly as would plain biscuits. bake to minutes in a moderate oven. from this quantity of material was made cinnamon buns. "kleina kaffe kuchen" (little coffee cakes) scant / cup lard and butter. cups sifted flour. whole eggs and the yolks of more. tablespoons sugar. / cup cream. / milk. fleischman's yeast cake. / teaspoon salt. the yeast cake was dissolved in the / cup lukewarm milk, a couple tablespoons of flour were added and mixed into a batter, and stood in a warm place to rise. the butter and sugar were stirred to a cream, salt was added, the eggs were beaten in, one at a time, next was added the sponge containing the yeast, the lukewarm cream, and the sifted flour. grease slightly warmed gem pans, sift a little flour over them, fill two-thirds full with the soft dough, set in a warm place to rise to tops of pans, and when quite light bake in a medium hot oven about minutes. the oven should be hot enough to allow them to rise quickly. put something underneath the pans in the oven to prevent bottom of cakes from burning. these may be set about o'clock in the morning if cakes are wished for lunch at noon. these are not cheap, as this quantity makes only cakes, but they are light as puffballs. the professor's wife served them when she gave a "kaffee klatch." she doubled the recipe, baked the cakes in the morning, and placed them in the oven to heat through before serving. the cakes should be broken apart, not cut. the cakes made from this recipe are particularly fine. grossmutter's potato cakes cup hot mashed potatoes. - / cups sugar. scant cup butter and lard. cup home-made yeast or yeast cake dissolved in cup lukewarm water. eggs. flour. at o'clock in the afternoon set to rise the following: one cup of sugar and one cup of hot mashed potatoes; when lukewarm add one cup of flour and one cup of yeast; beat all together, stand in a warm place to rise and at o'clock in the evening cream together cup of a mixture of lard and butter, cup of sugar, eggs and pinch of salt; add the sponge and beat well. stir as stiff as you can stir it with a large spoon, cover, set in a warm place to rise until morning, when roll out some of the dough into cakes about one inch thick, put in pie tins to rise, and when light, make half a dozen deep impressions on top of each cake with the forefinger, spread with melted butter and strew light-brown sugar thickly over top, or mix together cup sugar, butter size of an egg, tablespoons flour, tablespoons boiling water, beat well and spread the mixture on cakes just before placing in oven. bake the cakes about minutes in a moderate oven. this is a very old recipe used by aunt sarah's grandmother, and similar to the well-known german cakes called "schwing felders." aunt sarah's "bread dough" cake cup bread dough. egg. / cup soft a sugar. tablespoon lard or butter. / teaspoon soda. when her bread dough was raised and ready to put in the pans she placed a cupful of it in a bowl and added the egg, sugar, butter, soda (dissolved in a little hot water); some dried raisins or currants, and just enough flour so it might be handled easily. put in a small agate pan four inches deep, let rise until light, dust pulverized sugar over top and bake about or minutes in a moderate oven. double the materials called for, using _cups_ of well-risen bread dough or sponge, and you will have a good-sized cake. good, cheap dutch cakes to a bowl containing cup of scalded milk, add tablespoonful of lard and cup of sugar. when lukewarm add yeast cake (fleischman's), dissolved in cup of lukewarm water, and about cups of good flour. set to rise at night about nine o'clock, the next morning roll out pieces about one and a half inches thick, to fit in medium-sized pie tins. set in a warm place to rise. when light, brush top with melted butter and strew sugar thickly over and bake from to minutes in a moderately hot oven. these cakes are _inexpensive_ and _good_; _no eggs_ or _butter_ being used. recipe for "light cakes" (given mary by a farmer's wife) in the evening mix a sponge consisting of / cup of mashed potatoes, / cup sugar, cup of yeast or cake of fleischman's yeast dissolved in a cup of lukewarm water; / cup of a mixture of butter and lard and a pinch of salt and flour to thicken until batter is quite thick. stand in a warm place, closely covered, until morning, when add eggs and / cup of sugar and flour to stiffen as thick as sponge can be stirred with a spoon. set to rise; when light roll out one inch thick, place in pie tins, brush tops with melted butter and brown sugar, set to rise, and, when well risen, bake. butter "schimmel" place in a mixing bowl cups of warm, mashed potatoes and add / of a cup of shortening (a mixture of lard and butter), (or use aunt sarah's substitute for butter); one cup of a sugar and teaspoonful salt. beat all to a cream. when lukewarm, add eggs and either yeast cake dissolved in cup of lukewarm water, or cup of potato yeast; use about cups of flour to make a thin batter. set to raise over night or early in the morning. when well risen add about cups of flour. make about as stiff a dough as can be stirred well with a mixing spoon. place soft dough on a bake-board; roll out into a sheet about one-half inch thick; cut into squares about the size of a common soda cracker; bring each of the four corners together in the centre like an envelope; pinch together; place a small piece of butter (about one-eighth teaspoonful) on the top where the four corners join. stand in a warm place to rise. when well risen and light place in the oven. when baked, take from oven, and while hot dip all sides in melted butter and dust granulated or pulverized sugar over top. these are not as much trouble to prepare as one would suppose from the directions for making. the same dough may be cut in doughnuts with a tin cutter and fried in hot fat after raising, or the dough may be molded into small, round biscuits if preferred, and baked in oven. "bucks county" doughnuts about nine o'clock in the evening a batter was mixed composed of the following: cup milk. cup hot water. teaspoonful of sugar. cup yeast (or one cake of fleischman's yeast dissolved in one cup of lukewarm water). pinch of salt. - / cups of flour. stand in a warm place until morning. then add / cup of butter and - / cups of soft a sugar, creamed together, and from to cups of flour. the dough should be as stiff as can be stirred with a spoon. set to rise in a warm place; when light and spongy, roll out on a well-floured bake-board and cut into round cakes with a hole in the centre. let rise again, and when well risen fry a golden brown in deep fat and sift over pulverized sugar. this recipe will make doughnuts. these are good and economical, as no eggs are used in this recipe. extra fine "quaker bonnet" biscuits for these quaint-looking, delicious biscuits, a sponge was prepared consisting of: pink milk. eggs. / cup mixture butter and lard. yeast cake (fleischman's). about cups flour. set to rise early in the morning. when well risen (in about hours), roll dough into a sheet about / inch in thickness, cut with a half-pound baking powder can into small, round biscuits, brush top of each one with melted butter (use a new, clean paint brush for this purpose), place another biscuit on top of each one of these, and when raised very light and ready for oven brush top of each biscuit with a mixture consisting of half of one yolk of egg (which had been reserved from the ones used in baking), mixed with a little milk. biscuits should have been placed on a baking sheet some distance apart, let rise about one hour until quite light, then placed in a quick but not _too hot_ an oven until baked a golden brown on top. mary gave these the name of "quaker bonnet" biscuits, as the top biscuit did not raise quite as much as the one underneath and greatly resembled the crown of a quaker bonnet. from this quantity of dough was made three dozen biscuits. these are not cheap, but extra fine. bucks county cinnamon "kuchen" explicit directions for the making of these excellent raised cakes was given mary by an old, experienced pennsylvania german cook. they were prepared from the following recipe: early in the morning pint of milk was scalded. when lukewarm, add - / cups of flour and cake of fleischman's compressed yeast (which had been dissolved in tablespoonful of lukewarm water). beat the mixture well. cover and stand in a warm place to rise. when well risen, which should be in about hours, add the following mixture, composed of / cup of sugar and / cup of butter, creamed together; / teaspoonful of salt; egg was beaten into the mixture, and about cups of flour were added, enough to make a dough as stiff as can be stirred with a spoon. dough should not be as stiff as for bread. let stand about hour. when well risen and light, divide into four portions. roll out each piece of dough to thickness of one inch. place cakes in medium-sized pie tins and allow them to stand about one hour. when well risen, doubled in bulk, make half dozen deep impressions on top of each cake with the forefinger. brush top of each cake with / tablespoonful of melted butter. sprinkle over tablespoonfuls of soft a sugar and sift over a little pulverized cinnamon, if liked, just before placing cakes in oven. bake cakes from to minutes in a moderately hot oven. from this dough may be made four cakes. excellent biscuits may also be made from this same dough, by simply moulding it into small biscuits and place in a pan some distance apart. let rise and brush tops of biscuits with a mixture composed of a part of an egg yolk, a tablespoonful of milk and / teaspoonful sugar. this causes the biscuits to have a rich, brown color when baked. the sponge from which these cakes or biscuits were made was mixed and set to rise at o'clock in the morning, and the baking was finished at o'clock. sponge should be set to rise in a warm room. if these directions are carefully followed the housewife will invariably have good results. always use hard spring wheat for bread or biscuits, raised with yeast; and winter wheat, which costs less, will answer for making cake and pastry. in cold weather always warm flour before baking, when yeast is used for baking raised cakes. soft a sugar or a very light brown is to be preferred to granulated. moravian sugar cakes at o'clock p.m. set a sponge or batter, consisting of cup of mashed potatoes, cups of sugar, cup of sweet milk, scalded and cooled, / cake of yeast, dissolved in cup of lukewarm water, eggs / cup of a mixture of lard and butter, add cups of flour, beat well, stand in a warm place to raise; at o'clock add about cups of flour. stand until morning in a warm place, near the range. the following morning turn out on a floured bake-board, roll out cakes one inch thick, place in pie tins, when ready for the oven; punch half a dozen small holes in the top of cakes, in which place small bits of butter. sprinkle sugar over liberally and cinnamon if liked. bake in a moderate oven. mary's potato cakes cup freshly-boiled mashed potatoes. cup scalded sweet milk. cup sugar. flour about cups. cake fleischman's yeast. eggs. / cup butter and lard mixed. / cup potato water. at o'clock in the morning mary mixed a sponge consisting of a cup of mashed potatoes, cup scalded milk, / cup sugar, - / cups of flour and the cake of fleischman's yeast, dissolved in half a cup of lukewarm potato water. this was set to rise in a warm place near the range for several hours until light. then she creamed together / cup of sugar, eggs and / cup of butter and lard, or use instead the "substitute for butter." added the creamed sugar, butter and eggs to the well-risen sponge and about - / cups of flour. sift a couple of tablespoons of flour over top of sponge, and set to rise again about - / hours. when light, take cut pieces of the sponge on a well-floured bread-board, knead for a minute or two, then roll out with a rolling-pin inlo pieces about one inch thick, place in well-greased small pie tins, over which a dust of flour has been sifted, set to rise about - / hours. when light and ready for oven brush top with milk, strew crumbs over or brush with melted butter and strew sugar over top; after punching half dozen holes in top of each cake, bake in a moderately hot oven from to minutes until a rich brown, when cakes should be baked. five potato cakes may be made from this sponge, or four cakes and one pan of biscuits if preferred. use soft "a" sugar rather than granulated for these cakes, and old potatoes are superior to new. or when these same cakes were raised, ready to be placed in the oven, mary frequently brushed the tops of cakes with melted butter, strewing over the following: cup of flour mixed with / cup of sugar and yolk of egg, and a few drops of vanilla. this mixture rubbed through a coarse sieve and scattered over cakes mary called "streusel kuchen." german raisin cake (raised with yeast) place in a bowl cup of milk, scalded and cooled until lukewarm; add tablespoonful of sugar and dissolve one cake of yeast in the milk. mix in cup of flour and stand in a warm place to raise / of an hour. then cream together in a separate bowl / cup soft "a" sugar, / cup of butter or "butter substitute," add egg and a pinch of salt; stir in - / cups of flour, / cup of well-floured raisins, and / teaspoonful of vanilla flavoring. add the yeast mixture and allow it to raise about hours longer. at the expiration of that time turn the well-risen sponge out on a floured bake-board. after giving the dough several deft turns on the board with the hand, place in a well-greased fruit cake pan, which has been dusted with flour. stand pan containing cake in a warm place, let rise until very light, probably - / hours, when brush the top of cake with a small quantity of a mixture of milk and sugar. sift pulverized sugar thickly over top. place the cake in a moderately hot oven, so the cake may finish rising before commencing to brown on the top. bake about minutes. "kaffee krantz" (coffee wreath) cup sugar. / cup butter and lard. eggs. pint milk. fleischman's yeast cake. cups flour. cream together the sugar, butter, lard and eggs, add the milk, which has been scalded and allowed to cool; flour, and yeast cake, dissolved in a half cup of lukewarm water; beat well. set this sponge to rise in a warm place, near the range, as early as possible in the morning. this will take about - / hours to rise. when the sponge is light add about cups more of flour. the dough, when stiff as can be stirred with a spoon, will be right. take about cups of this sponge out on a well-floured bake-board, divide in three pieces, and braid and form into a wreath or "krantz," or they may be made out into flat cakes and baked in pie tins after they have been raised and are light. sprinkle sugar thickly over top after brushing with milk containing a little sugar, before placing in oven. these should rise in about - / hours. place in a moderately hot oven and bake from to minutes. this recipe frau schmidt translated from the german language for mary's especial benefit. this coffee wreath is particularly fine if small pieces of crushed rock candy be sprinkled liberally over the top and blanched almonds stuck a couple of inches apart over the top just before placing the cake in the oven, after the cakes had been brushed with a mixture of milk and sugar. "mondel krantz" or almond cake (as made by frau schmidt) pint sweet milk. / cup sugar. eggs. yeast cake or cup yeast. / cup butter. tablespoons rock candy. orange. tablespoons chopped almonds. flour. set to rise early in the morning. to the scalded milk, when lukewarm, add the yeast and flour enough to make a batter, cover, set to rise until light, near the range, which will take several hours. then add the sugar, butter and eggs beaten to a cream, grated rind and juice of orange, a couple tablespoons finely-chopped almonds, and add enough flour to make a soft dough, as stiff as can be stirred with a spoon; set to rise again, and when light, divide the dough in two portions, from which you form two wreaths. roll half the dough in three long strips on the floured bake-board with the hands, then braid them together. place a large coffee cup or bowl inverted on the centre of a large, round or oval, well-greased pan, lay the wreath around the bowl. the bowl in the centre of the pan prevents the dough from running together and forming a cake. brush the top of the wreath with a little milk, containing teaspoon of sugar, over the top of the wreath, stick blanched, well-dried almonds, and strew thickly with crushed rock candy or very coarse sugar. let rise until light, then bake. this makes two quite large wreaths. the professor's wife told mary when she gave her this recipe, this almond wreath was always served at the breakfast table on christmas morning at the home of her parents in germany, and was always baked by her mother, who gave her this recipe, and it was found on the breakfast table of frau schmidt christmas morning as regularly as was made "fast nacht kuchen" by aunt sarah every year on "shrove tuesday," the day before the beginning of the lenten season. the professor's wife's recipe for "dutch cakes" tablespoons of butter or lard. eggs. cup "soft a" sugar. / yeast cake. pint milk. / teaspoonful of salt. flour. she scalded the milk, added butter and eggs, well beaten, when the milk was lukewarm, then added yeast, dissolved in a little lukewarm water, sugar, salt and flour to make a thin batter. beat all together five minutes, stood the batter, closely covered, in a warm place, over night. in the morning, added flour to make a soft dough, kneaded lightly for ten minutes, placed in bowl and set to rise again. when light, she rolled out dough one inch in thickness, placed in pie tins, and when raised a second time spread over the cakes the following mixture before placing in oven: cup sugar, tablespoonfuls of flour, tablespoonfuls of boiling water and butter size of an egg, beaten well together. bake minutes. "farmers' pound cake" (as aunt sarah called this) place in a bowl cups of light, well-raised bread sponge (when all flour necessary had been added and loaves were shaped ready to be placed in bread pan for final rising). cream together / cup of a mixture of lard and butter, add eggs, first yolks then stiffly beaten whites, also add - / cups soft a sugar. add to the cups of bread sponge in bowl and beat well until fully incorporated with the dough, then add / cup of lukewarm milk, in which had been dissolved / teaspoonful of salaratus. beat all together until mixture is smooth and creamy, then add cups of bread flour and / teaspoon of lemon flavoring. beat well and add - / cups of either currants or raisins, dusted with flour. pour mixture into an agate pudding dish (one holding quarts, about - / inches in depth and inches in circumference). stand in a warm place to hours to raise; when raised to top of pan place in a moderately hot oven and bake about minutes, when, taken from oven, dust with pulverized sugar thickly over top of cake. this cake should be large as an old-fashioned fruit cake, will keep moist some time in a tin cake box, but is best when freshly baked. german "coffee bread" / cup sugar / cup butter cup hot milk yeast cake eggs - / cups flour. as aunt sarah taught mary to bake this, it was fine. she creamed together in a bowl the sugar and butter, poured the hot milk over this, and when lukewarm, added the compressed yeast cake, dissolved in / cup of lukewarm water. she then added two small, well-beaten eggs, about - / cups flour, or enough to make a stiff _batter_, and / teaspoonful salt. beat thoroughly, cover and set to rise in a warm place about - / hours or until doubled in bulk. this was set to rise quite early in the morning. when light, beat thoroughly and with a spoon spread evenly on top of well-greased, deep pie tins, which have been sprinkled with a little flour. spread the crumbs given below over the top of cakes, cover and let rise minutes and bake a rich brown in moderate oven. for the crumbs, mix together in a bowl heaped cup of fine, soft, stale bread crumbs, - / tablespoonfuls light brown sugar, / of a teaspoonful cinnamon, pinch of salt, / cup of blanched and chopped almonds, and tablespoonfuls of soft butter. this sponge or dough should be unusually soft when mixed, as the crumbs sink into the dough and thicken it. add only the quantity of flour called for in recipe. "fast nacht kuchen" (doughnuts) tablespoons honey. / quart milk. quarts flour. yeast cake. / cup butter. eggs. without fail, every year on shrove tuesday, or "fast nacht," the day before the beginning of lent, these cakes were made. quite early in the morning, or the night before, the following sponge was set to rise: the lukewarm, scalded milk, mixed into a smooth batter with quart of flour; add fleischman's yeast cake, dissolved in a very little water. beat well together, set in a warm place to rise over night, or several hours, and when light, add the following, which has been creamed together: eggs, butter and lard, a little flour and the honey. beat well, and then add the balance of the flour, reserving a small quantity to flour the board later. set to rise again, and when quite light roll out on a well-floured board, cut into circles with a doughnut cutter, cut holes in the centre of cakes, let rise, and then fry in deep fat; dust with pulverised sugar and cinnamon, if liked. these are regular german doughnuts, and are never very sweet. if liked sweeter, a little sugar may be added. from this batter mary made "fried cakes," or "fast nacht kuchen," as the germans call them. she also made from the same dough one dozen cinnamon buns and two dutch cakes. the dough not being very sweet, she sprinkled rivels composed of sugar, flour and butter, generously over the top of the "dutch cakes." the dough for doughnuts, or fried cakes, should always have a little more flour added than dough for "dutch cakes" or buns; baked in the oven. if _too soft_, they will absorb fat while frying. "kaffee kuchen" (coffee cake) cups milk. heaped cup soft a sugar. / cup butter and lard. egg. fleischman's yeast cake. flour. these german coffee cakes should be set to rise either early in the morning or the night before being baked. scald cups sweet milk and set aside to cool. cream together in a bowl heaped cup of a sugar, / cup butter and lard and the yolk of egg. add this to the lukewarm milk alternately with - / cups flour and the yeast cake dissolved in / cup lukewarm water. beat all together, and, lastly, add the stiffly-beaten white of egg. cover and set in a warm place to rise over night, or, if set to rise in the morning, stand about - / hours until light. put an extra cup of flour on the bake-board, take out large spoonfuls of the dough, mix in just enough flour to roll out into flat cakes, spread on well-greased pie tins, stand in a warm place until light, about - / hours. when the cakes are ready for the oven, brush melted butter over the top, strew thickly with brown sugar, or spread rivels over top, composed of / cup sugar, / cup flour and tablespoonfuls of butter, crumbled together. strew these over the cakes just before placing them in the oven of range. "streusel kuchen" for these german-raised cakes, take / cup mashed potatoes and / cup of potato water, / cup lard and butter mixed, creamed with / cup sugar. mix with these ingredients about - / cups of flour and cup of yeast. set this sponge to rise at night in a warm place, well covered. the next morning add to the light, well-risen sponge, eggs, / cup sugar and about - / cups flour. let stand in a warm place until light. then roll out pieces size of a plate, one inch thick; place on well-greased pie tins, let rise, and when light and ready for the oven brush over tops with melted butter and strew over the tops of cakes the following: mix cup of flour, / cup of sugar and yolk of egg. flavor with a few drops of vanilla (or use vanilla sugar, which is made by placing several vanilla beans in a jar of sugar a short time, which flavors sugar). rub this mixture of flour, sugar and yolk of egg through a coarse sieve and strew over tops of cakes. or, this same recipe may be used by taking, instead of cup of yeast, one fleischman yeast cake, dissolved in cup of lukewarm water. instead of sponge being set to rise the night before the day on which the cakes are to be baked, the sponge might be set early in the morning of the same day on which they are to be baked--exactly in the same manner as if sponge was set the night before; when light, add eggs, sugar and balance of flour to sponge, and proceed as before. muffins, biscuits, griddle cakes and waffles use scant cup of liquid to good cup of flour, usually, for "griddle cake" batter. use baking powder with sweet milk, heaping teaspoonful of royal baking powder is equivalent to teaspoonful of cream of tartar and / teaspoonful of salaratus (baking soda) combined. use either baking powder or salaratus and cream of tartar combined, when using sweet milk. use teaspoonful of baking soda to pint of sour milk. allow a larger quantity of baking powder when no eggs are used. have all materials cold when using baking powder. when milk is only slightly sour, use a lesser quantity of soda and a small quantity of baking powder. sally lunn (as aunt sarah made it) as "aunt sarah" made this, it required cup of sweet milk, eggs, tablespoonful of butter, tablespoonfuls of sugar, flour to make a stiff batter, about - / cups (almost three cups) of flour sifted with scant teaspoonfuls of baking powder. served immediately when taken from the oven, this is an excellent substitute for bread for lunch. aunt sarah's recipe for "johnny cake" one and one half cups of sour milk, / cup of shortening, a mixture of lard and butter, - / tablespoonfuls of sugar, cups of yellow cornmeal, cup of white bread flour, egg, teaspoon of soda, dissolved in a little hot water, a little salt. mix all together, add the stiffly-beaten white of egg last. pour batter in an oblong bread tin, bake about minutes in a quick oven. granulated corn meal was used for this cake. mary's breakfast muffins cups sifted flour. teaspoon salt. teaspoon sugar. tablespoon butter and lard. / cake fleischman's yeast. eggs. cups boiled milk. place the flour, salt, sugar, butter, lard and yeast cake, dissolved in water, in a bowl and mix well; then add the eggs and milk, which should be lukewarm. set to rise in a warm place over night. in the morning do not stir at all, but carefully place tablespoonfuls of the light dough into warm, well-greased gem pans, let stand a short time, until quite light, then bake in a hot oven to minutes and serve hot for breakfast. these should be light and flakey if made according to directions. rice muffins cup cold boiled rice. yolk of egg and white beaten separately. teaspoon sugar. / teaspoon salt. cup sweet milk. cups flour. teaspoonfuls baking powder. put the rice, yolk of egg, sugar and salt in a bowl and beat together; then add teacup sweet milk alternately with the flour, in which has been sifted the baking powder. add the stiffly-beaten white of egg; bake in muffin pans in hot oven. this makes about fifteen muffins. indian pone beat together, in the following order, eggs, tablespoonful of white sugar, - / cups of sweet milk, teaspoonful of salt; to which add cup of granulated yellow corn meal and cups of white flour, sifted, with scant teaspoonfuls of royal baking powder. lastly, add tablespoonful of melted (not hot) butter. pour batter in bread pan and bake in a hot oven to minutes. serve hot. do not cut with a knife when serving, but break in pieces. when the stock of bread is low this quickly-prepared corn bread or "pone" is a very good substitute for bread, and was frequently baked by mary at the farm. mary's aunt taught her to make a very appetizing pudding from the left-over pieces of corn bread, which, when crumbled, filled cup heaping full; over this was poured cups of sweet milk; this was allowed to stand until soft; when add large egg (beaten separately), a generous tablespoonful of sugar, a couple of tablespoonfuls of raisins, a pinch of salt; mix well, pour into a small agate pudding pan, grate nutmeg over the top, and bake in a moderate oven hour or a less time. serve with sugar and cream. "pfannkuchen" (pancakes) four eggs, whites and yolks were beaten separately, tablespoonfuls of milk, were added; teaspoonful of chopped parsley; mix lightly together, add salt to season. place tablespoonfuls of butter in a fry pan. when butter has melted, pour mixture carefully into pan. when cooked, sprinkle over a small quantity of finely minced parsley. roll like a "jelly roll." place on a hot platter and serve at once, cut in slices. "extra fine" baking powder biscuits one quart of flour was measured; after being sifted, was placed in a flour sifter, with heaping teaspoonfuls of royal baking powder and teaspoonful of salt. sift flour and baking powder into a bowl, cut through this mixture tablespoonful of butter and lard each, and mix into a soft dough, with about cup of sweet milk. egg should have been added to the milk before mixing it with the flour. reserve a small quantity of the yolk of egg, and thin with a little milk. brush this over the top of biscuits before baking. turn the biscuit dough onto a floured bake-board. pat out about one inch thick. cut into rounds with small tin cake cutter. place a small bit of butter on each biscuit and fold together. place a short distance apart on baking tins and bake in a quick oven. "flannel" cakes, made from sour milk one pint of sour milk, eggs (beaten separately), a little salt, large teaspoon of melted butter, teaspoonful of molasses, good teaspoon of soda, sifted with enough flour to make a smooth batter. beat hard and then add the yolks and the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. bake small cakes on a hot, well-greased griddle. serve with honey or maple syrup. "flannel" cakes with baking powder sift together in a bowl pint of flour, teaspoon of salt, teaspoons of royal baking powder, mixed to a smooth batter, with about pint of sweet milk. add two yolks of eggs, tablespoon of melted butter. lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. teaspoon of baking molasses added makes them brown quickly. bake on a hot griddle, well greased. frau schmidt's recipe for waffles one pint of sour milk, quart of sweet milk, teaspoon salt, tablespoon butter, whites of three eggs and yolks of two and teaspoon of baking soda, and flour to make a rather thin batter. beat the two yolks of the eggs until light and creamy, then add / teaspoon of baking powder, little flour, then the sour milk with soda dissolved in it, stirring all the time. then add tablespoon of melted or softened butter, then the sweet milk; beat well; and lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of the three eggs. bake in hot waffle iron. "crumb" corn cakes one pint of stale bread crumbs (not fine, dried crumbs), covered with pint of sour milk. let stand over night. in the morning add tablespoon of butter, yolks of eggs and a little salt, / teaspoon of salaratus (good measure), / cup of granulated corn meal, to which add a couple of tablespoons of bread flour, enough to fill up the cup. stir all well together, add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs and drop with a tablespoon on a hot, greased griddle. make the cakes small, as they do not turn quite as easily as do buckwheat cakes. this makes about two dozen cakes. these are good. "grandmother's" recipe for buttermilk waffles mix to a smooth batter, cups of sour buttermilk, cups of flour, and add tablespoon of melted butter, teaspoon salt, tablespoon of molasses. add the well-beaten yolks of eggs, - / teaspoonfuls of baking soda, dissolved in a little hot water. lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. place about tablespoonfuls of the batter on hot, well-greased waffle irons. if buttermilk cannot be procured, sour milk may be used with good results, providing the milk is quite sour. from this quantity of batter may be made twelve waffles. serve with maple syrup or honey. bread griddle cakes to pint of sour milk add about slices of stale bread and allow the bread to soak in this mixture over night. in the morning beat up smoothly with egg yolk, teaspoonful of soda, a pinch of salt and enough cornmeal and white flour, in equal quantities, to make a moderately thin batter. lastly, add the stiffly-beaten white of egg, bake on a hot griddle. cakes should be small in size, as when baked cakes are less readily turned than other batter cakes. these cakes are economical and good. never fail "flannel" cakes cups thick sour milk (quite sour). tablespoonfuls sweet milk. egg. / teaspoonful salt. cups flour. teaspoonful baking soda (good measure). pour the milk in a bowl, add yolk of egg. sift together flour, baking soda and salt, four times. beat all well together. then add the stiffly-beaten white of egg, and bake at once on a hot griddle, using about two tablespoonfuls of the batter for a cake. serve with butter and maple syrup or a substitute. this recipe, given mary by an old, reliable cook, was unfailing as to results, if recipe be closely followed. the cakes should be three-fourths of an inch thick, light as a feather, and inside, fine, like bread, not "doughy," as cakes baked from richer batters frequently are. from this recipe was made eighteen cakes. waffles made from sweet milk and baking powder sift together quart of flour, teaspoonfuls of baking powder and / teaspoonful of salt. mix into a batter, a little thicker than for griddle cakes, with sweet milk; add yolks of eggs, tablespoonfuls of melted butter; lastly, stir in lightly the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. bake on a hot, well-greased waffle iron and serve with maple syrup. "bucks county" buckwheat cakes about o'clock noon dissolve cake of yeast (the small, round or square cornmeal cakes) in pint of lukewarm water. add to this tablespoonful wheat flour, tablespoonful yellow cornmeal, and enough good buckwheat flour to make a thin batter. set in a warm place near the range to rise. about or o'clock in the evening add this sponge to quart and pint of lukewarm potato water (water drained from boiled potatoes), tablespoonful of mashed potatoes added improves the cakes; add salt. they need considerable. stir in enough buckwheat flour to make quite a stiff batter, beat hard and set to rise, covered, in a warm place over night. the next morning add teaspoonful salaratus, dissolved in a little hot water; tablespoonful of baking molasses and a little warm milk, to thin the batter; or water will answer. the batter should be thin enough to pour. let stand a short time, then bake on a hot griddle. half this quantity will be enough for a small family. then use only / teaspoonful salaratus. bake golden brown on hot griddle. serve with honey or maple syrup. if this recipe for buckwheat cakes is followed, you should have good cakes, but much of their excellence depends on the flour. buy a small quantity of flour and try it before investing in a large quantity, as you cannot make good cakes from a poor brand of flour. delicious corn cakes one cup of sweet milk heated to boiling point; stir in heaping tablespoonfuls yellow, granulated cornmeal; add a tablespoonful of butter or lard and salt to taste. as soon as the mixture has cooled, stir in tablespoonful of wheat flour. if the batter should be too thick, stir in enough cold, sweet milk to make it run easily from the spoon. add heaping teaspoonful of royal baking powder. drop spoonfuls on hot, greased griddle, and bake. this quantity makes cakes enough to serve three people, about sixteen small cakes. this is an economical recipe, as no eggs are used. rice waffles (as aunt sarah made them.) add tablespoonful of butter and tablespoonful lard to cup of cold, boiled rice; yolks of eggs, the whites beaten separately and added last; cups of flour, teaspoonful salt and teaspoonfuls baking powder, sifted together; teaspoonful of sugar and teaspoonful of molasses, and enough sweet milk to make a thin batter. bake in hot waffle irons. with these serve either maple syrup or a mixture of sugar and cinnamon. "german" egg-pancakes (not cheap) these truly delicious pancakes were always baked by "aunt sarah" when eggs were most plentiful. for them she used, cup flour, fresh eggs, / cup milk. the yolks of eggs were broken into a bowl and lightly beaten. then milk and flour were added gradually to form a smooth batter. lastly, the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs were added. large spoonfuls were dropped on a hot, well-greased griddle, forming small cakes, which were served as soon as baked. these cakes require no baking powder. their lightness depends entirely on the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. "frau schmidt's" griddle cake recipe the professor's wife gave mary this cheap and good recipe for griddle cakes: pint of quite sour, thick milk; beat into this thoroughly even teaspoon of baking soda, / teaspoon each of salt and sugar and cups of flour, to which had been added tablespoon of granulated cornmeal and rounded teaspoon of baking powder before sifting. no eggs were used by the professor's wife in these cakes, but mary always added yolk of egg to the cakes when she baked them. mary's recipe for "corn cake" cup of white flour. / cup cornmeal (yellow granulated cornmeal). cup of sweet milk. teaspoonfuls baking powder. tablespoonful sugar. / teaspoonful salt. tablespoonful butter. tablespoonful lard. egg. sift together flour, salt and baking powder, sugar, and add / cup of granulated, yellow cornmeal. mix with cup milk, beaten egg, and the tablespoonfuls of butter and lard. beat thoroughly. add a tablespoonful more of flour if not as stiff as ordinary cake batter. pour in well-greased bread tin and bake about minutes in a hot oven. aunt sarah's delicious cream biscuits place in a flour sifter cups of flour, teaspoonfuls baking powder, / teaspoonful of salt and / teaspoonful of sugar. sift twice; stir together / cup of sweet milk and / cup of thick, sweet cream. quickly mix all together, cutting through flour with a knife, until a soft dough is formed, mixing and handling as little as possible. drop spoonfuls into warmed muffin tins and bake at once in a hot oven. serve hot. these are easily and quickly made, no shortening other than cream being used, and if directions are closely followed will be flakey biscuits when baked. aunt sarah was always particular to use pastry flour when using baking powder, in preference to higher-priced "hard spring wheat," which she used only for the making of bread or raised cakes, in which yeast was used. mary's muffins cups of flour. even teaspoonfuls of baking powder. tablespoonfuls of sugar. cup of sweet milk. eggs. tablespoonful of butter. sift flour and baking powder in a bowl; add tablespoonful of sugar and a pinch of salt; add the yolks of eggs to the cup of milk, and mix with the flour and baking powder; lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. place large spoonfuls of the batter in small gem pans. bake in a hot oven minutes. these muffins are fine. corn muffins (as made by "frau schmidt") eggs. - / tablespoonfuls of sugar. cup of granulated yellow cornmeal. - / cups of sweet milk. cups of white flour. teaspoonfuls of baking powder. tablespoonful melted butter. a pinch of salt beat together eggs and sugar, add milk and cornmeal and the white flour, sifted, with baking powder and salt; add the tablespoonful of melted butter. bake minutes in warmed gem pans, in a hot oven. mary's aunt taught her to utilize any left-over muffins by making a very appetizing pudding from them called "indian sponge" pudding, the recipe for which may be found among pudding recipes. strawberry shortcake (as frau schmidt made it) pint of flour. teaspoonfuls of baking powder. - / tablespoonfuls of butter or lard. egg. / teaspoon of salt. milk or water. sift together flour, baking powder and salt, and cut butter or lard through the flour. add beaten egg to about cup of sweet milk, and add gradually to the flour, cutting through it with a knife until a soft dough is formed, mixing and handling as little as possible. divide the dough into two portions, roll out one portion quickly and place on a large pie tin; spread the top of cake with softened (not melted) butter, lay the other cake on top and bake in a quick oven. when baked and still hot, the cakes may be easily separated without cutting; when, place between layers, and, if liked, on top of the cake, crushed, sweetened strawberries. "frau" schmidt thought a crushed banana added to the strawberries an improvement. serve the hot shortcake with sweet cream and sugar. or, the recipe for baking a plain (not rich) layer cake might be used instead of the above. when baked and cooled, spread between the layers the following: to the stiffly-beaten white of egg, add cup of sugar; beat well. then add cup of crushed strawberries. beat all together until the consistency of thick cream. serve cold. perfection waffles sift together cups of flour, teaspoonfuls of baking soda and teaspoonful of salt, four times. separate fresh eggs. place the yolks in an earthenware mixing bowl. beat well with a spoon. then add - / cups of sour milk or sour buttermilk and / cup of sour cream, and teaspoonful of melted butter. mix a smooth batter with the sifted flour and soda. lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. mix the batter quickly and thoroughly. bake on a hot, well-greased waffle iron and serve at once. the waffles may be buttered as soon as baked and sugar sifted over, or a saucer containing a mixture of cinnamon and sugar, or a small jug of maple syrup may be served with them. twelve waffles were made from this recipe. recipe for making "baking powder" sift together three times (through a fine sieve) tablespoonfuls of cream of tartar, tablespoonfuls of baking soda (salaratus), tablespoonfuls of flour. cornstarch may be substituted for flour. this latter ingredient is used to keep the cream of tartar and soda separate and dry, as soda is made from salt and will absorb moisture. this recipe for making a pure baking powder was given mary by fran schmidt, who had used it for years with good results. fritters, croquettes, dumplings and crullers when cooking any article to be immersed in fat use about this proportion: pounds of sweet lard to of suet, which had been previously tried out. it is cheaper, also more wholesome, to use part suet than to use all lard. save all pieces of left-over fat, either raw or cooked, from steaks, roasts, bacon or ham. cut all up into small pieces and place in a pan in the oven until tried out, or put in a double boiler and stand over boiling water until fat is tried out. strain and stand aside to be used as drippings. to clarify this fat, pour boiling water over, let cook a short time, strain and stand away in a cool place, when a cake of solid fat will form on top, which may be readily removed and used as drippings, or it may be added to the kettle of fat used for deep frying. always strain fat carefully after frying croquettes, fritters, etc. should the frying fat become dark add to the can of soap fat the economical housewife is saving. return the clear-strained fat to the cook pot, cover carefully, stand aside in a cool place, and the strained fat may be used times without number for frying. the housewife will find it very little trouble to fry fritters, croquettes, etc., in deep fat, if the fat is always strained immediately after using, and returned to the cook pot, kept especially for this purpose. stand on the hot range when required and the fat will heat in a few minutes, and if the fat is the right temperature, food cooked in it should not be at all greasy. when the housewife is planning to fry fritters or croquettes she should, if possible, crumb the articles to be fried several hours before frying, and stand aside to become perfectly cold. when the fat for frying is so hot a blue smoke arises, drop in the fritters or croquettes, one at a time, in order not to chill the fat or plunge a frying basket, containing only a couple of fritters at a time, in the hot fat, as too many placed in the fat at one time lowers the temperature too quickly and causes the fritters to be greasy and soggy. to test the fat before dropping in the fritters, if a small piece of bread is dropped in the fat and browns in about one minute the fat is the right temperature for frying fritters, and fritters fried at the correct temperature should be a rich brown and not at all greasy. when removing fritters from hot fat place on coarse brown paper to absorb any remaining fat. fritters composed of vegetables, or oysters, should be served on a platter garnished with parsley, and fritters composed of fruit, should have pulverized sugar sifted over them liberally. should a small piece of bread brown in the fat while you count twenty, fat is the correct temperature for frying croquettes, but is too hot for frying crullers or any food not previously cooked. kartoffle balla (potato balls) boil until tender, medium-sized (not pared) potatoes; when quite cold remove parings and grate them; fry one finely-chopped onion in a little butter until a yellow-brown; add this, also egg, to the potatoes, season with salt and pepper and add flour enough to mold into balls; use only flour enough to hold the mixture together. the chopped onion may be omitted, and instead, brown small, dice-like pieces of bread in a little butter, shape dumplings into balls the size of walnuts, place a teaspoonful of the browned bread crumbs in the centre of each and add also a little chopped parsley. drop the dumplings in salted boiling water and cook uncovered from to minutes. when dumplings rise to the top they should be cooked sufficiently, when remove from kettle with a skimmer to a platter; cut dumplings in half and strew over them bread crumbs, browned in butter. "boova shenkel" for this excellent "pennsylvania german" dish, which i am positive has never before been published, take - / pounds of stewing meat (beef preferred), season with salt and pepper and cook slowly several hours until tender. for the filling for the circles of dough, take medium-sized white potatoes, pared and thinly sliced, steamed until tender; then add seasoning to taste of salt and pepper, tablespoonfuls of butter, tablespoonfuls of finely-minced parsley and finely-chopped onion (small); lastly, add eggs, lightly beaten together, to the mixture. allow this to stand while the pastry is being prepared in the following manner: pastry--sift into a bowl - / cups of flour, teaspoonfuls of baking powder and / teaspoonful of salt, generous teaspoonful of lard and of butter. cut through the flour, mix with water into a dough as for pie crust. roll thin, cut into about ten circles, and spread some of the mixture on each circle of dough. press two opposite edges together like small, three-cornered turnover pies; drop these on to the hot meat and broth in the cook pot, closely covered. cook slowly from to minutes. before serving the "boova shenkel" pour over the following: cut slices of stale bread into dice and brown in a pan containing large tablespoonful of butter and a couple tablespoonfuls of fat (which had been skimmed from top of broth before "boova shenkel" had been put in cook pot), add about / cup of milk to diced, browned bread; when hot, pour over the "boova shenkel" and serve with the meat on a large platter. rice balls with cheese place cups of cold, boiled rice, well drained, in a bowl and add / cup of grated cheese, a little salt, / cup flour and the stiffly-beaten white of one egg. mix all together and mold into balls about the size of a small egg, with a little of the flour; then roll them in fine, dried bread crumbs, and stand away until perfectly cold. when preparing for lunch, beat the yolk of the egg with a little milk, dip the rice balls into this, then into fine, dried bread crumbs, drop in deep fat and fry a golden brown. drain on brown paper and serve, garnished with parsley. "kartoffle klose" one quart of cold, boiled, skinned potatoes, grated. (boil without paring the day before they are to be used, if possible.) put into a frying pan tablespoonful of butter, finely-minced onion (small onion), and fry until a light brown. remove from fire and mix with this: heaped tablespoonfuls flour, tablespoonful of finely-cut parsley, eggs (whites beaten separately), and slices of bread, cut fine. add grated potatoes and bread crumbs, alternately, mixing together lightly with a fork; add the other ingredients, season well with salt and pepper, form into round balls the size of a walnut and drop into a stew-pan of boiling, salted water, containing a teaspoon of butter. do not cover the stew-pan while they are cooking. as soon as the dumplings rise to the top, skim one out and cut in half to see if it is cooked through. they should take from to minutes to cook. skim out of the boiling water on a platter. cut each dumpling in half, pour over them bread crumbs browned in a pan containing a little lard and butter, and serve. the onion may be omitted and only finely-chopped parsley used, if desired, or use both. or place the halved dumplings in pan containing a little lard and butter and chopped onion (if the latter is liked), and brown on each side, then serve. rice croquettes (and lemon sauce) boil cup of well-washed rice in or cups of rapidly-boiling water, until tender. the rice, when cooked and drained, should fill cups. prepare a cream sauce of pint of milk, heaping tablespoonfuls of flour and tablespoons of butter and egg yolks. stir in cups of flaky, cooked rice, while rice is still hot. when the mixture has cooled, mold into small cone shapes with the hands, stand aside until perfectly cold. dip the croquettes into the whites of eggs, then roll them in fine, dried bread crumbs and fry in deep fat. if a cube of bread browns in the fat in a little longer time than a half minute, the fat is the right temperature. eighteen croquettes were made from this quantity of rice. lemon sauce--to serve with rice croquettes, cream together / cup of sugar, tablespoonful of butter, egg, cups of boiling water was added and all cooked together until the mixture thickened. when cooled slightly add the juice and grated rind of one lemon. serve in a separate bowl, and pass with the croquettes. corn oysters slice off tips of kernels from cobs of corn and scrape down corn-pulp from cobb with a knife. to pint of pulp add eggs, heaping tablespoonfuls of flour, / teaspoonful of salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper and of black pepper; add the yolks of eggs, then stir in lightly the stiffly-beaten white of eggs and flour. fry in only enough butter to prevent them sticking to the pan. drop into pan by spoonfuls size of an ordinary fried oyster, brown on both sides and serve hot. banana fritters from one banana was made fritters. the banana was halved, cut lengthwise and then cut cross-wise. the batter will do for all fruits, clams, corn or oysters. make a sauce of the liquor, mixed with same quantity of milk, with a tablespoon of butter added, chopped parsley and flour to thicken. when making oyster or clam fritters use same rule as for fruit fritters, using clam juice and milk instead of all milk. for the "fritter batter," sift together pint of flour, teaspoonfuls baking powder and a pinch of salt. stir slowly into it a pint of milk, then the well-beaten yolks of eggs, and, lastly, the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. beat hard for a few minutes and fry at once in smoking hot fat. orange sections make delicious fritters, or halves of fresh or canned peaches may be used. allow the bananas to stand one-quarter hour in a dish containing a small quantity of lemon juice and sugar before putting them in the batter. lay the slices of bananas or sections of orange in the batter, then take up a tablespoonful of the batter with one slice of banana for each fritter, drop into hot fat one at a time, and fry a golden brown. sift pulverized sugar over and serve hot. if a small piece of bread browns in one minute in the fat it is the right temperature to fry any previously uncooked food. parsnip fritters scrape and boil or parsnips in salted water until tender and drain. if old parsnips, cut out the centre, as it is tough and woody. mash parsnips fine, add egg yolk (white beaten separately), and added last a little salt, large tablespoonful flour, / teaspoonful baking powder, mold into small cakes, dredge with flour, and fry quickly to a golden brown in a tablespoonful of butter and one of drippings. serve at once. aunt sarah's "schnitz and knopf" this is an old-fashioned "pennsylvania german" favorite. the end of a ham bone, containing a very little meat, was placed in a large kettle with a small quantity of water, with "schnitz," or sliced, sweet, dried apples, which had been dried without removing the parings. when the apples were cooked tender in the ham broth; dumplings, composed of the following, were lightly dropped on top of the apples and broth and cooked, closely covered, from to minutes. do not uncover kettle the first ten minutes. when dumplings have cooked place them with the "schnitz" on a large platter, and serve at once. a very old recipe for dumplings, or "knopf" one and one-half quarts of flour was sifted with - / tablespoonfuls of royal baking powder, teaspoonful of butter was cut through the flour in small bits, egg was beaten and enough milk or water added to the egg to mix the flour into quite a soft dough. sometimes instead of molding the dough into balls large spoonfuls were placed over the apples. aunt sarah had used this recipe for many years. this is a very old recipe, and from it was made a larger quantity than ordinary housekeepers usually require. half the quantity, about - / pints of flour to - / tablespoonfuls of baking powder, mixed according to the directions given in the first part of recipe, would be about the correct proportions for a family of ordinary size. aunt sarah frequently substituted sour cherries and a teaspoonful of butter was added instead of ham and "schnitz." dumplings prepared from this recipe may be dropped on stewed chicken and broth and cooked or steamed, make an excellent pot-pie. should there be more dough mixed than required for dumplings, place a panful in the oven and bake as biscuits. more baking powder is required when dough is steamed or boiled than when baked in the oven. "kartoffle kuklein" (potato fritters or boofers) place in a bowl cups grated, pared, _raw_ potatoes; drain off any liquid formed, then add small onion, also grated; large egg or small eggs, salt and pepper, tablespoonful chopped parsley, / teaspoonful baking powder (good measure), and a couple tablespoonfuls of flour to thicken just enough to make the fritters hold together; then drop by spoonfuls in deep, hot fat, and fry a rich brown. the fritters form into odd shapes a trifle larger than a fried oyster, when dropped in the fat. should the fritter batter separate when dropped in the fat, add more flour, but if too much flour is added they are not as good as when a lesser quantity is used. drain the fritters on brown paper and garnish the platter upon which they are served with parsley. mary's uncle was very fond of these fritters. he preferred them to fried oysters, and always called them "potato boofers." i would not answer for the wholesomeness of these fritters. in fact, i do not think any fried food particularly wholesome. rosettes, wafers and rosenkuchen (as made by frau schmidt) prepare a batter from the following: cup of sweet milk. eggs. pinch of salt. cup of flour, good measure. gradually mix the flour with the milk to form a smooth batter, free from lumps. add yolks, then the slightly-beaten whites of eggs. fasten the long handle to a wafer iron, shaped like a cup or saucer, and stand it in hot fat, a mixture of / lard and / suet, or oil; when heated, remove at once, and dip quickly into the batter, not allowing the batter to come over top of the wafer iron. then return it to the hot fat, which should cover the wafer iron, and in about or seconds the wafer should be lightly browned, when the wafer may be easily removed from the iron on to a piece of brown paper to absorb any fat which may remain. this amount of batter should make about forty wafers. on these wafers may be served creamed oysters, vegetables, chicken or fruit. when using the wafers as a foundation on which to serve fruit, whipped cream is a dainty adjunct. one teaspoonful of sugar should then be added to the wafer batter. these wafers may be kept several weeks, when by simply placing them in a hot oven a minute before serving they will be almost as good as when freshly cooked. or the wafers may be served as a fritter by sifting over them pulverized sugar and cinnamon. "bairische dampfnudeln" these delicious bavarian steamed dumplings are made in this manner: cake of fleischman's compressed yeast was dissolved in a cup of lukewarm milk, sift pint of flour into a bowl, add teaspoonful of sugar and teaspoonful of salt. mix the flour with another cup of lukewarm milk, egg and the dissolved yeast cake and milk (two cups of milk were used altogether). work all together thoroughly, adding gradually about - / cups of flour to form a soft dough. do not mix it too stiff. cover the bowl with a cloth; stand in a warm place until it has doubled the original bulk. flour the bread board and turn out dough and mold into small biscuits or dumplings. let these rise for half an hour, butter a pudding pan and place dumplings in it, brushing tops with melted butter. pour milk in the pan around the dumplings to about two-thirds the depth of the dumplings; set pan on inverted pie tin in oven and bake a light brown. serve with any desired sauce or stewed fruit. or, after the shaped dough has raised, drop it in a large pot of slightly-salted boiling water, allowing plenty of room for them to swell and puff up, and boil continuously, closely covered, for minutes. this quantity makes about small dumplings. should you not wish so many, half the quantity might be molded out, placed in a greased pie tin, and when light, which takes half an hour, bake in a moderately hot oven, and you will have light biscuits for lunch. the thrifty german hausfraus make fritters of everything imaginable, and sometimes unimaginable. mary was told one day by a german neighbor how she prepared a fritter she called: "heller bluther kuklein" she gathered elderberry blossoms, rinsed off the dust, and when free from moisture dipped the blossoms into fritter batter, holding the stem ends, then dropped them into hot fat, and when golden brown, drained a minute on coarse, brown paper before serving, dusted them with powdered sugar; cinnamon may also be dusted over if liked. mary pronounced them "fine," after tasteing, and said: "they certainly are a novelty." perhaps something like this suggested the rosette iron, as it is somewhat similar. apyl kuklein (apple fritters) pare and core large tart apples. cut each apple into about round slices and allow the sliced apples to lie a couple of hours in a dish containing tablespoonfuls of brandy, mixed with a half teaspoonful of cinnamon and a half teaspoonful of sugar. drain the sliced apples, then a few at a time should be dropped in the following batter, composed of: cup of flour sifted with / teaspoonful of royal baking powder, / teaspoonful of salt, add the yolks of eggs and cup of milk to form a smooth batter, then add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. fry light brown, in deep, hot fat, and sift over powdered sugar. "fried apples" are an appetizing garnish for pork chops; the apples should be cored, _not pared_, but should be sliced, and when cut the slices should resemble round circles, with holes in the centre. allow the sliced apples to remain a short time in a mixture of cinnamon and brandy, dry on a napkin, and fry in a pan, containing a couple of tablespoonfuls of sweet drippings and butter. dumplings made from "bread sponge" aunt sarah's raised dumplings from bread sponge were greatly relished at the farm. when bread sponge, which had been set to rise early in the morning, and all flour necessary for loaves of bread had been added and loaves were being shaped to place in bread tins, aunt sarah reserved an amount of sponge sufficient for one loaf of bread, added a little extra salt, shaped them into small balls, size of a lemon, placed them on a well-floured board some distance apart to raise; when light (at o'clock, if the dinner hour was . ), she carefully dropped the light balls of dough into a large pot of rapidly boiling, slightly salted water, covered closely, and boiled about minutes, (do not have more than one layer of the dumplings in cook pot, and do not place too close together; allow room for them to expand.) test by tearing one apart with a fork. serve at once, and serve with a roast, to be eaten with gravy, with butter, or they may be eaten as a dessert, with jelly or maple syrup. aunt sarah frequently added an equal quantity of fine, dried bread crumbs and flour and a little extra salt to a thin batter of bread sponge (before all the flour required for bread had been added), made about as stiff a dough as for ordinary loaves of bread; molded them into balls. when sufficiently raised, boiled them either in water or meat broth in the same manner as she prepared dumplings; made _only_ of _flour_. this is a small economy, using _bread crumbs_ in place of _flour_, and these are delicious if prepared according to directions. remember to have a large quantity of rapidly boiling water in which to cook the dumplings, not to allow water to stop boiling an instant and to keep cook pot closely covered for minutes before removing one, and breaking apart to see if cooked through. these are particularly nice served with stewed apricots. "leber klose" or liver dumplings boil a good-sized soup bone for several hours in plenty of water, to which add salt and pepper to taste and several small pieces of celery and sprigs of parsley to flavor stock. strain the broth or stock into a good-sized cook pot and set on stove to keep hot. for the liver dumplings, scrape a half pound of raw beef liver with a knife, until fine and free from all veins, etc. place the scraped liver in a large bowl, cut three or four good-sized onions into dice, fry a light brown, in a pan containing tablespoonful of lard and butter mixed. cut into dice / to a whole loaf of bread (about quarts). beat eggs together, add cup of sweet milk, season well with salt and pepper, and mix all together with large cup of flour. if not moist enough to form into balls when mixed together, add more milk. keep the mixture as soft as possible or the dumplings will be heavy. flour the hands when shaping the balls, which should be the size of a shelled walnut. stand the pot containing stock on the front of the stove, where it will boil, and when boiling, drop in the dumplings and boil, uncovered, for minutes. when cooked, take the dumplings carefully from the stock on to a large platter, pour the stock over the dumplings and serve. these are excellent, but a little troublesome to make. one-half this quantity would serve a small family for lunch. frau schmidt's "old recipe for schnitz and knopf" place a cook pot on the range, containing the end piece of a small ham; partly cover with water. this should be done about three hours before serving, changing the water once. soak sweet, unpared, sliced, dried apples over night in cold water. in the morning cook the dried apples (or schnitz) in a small quantity of the ham broth, in a separate stew-pan, until tender. remove ham from broth one-half hour before serving. sweeten the broth with a small quantity of brown sugar, and when the broth commences to boil add raised dumplings of dough, which had been shaped with the hands into round balls about the size of an ordinary biscuit. cook minutes. do not uncover the cook-pot after the dumplings have been dropped into the broth until they have cooked the required length of time. when the dumplings have cooked a sufficient time carefully remove to a warm platter containing the cooked apple schnitz. thicken the broth remaining with a little flour, to the consistency of cream. pour over the dumplings and serve at once. dumplings--at . in the evening set a sponge consisting of cup of lukewarm milk, tablespoonful sugar, tablespoonful of butter, egg, / of an yeast cake, add flour enough to form a sponge (as stiff as may be stirred with a mixing spoon). set to raise in a warm place over night. in the morning add more flour to the risen sponge until nearly as stiff as for bread. form into round dumplings, place on a well-floured bake-board to rise slowly. twenty-five minutes before serving drop dumplings into the hot broth in a large cook-pot. there should be only one layer of dumplings, otherwise they will be heavy. "brod knodel," or bread dumplings cups of stale bread (cut like dice). / cup of flour. / teaspoonful baking powder. / cup milk. tablespoonfuls butter. egg. teaspoonful of finely-minced parsley. / teaspoonful finely-minced onion (if liked). pinch of salt. place two cups of diced bread in a bowl and pour over / cup of milk. (reserve cup of diced bread, which brown in tablespoonful of butter, to be added to the mixture later.) allow milk and bread to stand or minutes; then add tablespoonful of melted butter, egg, flour and baking powder, and salt; fried, diced bread and parsley, and mix all together. with well-floured hands form the mixture into balls size of a walnut, and drop at once into rapidly boiling salted water and cook minutes. stew pan should be closely covered. when cooked, remove to platter with perforated skimmer, and serve at once, or drop dumplings into a pan containing tablespoonful of melted butter, and brown on all sides before serving. "german" pot pie to serve a family of six or seven, place pounds of beef and pork chops, cut in small pieces, in a cook-pot. season with a little chopped onion, pepper and salt. this should be done about three or four hours before dinner. one hour before serving prepare the dough for pot pie. pare white potatoes, slice and dry on a napkin, sift cups of flour with teaspoonful of baking-powder, pinch of salt, cut through the sifted flour, level tablespoonful of shortening. moisten dough with egg and enough milk to make dough stiff enough to handle. (almost cup of milk, including the egg.) cut off a small piece of dough, size of a small teacup, roll thin and take up plenty of flour on both sides. take up all flour possible. cut this dough into four portions or squares. have the meat more than covered with water, as water cooks away. place a layer of potatoes on meat (well seasoned), then the pared potatoes and small pieces of dough alternately, never allowing pieces of dough to lap; place potatoes between. roll the last layer out in one piece, size of a pie plate, and cover top layer of potatoes with it. cover closely and cook three-quarters of an hour from the time it commences to boil. then turn out carefully on a platter and serve at once. "zwetchen dampfnudeln" (prune dumplings) in the evening a sponge was prepared with yeast for bread. all the flour required to stiffen the dough for loaves of bread being added at this time. the bread sponge was stood in a warm place to rise over night. in the morning, when shaping the dough into loaves, stand aside about one pint of the bread dough. later in the morning form the pint of dough into small balls or dumplings, place on a well-floured bake board and stand in a warm place until doubled in size. then drop the dumplings into a cook pot containing stewed prunes, a small quantity of water, a little sugar and lemon peel, if liked. the dried prunes had been soaked over night in cold water, and allowed to simmer on the range in the morning. the prune juice should be hot when the dumplings are added. cook dumplings one-half hour in a closely covered cook-pot and turn out carefully on to a warmed platter, surrounded by prune juice and prunes. green corn fritters grate pulp from six cars of corn; with a knife scrape down the pulp into a bowl, add eggs, beaten separately, a couple tablespoonfuls of milk, large tablespoonful of flour, / teaspoonful of baking powder and a pinch of salt. drop with a spoon on a well-greased griddle. the cakes should be the size of a silver half dollar. bake brown on either side and serve hot. these should not be fried as quickly as griddle cakes are fried, as the corn might then not be thoroughly cooked. "mouldasha" (parsley pies) mash and season with butter and salt half a dozen boiled white potatoes, add a little grated onion and chopped parsley. sift together in a bowl cup of flour, teaspoonful baking powder and a little salt. add a small quantity of milk to one egg if not enough liquid to mix into a soft dough. roll out like pie crust, handling as little as possible. cut into small squares, fill with the potato mixture, turn opposite corners over and pinch together all around like small, three-cornered pies. drop the small triangular pies into boiling, salted water a few minutes, or until they rise to top; then skim out and brown them in a pan containing a tablespoonful each of butter and lard. i have known some germans who called these "garden birds." stale bread crumbs, browned in butter, may be sprinkled over these pies when served. serve hot. these are really pot pie or dumplings with potato filling. mary's aunt always called these "mouldasha." where she obtained the name or what its meaning is, the writer is unable to say. inexpensive drop crullers cream together cup sugar and egg, then add one cup of milk alternately with cups of flour, sifted with teaspoonfuls of baking powder. add / teaspoonful of vanilla and enough flour to make a stiff batter. take about / a teaspoonful of the batter at a time and drop into boiling hot fat, and brown on both sides; then drain on coarse, brown paper and, when cool, dust with pulverized sugar. these cakes are cheap and good, and as no shortening is used are not rich. do not make cakes too large, as they then will not cook through readily. batter baked with gravy the professor's wife gave mary this recipe, given her by an englishwoman. the recipe was liked by her family, being both economical and good. when serving roast beef for dinner, before thickening the gravy, take out about half a cup of liquid from the pan and stand in a cool place until the day following. reheat the roast remaining from previous day, pour the half cup of liquid in an iron fry pan, and when hot pour the following batter in the pan with the fat and bake in a moderately hot oven about minutes. or the batter may be poured in pan about minutes before meat has finished roasting. the batter was composed of cup of flour, sifted with small teaspoonful of baking powder and / teaspoonful of salt, mixed smooth with cup of sweet milk. add well-beaten eggs. when baked cut in small pieces, surround the meat on platter, serve instead of potatoes with roast. the addition of baked dough extends the meat flavor and makes possible the serving of a smaller amount of meat at a meal. "german" sour cream crullers one cup sugar, cup sour cream, eggs, tablespoonfuls of butter, teaspoonful soda, pinch of salt. about - / cups of flour. (use extra flour to dredge the bake-board when rolling out crullers.) this is a very good recipe for crullers, in which the economical housewife may use the cup of cream which has turned sour. this necessitates using less shortening, which otherwise would be required. cream together sugar, butter, add yolks of eggs. dissolve the soda in a small quantity of sour cream. mix cream alternately with the flour. add pinch of salt. add just enough flour to roll out. cut with small doughnut cutter with hole in centre. fry in hot fat. dust with pulverized sugar. "grandmother's" doughnuts cream together cup sugar and teaspoonfuls butter, / a grated nutmeg, and a pinch of salt. add eggs, beaten without separating yolks from whites, and cup of sweet milk. then add cups of flour (or quart), prepared as follows: measure quart of unsifted flour and sift twice with generous teaspoonfuls of baking powder. use this to thicken the batter sufficiently to roll out and use about extra cup of flour to flour the bake-board. turn out one-half the quantity of dough on to a half cup of flour on the bake-board. roll out dough half an inch thick. cut out with round cutter, with hole in centre, and drop into deep, hot fat. use / lard and / suet for deep frying; it is cheaper and more wholesome than to use all lard. when fat is hot enough to brown a small piece of bread while you count , it is the correct temperature for doughnuts. the dough should be as soft as can be handled. when cakes are a rich brown, take from fat, drain well on coarse, brown paper, and when cool dust with pulverized sugar and place in a covered stone jar. never use fat as hot for frying doughnuts as that used for frying croquettes, but should the fat not be hot the doughnuts would be greasy. these doughnuts are excellent if made according to recipe. fine "drop crullers" cream together - / cups pulverized sugar, eggs, add cup sweet milk, / teaspoonful of salt, - / cups of flour, sifted after measuring with teaspoonfuls of baking powder. drop teaspoonfuls of this carefully into boiling fat. they should resemble small balls when fried. batter must not be too stiff, but about the consistency of a cup-cake batter. boil them in a mixture of cinnamon and sugar when all have been fried. soups and chowders stock is the basis of all soups made from meat, and is really the juice of the meat extracted by long and gentle simmering. in making stock for soup always use an agate or porcelain-lined stock pot. use one quart of cold water to each pound of meat and bone. use cheap cuts of meat for soup stock. excellent stock may be made from bones and trimmings of meat and poultry. wash soup bones and stewing meat quickly in cold water. never allow a roast or piece of stewing meat to lie for a second in water. aunt sarah did not think that wiping meat with a damp cloth was all that was necessary (although many wise and good cooks to the contrary). place meat and soup bones in a stock pot, pour over the requisite amount of soft, cold water to extract the juice and nutritive quality of the meat; allow it to come to a boil, then stand back on the range, where it will just simmer for or hours. then add a sliced onion, several sprigs of parsley, small pieces of chopped celery tops, well-scraped roots of celery, and allow to simmer three-quarters of an hour longer. season well with salt and pepper, level teaspoonful of salt will season quart of soup. strain through a fine sieve, stand aside, and when cool remove from lop the solid cake of fat which had formed and use for frying after it has been clarified. it is surprising to know the variety of soups made possible by the addition of a small quantity of vegetables or cereals to stock. a couple tablespoonfuls of rice or barley added to well-seasoned stock and you have rice or barley soup. a small quantity of stewed, sweet corn or noodles, frequently "left-overs," finely diced or grated carrots, potatoes, celery or onions, and you have a vegetable soup. strain the half can of tomatoes, a "left-over" from dinner, add a tablespoonful of butter, a seasoning of salt and pepper, thicken to a creamy consistency with a little cornstarch, add to cup of soup stock, serve with croutons of bread or crackers, and you have an appetizing addition to dinner or lunch. the possibilities for utilizing left-overs are almost endless. the economically-inclined housewife will be surprised to find how easily she may add to the stock pot by adding left-over undesirable pieces of meat and small quantities of vegetables. one or two spoonfuls of cold left-over oatmeal may also be added to soup with advantage, occasionally. always remove the cake of fat which forms on top of soup as soon as cooled, as soup will turn sour more quickly if it is allowed to remain. if soup stock be kept several days in summer time, heat it each day to prevent souring. pieces of celery, onion, parsley, beans and peas may all be added to soup to make it more palatable. also fine noodles. the yolk of a hard-boiled egg dropped into the soup kettle and heated through, allowing one for each plate of soup served, is a quick and appetizing addition to a soup of plain broth or consomme. vegetable soup slice thinly potatoes, carrots, turnips, the undesirable parts of heads of celery, stalks of parsley and onions. cook the onions in a little butter until they turn a yellow brown, then add the other ingredients. season well with salt and black pepper, also a pinch of red pepper. put all together in a stew-pan, cover with three quarts of water, stand on range and simmer about three hours. strain soup into stew-pan, place on range, and when hot add marklose balls. marklose balls take marrow from uncooked beef soup bones, enough to fill tablespoons, cut fine, add eggs, teaspoonful grated onion to flavor, pepper and salt, stiffen with cup of bread crumbs, shape into balls size of marbles, drop into hot broth and cook uncovered from to minutes. aunt sarah purchased two good-sized soup bones containing considerable meat. after extracting tablespoonfuls of marrow from the uncooked bones, she put the bones in a stew-pan with a couple of quarts of water, a large onion, chopped fine, and a piece of celery, and cooked for several hours, then skimmed off scum which arises on top of broth, removed the soup bones and meat and added a couple of tablespoonfuls of grated carrot, pepper and salt to taste, cooked a short time, and then added the marrow balls, a little chopped parsley and a couple of tablespoonfuls of boiled rice. two tablespoonfuls of marrow will make about balls, with the addition of crumbs, eggs, etc. egg balls for soup mash the yolks of hard-boiled eggs fine and smooth with a little soft butter. beat the white of egg, and add with about tablespoonfuls of flour, salt and pepper. mix all together. use a little flour to mold the mixture into balls the size of quite small marbles. do not make too stiff. drop these into hot broth or soup and cook about five minutes. this quantity will make small balls. "suppee schwangen" mary was taught to make these by the professor's wife. she beat together either or raw eggs, / cup flour, tablespoonful butter, a little salt, and just enough milk to thin the mixture enough so it may be dropped by half teaspoonfuls into hot soup stock or broth. cook these small dumplings about minutes. serve in soup broth. cream of oyster bouillon put two dozen oysters through food chopper, cook oyster liquor and oysters together five minutes, heat pint milk and tablespoon flour, mixed smooth with a little cold milk, and tablespoonful butter. let come to a boil, watching carefully that it does not burn. pour all together when ready to serve. serve in bouillon cups with crackers. this recipe was given mary by a friend in philadelphia, who thought it unexcelled. german noodle soup place about pounds of cheap stewing beef in a cook-pot with sufficient water and cook several hours, until meat is quite tender; season with salt and pepper. about an hour before serving chop fine medium-sized potatoes and onions and cook in broth until tender. ten or fifteen minutes before serving add noodle. to prepare noodles, break fresh eggs in a bowl, fill / an egg shell with cold water, add the eggs, and mix with flour as stiff as can conveniently be handled. add a little salt to flour. divide dough into sheets, roll on bake-board, spread on cloth a short time and let dry, but not until too brittle to roll into long, narrow rolls. cut this with a sharp knife into thin, thread-like slices, unroll, drop as many as wished into the stew-pan with the meat and cook about or minutes. place the meat on a platter and serve the remainder in soup plates. the remaining noodles (not cooked) may be unrolled and dried and later cooked in boiling salted water, drained and placed in a dish and browned butter, containing a few soft, browned crumbs, poured over them when served. the very fine noodles are generally served with soup and the broad or medium-sized ones served with brown butter germans usually serve with a dish of noodles, either stewed, dried prunes, or stewed raisins. both are palatable and healthful. cream of celery cook large stalk of celery, also the root cut up in dice, in pint of water, / hour or longer. mash celery and put through a fine sieve. add pint of scalded milk, and thicken with a tablespoonful of flour, mixed with a little cold milk. add tablespoonfuls of butter, pepper and salt, and simmer a few minutes. just before serving add a cup of whipped cream. serve with the soup, small "croutons" of bread. oyster stew rinse a stew-pan with cold water, then put in pint of milk and let come to a boil. heat oysters in a little oyster liquor a few minutes, until the oysters curl up around the edges, then add the oysters to one-half the hot milk, add a large tablespoonful of butter, season well with salt and pepper, and when serving the stew add the half pint of boiling hot milk remaining. this quantity makes two small stews. serve crackers and pickled cabbage. when possible use a mixture of sweet cream and milk for an oyster stew instead of all milk. an old cook told mary she always moistened half a teaspoonful of cornstarch and added to the stew just before removing from the range to cause it to have a creamy consistency. clam broth clam broth may be digested usually by the most delicate stomach. it can be bought in cans, but the young housewife may like to know how to prepare it herself. strain the juice from one-half dozen clams and save. remove objectionable parts from clams, cut in small pieces, add / pint of cold water and the clam juice, let cook slowly about minutes, strain and season with pepper and salt, a little butter and milk, and serve hot. turkey soup take broken-lip bones and undesirable pieces of roast turkey, such as neck, wings and left-over pieces of bread filling, put in stew-pot, cover with water, add pieces of celery, sliced onion and parsley, cook several hours, strain, and to the strained liquor add a couple tablespoonfuls of boiled rice, season with salt and pepper and serve. some of the cold turkey might also be cut in small pieces and added to the soup. cream of pea soup cook quarter peck of green peas until very tender, reserve one-half cup, press the remainder through a sieve with the water in which they were boiled. season with salt and pepper. mix tablespoonful of flour, tablespoonful of butter with cup of hot milk. mix flour smooth with a little cold milk before heating it. cook all together a few minutes, then add the one cup of peas reserved. if soup is too thick add a small quantity of milk or water. tomato soup one quart of canned tomatoes, tablespoonful sugar, onion, and a sprig of parsley, cut fine, and carrot and cloves. stew until soft enough to mash through a fine, wire sieve. place one quart of sweet milk on the stove to boil. mix large tablespoonful of cornstarch smooth, with a little cold milk, and stir into the hot milk. add large tablespoonful of butler and / teaspoonful (good measure) of soda. let cook one minute, until it thickens, add teaspoonful of salt. do not add the milk to the strained tomatoes until ready to serve. then serve at once. frau schmidts clam soup chop clams fine, add enough water to the clam broth to measure one quart, cook all together about minutes; add pints of scalding hot milk, season with - / tablespoonfuls butter and salt and pepper to taste. serve crackers with the soup. clam chowder cut / pound of rather "fat" smoked bacon in tiny pieces the size of dice; fry until brown and crisp. take fresh clams, after having drained a short time in a colander, run through a food chopper and place in ice chest until required. pour the liquor from the clams into an agate stew-pan; add medium-sized potatoes and medium-sized onions, all thinly sliced; also add the crisp bits of bacon and fat, which had fried out from the bacon, to the clam juice. cook all together slowly or simmer or hours. add water to the clam liquor occasionally as required. ten or fifteen minutes before serving add cup of hot water and the chopped clams (clam juice if too strong is liable to curdle milk). allow clams to cook in the clam broth to minutes. boil quarts of sweet milk, and when ready to serve add the hot milk to the chowder, also teaspoonful of chopped parsley. one-half this quantity will serve a small family. serve crisp crackers and small pickels, and this chowder, served with a dessert, makes an inexpensive, nourishing lunch. brown potato chowder put a pint of diced, raw potatoes in a stew-pan over the fire, cover with quart of water, to which a pinch of salt has been added. cook until tender, but not fine, then add water so that the water in the stew-pan will still measure one quart should some have boiled away. place a small iron fry-part on the range, containing tablespoonful of sweet lard; when melted, it should measure about tablespoonfuls. then add tablespoonfuls of flour, a pinch of salt and stir constantly, or rather mash the flour constantly with a spoon, being careful not to allow it to scorch, until a rich brown; add this to the diced potatoes and the quart of water in which they were boiled, stir until the consistency of thick cream, or like clam chowder. should there be a few, small lumps of the browned flour not dissolved in the chowder, they will not detract from the taste of it; in fact, some are very fond of them. perhaps some folks would prefer this, more like a soup; then add more hot water and thin it, but be careful to add more seasoning, as otherwise it would taste flat and unpalatable. very few people know the _good flavor_ of _browned flour_. it has a flavor peculiarly its own, and does not taste of lard at all. i would never advocate _any_ seasoning except butter, but advise economical housewives to try this, being very careful not to scorch the flour and fat while browning. a mixture of butter and lard may be used in which to brown the flour should there be a prejudice against the use of lard alone. bean chowder another palatable, cheap and easily prepared dish is called bean chowder. small soup beans were soaked over night in cold water. pour off, add fresh water and cook until tender. then add browned flour (same as prepared for potato chowder) and the water in which the beans were cooked. when ready to serve, the beans were added. more water may be added until broth is thin enough for soup, then it would be called "brown bean soup." bouillon buy a soup bone, cook with a chopped onion, one stalk of celery and a sprig of parsley until meat falls from bone. season with salt and pepper. strain the broth into a bowl and stand aside until perfectly cold. then remove the cake of fat formed on top of soup and add it to drippings for frying. the broth may be kept several days if poured into a glass jar and set on ice. when wanted to serve, heat pint of broth, add tablespoonfuls of cream to yolks of eggs. stir well. pour boiling hot broth over the cream and yolks of eggs and serve at once in bouillon cups. serve crackers also. do not cook mixture after cream and yolks of eggs have been added. this is very nourishing. farmer's rice one and one-half quarts of milk, poured into a double boiler and placed on the range to heat. one cup of flour was placed in a bowl; into the flour raw egg was dropped and stirred with a knife until mixed, then rubbed between the fingers into fine rivels. it may take a little _more_ flour; the rivels should be dry enough to allow of being rubbed fine. when the milk commences to boil drop the rivels in by handfuls, slowly, stirring constantly. salt to taste. let cook minutes. eat while hot, adding a small piece of butter as seasoning. this should be a little thicker than ordinary rice soup. philadelphia "pepper pot" this recipe for far-famed "philadelphia pepper pot" was given mary by a friend living in the quaker city, a good cook, who vouched for its excellence: the ingredients consist of the following: knuckle of veal. pounds of plain tripe. pounds of honeycomb tripe. large onion, bunch of pot-herbs. medium-sized potatoes. bay leaf--salt and cayenne pepper to season. / pound of beef suet--and flour for dumplings. the day before you wish to use the "pepper pot" procure pounds of plain tripe and pounds of honeycomb tripe. wash thoroughly in cold water place in a kettle. cover with cold water and boil eight hours; then remove tripe from water, and when cold cut into pieces about / of an inch square. the day following get a knuckle of veal, wash and cover with cold water--about three quarts--bring slowly to the simmering point, skimming off the scum which arises, simmer for three hours. remove the meat from the bones, cut into small pieces, strain broth and return it to the kettle. add a bay leaf, one large onion, chopped, simmer one hour; then add four medium-sized potatoes, cut like dice, and add to the broth. wash a bunch of pot-herbs, chop parsley (and add last), rub off the thyme leaves, cut red pepper in half and add all to broth; then add meat and tripe and season with salt; _if liked hot_, use a pinch of cayenne pepper. for the dumplings, take cup of beef suet, chopped fine, cups flour, pinch of salt, mix well together and moisten with enough cold water to allow of their being molded or rolled into tiny dumplings, the size of a small marble. flour these well to prevent sticking together. when all are prepared drop into soup, simmer a few minutes, add parsley and serve at once. german vegetable soup take potatoes, half the quantity of onions, carrots, turnips, cabbage and a stalk of celery, cut up into dice-shaped pieces, place all in a stew-pan and cover with a couple quarts of hot water. let cook about two hours, until all the vegetables are tender, then add tablespoonful of butter, a large cup of milk, and about a tablespoonful of flour mixed smooth with a little cold milk, cook a few minutes, add a tablespoonful minced parsley, and serve. a cheap rice and tomato soup take one pint of rice water which has been drained from one cupful of rice boiled in - / quarts of water minutes (the rice to be used in other ways), and after the rice has drained in a sieve add to the rice water cup stewed, strained tomatoes (measure after being strained), teaspoonful butter, teaspoonful flour mixed with a little cold water, salt, pepper, and tablespoonful of the cooked rice, and you have a palatable soup, as the water in which the rice was boiled is said to be more nutritious than the rice. fish, clams and oyster (boned shad) how many young cooks know how to bone a shad? it is a very simple process, and one becomes quite expert after one or two trials. and it fully repays one for the extra time and trouble taken, in the satisfaction experienced by being able to serve fish without bones. with a sharp knife cut the fish open along the back bone on the outside of the fish, but do not cut through the bone, then carefully cut the fish loose along the back bone on each side, cut the centre bone away with the smaller bones branching out on each side attached. cut the shad into sizable pieces after being washed in cold water and dried on a cloth to take up all the moisture. dip pieces of fish into white of egg containing a teaspoonful of water, roll in fine, dried bread crumbs, season with salt and pepper, drop in hot fat, and fry a rich brown. serve on a platter, surrounded by a border of parsley. some small portions of the fish will adhere to the bones, however carefully the fish has been boned. the meat may be picked from the bones after cooking in salt water until tender. flake the fish, and either make it into small patties or croquettes. shad roe should be parboiled first and then dredged with flour on both sides and fried in drippings or a little butter. croquettes of cold, cooked fish shred or flake cold, cooked fish, which has been carefully picked from bones. to cups of fish add an equal amount of mashed potatoes, a small half cup of cold milk, tablespoonful butter, yolk of egg, lightly beaten, teaspoonful of chopped parsley, season with salt and pepper. mix all well together, and when cold, form in small croquettes. dip into white of egg containing tablespoonful of water, roll in fine, dried bread crumbs and fry in hot fat. shad, salmon, codfish, or any kind of fish may be prepared this way, or prepare same as "rice croquettes," substituting-fish for rice. shad roe shad roe should be carefully taken from the fish, allowed to stand in cold water, to which a pinch of salt has been added, for a few minutes, then dropped in boiling water, cooked a short time and drained. dredge with flour and fry slowly in a couple tablespoonfuls of butter and lard or drippings until a golden brown. be particular not to serve them rare. serve garnished with parsley. or the shad roe may be parboiled, then broken in small pieces, mixed with a couple of lightly beaten eggs and scrambled in a fry-pan, containing a couple of tablespoonfuls of butter and sweet drippings. serve at once. garnish with parsley or water cress. scalloped oysters take about fresh oysters. place a layer of oysters in a baking dish alternately with fine, dried crumbs, well seasoned with pepper and salt and bits of butter, until pan is about two-thirds full. have a thick layer of bread crumbs for the top, dotted with bits of butter. pour over this half a cup or less of strained oyster liquor and small cup of sweet milk. place in oven and bake from to minutes. deviled oysters dozen oysters. cup rich milk. tablespoonfuls flour. yolks of raw eggs. generous tablespoonful butter. tablespoonful finely-minced parsley. drain oysters in a colander and chop rather coarsely. mix flour smooth with a little cold milk. place the remainder of the milk in a saucepan on the range. when it commences to boil add the moistened flour and cook until the mixture thickens, stirring constantly to prevent burning, or cook in a double boiler. add yolks of eggs and butter, / teaspoonful salt and / teaspoonful of black pepper and a pinch of cayenne pepper. then add chopped oysters, stir all together a few minutes until oysters are heated through. then turn into a bowl and stand aside in a cool place until a short time before they are to be served. (these may be prepared early in the morning and served at six o'clock dinner.) then fill good-sized, well-scrubbed oyster shells with the mixture, sprinkle the tops liberally with fine-dried, well-seasoned bread crumbs. (seasoned with salt and pepper.) place the filled shells on muffin tins to prevent their tipping over; stand in a hot oven about ten minutes, until browned on top, when they should be heated through. serve at once in the shells. handle the hot shells with a folded napkin when serving at table. this quantity fills thirteen oyster shells. serve with the oysters small pickles, pickled cabbage or cranberry sauce as an accompaniment. planked shad after eating planked shad no one will wish to have it served in any other manner, as no other method of preparing fish equals this. for planked shad, use an oak plank, at least two inches thick, three inches thick is better. planks for this purpose may be bought at a department store or procured at a planing mill. place plank in oven several days before using to season it. always heat the plank in oven about minutes before placing fish on it, then have plank _very hot_. split a nicely-cleaned shad down the back, place skin side down, on hot plank, brush with butter and sprinkle lightly with pepper and salt. put plank containing shad on the upper grating of a hot oven of coal range and bake about minutes. baste frequently with melted butter. the shad should be served on the plank, although not a very sightly object, but it is the proper way to serve it. the flavor of shad, or, in fact, of any other fish, prepared in this manner is superior to that of any other. fish is less greasy and more wholesome than when fried. should an oak plank not be obtainable, the shad may be placed in a large roasting pan and baked in oven. cut gashes across the fish about two inches apart, and place a teaspoonful of butter on each. bake in oven from to minutes. serve on a warmed platter, garnished with parsley, and have dinner plates warmed when serving fish on them. do not wash the plank with soap and water after using, but instead rub it over with sandpaper. broiled mackerel when fish has been cleaned, cut off head and scrape dark skin from inside. soak salt mackerel in cold water over night, skin side up, always. in the morning; drain, wipe dry and place on a greased broiler, turn until cooked on both sides. take up carefully on a hot platter, pour over a large tablespoonful of melted butter and a little pepper, or lay the mackerel in a pan, put bits of butter on top, and set in a hot oven and bake. garnish with parsley. codfish balls soak codfish several hours in cold water. cook slowly or simmer a short time. remove from fire, drain, and when cold squeeze out all moisture by placing the flaked fish in a small piece of cheese-cloth. to one cup of the flaked codfish add an equal quantity of warm mashed potatoes, yolk of egg, tablespoonful of milk and a little pepper. roll into small balls with a little flour. dip in white of egg and bread crumbs, and when quite cold fry in deep fat. garnish with parsley. fried oysters procure fine, large, fresh oysters for frying. drain in a colander carefully, look over, and discard any pieces of shell. roll each oyster in fine, dried bread crumbs, well seasoned with salt and pepper, then dip them in a lightly-beaten egg, and then in bread crumbs. allow them to stand several hours in a cool place before frying. place a few oysters at one time in a wire frying basket, and immerse in smoking hot fat. should too great a number of oysters be placed in the fat at one time it would lower the temperature of the fat and cause the oysters to become greasy. drain the oysters when fried on heavy, brown paper, to absorb any remaining fat, and serve at once. for all deep frying use two-thirds lard and one-third suet, as suet is considered to be more wholesome and cheaper than lard. two items to be considered by the frugal housewife. if fat for deep frying is the right temperature a crust is at once formed, and the oysters do not absorb as great a quantity of fat as when fried in only enough butter and drippings to prevent scorching, as they must then be fried more slowly. serve pickled cabbage and tomato catsup when serving fried oysters. panned oysters aunt sarah always prepared oysters in this manner to serve roast turkey. at the very last minute, when the dinner was ready to be served, she placed freshly-opened oysters, with their liquor, in a stew-pan over a hot fire. the minute they were heated through and commenced to curl up, she turned them in a hot colander to drain a minute, then turned the oysters into a stew-pan containing two large tablespoonfuls of hot, melted butter, and allowed them to remain in the hot butter one minute, shaking the pan lo prevent scorching, seasoned them with salt and pepper, and turned all into a heated dish and sent to the table at once. these are easily prepared and are more wholesome than fried oysters. oysters steamed in the shell place well-scrubbed shells, containing fresh oysters, in a deep agate pan, which will fit in a kettle containing a small amount of boiling water. cover very closely until the shells open easily. these may be served in the shell with hot, melted butter, in a side dish, or they may be removed from the shell to a hot bowl and seasoned with hot butter, salt and pepper. a recipe given mary for "oyster cocktail" to tablespoonfuls of tomato catsup add / tablespoonful of grated horseradish, / tablespoonful of lemon juice, / teaspoonful of tabasco sause, / tablespoonful of vinegar, saltspoonful of salt. stand on ice one hour at least. to serve--the freshly-opened oysters on half shell were placed on a plate, in the centre of which was placed a tiny glass goblet containing a small quantity of the mixture, into which the oysters were dipped before being eaten. oyster croquettes boil oysters five minutes, drain. when cold, cut into small pieces, add / cup of bread crumbs and mix all together with a thick cream sauce composed of / cup of cream or milk thickened with flour, to which add large tablespoonful of butter; season with salt, a dash of red pepper and teaspoonful of finely-minced parsley. stand this mixture on ice until quite cold and firm enough to form into small croquettes. dip in egg and bread crumbs and fry in deep fat until a golden brown. serve at once on a platter garnished with sprigs of parsley from these ingredients was made croquettes. frau schmidts way of serving "oyster cocktails" place in a bowl tablespoonfuls of tomato catsup, teaspoonful of grated horseradish, tablespoonfuls of very finely cut celery juice and pulp of lemons. season with salt and pepper. mix this with oysters which have been cut in small pieces. serve in halves of lemons, from which the pulp has been carefully removed. place on ice a short time before serving. crisp crackers should be served at the same time this is served. salmon loaf one can of salmon, from which all bones have been removed, cup of cracker crumbs, / cup of milk, tablespoonful of butter, which had been melted; eggs beaten, salt and pepper to season. mix all together, bake in a buttered pudding dish one-half hour or until browned on top. serve hot. creamed salmon a half cup of canned salmon, a left-over from lunch the preceding day, may be added to double the quantity of cream dressing, and when heated through and served on crisply-toasted slices of stale bread, make a tasty addition to any meal. of course, it is not necessary to tell even unexperienced housewives never under any circumstances allow food to stand in tins in which it was canned; do not ever stand food away in tin; use small agateware dishes, in which food, such as small quantities of left-overs, etc, may be reheated. never use for cooking agate stew-pans, from the inside of which small parties have been chipped, as food cooked in such a vessel might become mixed with small particles of glazing, and such food when eaten would injure the stomach. oyster canapes cup cream. tablespoonfuls of bread crumbs. tablespoonful of butter. dozen stewing oysters. season with paprika, tiny pinch of nutmeg and salt. boil the cream, add bread crumbs and butter. chop oysters fine, add seasoning. serve hot in pattie cups or on toast. serve small pickles or olives. good dish for chafing dish. meat every young housewife should be taught that simmering is more effective than violent boiling, which converts water into useless steam. even a tough, undesirable piece of "chuck" or "pot roast" may be made more tender and palatable by long-continued simmering than it would be if put in rapidly boiling water and kept boiling at that rate. meat may be made more tender also by being marinated; that is, allowing the meat to stand for some time in a mixture of olive oil and vinegar before cooking it. in stewing most meats a good plan is to put a large tablespoonful of finely-minced beef suet in the stew-pan; when fried out, add a little butter, and when sizzling hot add the meat, turn and sear on both sides to retain the juice in the meat, then add a little hot water and let come to a boil; then stand where the meat will just simmer but not slop cooking for several hours. the meat then should be found quite tender. cheaper cuts of meat, especially, require long, slow cooking or simmering to make them tender, but are equally as nutritious as high-priced meats if properly prepared. to quote from _the farmers' bulletin_: "the number of appetizing dishes which a good cook can make out of the meat 'left over' is almost endless. undoubtedly more time and skill are required in their preparation than in the simple cooking of the more expensive cuts. the real superiority of a good cook lies not so much in the preparation of expensive or fancy dishes as in the attractive preparation of inexpensive dishes for every day. in the skillful combination of flavors. some housewives seem to have a prejudice against economizing. if the comfort of the family does not suffer and the meals are kept as varied and appetizing as when they cost more, with little reason for complaint, surely it is not beneath the dignity of any family to avoid useless expenditure, no matter how generous its income. and the intelligent housekeeper should take pride in setting a good table." this is such an excellent article, and so ably written and true, that i feel it would be to the advantage of every young housewife to read and profit by it. "sauergebratens" or german pot roast buy about three pounds of beef, as for an ordinary pot roast. place in a large bowl. boil vinegar (or, if vinegar is too sharp, add a little water, a couple of whole cloves and a little allspice); this should cover the piece of meat. vinegar should be poured over it hot; let stand a couple of days in a cool place uncovered; turn it over occasionally. when wanted to cook, take from the vinegar and put in a stew-pan containing a little hot fried-out suet or drippings in which has been sliced onions. let cook, turn occasionally, and when a rich brown, stir in a large tablespoonful of flour, add - / cups of hot water, cover and cook slowly for two or three hours, turning frequently. half an hour before serving add small pared potatoes, and when they have cooked tender, serve meat, gravy and potatoes on a large platter. the writer knew an old gentleman who had moved to the city from a "bucks county farm" when a boy, who said that he'd walk five miles any day for a dish of the above as his mother had prepared it in former years. mary was surprised at the amount of valuable information to be obtained from the different _farmers' bulletins_ received at the farm, on all subjects of interest to housewives, and particularly farmers' wives. all books were to be had free for the asking. the dishes mary prepared from recipes in the _farmers bulletin_ on "economical use of meat in the home," were especially liked at the farm, particularly "stewed shin of beef" and "hungarian goulash" (a hungarian dish which has come to be a favorite in the united states). hungarian goulash pounds top round of beef. onion. a little flour. bay leaves. ounces salt pork. whole cloves. cups of tomatoes. peppercorns. stalk celery. blade mace. cut the beef into -inch pieces and sprinkle with flour. fry the salt pork until a light brown; add the beef and cook slowly for about thirty-five minutes, stirring occasionally. cover with water and simmer about two hours. season with salt and pepper or paprika. from the vegetables and spices a sauce is made as follows: cook in sufficient water to cover for minutes; then rub through a sieve, and add to some of the stock in which the meat was cooked. thicken with flour, using tablespoonfuls (moistened with cold water) to each cup of liquid, and season with salt and paprika. serve the meat on a platter with the sauce poured over it. potatoes, carrots and green peppers cooked until tender and cut into small pieces or narrow strips are usually sprinkled over the dish when served, and noodles may be arranged in a border upon the platter. broiled steak when buying beefsteak for broiling, order the steak cut inch to - / inches thick. place the steak on a well-greased, hot broiler and broil over a clear, hot fire, turning frequently. it will take about ten minutes to broil a steak -inch thick. when steak is broiled place on a hot platter, season with butter, pepper and salt, and serve at once. serve rare or otherwise, but serve _at once_. broil-steak unseasoned, as salt extracts juice from meat. steak, particularly, loses its savoriness if not served _hot_. what to a hungry man is more nutritious and appetizing than a perfectly broiled, rare, juicy, steak, served hot? and not a few young and inexperienced cooks serve thin steaks, frequently overdone or scorched, containing about the same amount of nourishment a piece of leather would possess, through lack of knowledge of knowing just how. often, unconsciously. i will admit; yet it is an undiluted fact, that very many young housewives are indirectly the cause of their husbands suffering from the prevailing "american complaint," dyspepsia, and its attendant evils. and who that has suffered from it will blame the "grouchy man" who cannot well be otherwise. so, my dear "mrs. new wife," be warned in time, and always remember how near to your husband's heart lies his stomach, and to possess the former you should endeavor to keep the latter in good condition by preparing, and serving, nourishing, well-cooked food. stewed shin of beef pounds of shin of beef. medium-sized onion. whole clove and bay leaf. sprig of parsley. - / tablespoonfuls flour. - / tablespoonfuls of butler or savory drippings. small slice of carrot. / tablespoonful of salt. / teaspoonful of pepper. quarts boiling water. have the butcher cut the bone in several pieces. put all the ingredients but the flour and butter in a stew-pan and bring to a boil. set the pan where the liquid will just simmer for six hours, or after boiling for five or ten minutes put all into the fireless cooker for eight or nine hours. with the butter, flour and / cup of the clear soup from which the fat has been removed make a brown sauce. to this add the meat and marrow removed from the bone. heat and serve. the remainder of the liquid in which the meat has been cooked may be used for soup. hamburg steak take the tough ends of two sirloin steaks and one tablespoonful of kidney suet, run through a food chopper; season with pepper and salt, form into small cakes, dredge lightly with flour, fry quickly, same manner steak is fried, turning frequently. the kidney fat added prevents the hamburg steak being dry and tasteless. "a tender, juicy broiled steak, flaky baked potatoes, a good cup of coffee and sweet, light, home-made bread, a simple salad or fruit, served to a hungry husband would often prevent his looking for an affinity," said aunt sarah to her niece mary. meat stew with dumplings stew. pounds of a cheap cut of beef. cups of potatoes cut into small pieces. / cup each of turnips and carrots cut into / -inch cubes. / an onion chopped. / cup of flour. season with salt and pepper. cut the meat into small pieces, removing the fat. fry out the fat and brown the meat in it. when well browned, cover with boiling water. boil for five minutes and then cook in a lower temperature until meat is done. if tender, this will require about three hours on the stove, or five hours in the fireless cooker. add carrots, onions, turnips and pepper and salt during the last hour of cooking, and the potatoes fifteen minutes before serving. thicken with the flour diluted with cold water. serve with dumplings. if this dish is made in the tireless cooker the mixture must be reheated when the vegetables are put in. such a stew may also be made of mutton. if veal or pork is used the vegetables may be omitted or simply a little onion used. sometimes for variety the browning of the meat is dispensed with. when white meat, such as chicken, veal or fresh pork is used, the gravy is often made rich with cream or milk thickened with flour. dumplings. cups of flour. teaspoons (level) of baking powder. / cup of milk or a little more if needed. / teaspoonful of salt. teaspoonfuls of butter. mix and sift the dry ingredients. work in butter with the tips of the fingers. add milk gradually, roll out to thickness of half inch. cut with biscuit cutter. place in a buttered steamer over a kettle of hot water and cook from to minutes. if the dumplings are cooked with the stew enough liquid should be removed to allow of their being placed directly upon the meat and vegetables. sometimes the dough is baked and served as biscuits, over which the stew is poured. if the stew is made with chicken or veal it is termed a fricassee. this recipe tells of such an economical way of extending the meat flavor that i think every young housewife should know it. mary copied it from _the farmers' bulletin_, an article on the "economical use of meat in the home." the dumplings, as she prepared them from this recipe, were regular fluff balls, they were so light and flaky. i would add, the cook-pot should be closely covered while cooking or steaming these dumplings, and the cover should not be raised for the first ten minutes. a lesser quantity of baking powder might be used with equally good results, but these dumplings are certain to be light and flaky. a larger quantity of baking powder should be used when dough is steamed or boiled than if dough is baked, if one expects good results. extending the meat flavor mary learned, through reading _the farmers' bulletin_, different methods of extending the meat flavor through a considerable quantity of material, which would otherwise be lacking in distinctive taste, one way to serve the meat with dumplings, generally in the dish with it; to combine the meat with crusts, as in meat pies or meat rolls, or to serve the meat on toast or biscuits. borders of rice, hominy or mashed potatoes are examples of the same principles, applied in different ways. by serving some preparation of flour, rice, hominy or other food, rich in starch, with the meat, we get a dish which in itself approaches nearer to the balanced ration than meat alone, and one in which the meat flavor is extended through a large amount of the material. the measurements given in the above recipes call for a level spoonful or a level cup, as the case may be. in many american families meat is eaten two or three times a day. in such cases, the simplest way of reducing the meat bill would be to cut down the amount used, either by serving it less often or by using less at a time. deficiency of protein need not be feared, when one good meat dish a day is served, especially if such nitrogenous materials as eggs, milk, cheese and beans are used instead. in localities where fish can be obtained fresh and cheap, it might well be more frequently substituted for meat for the sake of variety as well as economy. ingenious cooks have many ways of "extending the flavor" of meat; that is, of combining a small quantity with other materials to make a large dish as in meat pies, stews and similar dishes. the foregoing information may be useful to other young, prospective housekeepers who may never have read "the very instructive articles on the economical use of meat in the home,' in the _farmers' bulletin_." preparing a pot roast when buying a pot roast, "aunt sarah" selected a thick, chunky piece of meat, weighing several pounds, and a small piece of beef suet which she cut into small bits, placed pan containing them on hot range, added a small, sliced onion, and when fat was quite hot she added the quickly rinsed piece of meat, and quickly seared it to retain the juice; added cup of hot water, a sprig of parsley, seasoning of salt and pepper; cooked a short time, then allowed it to stand on the range closely covered, where it would simmer gently several hours; turning the meat frequently, adding a small amount of water occasionally, as the broth was absorbed by the meat. an inexperienced cook will be surprised to find how tender, palatable, and equally nutritious, an inexpensive cut of meat may become by slow simmering. when the pot roast has become tender, remove from the broth and place on a _hot platter_; this latter is a small item, but dishes may be quickly heated in a hot oven and meat and vegetables are more appetizing if served hot on warmed plates. "forgive this digression; i fear the pot roast will cool even on a warmed platter." after removing the meat from the pan add a large tablespoonful of flour, moistened with a small quantity of cold water, to the broth in the pan for gravy; cook until thickened, strain sliced onion and parsley from the broth, add seasoning of salt and pepper, serve on the platter with the meat; the onion added, gives the gravy a fine flavor and causes it to be a dark, rich brown in color. stuffed breast of veal rub the piece of meat with salt, pepper, ginger and minced onion. prepare a stuffing as for chicken of crumbled, stale bread, etc., or soak pieces of stale bread in cold water. squeeze dry and season with a little minced onion, parsley, a little melted butter, salt and pepper, and moisten all with one egg. fill the breast of veal with this stuffing, sew together, place in roasting pan with a small quantity of water, to which a tablespoonful of butter has been added. roast in a moderately hot oven until well done, basting frequently. "gedampftes rinderbrust" take breast of beef or veal, without fat or bones, quickly rinse off meat and wipe with a cloth. place in a stew-pot with one chopped onion, one sliced tomato, a bay leaf, season with pepper and salt, add a small quantity of hot water, cook, closely covered, several hours. to be tender this meat requires long, slow cooking, when it cooks and browns at the same time. strain the broth and thicken for gravy and pour around the meat on platter when serving. "paprikash" two pounds of veal, from leg, cut into small pieces for stewing; good-sized onions, cut rather fine; measure about / cup of sweet lard, place onions in pan with some of this lard and fry a light brown. add meat and cook meat and onions together about one-half hour, adding lard gradually until all is used and the meat is golden brown. then cover with water and stew, closely covered, about two hours or longer, until meat is ready to serve; then add more water until meat is covered. season with salt and paprika. add about three tablespoonfuls of vinegar (not too sour; cook must judge this by tasting); then add / pint of sweet cream. thicken gravy with flour mixed smooth with a little water. place on platter surrounded with gravy. with this was always served baked or steamed sweet potatoes. beef stew three pounds of the cheaper cut of beef, cut in pieces a couple inches square; brown in a stew-pan, with a sliced onion, a sprig of parsley and a coupe tablespoonfuls of sweet drippings or suet; cook a few minutes, add a little water, and simmer a couple of hours; add sliced turnips and a few medium-sized potatoes. should there he a larger quantity of broth than required to serve with the meat and vegetables, a cup or more of the broth may form the basis of a palatable soup for lunch the following day. savory beef roll three and one-half pounds raw beef, or a mixture of beef and veal may be used, run through a food chopper. a cheap cut of meat may be used if, before chopping, all pieces of gristle are trimmed off. place the chopped meat in a bowl, add tablespoonfuls of fine, dried bread crumbs, tablespoonful of pepper, - / tablespoonfuls of salt. taste the meat before adding all the seasoning specified, as tastes differ. add raw eggs, tablespoonfuls of sweet milk or cream, tablespoonfuls of butter, a little sweet marjoram or minced parsley. mix all together and mold into two long, narrow rolls, similar to loaves of bread. place tablespoonful each of drippings and butter in a large fry-pan on the range. when heated, place beef rolls in, and when seared on both sides add a small quantity of hot water. place the pan containing meat in a hot oven and bake one hour. basting the meat frequently improves it. when catering to a small family serve one of the rolls hot for dinner; serve gravy, made by thickening broth in pan with a small quantity of flour. serve the remaining roll cold, thinly sliced for lunch, the day following. veal cutlets use either veal chops or veal cutlets, cut in small pieces the size of chops; pound with a small mallet, sprinkle a little finely-minced onion on each cutlet, dip in beaten egg and bread crumbs, well seasoned with salt and pepper. place a couple tablespoonfuls of a mixture of butter and sweet drippings in a fry-pan; when hot, lay in the breaded cutlets and fry slowly, turning frequently and watching carefully that they do not scorch. these take a longer time to fry than does beefsteak. when a rich brown and well cooked take up the cutlets on a heated platter and serve, garnished with parsley. meat "snitzel" cut - / pounds of thick veal steak into small pieces, dredge with flour, season with salt and pepper, and fry brown in a pan containing bacon fat (fat obtained by frying several slices of fat, smoked bacon). remove the meat from the pan, add a couple tablespoonfuls of flour to the remaining fat stir until browned, then pour in the strained liquor from a pint can of tomatoes. add one slice of onion and one carrot, then return the meat to the sauce; cover closely and simmer three-quarters of an hour. when the meat is tender, place on a hot platter, add a pinch of red pepper to the sauce and a little more salt if required, and strain over the meat on the platter. this was a favorite dish of mary's uncle, and he said she knew how to prepare it to perfection. sirloin steaks procure sirloin steaks, - / inches thick, and a small piece of suet. cut the tenderloin from each steak, and as much more of the steak as required for one meal. place the finely-cut suet in a hot fry-pan; this should measure tablespoonful when tried out, add one teaspoonful of butter, when the fat is very hot and a blue smoke arises place pieces of steak, lightly dredged with flour, in the pan of hot fat, place only one piece at a time in the fat; sear the meat on one side, then turn and sear on the other side; then place the other pieces of meat in the pan and continue in the same manner, turning the steak frequently. the hot butter and suet sear the steak, thus the juice of the meat is retained, making the meat more palatable; season with salt and pepper, place on a hot platter and serve at once. meat balls chop meat fine; beef, chicken, lamb or veal; mince a small onion and fry in a tablespoonful of butler; add a tablespoonful of flour, the yolk of one egg, the chopped meat and a little broth, gravy, or milk to moisten, salt and pepper. stir all together and turn the whole mixture into dish to cool. when cool, shape with well-floured hands into balls the size of a shelled walnut. dip in beaten white of egg, then into bread crumbs, and fry in deep fat until crisp and brown. place only three or four meat balls in a frying basket at one time. too many at a time chills the fat; but if plunged in boiling hot fat, then a crust is formed at once over the outside, which prevents the grease from penetrating. when the meat balls are browned nicely, lay them on brown paper to absorb any grease that may adhere to them. to try whether the fat is the right temperature, drop a small piece of bread in it, and if it browns while you count twenty, the fat is hot enough for any form of croquettes. garnish with parsley or watercress. veal loaf three pounds raw veal, chopped fine; teaspoonful salt, teaspoonful pepper, tablespoonfuls butter, raw eggs, tablespoonfuls water. mix all together with tablespoonfuls fine, rolled, dried bread crumbs and mold into a long, narrow loaf. roll the loaf in two extra tablespoonfuls of bread crumbs. place in a hot pan, pour tablespoonfuls melted butter over the top, and bake in hot oven two hours or less, basting frequently. slice thinly when cold. should the veal loaf be served hot thicken the broth with flour and serve this gravy with it. sweetbreads (breaded) place sweetbreads in cold water, to which / teaspoonful salt has been added, for a short time, then drain and put over the fire with hot water. cook ten minutes. drain and stand aside in a cool place until wanted. remove stringy parts, separate into small pieces about the sue of an oyster, dip in beaten white of egg and then in bread crumbs. put in a pan containing a little hot butter and drippings and fry light brown. serve hot. garnish platter with parsley. fried liver and bacon have _beef_ liver cut in slices about one inch thick; quickly rinse and wipe dry. remove the thin skin on the edge and cut out all the small, tough fibres. if liver from a _young_ beef it can scarcely be told from calves' liver when cooked, and is considerably cheaper. fry a dozen slices of fat bacon in a pan until crisp and brown. take from the pan on a warm platter and place in oven. put the pieces of liver, well dredged with flour, into the pan containing the hot bacon fat, also a little butter, and fry slowly until well done, but not hard and dry. turn frequently and season with salt and pepper. take the liver from the pan, add one tablespoonful of flour to the fat remaining in the pan, stir until smooth and brown, then add about one cup of sweet milk or water, stir a few minutes until it thickens and season with salt and pepper. should the liver be a little overdone, put it in the pan with the gravy, cover and let stand where it will just simmer a few minutes, then turn all on a hot platter and serve the bacon on a separate dish. beefsteak served with peas fry quickly a large sirloin steak. place in the oven, on a warm platter. add a large tablespoonful of butter to the fry pan, also a can of sifted peas, which have been heated and drained, season with pepper and salt, shake pan to prevent burning and when hot turn on to platter containing steak and serve at once. this makes an appetizing luncheon dish. creamed "dried beef" put a tablespoonful of butter in a frying pan, add / cup of chipped beef cut fine and brown it in the butter, then add / cup of water. let stand and simmer for a short time, then add a cup of sweet milk, thicken to the consistency of thick cream by adding tablespoonful of flour mixed smooth with a small quantity of cold milk, season with salt and pepper. this is an economical way of using small pieces of dried beef not sightly enough to be served on the table. serve with baked potatoes for lunch, or pour over slices of toasted bread, or over poached eggs for an appetizing breakfast dish. creamed sweetbreads parboil sweetbreads in water minutes. remove stringy parts and dry on a napkin. separate the sweetbreads into small pieces with a _silver knife_, never use _steel_, put in a stewpan with enough cream to cover, add butter, pepper and salt to taste. flour enough to thicken a little, let all come to a boil. fill small pattie shells with the mixture and serve hot. meat croquettes cups finely chopped meat (beef or veal). tablespoonful butter. tablespoonfuls flour (or a little more flour). tablespoonfuls chopped parsley. scant cup of milk. put milk on to boil. mix flour smooth with a little cold milk before adding to boiling milk, add the butter and cook all together until a creamy consistency, then add the chopped meat well seasoned with salt and pepper and the chopped parsley. mix well and let cool. shape into croquettes, dip in white of egg and bread crumbs. let stand until perfectly cold, then fry brown, in deep hot fat. chicken, beef, veal and mutton may be prepared in the same manner. when dipping croquettes, tablespoonful of water may be added to the white of egg and tablespoonfuls of water if the whole of the egg is used. use the whites of eggs for dipping croquettes if possible. croquettes may be made the day before wanted, and placed in a refrigerator or cool place. croquettes should be cold before frying. stewed rabbit after the rabbit has been skinned, and carefully cleaned, wash quickly and let stand over night in cold water to which salt has been added; also a pinch of red pepper. place on the range in the morning (in a stew-pan with fresh warm water). when it comes to a boil, drain off, add one pint of hot water containing two sliced onions and a little ginger. this prevents the flavor of wild game, objectionable to some. when the meat has cooked tender, drain, dust pieces with flour, and brown quickly in a pan containing a couple tablespoonfuls of hot lard, butter, or drippings. if you wish the meat of the rabbit white, add a thin slice of lemon to the water when cooking meat. roast lamb select leg or loin, or if a larger roast is wanted, leg and loin together. carefully rinse the piece of meat. place in pan, dust lightly with pepper. have the oven hot and place pan in without putting water in pan. brown on one side, then turn and brown on the other. then put about / cup of water in roasting pan, and if oven is too hot, leave door open for a few minutes. allow minutes for each pound of lamb. "gefullte rinderbrust," or stuffed breast of beef take a fillet of beef, rub both sides well with a mixture of finely chopped onion, minced parsley, salt and pepper. then spread over the fillet a small quantity of raw, chopped, well-seasoned meat, roll together and tie. place in a stew pan with a small quantity of water, cook closely covered until tender. serve with gravy. fried peppers with pork chops dust four or five pork chops with flour and fry in a pan, not too quickly. when nicely browned, remove to a warm chop plate and stand in warming oven while preparing the following: slice or cut in small pieces four good-sized, sweet, red peppers and a half teaspoon of finely chopped hot pepper, add to the fat remaining in the pan in which the chops were fried, and cook about ten minutes, until peppers are tender (stirring them frequently). when sufficiently cooked, add one tablespoon of vinegar, pepper and salt to taste, cook one minute longer and serve on the same dish with the chops. boiled ham when preparing to cook a ham, scrape, wash and trim it carefully. place ham in a large cook pot or boiler, partly cover with cold water, let come to a boil, then move back on range where the water will merely simmer, just bubble gently around the edge of the boiler. a medium sized ham should be tender in five or six hours. when a fork stuck into the ham comes out readily, the ham is cooked. take from the boiler and skin carefully, removing all the discolored portions of the smoked end, stick dozen whole cloves into the thick fat, and sprinkle a couple tablespoonfuls of brown sugar and fine bread crumbs over top. place in a very hot oven a short time, until the fat turns a golden brown. watch carefully to see that it does not scorch. when cold, slice thin and serve. aunt sarah frequently added a pint of cider to the water in which the ham was boiled. she said this improved the flavor of the ham. sliced ham when about to fry a slice of uncooked ham, do young housewives know how very much it improves the flavor of the ham if it is allowed to stand for ten or fifteen minutes in a platter containing a large teaspoonful of sugar and a little cold water? turn several times, then wipe quite dry with a clean cloth and fry in a pan containing a little hot drippings and a very little butter (one-half teaspoonful) just enough to prevent its sticking to the pan. do not fry as quickly as beefsteak. after a slice of ham has been cut from a whole ham, if lard be spread over the end of ham from which the slice has been cut, it will prevent the cut place from becoming mouldy. roast pork place pork roast in a covered roasting pan containing a small cup of hot water, season with pepper and salt and sweet marjoram and sprinkle a little powdered sage over it, and stand in a very hot oven. after the meat has been roasting for a half hour, have less heat in your oven, allow about minutes to every pound of pork, or longer if necessary, but be sure it is _well done_. when served, _underdone_ pork is very unwholesome and unappetizing. when meat is sufficiently roasted, pour off all the fat in the pan except a small quantity, to which add / cup of boiling water, pepper and salt and serve. serve baked apples or apple sauce with pork. pork chops dip pork chops in egg, then into bread crumbs to which has been added salt, pepper, and a very little sage and sweet marjoram. some prefer chops simply dredged with flour. fry about minutes or until cooked through and nicely browned, but not scorched. 'tis said, "the frying of chops in a perfect manner is the test of a good cook." home-made sausage nine pounds of fresh pork (lean and fat intermixed as it comes). cut meat in small pieces, run through a meat cutter. sprinkle over the finely chopped meat tablespoonfuls salt, tablespoonfuls of black pepper, tablespoonfuls of powdered sage if bought at a chemist's. aunt sarah used but three tablespoonfuls of her own home-grown sage, as the flavor was much stronger than dried sage. some folks add tablespoonfuls of summer savory, but aunt sarah did not care for the flavor. cloves, mace and nutmeg may also be added if one likes highly-spiced food. this is a matter of taste. a good plan is to season the small pieces of meat before chopping, as this distributes the seasoning through the sausage. fill well cleaned casings, with the finely chopped meat. or form sausage into small pats, fry brown on both sides and serve with home-made buckwheat cakes. aunt sarah's method of keeping sausage to keep sausage one year, take sausage which has been put in casings (skins in long links) and cook until heated through in a fry pan half filled with hot water. take sausage from the water, cut in -inch length pieces (stick sausage with prongs of a fork, to prevent skins bursting) and fry brown on both sides, as if preparing it for the table. place, while hot in quart jars, fill jars as compactly as possible, then pour the hot fat remaining in pan over top. seal air-tight and it will keep well one year if jars are perfectly air-tight. souse two pig's feet, weighing together about - / pounds. after thoroughly cleansing with a vegetable brush, place in a stewpan and cover with cold water. allow water to come to a boil then move stew-pan to place on range where contents will cook slowly for a number of hours, or until the meat is loosened from the bones, then strain liquid, which should measure a scant three cups. (if a lesser quantity of liquid, add hot water until you have the required amount.) add also tablespoonfuls of sharp cider vinegar, about / teaspoonful of salt and a dust of black pepper. pour this mixture over the meat, which should have been separated from bones, allowing a few smaller bones to remain with the meat, which should have been placed in a bowl with several thin slices of lemon, if liked. stand bowl in a cool place over night or until the "souse" is of a jelly-like consistency. when cold, remove any surplus grease from the top of "souse." turn it from the bowl on to a platter. serve cold. garnish with thin slices of lemon and sprigs of parsley. this will furnish about - / pounds of souse. utilizing cold meat "left-overs" small pieces of cold roast beef, veal or steak may all be utilized by being put through the food chopper. to cup of finely-chopped cold meat add / cup of stale bread, which has soaked for a few minutes in cold water. the water having been squeezed from the bread, it was added to the meat, as was also a small quantity of finely-minced onion or parsley, and either the yolk or while of egg and a seasoning of salt and pepper. add left-over gravy, to cause the mixture to be soft enough to form into small rolls or cakes, and fry in a pan containing a couple tablespoonfuls of sweet drippings. mashed potatoes may be substituted for the bread with equally good results. the meat mixture may be formed into small cone shapes, dipped in egg, then rolled in fine bread crumbs and fried in deep fat. very appetizing sandwiches may he made from cold pieces of fried ham, run through food chopper. spread this on thinly-sliced, buttered bread, with a dish of prepared mustard, spread over the prepared ham. small bits of boiled ham, which cannot be sliced, may also be used in this manner. the fat was cut from left-over pieces of roast beef (place a couple of tablespoonfuls of fat in a pan on the range until the fat has fried out), then add a little finely-minced onion and the beef cut in pieces the size of a small marble, brown in the fat a few minutes, then add a small quantity of vinegar and water, and thicken to the consistency of cream (with a little flour moistened with cold water, before being added). this aunt sarah made frequently, being a frugal housewife, and called "salmagundi." fowl--roast chicken or turkey singe the fowl, after it has been picked; then with a small vegetable brush quickly scrub it well, with luke-warm water. do not let it lie in the water. when perfectly clean rinse in cold water, wipe dry, cut out the oil sack, remove craw from neck, draw the fowl, being careful not to break the gall in the process, as that would cause the meat, as well as giblets, to have a bitter taste. take out the lungs, the spongy red pieces lying in crevices near the bones of the back, and pour cold water through the fowl until you have thoroughly rinsed and chilled it, and no blood remains inside. i think fowls should be rinsed thoroughly inside and outside with cold water (many good cooks to the contrary). wipe the inside of the fowl perfectly dry with a clean cloth, and it is ready for the "filling." separate the liver and heart from entrails and cut open the piece containing the gizzard; wash the outer part, and put the giblets on to cook with a little hot water; if wanted to use with the filling. if the fowl is wanted to cook or steam the day following, do not cut in pieces and let stand in water over night, as i have known some quite good cooks to do, as that draws the flavor from the meat and makes it tasteless. if the giblets are not to be cooked and added to dressing, place them inside the fowl, tie feet together, and hang up in a cool place until wanted. when serving a turkey dinner with its accompaniments one finds so many things to be attended to in the morning, especially if the fowl is cooked on a sunday. it will be found a great help to the cook to have the turkey or chicken stuffed with bread filling the day before it is to be roasted, ready to pop in the oven in the morning. bread filling as aunt sarah prepared it chop the cold, cooked liver, heart and gizzard into tiny dice; add this to a bowl containing one quart of crumbled stale bread, seasoned with teaspoonful of salt, / teaspoonful pepper, / of a small, finely-minced onion, / teaspoonful sweet marjoram and a teaspoonful of chopped parsley. stir into the crumbs tablespoonfuls of melted butter, moisten all with one egg beaten with tablespoonfuls of milk. sir all together lightly with a fork. fill the body of the chicken, put a couple of spoonfuls of this dressing into the space from which the craw was taken, tie the neck with a cord, sew up the fowl with a darning needle and cord, after filling it. (always keep a pair of scissors hanging from a nail conveniently near the sink in your kitchen, as it saves many steps.) the secret of _good filling_ is not to have it _too moist_, and to put the filling into the fowl _very lightly_; on no account press it down when placing it in the fowl, as that will cause the best of filling to be heavy and sodden. rather put less in, and fill a small cheese cloth bag with what remains, and a short time before the fowl has finished roasting, lay the bag containing the dressing on top of fowl until heated through, then turn out on one side of platter and serve with the fowl. instead of the chopped giblets, add dozen oysters to the dressing, or a few chestnuts boiled tender, mashed and seasoned with butter, pepper and salt and added to the crumbled bread. this makes a pleasant change. do not use quite as many crumbs if chestnuts or oysters are added. place fowl in covered roasting pan, put a couple of pieces of thinly-sliced bacon on the breast of fowl, put two cups of hot water in the pan and set in a very hot oven for the first half hour, then reduce the heat and baste frequently. an ordinary eight-pound turkey takes from two to three hours to roast; a chicken takes about twenty minutes to the pound. when the fowl has been sufficiently roasted, remove from pan to a hot platter. pour off some of the fat in the pan and add a small quantity of milk to the broth remaining. thicken with flour, for gravy, season with salt and pepper and sprinkle one teaspoonful chopped parsley over gravy after being poured into the gravy boat ready to serve. the yolk of one egg added makes a richer gravy to serve with chicken. fried chicken with cream gravy cut one small spring chicken in pieces, dip each piece in a batter composed of beaten egg, cup of milk, a pinch of salt, / teaspoonful of baking powder, sifted with flour enough to form a batter. dip the pieces of chicken in this batter, one at a time, and fry slowly in a pan containing a couple tablespoonfuls of hot butter and lard, until a golden brown. place the fried chicken on a platter. make a gravy by adding to the fat remaining in the pan-- cup of milk, tablespoonful of corn starch. allow this to brown and thicken. then pour the gravy over the chicken and serve garnished with parsley or watercress. stewed or steamed chicken cut a nicely cleaned chicken into nine pieces. (do not separate the meat from the breast-bone until it has been cooked.) put in a cook pot and partly cover with boiling water. add one small onion and a sprig of parsley, and let simmer about - / hours, or until tender. if an old fowl it will take about one hour longer. add salt and pepper. strain the broth, if very fat, remove a part from broth. after separating the white meat from the breast-bone, put all the meat on a platter. add / cup of sweet milk to the strained broth, thicken with a couple tablespoonfuls of flour, mixed smooth with a little cold water. let come to a boil, and add one teaspoonful of chopped parsley. pour the chicken gravy over the platter containing the meat, or serve it in a separate bowl. or you may quickly brown the pieces of stewed chicken which have been sprinkled with flour in a pan containing a little sweet drippings or butter. should the chicken not be a very fat one, add yolk of one egg to the gravy. or, instead of stewing the chicken, place in the upper compartment of a steamer, and steam until tender and serve. the day following that on which stewed or steamed chicken was served, small undesirable left-over pieces of the chicken were added (after being picked from the bones) to the gravy remaining from the day before, heated thoroughly and poured hot over a platter containing small baking powder biscuits broken in half or slices of toasted bread, which is economical, extending the meat flavor. vegetables--white potatoes potatoes are one of the most valuable of vegetables. white potatoes, after being pared, should be put in a stew-pan over the fire with a little boiling water, but not enough to cover them. the water should be kept boiling continuously. about thirty minutes from the time they commence boiling will be the time required for cooking potatoes of ordinary size. it spoils potatoes to have the water stop boiling even for a short time. add half a teaspoonful of salt to the potatoes when partly boiled and when cooked sufficiently drain the water from them at _once_ and sprinkle a little salt over the dry potatoes. close the lid of the stew-pan tightly, give it a quick shake, when the potatoes will he found dry and flaky. mash fine with a potato masher, adding a tablespoonful of butter and a couple tablespoonfuls of milk. let stand a minute on the hot range to heat the milk, then beat all together with a fork until creamy. add more salt if necessary. that is quite important, as potatoes require considerable salt. cover the potatoes with a cloth. never allow to stand with the lid of the stew-pan over them, as it will draw moisture. serve white potatoes as soon as possible after being cooked, as they are not appetizing when allowed to stand any length of time. baked potatoes all young housewives may not know "that there is more real food value in potatoes baked 'in their jackets' than is found in preparing this well-known tuber in any other way." the secret of a good baked potato lies in having a hot oven, but not too hot. scrub good sized potatoes, or, for a change, they may be pared before baking, place in a hot oven, and bake about minutes, when they should be a snowy, flaky mass inside the skins, palatable and wholesome. when fully baked they should fed soft to the touch when pressed. take from oven, pinch one end of potato to break the skin to allow the gas to escape. always break open a baked potato. never cut with a knife. medium-sized potatoes, pared, cut in half lengthwise, and baked in a hot oven to minutes, until the outside of the potato is a light brown, make a pleasant change from boiled potatoes. when baked the proper length of time and served at once, the inside of potato should be light and flaky. the housewife should occasionally serve rice or macaroni and omit potatoes from the bill of fare, especially in the spring of the year. potatoes should always be served as soon as baked, if possible. potatoes may be baked in less than a half hour in a gas oven. various ways of using small potatoes early in the season when small, early potatoes are more plentiful and cheaper than large ones, the young housewife will be able to give her family a change, while practicing economy, as there are various ways of using small potatoes to advantage. first, new potatoes, if about the size of marbles, may be scraped, boiled in salted water, and served with a thin cream dressing, sprinkled liberally with chopped parsley, or the boiled potatoes, while still hot, may be quickly browned in a pan containing a couple tablespoonfuls of hot drippings or butter. they are much better prepared in this manner if the potatoes are put in the hot fat while still warm. or the small boiled potatoes may be cut in thin slices, browned in a couple tablespoonfuls of butter or drippings and two eggs beaten together stirred over the potatoes a few minutes before they are ready to serve. the small potatoes may also be scraped and dropped in hot, deep fat and fried like fritters. when possible, the small potatoes should be well cleansed with a vegetable brush and boiled without paring. they may then be easily skinned after they are cooked. some of the more important ingredients are lost when potatoes are pared, and it is also more economical to boil them before paring. the cold boiled potatoes may be cut up and used for potato salad, or thinly sliced after being skinned and placed in a baking dish alternately with a cream sauce consisting of milk, butter and flour, and seasoned with salt and pepper, having the first and last layer cream sauce. sprinkle bread crumbs liberally over the top, dot with hits of butter and bake in a moderate oven about minutes until the top is nicely browned. serve in the dish in which they were baked. or peel one-half dozen medium-sized raw potatoes, cut into small, narrow strips about / inch wide, dry on a napkin and fry in very hot, deep fat about six minutes, then lift from fat, drain, sprinkle salt over and serve hot. these are a nice accompaniment to broiled steak. peel and slice, or cut in dice, or cold boiled potatoes, cut into in a stew-pan with tablespoonfuls of butter, salt and pepper to season, heat all together, shaking pan occasionally. add / cup of cream, sprinkle a small teaspoonful of parsley over and serve hot. instead of slicing or dicing cold boiled potatoes (in the usual manner) to be fried, if they be cut in lengthwise sections like an orange (one potato should make about pieces) and fried quickly in enough hot fat to prevent burning, they can scarcely be distinguished from raw potatoes cut in the same manner and fried in deep fat, and are much easier to prepare. they should be served at once. another manner of preparing potatoes is to slice raw potatoes as thinly as possible on a "slaw-cutter," place in a fry-pan with a couple of tablespoonfuls of a mixture of butter and sweet drippings. watch carefully, as they should be fried quickly over a hot fire, turning frequently. when brown, serve at once. raw _sweet_ potatoes cut about as thick as half a section of an orange, fried in a couple tablespoonfuls of a mixture of sweet drippings and butter, prove a change, occasionally. scalloped potatoes in a baking dish place layers of pared, thinly sliced, raw white potatoes. season with a very little salt and pepper and scatter over small bits of butter. a very little finely minced onion or parsley may be added if liked. to quart of the sliced potatoes use a scant half pint of milk, which should almost cover the potatoes. either sift over the top tablespoon of flour or tablespoons of fine, dried bread crumbs and bits of butter; place in hot oven and bake about / of an hour, until top is browned nicely and potatoes are cooked through. old potatoes are particularly good prepared in this manner. candied sweet potatoes place in an agate pudding dish pared and halved (lengthwise) raw sweet potatoes. scatter over them three tablespoons of sugar, large tablespoons of butter cut in small bits, and about / a cup (good measure) of water. stand in a hot oven and bake about / of an hour. baste frequently with the syrup formed in the bottom of the dish. the potatoes when baked should look clear and the syrup should be as thick as molasses. serve in the dish in which they were baked. should the oven of the range not be very hot, the dish containing the potatoes may be placed on top the range and cooked about minutes before placing in oven to finish baking. sweet potato croquettes to pint of hot mashed potatoes, or cold boiled ones may be used, squeezed through a fruit press; add tablespoon of butter, pinch of salt, eggs, whites beaten separately. when cool, form into small cone-shapes, dip in bread crumbs, then into egg, then into crumbs again, and fry in deep fat. drain on paper and serve on platter garnished with parsley. potato chips aunt sarah's way of making particularly fine potato chips: she pared six large white potatoes, one at a time. as she wished to slice them to fry, she rinsed the potatoes, rolled them on a clean cloth to dry them. she sliced the potatoes thinly on a "slaw" cutter. she patted the sliced potatoes between old linen napkins, until all moisture was absorbed, then dropped them into hot fat, consisting of two-thirds lard and one-third suet. place only one layer of potatoes at a time in the fat. the chips quickly turn light brown; then remove with a perforated skimmer to a colander lined with coarse brown paper, to absorb any remaining fat. should the fat be the right temperature, the chips will be entirely free from grease. dust salt over the chips while hot. she _never_ allowed chips to stand in salt water, as many cooks do. she usually made potato chips when frying doughnuts, and always fried potato chips first; after frying doughnuts in the fat fry several large slices of potato in it, as the potato clarifies it. six large, thinly sliced potatoes will make about five quarts of potato chips when fried and may be kept several weeks in a dry place. the potato chips may be re-heated by placing in a hot oven a few minutes before serving. fried eggplant pare the egg-plant, cut in slices one-half inch thick, sprinkle salt on slices; let stand under heavy weight several hours. wipe slices dry with a napkin and dip in a mixture of white of one egg, and one tablespoon of water, then dip them in fine rolled bread crumbs and fry a rich brown in deep fat. drain and serve. catsup should always be served with eggplant. baked "stuffed peppers" place a fry-pan on stove containing about two tablespoonfuls of butter, add a couple of finely chopped sweet peppers and a finely minced small onion. let all simmer on stove. measure the chopped pepper and add an equal amount of finely crumbled bread. season with salt and pepper and fill (well-washed) peppers from which the stem and seeds have been removed. stand the peppers in a bake dish containing a small amount of water. place in a hot oven about twenty-five minutes, or until peppers are tender. serve hot. chili (as prepared in new mexico) place hot peppers (well-washed) from which seeds have been removed into a bake dish containing a very little hot water. stand in a hot oven until tender and skins turn a yellow brown, turning them over occasionally. remove the outside skin, chop fine, add a small quantity of finely minced onion, pepper and salt and enough vinegar to moisten. if sweet peppers are used add a pinch of cayenne pepper. serve as a relish in place of pickles or chow-chow. this recipe was given marry by a friend who had lived in mexico. the outside skin of the peppers may be more readily removed if upon being removed from the oven the peppers are sprinkled with water, then covered with a cloth and allowed to steam a short time. baked cabbage a half head of cabbage was cut into small pieces and cooked in hot salted water until cabbage was tender. the water was drained from the boiled cabbage, which was placed in an agate pudding dish alternately with cream sauce composed of one cup of milk; one small tablespoonful of flour, tablespoonfuls of butter, seasoned with salt and pepper. sprinkle a few crumbs and place bits of the butter over top. bake in oven about minutes and serve hot. this dish is almost equal to cauliflower in flavor, especially if after the cabbage has cooked ten or fifteen minutes the water is drained from it and fresh substituted. and it is said, "cauliflower is only cabbage with a college education." crimson creamed beets cut all except two inches from the tops of beets. scrub thoroughly with a vegetable brush, then pour scalding water over beets. when perfectly cleansed, place in a cook-pot, partly cover with boiling water, stand on range and when beets have cooked tender remove outside skin. strain and stand aside one cup of water in which beets were boiled, which should be dark wine color. when beets are to be served to the one cup of strained beet juice add one tablespoonful of sugar, one-fourth cup of not _very sharp_ vinegar. add one teaspoon of butter. thicken this liquid with one and one-fourth tablespoonfuls of a mixture of corn starch and flour. when cooked to the consistency of cream add the quartered beets, season with pepper and salt, stand on back part of range a few minutes, serve hot. to three cups of the quartered beets use one and one-half cups of cream dressing. buttered beets wash young beets, cut off tops. boil one hour or until tender, one tablespoonful of sugar having been added to the water in which beets were boiled. rub off skins, cut in quarters, strew over them one tablespoon of butter cut in small pieces, stand in oven just long enough for the butter to melt. or cut the beets in slices one-fourth of an inch thick and while still warm place in a bowl and pour over them half a cup of hot vinegar and water to which had been added one tablespoonful of sugar, a pinch of salt and pepper; serve cold. pickled mangelwurzel a vegetable in taste, similar to very sweet, red beets in shape, greatly resembling carrots. wash the mangelwurzel and place in a stew-pan with boiling water and cook until tender (allow about an inch of top to remain when preparing to cook). skin the mangelsurzel, slice and pour over the following, which has been heated in a stew-pan over the fire: one cup of vinegar and water combined, one tablespoonful of sugar, one teaspoonful of salt, a dust of pepper. stand aside until cold then serve. or serve hot like buttered beets. some "bucks county" farmers raise mangelwurzel simply to feed to their cattle, but aunt sarah preferred them when young and tender to beets, and always raised them for her table. german steamed cabbage cut one-half head of cabbage fine on a slaw cutter. place in a stew-pan over fire, with about four tablespoonfuls of water, one tablespoonful of butter, a couple tablespoonfuls of flour, one teaspoonful of sugar and a pinch of salt. cover and steam twenty minutes. then add three tablespoons of vinegar. stir in one beaten egg. cover and let stand where it will keep hot until ready to serve. bean "snitzel" place in a pan on the range one tablespoon of diced, smoked bacon, fry a few minutes, watch closely it does not scorch. add one tablespoonful of sweet lard, when hot, add four thinly sliced, medium-sized onions and four chopped tomatoes and - / quarts of string beans, cut in inch lengths. season with salt and a pinch of red pepper. simmer all together three hours. after cooking one hour add about one cup of hot water, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, add a little more water if necessary; when beans are tender and ready to serve there should be a small quantity of liquid, resembling tomato sauce, with the beans. boiled spinach wash one-half peck of spinach thoroughly through a half dozen waters, until free from sand. place in a stew-pan containing a small quantity of _boiling_ water and one teaspoon of butter. cook until tender, drain, chop fine. place a large tablespoonful of butter in stew-pan and when hot add chopped spinach, season with salt and pepper; serve in a warmed dish, garnished with either chopped or sliced hard boiled eggs. a german cook, noted for the fine flavor of her cooked spinach and green peas, said her secret consisted in adding a teaspoon of butter to the vegetables while cooking. fried onions and potatoes another way of utilizing left-over cold boiled potatoes particularly relished by "pennsylvania germans," whose liking for the humble onion is proverbial, is to fry onions with potatoes in a fry-pan containing a couple tablespoonfuls of sweet drippings and butter; when heated place a half dozen thinly sliced cold boiled potatoes, half the quantity of thinly sliced raw onions, well seasoned with pepper and salt, cover and steam for ten or fifteen minutes, when uncover and fry until light brown; serve at once. or the thinly-sliced onions, after skins have been removed, may be sliced thinly across the onion, placed in a fry-pan and partly covered with boiling water; stand on hot range and steam, closely covered, about fifteen minutes, or until onions are tender, then drain off water, should any remain, add a small tablespoonful of butter, salt and pepper to season, fry quickly a light brown; pan should be uncovered. serve at once with liver or bacon. onions are considered more wholesome prepared in this manner than if fried. steamed asparagus (fine) wash asparagus and cut off about an inch of the tough ends, scrape off thin skin. place pieces of asparagus tips (all in one direction) in the top part of perforated section of a double boiler. fill lower part of steamer with hot water and steam about three-quarters of an hour or less time, until tender. the fine flavor of the vegetable is retained when steamed. when cooked tender turn out on a hot platter and pour cream sauce over the tips, or the cream sauce may be served separately, or the asparagus may be served on freshly toasted slices of bread, over which the cream sauce should be poured. "pasture" mushrooms all the members of the landis family unanimously agreed in declaring the dish "frau schmidt" taught sarah landis to prepare from the delicious edible fungi, known as "pasture" mushrooms (gathered by professor schmidt from rich, wind-swept pastures early in the fall of the year until the coming of frost) were good enough to tickle the palate of an epicure. sarah landis was very particular to use _none_ unless pronounced _edible mushrooms_, and not poisonous toad-stools, by professor schmidt, who was a recognized authority. said the professor, "the edible variety may be easily recognized by one having a knowledge of the vegetable. the cap may be readily peeled, and the flesh of the 'pasture' mushroom, when cut or broken, changes in color to a pale rose pink, and they possess many other distinctive features, easily recognized, when one has made a study of them." the following is the manner in which the mushrooms were prepared by fran schmidt: steamed mushrooms. one-half pound or about twenty-four small mushrooms were peeled, washed carefully in cold water, placed in a small stew-pan containing two generous tablespoonfuls of butter, covered closely and allowed to simmer or steam for twenty minutes in butter and liquid, drawn from the mushrooms by steaming, then uncover and allow liquid in sauce-pan and mushrooms to cook about ten minutes longer, then sprinkle two teaspoonfuls of flour over the mushrooms, brown a minute, stir into this / cup of milk, or enough to make a sauce the consistency of cream, season well with salt and pepper to taste. have ready prepared six crisply toasted and buttered slices of stale bread. place four mushrooms and a couple of tablespoonfuls of the mushroom sauce on each slice of bread and serve hot. the combination of toast and mushrooms results in a particularly fine flavor. stewed tomatoes scald ripe tomatoes by pouring boiling water over them and allowing them to stand a few minutes. skin them and cut in small pieces. place in a stew-pan with tablespoonful of butter, season _well_ with pepper and salt, cook about minutes, add / teaspoonful of sugar and thicken with teaspoonful of flour mixed smooth with a little water. let cook a few minutes, then serve. if tomatoes are very tart a small pinch of baking soda, added when cooked, will counteract acidity. sweet corn sweet corn on the cob should be cooked as soon as possible after taking it from stalk, as after being removed it soon loses its sweetness. do not remove the husk until it is to be boiled. place corn in a kettle of rapidly boiling water, not salted; rather add a pinch of sugar if corn is not as sweet as liked. cover the kettle to prevent steam escaping. do not use a _large quantity of water_. corn is sweeter if steamed. boil from ten to fifteen minutes. if corn is not cooked in that time, it should be used uncooked for corn fritters, as corn if _not_ young and tender may be grated and from it excellent corn fritters may be made. fried tomatoes with cream sauce cut large, solid, ripe tomatoes in half-inch slices; one ordinary tomato makes slices. dredge thickly with flour. fry several slices of bacon in an iron pan, take bacon from pan when fried and put in warming oven. lay the well-floured slices of tomatoes in hot bacon fat and one tablespoon of butter and fry brown on both sides. serve on hot platter with bacon. or fry slices of well floured tomato in pan containing just enough butter and drippings to keep them from sticking to the bottom of pan, over a hot fire. fry quickly, browning on each side. season with salt and pepper. if the tomatoes are very sour, sprinkle a _very little_ sugar over them before frying. when brown, lift the tomatoes carefully from pan and place in a circle around the inside edge of a warm chop plate, add a lump of butter to the pan and a small half cup of sweet milk. let come to a boil, thicken with a little flour mixed smoothly with a little cold milk, and cook until the consistency of thick cream. season with salt and pour in centre of chop plate, surrounded with fried slices of tomatoes. dust pepper over top and serve hot. this is a delicious way of serving tomatoes. or slices of the fried tomatoes may be served on slices of crisply toasted bread over which place a couple tablespoons of the cream dressing. baked "stuffed tomatoes" wash a half dozen ripe red tomatoes. cut the top from each and remove about the half of the inside of tomato. sprinkle a very tiny pinch of sugar in each. this small quantity of sugar is not noticed, but counteracts the acidity of the tomato. to one and one-half cups of soft bread crumbs add one small finely minced onion and season highly with salt and pepper, also add one teaspoon of chopped parsley. mix all together and fill the tomatoes with the mixture. place a small bit of butter on each tomato. place in a bake dish containing a half cup of water, a piece of butter, one teaspoonful of sugar, a sprig of parsley and pepper and salt to season. stand in a hot oven and bake from to minutes. the centres which were removed from tomatoes may be utilized in various ways. canned tomatoes--fried place in a bowl a half pint of canned tomatoes, one-fourth teaspoon of sugar and season with salt and pepper. add about four tablespoonfuls of flour sifted with one-half teaspoon of baking powder and one tablespoon of butter. use only flour enough to hold the mixture together when fried. drop spoonfuls some distance apart in a fry-pan containing several tablespoons of hot lard, butter, suet or drippings. fry on both sides and serve hot. in winter, when the housewife is unable to obtain fresh tomatoes, she will find this dish a good substitute to serve occasionally. "bucks county" baked beans put one quart of small soup beans to soak over night in cold water to cover. in the morning drain the beans, cover with boiling water, add one tablespoonful of molasses and cook until tender, but not too soft. drain. do not use this water. put the beans in an earthen bake dish. in the centre of the bake dish place one pound of clean, scored smoked bacon, and pour over the beans the water in which the bacon had been simmering for an hour. add water, if not enough, to almost cover the beans, salt and pepper to taste. place in oven and bake about three hours, or until beans are tender and a rich brown on top. add more hot water if beans bake dry, until the last half hour, then allow the water to cook away. serve stewed tomatoes, baked apples or apple sauce as an accompaniment to baked beans. this is not a recipe for "boston baked beans." just a "plain country recipe," but it will be found very satisfactory. if part of a dish of beans remain after a meal, re-heat the day following in "tomato sauce." aunt sarah always baked a pan of corn bread or johnny cake, to serve hot with baked beans. when the housewife serves a dish of baked beans at a meal, serve also a quart of stewed tomatoes. the day following a "tomato sauce" may be quickly prepared by adding a well-cooked carrot and an onion to the "left-over" tomatoes. press all through a coarse sieve, adding a little water if too thick; re-heat beans in this; serve hot. a delicious "cream of tomato soup" may be prepared by substituting milk or cream to which a small pinch of baking soda has been added, omitting the beans. cooked hominy wash one cup of hominy through several waters. (the grains should resemble kernels of corn.) cover with cold water and stand in a cool place over night. in the morning, drain. place the hominy in an agate pudding dish holding quarts, cover with boiling water, add more water as the grains swell and water boils away, and teaspoonful of salt. the hominy should be placed on the range to cook early in the morning on the day it is to be served and continue cooking slowly until late afternoon, when all the water should have been absorbed and each grain should be large, white and flaky. the dish should be about three-quarters full. a half hour before serving the hominy, at a six o'clock dinner, add a generous tablespoonful of butter and about / of a cup of hot milk and stand on back of range until served. this is a remarkably cheap, wholesome and appetizing dish if served properly and is easily prepared. grated "parsnip cakes" scrape, then grate enough raw parsnips to fill two cups, put in a bowl and add the yolk of one egg, pinch of salt, tablespoonful of milk, tablespoonful of flour, lastly add the stiffly-beaten white of egg. form into small round cakes, dust with flour and fry brown on both sides in a pan containing a tablespoonful of butter and one of drippings. or these may be crumbed and fried in deep fat. these are much finer flavored than if parsnips had been cooked before being fried. to make "sauer kraut" cut heads of cabbage in half, after trimming off outside leaves. cut out centres or hearts, cut cabbage fine on a regular old-fashioned cabbage cutter, which has a square box on top of cutter to hold the pieces of cabbage when being pushed back and forth over the cutter. if not possible to procure this, use small slaw cutter for the purpose. partly fill a large pan with the cut cabbage, and mix enough salt, with the hands, through the cut cabbage to be palatable when tasted, no more. this was the rule taught aunt sarah by her grandmother, and always followed by her. then put the salted cabbage into a wooden cask or small tub to the depth of several inches. pound the cabbage down well with a long-handled, heavy, wooden mallet, something like a very large wooden potato masher. then mix another panful of finely cut cabbage, lightly salted, into the tub and pound down well, as before. continue in this manner until the tub is partly filled with cabbage, pounding down well at the last until the liquid formed by the cabbage and salt rises above the cabbage. cover the kraut with a layer of large, clean cabbage or grape leaves, then cover top with a clean piece of muslin cloth, place a round, clean board on top and put a well-scrubbed, heavy stone on the board to weight it down. stand the tub in a warm place several days, to ferment. when fermentation begins, the liquor rises over the top of the board. remove the scrum which rises to top, in about six days, and stand in a cool part of the cellar after washing stone and cloth with cold water, return to top of kraut and in two weeks the sauer kraut will be ready to use. should the sauer kraut require extra liquid at any time, add one quart of water in which has been dissolved two teaspoonfuls of salt. squeeze the sauer kraut quite dry when taking it from the brine to cook. boil about two quarts of the sauer kraut several hours with a piece of fresh pork and a little water until the pork is thoroughly cooked through, when the sauer kraut should be cooked tender. some prefer "frankfurters" cooked with the kraut instead of pork, and others do not care for the german dish without the accompaniment of drop dumplings. serve mashed potatoes and simple dessert with sauer kraut. aunt sarah taught mary to save the hearts of the cabbage usually thrown aside when making sauer kraut. the hearts were trimmed all one size, like small triangles. she cooked them in salted water until tender, drained them and served with a cream dressing, and they had much the flavor of a dish of cauliflower. frau schmidt always placed several tart apples among her sauer kraut when making it, and thought it improved the flavor of the kraut; gave it a "winey" flavor, obtained in no other manner. a sour apple, cored and cooked with sauer kraut is considered by some cooks an improvement. the apple, of course, is not eatable. aunt sarah _never_ placed apples with her sauer kraut. dumplings to serve with sauer kraut for these dumplings, egg was broken into a bowl and well beaten. then a pinch of salt was added and / cup of sweet milk. enough flour was added to make a soft dough, and one tablespoonful of baking powder was sifted with a very little flour into the batter, then a little more flour was added to make the dough the right consistency. form the dough into small balls, handling as little as possible. drop on top of the hot cooked "sauer kraut" in cook-pot on range and boil, closely covered, about minutes. aunt sarah taught mary to cook green vegetables, peas, spinach, etc., in a stew-pan _uncovered_, if she wished them to retain their natural color. also, that old potatoes may be freshened by being allowed to stand a short time in cold water before being cooked, but they should not stand too long a time in cold water, as it draws the starch from them and causes them to be tasteless, and to lose part of their nourishing qualities. also that one teaspoonful of salt will usually season one quart of vegetables, to be put in when the vegetables begin to cook. cauliflower, cabbage, lettuce and watercress should stand in a pan containing water and a little vinegar for a half hour. this will cause insects to drop to the bottom of the pan. changing the water on cabbage and onions when partly cooked will improve their flavor. parsley dried to preserve its green color young housewives possessing a bed of parsley in their kitchen gardens, wishing to preserve it for use during the winter, may like to know how aunt sarah taught mary to dry it in a manner to preserve its bright green color. she washed the parsley in cold water and while still moist placed it on agate pans and dried it _quickly_ in a _very hot_ oven. watch carefully as it scorches easily. place the parsley when dried, in tin cans covered to exclude the dust. time required to cook vegetables bake good-sized potatoes in oven about minutes. smaller potatoes require less time to bake. boil ordinary sized potatoes to minutes. _steam_ asparagus from to minutes. boil young beets about minutes or longer. old beets, two hours, or until tender. green corn on cob about or minutes. cauliflower, minutes. cabbage, to minutes. turnips and carrots, minutes. string beans, minutes to hours. lima beans, minutes to hour. onions about hour. squash about minutes. parsnips, to minutes. sweet potatoes, good size, minutes. spinach, minutes. tomatoes, minutes. salt should be added to the water when boiling potatoes, carrots, cabbage, parsnips, turnips and onions, even if liquid in which they were boiled is drained from them after being cooked, before being seasoned. add a small pinch of baking soda to the water in which string beans are boiled, and they will cook tender in less time. especially should this be done if the beans are not young and tender. common "cream sauce" young housekeepers will be surprised to learn of the various attractive, appetizing dishes which may be prepared by combining them with a "cream sauce." after cooking vegetables until tender in salted water, they should be drained and served with a cream sauce poured over. the art of making a smooth, creamy sauce of the proper consistency is easily acquired. a good rule for "common cream sauce" is cup of milk, water, or meat broth, thickened with tablespoonful to - / tablespoonfuls of flour, or a combination of flour and cornstarch. mix flour, or cornstarch, with a small quantity of cold milk or water, to a smooth paste, before adding it to liquid; add, usually, one tablespoonful of butter. place the mixture in a saucepan and cook until the consistency of cream, add / teaspoonful of salt just before removing from the fire, and dust pepper over when serving. when mixing gravy to serve with roast beef or veal, omit butter. for a thick sauce use either or tablespoonfuls of flour and the same amount of butter. this thick sauce may be used to mix with meat for croquettes in the proportion of cup of sauce to cups of chopped cold roast lamb, beef, veal or chicken. should a richer sauce be desired, add or more yolks of eggs to the cream sauce. some of the numerous dishes which might be served by the young housewife to vary the daily bill of fare by the addition of "cream sauce," are: small, new potatoes, cauliflower, onions, cabbage asparagus tips, thinly sliced carrots, celery, mushrooms, fish, oysters, chicken, veal and sweetbreads. all of these, when coked, may be served on slices of toasted bread, or served in pattie-cases, with cream sauce, or served simply with cream sauce. preparation of savory gravies the art of preparing savory gravies and sauces is more important in connection with the serving of the cheaper meats than in connection with the cooking of the more expensive cuts. there are a few general principles underlying the making of all sauces or gravies, whether the liquid used is water, milk, stock, tomato juice or some combination of these. for ordinary gravy, level tablespoonfuls of flour or - / tablespoonfuls of cornstarch, or arrow root, is sufficient to thicken a cup of liquid. this is true excepting in recipes where the flour is browned. in this case, about / tablespoonful more should be allowed, for browned flour does not thicken so well as unbrowned. the fat used may be butter or the drippings from the meat, the allowance being tablespoonfuls to a cup of liquid. the easiest way to mix the ingredients is to heat the fat, add the flour and cook until the mixture ceases to bubble, and then to add the liquid. this is a quick method and by using it there is little danger of getting a lumpy gravy. many persons, however, think it is not a wholesome method, and prefer the old-fashioned one of thickening the gravy by means of flour mixed with a little cold water. (aunt sarah was one who thought thus.) the latter method is not "practicable for brown gravies," to quote the _farmers' bulletin_. the _farmers' bulletin_ further adds: "considering the large amount of discussion about the digestibility of fried food and of gravies made by heating flour in fat, a few words on the subject at this point may not be out of order. it is difficult to see how heating the fat before adding the flour can be unwholesome, unless the cook is unskillful enough to heat the fat so high that it begins to scorch. overheated fat, as has already been pointed out, contains an acrid, irritating substance called 'acrolein,' which may readily be considered to be unwholesome. it is without doubt the production of this body by overheating which has given fried food its bad name. there are several ways of varying the flavor of gravies and sauces. one should be especially mentioned here. the _flavor of browned flour_--the good flavor of browned flour is often overlooked. if flour is cooked in fat, until it is a dark brown color, a distinctive and very agreeable flavor is obtained. "this flavor combines very well with that of currant jelly, and a little jelly added to a brown gravy is a great improvement. the flavor of this should not be combined with that of onions or other highly-flavored vegetables." butter, cheese and suet--a substitute for butter this formula for preparing a good, sweet, wholesome substitute for butter to be used for baking and frying was given aunt sarah by a thrifty german hausfrau, who prepared and used it in her large family many years. aunt sarah always kept a supply on hand. it was made as follows: pounds of fine solid kidney suet. pounds of clean pork fat. pounds of butter. the suet cut in small pieces was put in a large boiler of water, boiled until all was melted, and the fat extracted from the suet. it was then all poured through a fine sieve into a vessel containing hot water (the larger the quantity of hot water the finer the fat will be). stand aside to become cold and solid. the boiling process prevents the peculiar taste which _fried_ lard and suet usually possess. treat the pork fat in a similar manner. allow the suet and pork fat to stand until the following morning, when remove the solid fat from the boiler of water, wipe off all moisture and add both pork fat and suet fat to the melted butter, which had been prepared in the following manner: the butter was melted in a porcelain lined boiler and allowed to cook until all salt and other foreign substance had settled and the butter had the appearance of clear oil. at this point the butter should be watched carefully, as when settled it might quickly boil over, when you would be liable to lose your butter, besides suffering serious consequences. now the liquid butter, suet and pork fat are all put together into a large boiler and allowed to melt together on the back part of the range. this will probably be done in the morning. after the noon meal is finished move the boiler containing fat to front part of range; let come to a boil, skimming it occasionally as it boils up. it needs close watching now, the fat being liable to cook over the top of boiler, when the "fat" will surely be "in the fire." carefully pour into stone crock, and it may be kept for months in a cool place. the fat which has been first poured off the top, if it has been carefully skimmed, will keep longest. the last taken from the boiler should be put in a stone crock to use first. this may be prepared in lesser quantities, or a smaller quantity of butter might be used to mix with the lard and suet. although the preparation is to be preferred composed of equal quantities of butter, lard and suet, adding milk to the first water in which the suet is boiled is quite an improvement. after filling the crocks with the fat, take the boiled-out suet and hard scraps and settlings of butter remaining and go through the same process and you will have a small jar of cooking fat for immediate use. a little trouble to do this, i admit, but one is well paid by having good, sweet, inexpensive cooking fat. i should advise a young housekeeper to experiment with one pound each of clarified suet and pork fat after it is rendered, and one pound of butter before attempting the preparation of a larger quantity. butter--as it was made at the farm, by "aunt sarah" aunt sarah strained fresh, sweet milk into small, brown earthenware crocks kept for this purpose, scrupulously clean. the crocks were kept in the spring-house or cellar in summer (in cold weather the milk should be kept in a warmer place to allow cream to form on the top of the milk). when the cream was thick and sour she skimmed the cream from off the top of milk every day, stirring the cream well together every time she added fresh cream to that on hand. aunt sarah churned twice a week; sour cream should not be kept a longer time than one week. the churn was scalded with boiling water, then rinsed with cold water; this prevented the butter adhering to the churn. the cream should be at a temperature of degrees when put in the churn, but this would be almost too cold in winter. in very hot weather the temperature of the cream should be degrees. aunt sarah tested the cream with a small dairy tube thermometer. she churned steadily and usually had butter "come" in about minutes, but should the cream he too cold or too warm it would be necessary to churn a longer time. if the cream is too warm, stand vessel containing cream on ice; if too cold, stand in a warm place near the range. when the sour cream had been churned a certain length of time and granules of butter had formed, she drained off the buttermilk and poured water over the granules of butter. water should be two degrees colder than the buttermilk. after churning a few minutes the lump of butter was removed from the churn, placed in a bowl, washed thoroughly several times in very cold water, until no buttermilk remained. the butter was worked thoroughly, with a wooden paddle, until all buttermilk had been extracted. one small tablespoonful of salt was added to each pound of butter. she worked the butter well, to incorporate the salt, and molded it into shape. aunt sarah did not knead the butter, but smoothed it down, then lifted it up from the large, flat, wooden bowl in which it was molded. when the butter was to be molded into _small shapes_, she scalded the small wooden molds, then dipped them into cold water before using; this prevented the butter adhering to the molds. before commencing to churn butter, aunt sarah was particular to have her hands scrupulously clean. all the utensils used were washed in hot water, then rinsed in cold water, both hands and utensils. she frequently wrapped small pats of freshly-churned butter in small squares of clean cheese-cloth and placed in a stone crock with a cover. placed in the crock was usually, with the butter, a bunch of sweet clover blossoms, which imparted to the butter a delicious flavor. "smier-kase" or cottage cheese stand a pan containing three quarts of milk in a warm place until it becomes sour and quite thick. stand the pan containing the thick milk on the back part of the range, where it will heat gradually but not cook. when the "whey" separates from the curd in the centre and forms around the edges it is ready to use. should the sour milk become _too hot_ on the range, or _scald_, the curds, or smier-kase, will not become soft and creamy. when the curd has separated from the "whey," pour the contents of the pan into a cheese-cloth bag and hang in the open air to drip for several hours, when it should be ready to use. from three quarts of sour milk you should obtain one good pound of smier-kase. to prepare it for the table place one-half the quantity in a bowl and add one teaspoonful of softened butter, a pinch of salt and mix as smoothly as possible. or the smier-kase may be molded into small rolls, and a small quantity of finely-chopped pimento added. this will keep fresh several days if kept in a cool cellar or refrigerator. uses of "sweet drippings" and suet for deep frying mary was taught to use lard and kidney suet combined. the latter had been tried out by cutting suet in small pieces. the suet, in an iron pan, was placed in a moderately hot oven until fat was tried out. to prevent suet when rendered having a taste of tallow, place in the upper part of boiler, over one containing hot water, and stand on a hot range until all is tried out, or melted, instead of putting it in oven. strain into a jar and stand aside in a cool place until wanted. take one-third of this tried-out suet to two-thirds lard when frying croquettes, oysters, cruellers or fritters. suet contains food value equal to that of lard and food fried in this fat, combined with lard, is more wholesome than if fried in lard alone--if any food fried in fat _ever is_ wholesome. and suet is more economical than lard if rendered at home. mary was taught by her aunt to save all the trimmings from steaks, fat left over from roasts, boiled ham, sausage, bacon fat, etc. when different fats have been tried out, to clarify them, add to every pound and a half of combined fat or drippings a half cup of boiling water and a pinch of baking soda. boil until water evaporates and fat is clear. strain into a bowl and keep in a cool place. clean, sweet drippings are preferred by most cooks to lard for many purposes. all young housewives do not know that ham or bacon fat may be substituted for half the shortening called for in many recipes for molasses cakes (where spices are used) with good results. also that the grease rendered from clean fat of chickens, which greatly resembles butter when tried out and cold, may be combined with an equal quantity of other shortening in making cakes in which spices are used. the difference in the taste of cake made from this fat, if rendered sweet and clean, will not be noticed. equal parts of ham or bacon fat, pork chops or sausage fat, combined with butter, are excellent for frying cornmeal mush, eggs, sweet potatoes, egg bread and calves' liver. also sliced tomatoes have a particularly fine flavor if fried in bacon fat. should fat removed from top of stock pot have a flavor of vegetables, pour boiling water over, strain and stand aside to cool; then remove the clean cake of fat on top of the water and add to bowl of drippings. this is one of the small economies which will, i think, appeal to the frugal young housewife. if possible, procure an iron pot for deep frying. after using, strain the fat remaining, adding sediment in the bottom of cook-pot to the can of soap fat; then return the clean, strained fat to the cook pot. keep in a cool place, closely covered, and if careful not to scorch the fat. it may be used over and over again, and croquettes, etc., may be prepared in a few moments by simply heating the kettle of fat in which to fry them. aunt sarah frequently filled small glass jars with rendered mutton suet, scented with violet essence, to be used for chapped lips and hands. eggs--"eierkuchen" or omelette for this excellent omelette or "eierkuchen," as aunt sarah called it, she used the following: fresh eggs. cup sweet milk. level tablespoonfuls of flour. she placed on the range a small fry pan (size of a tea plate), containing one tablespoonful of butter. she then placed tablespoonfuls of flour in a bowl, mixed smoothly with a portion of the cup of milk, then added the three yolks of eggs which had been lightly beaten and the balance of the milk and a pinch of salt. lastly, she stirred in lightly the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. poured all into the warmed fry-pan and placed it in a moderately hot oven until lightly browned on top. the omelette when cooked should be light and puffy, and remain so while being served. double the omelette together on a hot platter and sprinkle finely chopped parsley over the top. serve immediately. hard boiled eggs eggs to be hard boiled should be carefully placed in boiling water and cooked minutes from the time the water commences to boil again. if cooked a longer time, the white of egg will look dark and the outer part of yolk will not be a clear yellow, as it should, to look appetizing when served. soft boiled eggs the quicker way to prepare eggs is to drop them in a stew-pan containing boiling water, and let boil - / to minutes, when the white part of the egg should be "set" and the yolk soft, but a soft boiled egg is said to be more easily digested if dropped into a stew-pan of rapidly boiling water; remove the stew-pan of boiling water the minute the eggs have been put in from the front part of the range to a place where the water will keep hot, but not allow the eggs to boil. let the eggs remain in the hot water from to minutes. on breaking the egg open, the yolk will be found soft, and the white of the egg a soft, jelly-like consistency. this latter is the way aunt sarah taught mary. an egg and tomato omelette beat the yolks of three eggs until light, then add three tablespoonfuls of water. beat the whites of the eggs separately. turn the stiffly-beaten whites of the eggs into the bowl containing the yolks of eggs and water. stir lightly together and add a pinch of salt. turn all into a small fry-pan containing a generous tablespoonful of butter and cook on top of stove until the eggs are set, then place the pan containing omelette in a hot oven and finish cooking. when cooked, turn out on a hot platter and spread over the top the following, which was prepared while the omelette was cooking. in a small fry-pan place a tablespoonful of finely-chopped bacon. when fried brown add half a small tomato, finely chopped, / of an onion, chopped fine, and a little chopped green pepper. cook all together for a short time and season with salt and pepper. after spreading the mixture on the omelette, fold over and serve on a hot platter. this recipe had been given frau schmidt years before by a friend and she used no other for making omelette. always make small omelettes. they are more satisfactory. use a small pan no larger than a small tea plate, and, if wished, make two small, rather than one large one. always serve immediately. mushroom omelette place the yolks of three eggs in a bowl and beat until light. add a teaspoonful of cream and / teaspoonful of flour mixed together; / cup of chopped mushrooms, salt and pepper and a dust of baking powder. lastly, the stiffly-beaten whites of the eggs. turn into a pan containing two tablespoonfuls of melted butter, stand on range a few minutes until eggs are set, then finish cooking in a hot oven. serve at once. a few cold, steamed mushrooms (left-overs), if finely chopped, and added to a plain omelette or roast, will improve the flavor. a clam omelette two eggs beaten separately, scant cup of milk, tablespoonful of flour, clams run through a food-chopper. place in a bowl the tablespoon of flour and mix smooth with a little of the milk. then add the two yolks of eggs and beat well together. add the milk, salt and pepper, the chopped clams, and lastly the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs, and add a trifle more flour, if necessary. drop a couple of tablespoons at a time in a large fry-pan containing a couple of tablespoons of butter or drippings. they spread out about the size of a small saucer. fry as many at a time as the pan will conveniently hold without running together. turn when browned lightly on one side, and when the other side has cooked fold together and serve at once. garnish with parsley. these are very easily made for luncheon, and are very nice served with fried chicken. deviled eggs boil half a dozen eggs until hard. remove shells, cut in halves, mash the yolks to a smooth paste with about / teaspoon mixed mustard, teaspoon softened butter, pepper and salt to taste. some like a small quantity of cold boiled minced ham added. when ingredients are well mixed, press enough of this mixture into the cup-shaped whites of eggs to form a rounding top. serve on a platter of parsley. to boil eggs uniformly, they should be placed in a wire basket and plunged into boiling water and boiled not longer than to minutes from time water commences to boil, then pour cold water over and shell them. eggs in cream sauce four eggs, boiled hard, cut in halves lengthwise, then across, each egg cut in four pieces. a cream sauce was made using / cups sweet milk, - / tablespoons flour, generous tablespoon of butter, seasoned with salt. after letting milk come to a boil and adding flour mixed smoothly with a little cold milk or water, add butter and cook until a thick creamy consistency, then add the quartered eggs to sauce. stand a few minutes until heated through. pour the creamed eggs over four or five slices of nicely-toasted bread. sprinkle a little finely-chopped parsley and a pinch of pepper over top and serve at once. this is a delicious and quickly prepared luncheon dish. a very wholesome and digestible way to prepare an egg is to put yolk and white of a fresh egg together in a bowl, beat lightly, pour over the egg a pint of rich milk, which has been heated to the boiling point. add a pinch of salt. stir constantly while slowly adding the milk. the hot milk should slightly cook the egg. eat slowly with crackers or toasted bread. aunt sarah's method of preserving eggs with liquid water glass aunt sarah for many years preserved eggs in water glass, or soluble glass, also known as "sodium silicate," a thick liquid about the consistency of molasses. it is not expensive and may easily be procured at any drug store. she used the water glass in the proportion of quarts of water to one pint of the water glass. the water glass, although in liquid form, is usually sold by the pound, and - / pounds equals one pint. the water should always he boiled and allowed to cool before combining with the water glass. she was particular to use none but perfectly clean, fresh eggs. she placed the eggs, narrow end down, in an earthenware crock which had been well scalded and cooled. when the water glass had been thoroughly mixed through the water she poured the mixture over the eggs in the crock. a stronger solution might be used to preserve the eggs, but aunt sarah declared she used eggs for baking cake which were good at the expiration of a year, which had been preserved in a mixture of quarts of water to a pint of water glass, and she considered this proportion perfectly reliable. so i do not see the need of using a large quantity of the water glass, although many recipes call for a mixture of one pint of water glass to only quarts of water. fresh eggs may be added daily until the crock is filled, having the mixture at least one inch above the last layer of eggs. it is best not to wash the eggs before packing, as this removes the natural mucilaginous coating on the outside of the shell. place clean, fresh eggs carefully into the crock containing the water glass and water, with a long-handled spoon to avoid cracking the shell. stand the crock containing eggs in a cool place, cover with a cloth tied over top of crock, avoiding frequent change of temperature; they should keep one year. the water glass solution may become cloudy, and resemble a soft-soap mixture, but this is a natural condition and does not affect the eggs. april is considered the best month for packing eggs. infertile eggs are to be preferred to others. carefully remove the eggs from the water glass mixture with a long-handled spoon when wanted to use, as the shells are sometimes not quite as hard as when placed in the crock. the eggs may be used for cooking, baking, in fact, for any purpose except soft-boiled but should you wish to boil them, a tiny puncture should be made in the shell of these eggs before boiling. ten quarts of water to one pint of water glass will cover about or dozen eggs. to test fresh eggs. place an egg in a tumbler, fill tumbler with cold water. if eggs are fresh they will remain in the bottom of tumbler. if not strictly fresh the egg will float on the top, or near the top of tumbler of water. salads--aunt sarah's salad dressing for this she used pint of sour cream, - / tablespoonfuls of flour, - / tablespoonfuls of mustard (pulverized dry mustard), eggs, / cup butter (or / cup of olive oil may be used instead, if liked), / cup good sour vinegar, / teaspoonful of black pepper and a pinch of red pepper (cayenne), salt to taste, / teaspoonful of sugar. place in a bowl the - / tablespoonfuls of flour with the same quantity of mustard; mix smoothly with a little of the sour cream. then add the eggs, beaten in one at a time, or use, instead, the yolks of five eggs. when using the whites for angel cake or any white cake aunt sarah usually made salad dressing from the remaining yolks of eggs. add the sour cream and vinegar, salt and pepper. mix all well together and strain through a fine sieve and cook in a double boiler over hot water until a creamy consistency. pour in glass jars. this dressing will keep well on ice or in a cool place for two weeks. if too thick, thin with a little vinegar, water or milk when using it. about / of a cup of this dressing was used for mixing with cup of the meat of cold, cooked chicken in making chicken salad. the white meat of chicken was cut in dice and / cup of celery was also cut in small pieces, a couple of hard boiled eggs, cut in dice, were added and the whole was carefully mixed with the salad dressing. cold boiled veal or pork may be used instead of chicken for salad. potato salad was sometimes prepared by using a small quantity of this dressing, adding, also, minced onion, parsley and celery. hot slaw was prepared by heating a couple of tablespoonfuls of the salad dressing and mixing with shredded cabbage. or use as a dressing for lettuce when not served "au natural" with olive oil and vinegar at the table. should very _thick_, sour cream be used in making "aunt sarah's salad dressing," use a mixture of sour cream and sweet milk, instead of all sour cream. "dutch" cucumber salad thinly slice one large green cucumber and one medium-sized onion (if liked). sprinkle over about one teaspoonful of salt. allow to stand a short time, then place in a piece of cheese-cloth and squeeze out all the moisture possible. place cucumbers, when drained, in the dish in which they are to be served, add a couple tablespoonfuls of sour vinegar, mix well. then pour over enough thick sour cream to half cover and a dust of pepper. cucumbers are considered less unwholesome, prepared in this manner. carrot salad aunt sarah pared and cut - / cups of uncooked carrots in thin strips, not much larger than common match sticks, and cooked in salted water until tender. when drained, pour over them a couple of tablespoonfuls of vinegar. allowed to stand until cold. when ready to prepare the salad she drained off vinegar remaining. lined a salad bowl with lettuce leaves or parsley, placed inside this a border of halved or sliced cold hard-boiled eggs; mixed the carrots lightly with salad dressing, placed them in the centre of the bowl and served ice cold. this is a particularly delicious, as well as an appetizing looking, salad. i have never eaten this elsewhere than at aunt sarah's home. "an old recipe" for chicken salad two dressed chickens were cooked tender. when cold, meat was removed from bones and cut in dice (not too fine). cut half the amount of celery you have of meat into small pieces. dressing for salad was composed of the following: three well-beaten yolks of eggs. pour over these pint of boiling hot cider vinegar, stand on back of range to thicken. place in a bowl freshly boiled and finely mashed white potatoes, add tablespoonful of dry mustard, teaspoonfuls of olive oil, tablespoonful of salt, tablespoonful of pepper. mix all well together, then add the thickened vinegar. beat together until creamy and stand aside until chilled. drop the three whites of eggs in hot water, remove when cooked, chop fine and when cold add to the chicken meat and celery. pour the dressing over all the ingredients, stir lightly with a fork and stand in a cold place until chilled before serving. german potato salad boil one dozen small potatoes without paring. remove the skin and cut potatoes size of dice, also a small onion, finely minced. put small pieces of bacon in a pan and fry brown and crisp. add a large tablespoonful of vinegar and a pinch of salt. pour the hot bacon fat and vinegar over the diced potatoes, toss them up lightly with a fork and serve hot. german turnip salad this is the manner in which aunt sarah made turnip salad: she pared and sliced thin on a slaw cutter large, solid turnips, put them in a stew-pan which she placed on the range, adding about / cup hot water, teaspoonful of butter and / teaspoonful of sugar (no more). she covered the stew-pan closely and steamed about half an hour until the turnips were tender. then mixed together teaspoonful of flour with tablespoonful of vinegar and yolk of one egg. this was poured over the stewed turnips, just allowed to come to a boil, then removed from the fire. add a little salt and serve hot. german salad dressing for dandelion, watercress, endive or lettuce, a dressing was made thus: the leaves of vegetables used for salad, after being carefully rinsed and looked over, were cut fine, and the following dressing poured over hot and served at once. a small quantity of bacon was finely minced and fried crisp. to about tablespoonfuls of bacon and fat after being fried, tablespoonfuls of vinegar and of sour cream, were added pepper and salt and a very little flour mixed with cold water, to make it the consistency of cream. the yolk of one raw egg may be added to the dressing if liked. an easier way for the busy housewife to do is to simply add a couple of tablespoonfuls of aunt sarah's salad dressing, add also a small quantity of water, flour and fried, diced bacon; serve hot at once. mary's potato salad a bowl of cold, boiled, diced or thinly-sliced potatoes, three hard boiled eggs, also diced, and about half the quantity of celery chopped in half-inch pieces, and a little minced onion, just enough to give a suspicion of its presence. she mixed all together lightly with a silver fork and mixed through some of the following salad dressing, which is fine for anything requiring a cold salad dressing. mary's salad dressing one tablespoonful of flour, tablespoonful of mustard, cups of sweet or sour cream, tablespoonful of sugar, / cup of good sharp vinegar, yolks of four eggs, small teaspoonful of salt. omit sugar when using the dressing for potato or chicken salad. this salad dressing may also be used for lettuce. "fruit" salad dressing three tablespoonfuls of olive oil to - / tablespoonfuls of vinegar. season with salt and pepper. use this quantity for pint of salad. grape fruit salad cut the pulp from one grape fruit into small pieces, add an equal amount of chopped apples, a few english walnuts chopped coarsely. serve on lettuce leaves with fruit salad dressing. this recipe was given mary by a friend who knew her liking for olive oil. grape fruit is delicious, served cut in halves with the addition to each half; of a couple tablespoonfuls of pineapple juice, a tablespoonful of orange juice or tiny pieces of orange pulp, topped with a marachino cherry. a small quantity of sugar should have been added. the sections of grape fruit should each have been cut loose from the white skin inclosing pulp with a small knife or scissors. a good, inexpensive salad dressing tablespoonful flour. tablespoonful butter. tablespoonful mustard. / tablespoonful sugar. teaspoonful salt. egg. / cup milk. / cup vinegar. use a double boiler, put in it the first five articles, stir together until smooth; add the well-beaten egg and the milk. let cook, stirring hard. then add vinegar, and beat all with an egg-beater until the mixture is smooth and creamy. let cool before using. aunt sarah frequently used this salad dressing over sliced, cold, hard boiled eggs when other salad materials were not plentiful. serve on lettuce leaves. imitation lobster salad a bowl was lined with crisp lettuce leaves, over this was spread a layer of cold boiled potatoes, cut in dice, a little finely minced onion, a layer of chopped celery, another layer of diced potatoes, then a layer of sliced tomatoes and one hard boiled egg, thinly sliced. pour a good salad dressing over and serve ice cold. "german" horseradish sauce a sauce to serve with boiled meat was prepared by aunt sarah in the following manner: she put half a cup of milk in a stew-pan, let come to a boil, added one large tablespoonful of cracker crumbs, large teaspoonful of butter, large tablespoonfuls of freshly grated horseradish, seasoned with pepper and salt. also a pinch of salt, sugar and pepper added to grated horseradish, then thinned with vinegar, is an excellent accompaniment to cold meat. mayonnaise dressing in which olive oil is used before making this dressing for salads, mary placed a large soup plate or a shallow bowl in the refrigerator, also a bottle of olive oil and two egg yolks. all should be quite cold. put the yolks on the cold plate, add / teaspoonful of salt, the same of mustard. mix well and then, with a fork, stir or blend the olive oil into it drop by drop. after about / cup of oil has been blended in, add lemon juice, a drop or two at a time. then more oil, and when it becomes very thick add more lemon juice. a pint or even more oil may, with care, be blended into two yolks. care must be taken not to mix oil in too fast, or the egg and oil will separate, making a mixture resembling curdled custard. if this should happen, take another plate, another egg yolk, and begin over again, blending a drop or two at a time in the curdled mixture. then add more oil and lemon juice as before. mustard dressing to serve with sliced tomatoes two tablespoonfuls mustard, tablespoonful of sugar, / cup cream, tablespoon salt, yolks of two eggs and / cup of vinegar. beat all well together, first mixing the mustard until smooth with a small quantity of cream, then add the other ingredients. (mary used only tablespoonful of mustard, and substituted tablespoonful of flour instead of the second tablespoonful of mustard and thought it improved the dressing.) this mustard dressing may also be served at table, to be eaten with lettuce. chicken salad the meat of one boiled chicken cut in small pieces, three-fourths as much celery, also cut in small pieces. three hard boiled eggs cut in dice. take teaspoonfuls salt, teaspoonfuls pepper, teaspoonfuls mustard, cup of sweet cream and raw egg. use vinegar to thin the mustard. beat the raw egg, add to cream, egg and butter (mash yolks of hard boiled eggs and butter together). mix all the ingredients together and cook until it thickens (all except chicken meat, celery and hard boiled whites of eggs, which should be placed in a large bowl after cutting in small pieces). the salad dressing should he put in another bowl and stood on ice until cold, then mix the salad dressing carefully through the chicken meat, celery, etc., one hour before using. cover with a plate until ready to serve. or "aunt sarah's salad dressing" could be used over the chicken, celery, etc. this is a very old but an excellent recipe used by aunt sarah's mother for many years. pepper hash chop fine with a knife, but do not shred with a slaw cutter, pint of finely chopped cabbage, adding teaspoonful of salt, teaspoonfuls of sugar, teaspoonful of whole mustard seed, / a chopped red, sweet pepper, a pinch of red cayenne pepper and / pint of vinegar. mix all well together and serve with fried oysters, oyster stew and deviled oysters. this "pepper hash" is delicious if a couple tablespoonfuls of thick cream be added just before serving. should very sour cider vinegar be used in this recipe, the housewife will, of course, dilute it with water. german bean salad use small green or yellow string-beans, which snap when broken, called by some "snap beans." string them carefully. (if quite small and tender this should not be necessary.) rub well with the hands through several waters. this removes the strong bean taste. have your kettle half filled with boiling water on the range over a brisk fire. put a tablespoon of butter in the water, add beans by handfuls until all are in and cook until tender. turn the beans in a colander to drain. when cool add a chopped onion, salt and pour enough good vinegar over to cover, and allow to stand two days, when strain vinegar from beans. boil vinegar, add water if vinegar is quite sour and pour hot over the beans. fill quart glass jars with the beans and pour vinegar over, within an inch of top of jar; pour pure olive oil over top of beans, screw on jar covers tightly and stand in a cool place until wanted to use. in the winter, when fresh salads were scarce, aunt sarah opened a can of these beans. if they were very sour she poured cold water over, allowed to stand an hour, drained and added a little fresh olive oil. every one called her "bean salat," as the pennsylvania germans call it, delicious. the instructions regarding the preparing and cooking of string beans for salad will answer for beans used as a vegetable, omitting vinegar, of course. there is a great difference in the manner of cooking vegetables. aunt sarah always added an onion and a sprig of parsley when cooking beans to serve as a vegetable. meat salads to quote from the _farmers' bulletin_: "whether meat salads are economical or not depends upon the way in which the materials are utilized. if in chicken salad, for example, only the white meat of chicken, especially bought for the purpose, and only the expensive inside stems of expensive celery are used, it can hardly be cheaper than plain chicken. but, if portions of meat left over from a previous serving are mixed with celery grown at home, they certainly make an economical dish, and one very acceptable to most persons. cold roast pork or tender veal, in fact, any white meat, can be utilized in the same way. apples cut into cubes may be substituted for part of the celery. many cooks consider that with the apple the salad takes the dressing better than with the celery alone. many also prefer to marinate (_i.e._, mix with a little oil and vinegar) the meat and celery or celery and apples before putting on the final dressing, which may be either mayonnaise or a good boiled dressing." celery should not be allowed to stand in water. to keep fresh until used it should be wrapped in a piece of damp cheese-cloth and placed in an ice box or cool cellar. lettuce should be broken apart, carefully rinsed, and put loosely in a piece of damp cheese-cloth and placed on ice to crisp before using. beverages--coffee scald coffee pot well before using (never use metal). place in it five tablespoons ground coffee. (a good coffee is made from a mixture of two-thirds java to one-third mocha.) beat up with the ground coffee one whole egg. should the housewife deem this extravagant, use only the white of one egg, or peel off the white skin lining inside of egg shells and use. add three tablespoons cold water and mix well together. stand on range to heat; when hot add one quart of _freshly-boiled_ hot water. allow coffee to boil to top of coffee pot three times (about eight minutes), pour over one tablespoon cold water to settle. stand a few minutes where it will keep hot, not boil. place a generous tablespoon of sweet thick cream in each cup and pour coffee through a strainer over it. always serve hot. a larger or smaller amount of coffee may be used, as different brands of coffee vary in strength and individual tastes differ, but five tablespoons of coffee, not too coarsely ground and not pulverized, to one quart of water, will be the correct proportions for good coffee. use cream and you will have a delicious, rich, brown beverage not possible when milk is used. better coffee may be made if whole grains of roasted coffee be bought, reheated in oven and freshly ground whenever used, rather finely ground but not pulverized. coffee, when ground for any length of time, loses strength. if coffee is ground when purchased, always keep it in closely covered cans until used. or buy green coffee berries and roast them in oven; when coffee has been roasted, stir one whole raw egg through the coffee berries; when dry, place in covered cans, then no egg will be needed when preparing coffee. as a substitute for cream, use yolk of fresh egg mixed with a couple tablespoonfuls of milk. cocoa mix four tablespoonfuls of cocoa to a smooth paste with one cup of boiling water. add one more cup boiling water and boil fifteen or twenty minutes. add four tablespoonfuls of sugar, then add cups of hot boiled milk. a few drops of essence of vanilla improves the flavor. add a couple tablespoonfuls whipped cream on top of each cup when serving, or, instead of cream, place a marshmallow in each cup before pouring in cocoa. this quantity is for six cups of cocoa. chocolate one square of baker's unsweetened chocolate shaved thinly or grated, mixed to a smooth paste with cup of boiling water. boil from fifteen to twenty minutes. add cup of boiling milk and even tablespoonfuls of sugar. flavor with a few drops of vanilla, if liked, and add whipped cream to each cup when serving. this is for cups of chocolate. boiled water it sometimes becomes necessary to boil drinking water, which usually has a flat, insipid taste. do young housewives know it is said that after water has been boiled and when quite cool if a bottle be half filled and shaken well the water will become aerated, and have the taste of fresh spring water? tea to make tea always scald the teapot, which should be agate, earthenware or china, never metal. always use water that has been _freshly_ boiled, and use it boiling hot. never, under any circumstances, boil tea, as tannin is then extracted from the leaves, and the tea will have a bitter taste. do not allow tea to stand any length of time unless strained from tea leaves. use one teaspoon of tea for each cup, unless liked stronger, when add one extra teaspoon to each three cups of tea. some contend that tea is better, if at first a small quantity of boiling water is poured over the leaves, allowing it to steep three minutes--then pour over the remaining quantity of boiling water and let stand about four minutes, when it is ready to serve with cream and sugar, if liked. should any tea remain after serving do not throw away, but strain at once from tea leaves and when cool place in a glass jar in refrigerator to be used as iced tea. iced tea for two quarts of delicious iced tea, place in an agate teapot one generous tablespoon of good tea (never buy a cheap, inferior grade of tea). pour over the tea leaves one quart of freshly boiled, scalding hot water; let stand five minutes, keep hot (not boil), strain from the leaves into a pitcher, then pour over the tea leaves another quart of hot water, allow it to stand a few minutes, then strain as before. add the juice of one lemon and sugar to taste. when cooled stand on ice and add chipped ice to tumblers when serving. puddings to boil a pudding in a bag, dip the bag, which should be made of thick cotton or linen, in hot water, dredge the inside well with flour before putting batter into the bag. when the pudding has boiled a long enough time, dip the bag quickly in cold water, and the pudding will turn out easily. allow five large eggs to quart of milk usually to make custard solid enough to keep its shape when turned from the mold. one teaspoonful of extract will flavor one quart. always stand individual cups in a pan partly filled with hot water. place pan containing custard cups in a moderate oven and bake slowly forty minutes. always sift flour over beef suet when chopping it to be used in puddings. pour boiling water over pecans (nuts), allow to stand several hours. when cracked, the shell may be easily removed, leaving the nuts whole. blanch almonds by pouring boiling water over them. allow them to stand a short time, when the brown skin may be easily removed. dry thoroughly by standing in a rather cool oven, then put in glass jars and they are ready to use. almonds are used particularly by the germans in various ways. one hausfrau adds chopped almonds to cooked oatmeal for her children's breakfast and they are frequently used as an ingredient; also to decorate the tops of raised cakes. when dried currants and raisins are bought by the frugal housewife they are quickly washed in cold water, carefully picked over, then turned on to a sieve to drain. raisins are seeded, then spread over pans, placed in a warm oven about minutes, then spread on a plate and allowed to stand in a dry place for several days. when thoroughly dried place in glass jars and stand aside until required. currants or raisins should always be well floured before adding to cake or pudding. the "german hausfrau" usually serves stewed prunes or raisins with a dish of noodles or macaroni. rice pudding one of the simplest and cheapest of desserts depends partly on the quality of the ingredients used, but chiefly on the manner of making for its excellence. if prepared according to directions, you will have a pudding both rich and creamy. use quart of good sweet milk (do not use either skimmed milk or water), tablespoonfuls of whole uncoated rice (no more), - / tablespoonfuls of sugar, pinch of salt, vanilla or almond flavoring. wash the rice well, mix all together in a pudding dish, bake from - / to hours in an oven with a slow, even heat. when a skin forms on the top of the pudding, carefully stir through the rice. do this frequently. this gives the pudding a rich, creamy consistency. when grains of rice are tender allow pudding to brown over top and serve either hot or cold. raisins may be added, if liked, or raisins may be stewed separately and served with the rice, which many think a great improvement to the pudding. many think rice pudding should always be flavored with grated nutmeg. aunt sarah, while using nutmeg flavoring in various other dishes, never used it for her rice pudding. when mixing a boiled pudding aunt sarah frequently substituted a large tablespoon of fine dried bread crumbs instead of the same amount of flour. she said, "'twas a small economy," and, she thought, "the pudding's improved" by the use of bread crumbs. frau schmidt's apple dumplings prepare a syrup of cup sugar, cups of hot water and tablespoon of butter. pour all into an agate pudding dish. add to this syrup heaping cups of pared, sliced sour apples. let all come to a boil. for the dumplings, sift together one cup of flour and two even teaspoons of baking powder. add a pinch of salt. mix into a soft dough or batter with about / cup of sweet milk or cream. drop six or eight spoonfuls of this batter into the boiling syrup on top of apples. cover closely and cook on top of range twenty minutes without uncovering. serve hot. these dumplings should be light as puff balls. peaches may be substituted for apples and are delicious. caramel custard (as mary prepared it) pint of milk. eggs. / cup granulated sugar. melt / cup of sugar in an iron pan on stove and allow it to brown. add a part of the hot milk, stirring constantly until brown sugar is dissolved. add balance of the pint of hot milk. stir all together, then stand aside to cool. when cold, add eggs and bake in oven in custard cups. stand cups in hot water while baking. aunt sarah's bread pudding pour quart of boiling milk over - / pints of soft bread crumbs. put the mixture into a buttered pudding dish with teaspoonful salt. cover closely with a plate and let stand about half an hour. at the end of that time beat into it three eggs, teaspoonful lemon extract, and beat until perfectly smooth. bake in a moderately hot oven three-quarters of an hour. serve with the following sauce: tablespoonfuls pulverized sugar, tablespoonfuls butter, tablespoonful lemon juice. beat all together to a cream; when it is ready to serve. no sugar is needed in this pudding if this sweet sauce is used. steamed bread pudding place cup of fine dried bread crumbs in a bowl. pour over the crumbs cups of milk and allow to stand a short time. beat together eggs and scant / cup sugar, add tablespoon of butter. mix all the ingredients together thoroughly; then add / cup of chopped raisins, which have been seeded and floured. pour the batter in the well-buttered top part of a double boiler over hot water. steam about - / to hours. serve hot with sauce used for cottage pudding, or serve with sugar and cream. an economical bread and apple pudding into a well-buttered pudding dish put a layer of sliced sour apples. on the top of these a layer of stale bread crumbs with small bits of butter and sugar sprinkled over them, more sliced apples and bread crumbs, having the crumbs for the top layer. to about three apples use cup of bread crumbs, / cup sugar, piece of butter size of walnut and bake in oven until apples are tender. serve with cream. cup custards quart of sweet milk. large eggs. tablespoons sugar. grated nutmeg or vanilla flavoring. scald milk. beat whites of eggs separately. add milk when cooled to the beaten yolks. add sugar and flavoring. stir in stiffly beaten whites of eggs, pour into custard cups, stand them in a dripping pan half filled with boiling water. stand the pan in a moderate oven about twenty minutes, or until custard is "set." this quantity fills about eight small custard cups. the water surrounding the custard cups should not be allowed to boil, but the custard should cook slowly. grate nutmeg thickly over top of each custard before placing in the oven. scalding the milk before using improves the custard. frau schmidt's graham pudding sift into a bowl / cup of pastry flour and teaspoonful of baking powder. add cup graham flour, pinch of salt and / cup granulated sugar. mix all thoroughly, then add / cup of finely chopped kidney suet. add cup of seedless raisins mixed with one extra tablespoonful of white flour. mix into a batter with cup of sweet milk, to which add yolk of one egg. lastly, add the stiffly beaten white of egg. flavor with either a little grated nutmeg or essence of vanilla. make a strong, unbleached muslin bag by inches. pour the batter into the bag, which had been previously dipped in cold water, the inside of the bag sifted over with flour, and tie bag at top with a string, allowing room for the pudding to swell. place the bag in the perforated compartment of a steamer, over boiling water, and boil continuously - / hours, or longer, without removing lid of steamer oftener than absolutely necessary. serve graham pudding hot with sauce used for "cottage pudding," or serve simply with sugar and cream, or a sauce may be served composed of / cup of pulverized sugar, creamed with / cup of butter. add tablespoonful of lemon juice or flavor with vanilla. stand sauce in a cool place a short time and serve cold on hot pudding. sponge bread pudding place - / cups of soft stale (either white or graham) bread crumbs in a pudding dish. pour cups of hot milk over the crumbs, cover with a plate and allow it to stand about thirty minutes, then add yolks of eggs, / teaspoonful of salt, tablespoonful of sugar and grated yellow rind of orange or lemon for flavoring. beat the mixture until perfectly smooth, add the stiffly beaten whites of two eggs. bake in a moderately hot oven. serve hot with the following sauce: sauce. three large tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar and tablespoonful of butter were beaten together until smooth and creamy, teaspoonful of lemon juice was added. the sauce, when quite cold, was served with the warm pudding. aunt sarah's cottage pudding cream together cup of sugar, tablespoonfuls of butter, egg, white beaten separately, and added last, cup of sweet milk, pinch of salt, cups of flour, sifted with heaping teaspoonfuls of royal baking powder, / cup of dried currants, well floured. add stiffly beaten white of egg. bake in a small oblong bread pan. sauce. one cup of milk, / cup of water, large teaspoonful of butter, a scant tablespoonful of flour moistened with a small quantity of water, before adding. sweeten to taste, add / teaspoonful of grated nutmeg. cook all together a few minutes, allow the mixture to partly cool, then stir in the yolk of one egg; stand on stove to heat, but not to cook. serve hot over freshly baked, warm cottage pudding, cut in squares. apple "strudel" aunt sarah pared and quartered six medium-sized tart apples, placed in the bottom of an agate pudding dish, poured over them one cup of hot water and tablespoonfuls of sugar. she allowed this to stand on the range and cook while she mixed the following dough. into a bowl she sifted pint of flour with teaspoons baking powder, one teaspoonful of sugar, a little salt. cut tablespoonful of butter through the flour. lightly mixed all together into a soft dough with about / cup sweet milk. should she have a left-over yolk of egg, that was added to the milk. she rolled dough out lightly on the bread board, cut vents in the crust to allow steam to escape and spread it over the top of the dish containing the hot apples; placed in a hot oven to bake until light brown on top. serve with sugar and cream. aunt sarah called this "apple strudel," but the german recipe for "apple strudel," handed down by her grandmother, was quite different. an ordinary noodle dough was made, placed on a clean cloth on the table and rolled as thin as tissue paper. small bits of butter were scattered over this, covered with tart apples, thinly sliced, sprinkled with cinnamon, sugar and chopped raisins, rolled up and baked in the oven until brown on top, basting frequently with a thin syrup composed of sugar, butter and water. "lemon meringue" pudding pint of milk. / cup of sugar cup bread crumbs. juice and grated rind of one lemon. eggs. / cup of butter. tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar used for top. soak the bread crumbs in milk. beat the butter and sugar together. add yolks of eggs, soaked bread crumbs and grated lemon rind and about / of the juice of the lemon. bake in a buttered pudding dish until firm, then cover the pudding with a meringue composed of the stiffly beaten whites of eggs, tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar and the remaining lemon juice. place in oven to brown. stand on ice; serve cold. suet pudding cup suet, chopped fine. cup sugar. cup sweet milk. eggs. teaspoonful cinnamon. cup raisins. cup currants. cups flour sifted with teaspoonfuls baking powder. steam - / hours, then place in oven two or three minutes. this quantity will partly fill three empty -pound baking powder cans; allowing room to swell. these puddings are equally as good as when freshly prepared if placed in a steamer a short time before serving until heated through. sauce for suet pudding. one cup of pulverized sugar and large tablespoonful of butter creamed together. one teaspoonful of vanilla. add one whole egg or the yolks of two eggs, or the whites of two eggs, whichever you happen to have. steamed fruit pudding cup sweet milk. cup chopped suet. cup molasses. cup raisins. teaspoonful soda dissolved in a little water. teaspoonful salt. sauce for pudding. a small quantity of cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and a _very little_ clove. flour to make a batter a little thicker than that of ordinary cake. steam about hours. this pudding is also inexpensive and equally as good as the former recipe. beat egg very light, add cup brown sugar, teaspoonful vanilla. beat all together until creamy. serve at once. cornmeal pudding scald quart of sweet milk. while hot stir in tablespoonfuls of cornmeal, tablespoonfuls of flour mixed smooth with a little cold milk. add tablespoonful of butter. let cool. then add to the mixture / cup sugar, / cup molasses, well-beaten egg, / teaspoonful of ginger, / teaspoonful cinnamon, / pint cold milk, a small pinch of soda and / cup of floured, seeded raisins. bake hours in a moderate oven. serve with sugar and cream. huckleberry pudding two eggs and small cup of granulated sugar creamed together. four tablespoonfuls of cold water. add cup of sifted flour containing teaspoonful of baking powder, and cup of huckleberries, pitted cherries, or raisins and bake. serve with milk or any sauce liked. this recipe was given mary by a friend, who called it her emergency pudding, as it may be easily and quickly prepared from canned sour cherries from which liquid has been drained, or any tart fruit, when fresh fruit is not in season. tapioca custard four tablespoonfuls of pearl tapioca soaked in cold water over night. the next morning drain the tapioca, boil quart of sweet milk, beat the yolks of eggs light, stir them into the tapioca, adding tablespoonfuls of sugar. beat all together and gradually add the hot milk. return to the fire and stir until it commences to boil. take from the range and pour in a glass dish. flavor with teaspoonful of vanilla. whip the whites of the eggs to a standing froth and stir into the cooling pudding when cold stand on ice until ready to serve. one-half cup of shredded cocoanut may be added if liked. delicious baked peach pudding for the dough place in a bowl pint of flour sifted with teaspoonfuls of royal baking powder and a pinch of salt. cut through this a scant / cup of butter. mix this with sufficient sweet milk to make a soft dough. roll out dough half an inch thick, cut in strips and in case whole, ripe, pared peaches, leaving top and bottom of the peach exposed. or solid canned peaches may be used. put two halves of peach together and place a strip of dough around the peach. pinch dough well together, place in a bake dish. prepare a syrup of cups of sugar and cup of water. let come to a boil, pour around the dumplings and bake a half hour in a moderately hot oven. these are delicious. the recipe was given mary by a friend who was an excellent cook. from this dough may also be baked excellent biscuits. caramel custard place pint of milk on the range in a double boiler. melt half a cup of sugar in an iron pan over the fire until a golden brown. when melted add four tablespoonfuls of boiling water. allow mixture to cook one minute, then add it to the milk. remove from the fire and add teaspoonful of vanilla. when cool stir in well-beaten eggs with tablespoonfuls of sugar. pour the mixture in a small pudding dish. stand in a pan of boiling water, place in oven to bake until a jelly-like consistency. when cooled serve plain or with whipped cream. "aunt sarah's" rhubarb pudding remove skin from stalks of rhubarb, wash and cut into half-inch pieces a sufficient quantity to half fill a medium-sized agate or earthenware pudding dish. place in a stew-pan on range, cook slowly with a couple tablespoons of sugar and a very small amount of water. sift together in a bowl pint of flour, - / teaspoons of baking powder and a pinch of salt. with a knife cut through the flour tablespoonfuls of butter, moisten with one beaten egg and sufficient milk added to make a soft dough or batter. drop tablespoons of this thick batter over top of dish containing hot stewed rhubarb. place at once in a hot oven, bake quickly until crust is a light brown. serve on individual dishes, placing over each a couple tablespoonfuls of the following sauce. the combined flavor of rhubarb and vanilla is delicious. vanilla sauce for rhubarb pudding. beat egg very light, add cup of light brown sugar and teaspoon of vanilla flavoring. beat all together until foamy. serve at once, cold, on the hot pudding. rice custard add cup of cold boiled rice to cups of sweet milk, mix together slowly. add / cup sugar, the well-beaten yolks of eggs, let all cook together a few minutes. remove custard from the fire and pour over the stiffly-beaten whites of two eggs. beat well with an egg-beater. place in a glass dish and serve cold. mary's cup pudding (from stale bread) one quart of finely _crumbled stale bread_ (not dried crumbs). fill buttered cups two-thirds full of crumbs and pour over the following custard, composed of one pint of milk and three eggs. allow to stand a few minutes, then place the cups in a pan partly filled with hot water, place the pan in a moderately hot oven and bake thirty minutes. no sugar is required in this pudding if the following sweet sauce be served with it: sauce for pudding. mix one tablespoonful of cornstarch with a half cup of sugar. pour over one cup of boiling water, add one generous teaspoonful of butter. cook all together until clear, take from the fire and add one well-beaten egg and one teaspoonful of vanilla. serve hot. "buckwheat minute" pudding pour three cups of milk in a stew-pan, place on range and let come to a boil. then stir slowly into the boiling milk - / cups of buckwheat flour and / teaspoonful of salt. keep stirring constantly until a thick mush. serve at once with sugar and cream. i have never eaten this pudding anywhere except in "bucks county." it is cheap, quickly and easily prepared and well liked by many country folk in bucks county. peach tapioca one cup of tapioca soaked in quart of cold water several hours. place in stew-pan, set on stove and cook until clear. add sugar to taste and pint can of peaches. boil two or three minutes, remove from range and pour into the dish in which it is to be served. stand aside to cool. aunt sarah's plain boiled pudding one cup of beef suet chopped fine or run through a food-chopper, / cup sour milk, egg, teaspoonful soda, pinch of salt. / cup sugar, teaspoonful cinnamon, cup raisins, seeded and floured. flour enough to make as stiff as ordinary cake batter. boil or steam in a muslin bag three hours. this is a very inexpensive and good pudding. dust a small quantity of flour over suet before chopping. serve with the following sauce: pudding sauce. one large tablespoonful of butter, teacup water, / teacup milk, scant tablespoonful of flour, grated nutmeg to flavor. sweeten to taste, add a pinch of salt. cook and let cool. beat up yolk of egg, add to sauce, stand on back of stove to heat, not cook. serve hot over the pudding. apple tapioca pour pint of cold water over / cup tapioca. allow to stand until the following morning, when cook until clean. slice tart apples. place in bottom of pudding dish, strew sugar over, then pour over the tapioca; place over this a layer of thinly sliced apples over which dust sugar. place in oven and bake until the apples are cooked. serve with sugar and cream. several thin slices of lemon added before baking impart a fine flavor. steamed walnut pudding place in a bowl / cup butter and cup of granulated sugar. beat to a cream. add yolks of eggs and / cup of syrup molasses or maple syrup, in which had been dissolved teaspoonful baking soda. then add cup sweet milk, alternately, with about - / cups flour, / cup of walnut meats, run through food-chopper or crushed with rolling pin, / cup of seeded raisins, / teaspoonful ground cinnamon, / teaspoonful grated nutmeg, / teaspoonful ground cloves, a pinch of salt and the stiffly beaten whites of the two eggs. the batter should be placed in two empty one-pound tin coffee cans, about two-thirds full, covered tightly with lid and placed in a pot of boiling water which should be kept boiling constantly for three hours; when steamed the pudding should almost fill the cans. if the cans were well buttered and flour sifted over, the pudding when steamed may be easily removed to a platter. slice and serve hot with the following sauce: beat one cup of pulverized sugar to a cream with heaping tablespoonfuls of butter. add white of one egg (unbeaten). beat all together until creamy. add / of a teaspoonful of lemon extract and stand sauce in a cold place or on ice one hour before serving on slices of hot pudding. this is a delicious pudding. "cornmeal sponge" pudding crumble cold corn muffins, or corn cake, a quantity sufficient to fill two cups. soak in quart of sweet milk three or four hours, then add well-beaten eggs, tablespoonfuls of sugar and a pinch of salt. beat all well together. place in a pan and bake hour in a moderately hot oven. serve hot with whipped cream and sugar or with a sauce made by beating to a cream a heaping tablespoonful of butter, cup of granulated sugar, egg and a very little vanilla flavoring. mary's corn starch pudding - / quarts of milk. eggs. heaping tablespoonfuls of corn starch. scant cup of sugar. teaspoonful of vanilla. pour milk in a double boiler and place on range to cook. moisten cornstarch with a little cold milk and add to remainder of the milk when boiling hot. stir thoroughly, then beat yolk of eggs and sugar until light, stir in stiffly beaten whites and when all are mixed stir into the scalding milk. let come to a boil again and add vanilla or almond flavoring. pour into individual molds to cool. serve cold with a spoonful of jelly or preserved strawberry with each serving. apple johnny cake (served as a pudding) this is a good, cheap, wholesome pudding. cup corn meal. tablespoonfuls of sugar. teaspoonful of soda. tablespoonful of melted butter. / teaspoonful of salt. / cup flour. cup sour milk. mix batter together as you would for cake, then add pared, thinly sliced, tart apples to the batter. stir all together. bake in a quick oven in a bread pan and serve hot with cold cream and sugar. raisins may be substituted for apples if preferred. a good and cheap "tapioca pudding" soak over night in cold water even tablespoonfuls of pearl tapioca. in the morning add tapioca to one quart of milk, tablespoonfuls of sugar, a pinch of salt. grate nutmeg over top. bake in a moderate oven about three hours, stirring occasionally. "gotterspeise" partly fill an earthenware pudding dish with pieces of sponge cake or small cakes called "lady fingers;" cut up with them a few macaroons. place one pint of wine over fire to heat, add to the wine the following mixture, composed of spoonful of cornstarch mixed smooth with a little water, yolks of eggs and spoonfuls of sugar. mix all together and stir until thickened. pour the thickened mixture over the cake. when cooled cover with the stiffly-beaten whites of the eggs, spread sliced almonds thickly over top and brown in oven a few minutes. serve cold. spanish cream half a box of knox gelatine, quart of milk, eggs. put gelatine in milk, let stand hour to dissolve. set over fire to boil, then add beaten yolks of eggs with cup granulated sugar. remove from fire while adding this. stir well. return to range and let boil. stand aside to cool. beat whites of eggs to a froth and beat into custard when cooled. pour into a glass dish in which it is to be served. stand in a cold place and serve with cream. graham pudding one cup of molasses, egg, cup sweet milk, / teaspoonful soda, teaspoonful of salt, tablespoonful brown sugar, cup raisins, - / cups graham flour. mix all ingredients together. steam three hours. "pennsylvania" plum pudding (for thanksgiving day) one cup milk, eggs, cup molasses, / teaspoonful nutmeg, / teaspoonful salt, teaspoonfuls baking powder, cup bread crumbs, / cup corn meal, cup chopped beef suet, / cup finely minced citron, cup seeded raisins, / cup currants. flour to make a stiff batter. steam fully three hours, turn from the mold, strew chopped almonds over top. serve pudding hot with sauce for which recipe is given. aunt sarah invariably served this pudding on thanksgiving day, and all preferred it to old-fashioned "english plum pudding." sauce for pudding. cream together cup of pulverized sugar, scant / cup of butter, beat whites of eggs in, one at a time, and one teaspoonful of lemon flavoring; stand on ice a short time before serving. serve sauce very cold. "slice" bread pudding line the sides of a pudding dish holding two quarts with seven slices of stale bread from which crust had been removed. beat together eggs, tablespoonfuls of sugar and cups of sweet milk (and add the juice and grated rind of one lemon, or half a grated nutmeg). pour in the centre of pudding dish. with a spoon dip some of the custard over each slice of bread. bake about minutes and serve hot with the following sauce: one cup of water, / cup milk, teaspoonful butter, scant tablespoonful of flour mixed smooth with a little water before adding it. sweeten to taste, add grated nutmeg or vanilla to flavor. cook all together, then add the yolk of one egg. place on stove a minute to heat. add a pinch of salt. serve hot over the pudding in individual dishes. cereals--oatmeal porridge oatmeal to be palatable and wholesome should be thoroughly cooked, that is, steamed over a hot fire two hours or longer. use a double boiler of agateware. place in the upper half of the boiler about cups of water and stand directly over the hottest part of the range. when the water boils furiously, and is full of little bubbles (not before), stir into the boiling water about cups of oatmeal (if porridge is liked rather thick), and about teaspoonful of salt. (tastes differ regarding the thickness of porridge.) let stand directly on the front of the range, stirring only enough to prevent scorching, and cook ten minutes, then stand upper part of double boiler over the lower compartment, partly filled with boiling water; cover closely and let steam from two to three hours. in order to have the oatmeal ready to serve at early breakfast the following morning, put oatmeal on to cook about five o'clock in the evening, while preparing supper, and allow it to stand and steam over boiling water until the fire in the range is dampened off for the night. allow the oatmeal to stand on range until the following morning, when draw the boiler to front part of range, and when breakfast is ready (after removing top crust formed by standing), turn the oatmeal out on a dish and serve with rich cream and sugar, and you will have a good, wholesome breakfast dish with the flakes distinct, and a nutty flavor. serve fruit with it, if possible. a good rule for cooking oatmeal is in the proportion of - / cups of water to cup of oatmeal. the cereals which come ready prepared are taking the place of the old-time standby with which mothers fed their growing boys. if you wish your boys to have muscle and brawn, feed them oats. to quote an old physician, "if horses thrive on oats, why not boys who resemble young colts?" for example, look at the hardy young scot who thrives and grows hearty and strong on his oatmeal "porritch." chopped almonds, dates or figs may be added to oatmeal to make it more palatable. use cup measuring / pint for measuring cereals as well as every other recipe calling for one cup in this book. cooked rice boil cup of whole, thoroughly cleansed, uncoated rice in quarts of rapidly boiling water (salted) about minutes, or until tender, which can be tested by pressing a couple of grains of rice between the fingers. do not stir often while boiling. when the rice is tender turn on to a sieve and drain; then put in a dish and place in the oven, to dry off, with oven door open, when the grains should be whole, flaky, white and tempting, not the soggy, unappetizing mass one often sees. serve rice with cream and sugar. some prefer brown sugar and others like crushed maple sugar with it. or rice may be eaten as a vegetable with salt and butter. rice is inexpensive, nutritious and one of the most easily digested cereals, and if rightly cooked, an appetizing looking food. it is a wonder the economical housewife does not serve it oftener on her table in some of the numerous ways it may be prepared. as an ingredient of soup, as a vegetable, or a pudding, croquettes, etc., the wise housekeeper will cook double the amount of rice needed and stand half aside until the day following, when may be quickly prepared rice croquettes, cheese balls, etc. on the day following that on which rice has been served, any cold boiled rice remaining may be placed in a small bake dish with an equal quantity of milk, a little sugar and flavoring, baked a short time in oven and served with a cup of stewed, seeded raisins which have slowly steamed, covered with cold water, on the back of the range, until soft and plump. corn meal mush place on the range a cook-pot containing cups of boiling water (good measure). sift in slowly cups of yellow granulated corn meal, stirring constantly while adding the meal, until the mixture is smooth and free from lumps. add - / level teaspoonfuls of salt and / teaspoonful of sugar, and cook a short time, stirring constantly, then stand where the mush will simmer, or cook slowly for four or five hours. serve hot, as a porridge, adding / teaspoonful of butter to each individual bowl of hot mush and serve with it cold milk or cream. should a portion of the mush remain after the meal, turn it at once, while still hot, in an oblong pan several inches in depth, stand until quite cold. cut in half-inch slices, sift flour over each slice and fry a golden brown in a couple tablespoonfuls of sweet drippings and butter. or dip slices of mush in egg and bread crumbs and fry brown in the same manner. some there are who like maple syrup or molasses served with fried mush. this proportion of corn meal and water will make porridge of the proper consistency and it will be just right to be sliced for frying when cold. long, slow cooking makes corn meal much more wholesome and palatable, and prevents the raw taste of cornmeal noticeable in mush cooked too quickly. the small quantity of sugar added is not noticed, but improves the flavor of the mush. macaroni in early spring, when the family tire of winter foods and it is still too early for vegetables from the home garden, and the high price of early forced vegetables in the city markets prevent the housewife, of limited means from purchasing, then the resourceful, economical housewife serves macaroni and rice in various ways and makes appetizing dishes of the fruits she canned and preserved for winter use, combined with tapioca and gelatine. milk and eggs tide her over the most difficult time of the year for young, inexperienced cooks. when the prices of early vegetables soar beyond the reach of her purse, then she should buy sparingly of them and of meat, and occasionally serve, instead, a dish of macaroni and cheese, or rice and cheese, and invest the money thus saved in fruit; dried fruits, if fresh fruits are not obtainable. macaroni is such a nutritious food that it should be used frequently by the young housewife as a substitute for meat on the bill of fare. also occasionally serve a dish of baked beans or a dish composed of eggs, or milk combined with eggs, instead of the more expensive meat dish, all equally useful as muscle-builders, and cheaper than meat. the wise housewife will learn which foods furnish heat for the body and those which produce fat and energy, and those which are muscle-builders, and endeavor to serve well-balanced meals of the foods belonging to the three classes and thus with fruit and vegetables she will make wise provision for her family. baked macaroni and cheese put cups or / pound of macaroni (either the long sticks broken in pieces or the "elbow" macaroni, as preferred) in a kettle holding several quarts of rapidly boiling, salted water, and cook about minutes, or until tender. drain in a colander and allow cold water to run over it for several seconds. this prevents the macaroni sticking together. place the macaroni in a buttered baking dish and pour over a hot "cream sauce" composed of cup of milk and cup of water, tablespoonfuls of flour, even tablespoonfuls of butter and a pinch of salt. (too much salt is apt to curdle the milk.) spread over the top of macaroni about tablespoonfuls of grated cheese, or, if preferred, sprinkle over the top tablespoonfuls of well-seasoned dried bread crumbs and small bits of butter. stand the bake-dish containing the macaroni in a hot oven ten or fifteen minutes, until lightly browned on top. serve hot in the dish in which it was baked. stewed tomatoes are a nice accompaniment to this dish. double the quantity of macaroni may be cooked at one time and a part of it kept on ice; the following day serve in tomato sauce, thus utilizing any left-over tomatoes. the macaroni may be cooked while the housewife is using the range, early in the morning. drain the macaroni in a colander and stand aside in a cool place. it may be quickly prepared for six o'clock dinner by pouring over a hot cream sauce and grated cheese and quickly browning in the oven. or the macaroni, when cooked tender in salt water, may be quickly served by pouring over it a hot cream sauce, before the macaroni has become cold. serve at once. housewives should be particular when buying macaroni to get a brand made from good flour. cakes--cake-making sift flour and baking powder together several times before adding to cake batter. aunt sarah usually sifted flour and baking powder together four times for cakes. flour should always be sifted before using. baking powder should be sifted through the flour dry. salaratus (or baking soda) should, usually, be dissolved before using in a teaspoonful of hot water, unless stated otherwise. cream of tartar should be sifted with the flour. flour should be added gradually and batter stirred as little as possible afterwards, unless directions are given to the contrary. much beating after flour has been added is apt to make cake tough. cake will be lighter if baked slowly at first after it has raised increase heat slowly so it will brown nicely on top. the batter, if heated slowly, will rise evenly. this does not mean a cool oven. to prevent cakes sticking to pans, grease pans well with lard, and sift a little flour lightly over pan. use baking powder with sweet milk. saleratus is always used with sour milk. use teaspoonful of saleratus to pint of sour milk. cream of tartar and saleratus combined may be used with sweet milk instead of baking powder. one heaping teaspoonful of royal baking powder is equivalent to teaspoonful of cream of tartar and / teaspoonful of saleratus combined. either baking powder or a combination of saleratus and cream of tartar may be used in a cake in which sweet milk is used. usually take - / to scant teaspoonfuls of baking powder to two cups of flour. saleratus should be used alone with sour milk. put baking molasses in a stew-pan over fire and allow it to just come to boil; cool before using it. it will not sour as quickly in warm weather, and the cake baked from it will have a better flavor. the cup used in measuring ingredients for cakes holds exactly one-half pint. all cakes are improved by the addition of a pinch of salt. when lard is used instead of butter, beat to a cream and salt well. in mixing cakes, beat butter and sugar together until light and creamy, then add the beaten yolks of eggs, unless stated otherwise as for angel cake, etc., then the flavoring, then mix in the flour and liquid alternately. the baking powder, flour and salt should have been sifted together three or four times before being added. lastly, fold in lightly the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. fruit well dredged with flour should be added last, if used. cool the oven if too hot for baking cakes by placing a pan containing cold water in the top rack of oven. sponge cake particularly is improved by doing this, as it makes the cake moist. stir sponge cake as little as possible after adding flour, as too much stirring then will make cake tough. sift flour several times before using for sponge cake, as tins causes the flour to become lighter. layer cake, and most small cakes, require a quick oven. the oven door should not be opened for minutes after cake has been placed in oven. rich cakes, loaf cakes and fruit cakes must bake long and slowly. the richer the cake, the slower the heat required in baking. to test the oven, if the hand can bear the heat of the oven or seconds, the oven then is the right temperature. after placing a loaf cake in oven do not open the oven door for minutes. if oven be not hot enough, the cake will rise, then fall and be heavy. angel cake, sunshine cake and sponge cake require a moderate oven. raisins and dried currants should be washed and dried before using in cake. all fruit should be dredged with flour before being added to cake. citron may be quickly and easily prepared by cutting on a slaw cutter or it may be grated before being added to cake. when a recipe calls for butter the size of an egg it means two tablespoonfuls. a tablespoonful of butter, melted, means the butter should be measured first, then melted. aunt sarah frequently used a mixture of butter and lard in her cakes for economy's sake, and a lesser quantity may be used, as the shortening quality of lard is greater than that of butter. when substituting lard for butter, she always beat the lard to a cream before using it and salt it well. if raisins and currants are placed in oven of range a few minutes to become warmed before being added to cake, then rolled in flour, they will not sink to bottom of cake when baked. frau schmidt's lemon cake - / cups sugar. / cup butter and lard. small eggs or large ones. / cup sweet milk. cups flour. / teaspoonful saleratus. teaspoonful cream of tartar. grated yellow rind and juice of half a lemon. beat sugar and butter to a cream and add the yolks of eggs. add the milk, then the flour and cream of tartar and saleratus; and the flavoring. lastly, the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. this makes one loaf cake. the original of this recipe was a very old one which frau schmidt had used many years. every ingredient in the old recipe was doubled, except the eggs, when five were used. mary thought this cake fine and from the recipe, when she used half the quantity of everything, she baked a fine loaf cake, and from the original recipe was made one good sized loaf and one layer cake. thinly sliced citron added to this cake is a great improvement. fine "krum kuchen" one cup sugar, / cup butter and lard, mixed; cups flour and teaspoonfuls of baking powder, eggs, / cup sweet milk. crumb together with the hands the sugar, butter, flour and baking powder sifted together. take out / cup of these crumbs to be scattered over top of cake. to the remainder add the yolks of the eggs, well beaten, and the sweet milk, and lastly the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. put the mixture in a well-greased pan (a deep custard pie tin will answer), scatter the half cup of crumbs reserved over top of cake and bake about / of an hour in a rather quick oven. when cake is baked, sprinkle over teaspoonful of melted butter and dust top with cinnamon. aunt sarah's "quick dutch cakes" she creamed together cup of sugar, tablespoonful of lard, tablespoonful of butter and added - / cups of luke-warm milk. add cups flour (good measure), sifted with three scant teaspoonfuls of baking powder. add a half cup of raisins, seeded and cut in several pieces, if liked, but the cakes are very good without. spread in two pans and sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on top and press about five small dabs of butter on top of each cake. put in oven and bake at once. these are a very good substitute for "raised dutch cakes," and are much more quickly and easily-made and, as no eggs are used, are quite cheap and very good. a reliable layer cake - / cups granulated sugar. eggs. / cup butter and lard mixed. (use all butter if preferred.) / cup sweet milk. cups flour sifted with teaspoonfuls royal baking powder. cream together sugar and shortening. add yolks of eggs, beating well, as each ingredient is added. then add milk and flour alternately, and lastly the stiffly beaten white of eggs. stir all together. bake in two square layer pans, and put together with chocolate or white icing. or ice the cakes when cold and cut in squares. boiled icing boil together cup of granulated sugar and tablespoonfuls boiling water ten or twelve minutes, or until a small quantity dropped from spoon spins a thread. stir this into the stiffly-beaten white of one egg until thick and creamy. flavor with lemon, almond or vanilla flavoring and spread on cake. dip knife in hot water occasionally when spreading icing on cake. a delicious icing is composed of almonds blanched and pounded to a paste. add a few drops of essence of bitter almonds. dust the top of the cake lightly with flour, spread on the almond paste and when nearly dry cover with ordinary icing. dry almonds before pounding them in mortar, and use a small quantity of rose water. a few drops only should be used of essence of bitter almonds to flavor icing or cake. a pinch of baking powder added to sugar when making boiled icing causes the icing to become more creamy, or add a pinch of cream of tartar when making boiled icing. or, when a cake iced with "boiled icing" has become cold, spread on top of icing unsweetened, melted chocolate. this is a delicious "cream chocolate icing." a delicious "spice layer cake" cups light brown sugar. cup chopped raisins. eggs. cup sour milk. / cup butter. cups flour. teaspoonful each of soda, cloves, cinnamon, allspice and a little grated nutmeg. cream sugar and butter together, add yolks of eggs, then the sour milk in which the soda has been dissolved, flour and spices, and lastly stir in the stiffly beaten white of eggs. bake in two-layer pans. icing two cups sugar, / cup of milk or cream, tablespoonfuls of butter. boil until it forms a soft ball when a small quantity is dropped in water, and flavor with vanilla. beat until cold and spread between layers of cake. also on top and sides. an inexpensive cocoa cake this is a decidedly good cake and no eggs are required. cream together cup brown sugar, / cup butter. add cup of sour milk, - / cups flour, then sift over - / tablespoonfuls of cocoa. add level teaspoonful saleratus, dissolved in a little of the sour milk, and teaspoonful vanilla. bake in a small loaf. use the following icing: / cup of grated chocolate, / cup milk, / cup sugar, boiled together until thick, and spread on cake. aunt sarah's walnut gingerbread / cup of new orleans molasses. cup of light brown sugar. / cup of shortening (composed of butter, lard and sweet drippings). / teaspoonful of ginger, cinnamon and cloves each. teaspoonfuls of baking soda (saleratus), sifted with - / cups flour. cup boiling water. eggs. beat to a cream the sugar and shortening in a bowl; add molasses, then pour over all one cup of boiling water. beat well. add flour, soda and spices, all sifted together. beat into this the two unbeaten eggs (one at a time), then add about / of a cup of coarsely chopped _black walnut_ meats or the same quantity of well-floured raisins may be substituted for the walnut meats. the cakes may be baked in muffin pans. in that case fill pans about two-thirds full. the above quantity makes eighteen. they can also be baked in a pan as a loaf cake. this cake is excellent, and will keep fresh several days. these cakes taste similar to those sold in an atlantic city bake-shop which have gained a reputation for their excellence. aunt sarah's "german crumb cakes" baked in crusts cups flour. - / heaping teaspoonfuls baking powder. cups sugar (soft a or light brown). / cup lard and butter mixed. eggs. cup sweet milk. pinch of salt. flavoring--vanilla or grated orange rind. line three small pie tins with pie crust. sift together into a bowl the flour and baking powder and add light brown or a sugar, and the butter, lard and salt. rub this all together with the hands until well mixed and crumbly. take out cupful of these crumbs and stand aside. add to the rest of the mixture the yolks of eggs, whites being beaten separately and added last. add slowly cup of sweet milk. mix it in gradually until the mixture is creamed, then add a small quantity of grated orange peel, lemon or vanilla flavoring. lastly, stir in the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. pour the mixture into each one of the three unbaked crusts, then sprinkle the cup of crumbs thickly over the tops. bake in a moderate oven. these are very good, cheap cakes for breakfast or lunch. "sour cream" molasses cake / cup molasses. cup sugar. / cup thick sour cream. / cup sour milk. / cup finely chopped peanuts. egg. teaspoonful soda dissolved in little hot water. - / cups flour. cup seeded raisins. mix together like ordinary cake. bake in a fruit cake pan in a slow oven about forty minutes. this excellent cake requires no shortening, as cream is used. economy cake egg. cup sweet milk. cup granulated sugar. cups flour. / cup butter. teaspoonfuls baking powder. cream together sugar and yolk of egg, then beat into this mixture the butter and add the milk. then stir the flour, a small quantity at a time, into the mixture, keeping it smooth and free from lumps. add the stiffly beaten white of egg. use any flavoring or spice preferred. bake in a quick oven. this is not simply a very cheap cake, but a decidedly good one, and made from inexpensive materials. follow the recipe exactly or the cake may be too light and too crumbly if too much baking powder is used, or heavy if too much butter is used. by varying the flavor and baking in different forms it is as good as a number of more expensive recipes. it makes three layers of any kind of layer cake, or bake in gem pans. ginger cake / cup brown sugar. egg. / cup lard. large cups flour. / cup new orleans molasses. tablespoonfnl of ginger. teaspoonful soda dissolved in half cup lukewarm water. beat sugar and lard to a cream, then beat in the yolk of egg, molasses and flour and soda dissolved in water. lastly, add the stiffly-beaten white of egg. bake minutes in hot oven. a very economical german clove cake place in a stew-pan the following ingredients: cup brown sugar. cup cold water. cups seeded raisins. / cup sweet lard, or a mixture of lard and butter. / grated nutmeg. teaspoonfuls cinnamon. / teaspoonful ground cloves. pinch of salt. boil all together three minutes. when cold add i teaspoonful of soda dissolved in a little hot water. add about - / cups flour sifted with / teaspoonful of baking powder. bake in a loaf in a moderately hot oven about thirty minutes. this cake is both good and economical, as no butter, eggs or milk are used in its composition. the recipe for making this excellent, cheap cake was bought by aunt sarah at a "cake and pie" sale. she was given permission to pass it on. icing. small cup pulverized sugar. tablespoonfuls of cocoa. mix smooth with a very little boiling water. spread over cake. cake icing for various cakes cook together cups of granulated sugar, - / cups of water a little less than minutes. just before it reaches the soft ball stage, beat in quickly marshmallows; when dissolved and a thick, creamy mass, spread between layers and on top of cake. this is a delicious creamy icing when made according to directions. if sugar and water be cooked one minute too long, the icing becomes sugary instead of creamy. one-half the above quantity will ice the top of a cake nicely. mary's recipe for "hot milk" sponge cake for this cake was used: cups granulated sugar. eggs. - / cups flour. - / teaspoonfuls of baking powder. cup boiling hot milk. separate the eggs, place yolks in a bowl, add the sugar and beat until creamy. add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs alternately with the sifted flour and baking powder; lastly add the cup of boiling hot milk; should the milk not be rich, add one teaspoon of butter to the hot milk. the cake batter should be thin as griddle cake batter, pour into a tube pan and place at once in a _very moderate_ oven; in about minutes increase the heat and in about minutes more the cake, risen to the top of pan, should have commenced to brown on top. bake from to minutes more in a moderately hot oven with steady heat; when baked the top of the cake should be a light fawn color and texture of cake light and fine grained. mary was told by her aunt that any sponge cake was improved by the addition of a teaspoon of butter, causing the sponge cake to resemble pound cake in texture. cheap "molasses ginger bread" cup new orleans molasses. cup sugar. / cup shortening (lard and butter mixed). cup hot water. large teaspoonful soda dissolved in the one cup of hot water. teaspoonful of ginger. / teaspoonful of cinnamon. quart of flour. stir sugar and shortening together. add molasses, beat all thoroughly, then add hot water and flour. stir hard. bake in two layer pans in quick oven about minutes. use cake while fresh. aunt sarah's extra fine large sponge cake cups granulated sugar. - / cups of flour. / cup of boiling water. large eggs. even teaspoonfuls baking powder. teaspoonful lemon juice. put whites of eggs in a large mixing bowl and beat very stiff. add sugar (sifted times), then add the well-beaten yolks, flour (sifted times with baking powder), add lemon juice. lastly, add the hot water. bake about minutes in a tube pan in a moderately hot oven with a steady heat. stand a pan of hot water in the upper rack of oven if the oven is quite hot. it improves the cake and causes it to be more moist. this is an excellent sponge cake and easily made, although the ingredients are put together the opposite way cakes are usually mixed, with the exception of angel cake. when this cake was taken from oven, powdered sugar was sifted thickly over the top. use cup holding / pint, as in all other cake recipes. angel cake--aunt sarah's recipe mary was taught by her aunt, when preparing a dish calling for yolks of eggs only, to place the white of eggs not used in a glass jar which she stood in a cold place or on ice. when she had saved one even cupful she baked an angel cake over the following recipe: one heaping cup of pulverized sugar (all the cup will hold), was sifted times. one cup of a mixture of pastry flour and corn starch (equal parts) was also sifted times. the whole was then sifted together times. the one cupful of white of eggs was beaten very stiff. when about half beaten, sprinkle over the partly-beaten eggs one scant teaspoonful of cream of tartar, then finish beating the whites of eggs. flavor with almond or vanilla. then carefully sift into the stiffly beaten whites of eggs sugar, flour and corn starch. fold into the whites of eggs rather than stir. aunt sarah always baked this cake in a small, oblong bread pan. this cake should be baked in a _very_ moderate oven, one in which the hand might be held without inconvenience while counting one hundred; the oven should be just hot enough for one to know there was fire in the range. do not open the oven door for minutes, then increase the heat a little; if not too hot, open the oven door a moment to cool and bake slowly for about minutes. aunt sarah's good and cheap "country fruit cake" cup butter and lard, mixed. eggs. cup new orleans molasses. cup sour milk. pound dried currants. / pound thinly sliced citron. teaspoonfuls baking soda. cups flour. pounds raisins, seeded. a little grated nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and a very small quantity of cloves. bake in one large fruit cake pan or in two good sized pans about - / hours. this cake should not be kept as long a time as a more expensive fruit cake, but may be kept several weeks. this was aunt sarah's best recipe for an excellent, inexpensive fruit cake. a "sponge custard" cake eggs. cups granulated sugar. cups flour. teaspoonful baking soda. cup cold water. juice of lemon. teaspoonfuls of cream of tartar and pinch of salt. beat eggs well, then sift in sugar and half of flour in which cream of tartar has been mixed. dissolve the soda in a little water and add also the lemon juice and lastly add the balance of flour. bake in layer cake pans two inches deep. custard boil pint of sweet milk and add to it, stirring constantly, the following mixture: two tablespoonfuls corn starch, mixed with a little water before boiling, cup of sugar and well-beaten egg. allow all to cook a few minutes in a double boiler about minutes. split the sponge cakes when baked and put custard between when cooled. grandmother's excellent "old recipe" for marble cake light part. - / cups granulated sugar. scant cup butter or a mixture of butter and lard. whites of eggs. cup milk. scant cups flour sifted with teaspoons of baking powder. flavor with essence of lemon. dark part. yolks of eggs. / cup of a mixture of butter and lard. / cup milk (scant measure). / cup brown sugar. tablespoon of molasses. tablespoons of cinnamon. tablespoon of cloves. one cup or a little more flour sifted with one teaspoon of baking powder. place spoonfuls of the dark and light batter alternately in a cake pan until all has been used. bake in a moderately hot oven from to minutes. from this recipe may be made two good sized cakes. i should advise using one-half the quantity for both dark and light part of cake called for in recipe, which would make one good sized cake. should this whole recipe be used, the cake baked from it would be of the size of a very large fruit cake. mary's molasses cakes she creamed together cup of light brown sugar and tablespoonfuls of butter. then added cup of new orleans molasses. the molasses had been allowed to come to a boil, then cooled. she sifted into the mixture cups of flour alternately with cup of sweet milk in which even teaspoonfuls of soda had been dissolved. she beat all well together, then added yolk of one large egg, and lastly the stiffly beaten white of the egg. beat the mixture again and bake in square layer cake pans in a hot oven about minutes. this is an excellent cake if directions are closely followed. chocolate icing for molasses cake. boil scant half cup water with cup sugar until it spins a thread, or forms a soft, firm ball in cold water. pour slowly over the stiffly beaten white of egg, beating while it is being poured. melt squares or ounces of unsweetened chocolate by standing the bowl containing it in hot water. add teaspoonful hot water to chocolate. stir the egg and sugar mixture slowly into the melted chocolate. beat until stiff enough to spread on cake. hickory nut cake - / cups sugar. / cup butter. / cup milk. whites of eggs. cup hickory nut meats, chopped. cups flour sifted with teaspoonfuls baking powder. mix together as ordinary cake. bake in a loaf. "light brown" sugar cake three cupfuls of light brown sugar, / cup of sweet lard and yolk of one egg creamed together until light. then add - / cups sour milk alternately with cups of flour and - / teaspoonfuls of cinnamon; - / teaspoonfuls of ginger, / teaspoonful of cloves and half of a grated nutmeg, tablespoonful of thinly shaved or grated citron is an improvement to cake, but may be omitted. beat all together, then add teaspoonful of soda dissolved in a small quantity of the sour milk. lastly, add the stiffly beaten white of one egg and one cup seeded raisins dredged with a little flour. put the cake batter in a large, well-greased fruit cake pan, lined with paper which had been greased and a trifle of flour sifted over, and bake in an oven with a steady heat about one hour and fifteen minutes. this is a very good, _inexpensive_ cake and will keep moist some time if kept in a tin cake box. the fruit might be omitted, but it improves the cake. "angel food" layer cake cup and tablespoonfuls granulated sugar. - \ cups flour. cup and tablespoonfuls scalded milk. teaspoonfuls baking powder. pinch of salt. whites of eggs. place milk in top part of double boiler and heat to boiling point. sift dry ingredients together four times and then pour in the hot milk and stir well together. lastly, add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. fold them in lightly, but do not beat. the batter will be quite thin. do not grease the tins. no flavoring is used. bake in two square layer tins, put together with any icing preferred. bake in a moderate oven. this is a good, economical cake to bake when yolks of eggs have been used for other purposes. mary's chocolate cake one-half cup of brown sugar, / cup of sweet milk and / cup of grated, unsweetened chocolate. boil all together until thick as cream; allow it to cool. mix / cup of butter with / cup of brown sugar. add two beaten eggs, / of a cup of sweet milk and vanilla flavoring to taste. beat this into the boiled mixture and add cups of flour sifted with teaspoonfuls of baking powder. bake in three layers and put together with chocolate icing, or cocoa filling. cocoa filling. - / cups pulverized sugar. tablespoonful butter, melted. - / tablespoonfuls cocoa. place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix to a smooth paste with cold coffee. flavor with vanilla and spread on cake. tins cocoa filling should not be boiled. a cheap orange cake eggs. - / cupfuls sugar. large tablespoonful butter. cup milk. cups flour sifted with teaspoonfuls baking powder. juice and grated yellow rind of half an orange. bake in moderate oven in loaf or layers. if a loaf cake, ice top and sides with the following icing: - / cupfuls pulverized sugar, tablespoonful warm water and grated rind and juice of half an orange. mix all together to a cream and spread over cake. frau schmidt's molasses cake pint of new orleans molasses. / cup butter and lard, mixed. eggs. cup sour milk good teaspoonfuls soda. cups flour. grated rind of orange. bake in a long dripping pan, cut out in square pieces, or it may be baked in a large pan used for fruit cake. it will fill two medium sized cake pans. apple sauce cake / cup butter (generous measure). cup light brown sugar. cup apple sauce (not sweetened). level teaspoonful soda. cups flour. teaspoonful cinnamon. / teaspoonful cloves. small nutmeg, grated. pinch of salt. cup raisins. cream together butter, sugar and spices. add apple sauce and flour. (dissolve the soda in apple sauce.) add a cup of seeded raisins or raisins and currants, if preferred. this recipe may be doubled when it makes a very good, cheap fruit cake, as no eggs are required, and it both looks and tastes like a dark fruit cake. icing. one cup pulverized sugar, piece of butter size of a walnut. moisten with a little water and spread on cake. "schwarz" cake this delicious black chocolate or "schwarz" cake, as aunt sarah called it, was made from the following recipe: - / cups of sugar. / cup butter. / cup sweet milk. even teaspoon of soda (saleratus). eggs. teaspoonful of vanilla. cups flour. - / teaspoon of royal baking powder. before mixing all the above ingredients place in a stewpan on the range / cup of grated chocolate and / cup sweet milk; allow them to come to a boil, then stand this mixture aside to cool and add to the cake mixture later. cream together sugar and butter, add yolk of eggs; soda dissolved in the milk, then add flour and baking powder sifted together alternately with the stiffly beaten white of eggs. then beat in last the chocolate and milk mixture which has cooled. bake in layer cake pans. use the following chocolate filling: / cup sugar. / cup milk. yolk of one egg. / teaspoon of corn starch (good measure). / cake of baker's unsweetened chocolate. boil all together until quite thick and spread between layers of cake. apple cream cake cups sugar. tablespoonfuls butter. cup sweet milk. cups flour. eggs. teaspoonfuls royal baking powder. add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs last and bake in two layers. flavor with lemon or vanilla. apple cream filling for cake. beat white of egg very stiff. add cup of granulated sugar and beat well. quickly grate one raw apple into the egg and sugar, add the juice of / lemon and beat minutes, when it will be light and foamy. this icing is soft and creamy. coarsely chopped nut meats may be added if liked. cake must be eaten with a fork, but is delicious. a "half pound" cake cream together / pound of sugar and / pound of butter. beat into this the eggs separately, until five eggs have been used. add flour and small teaspoonful of baking powder. bake in a moderate oven about minutes; / pound of flour is used in this cake. this cake is extra fine. a delicious icing (not cheap). stir to a cream a half cup butter, - / cups pulverized sugar, tablespoonful milk and teaspoonful vanilla. it is then ready to use for icing a cake. cocoanut layer cake cups sugar. / cup butter and lard, mixed. eggs (yolks only). cup milk. cups flour, sifted several times with the teaspoonfuls cream of tartar and teaspoonful soda (saleratus). mix like an ordinary cake. the filling. to the stiffly beaten whites of eggs add cup of pulverized sugar. spread this on each one of the layers of the cake and on top. strew a half of a grated cocoanut over. to the other half of grated cocoanut add tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar and strew over top of the cake. gold layer cake yolks of eggs. / cup butter. large cup granulated sugar. / cup sweet milk. - / cups flour. heaping teaspoonfuls baking powder. cream sugar and butter, add yolks. beat well, then add milk and flour. stir all together and bake in square pans in a hot oven. sunshine sponge cake cup granulated sugar. whites of small fresh eggs and yolks. / cup of flour, or scant cup of flour. / teaspoonful cream of tartar and a pinch of salt. beat the yolks of eggs thoroughly, then beat the whites about half; add cream of tartar and beat until very stiff. stir in sugar sifted lightly through your flour sifter. then add beaten yolks, stir thoroughly, sift the flour five times. the last time sift into the batter, stirring only enough to incorporate the flour. bake in a tube pan from to minutes in a very moderate oven. this is a particularly fine cake, but a little difficult to get just right. place cake in a cool oven; when cake has risen turn on heat. this cake should be baked same as an angel cake. an inexpensive dark "chocolate layer cake" cup sugar. / cup butter. eggs. / cup sweet milk. cups flour sifted with teaspoonfuls baking powder. / cup chocolate. grate the chocolate, mix with / cup of milk and yolk of egg, sweeten to taste; cook the chocolate; when cooled add to the above mixture. bake in three layer tins. put white boiled icing between the layers. the boiled icing recipe will be found on another page. angel cake eggs (whites only). - / cups granulated sugar (sifted times). cup flour (sifted times). teaspoonful cream of tartar. teaspoonful vanilla. place white of eggs in a large bowl and beat about half as stiff as you wish them to be when finished beating. add cream of tartar, sprinkle it over the beaten whites of eggs lightly, and then beat until very stiff. sift in sugar, then flour very lightly. fold into the batter, rather than stir, with quick, even strokes with spoon. put quickly in tube pan, bake in moderate oven from to minutes. do not open oven door for first minutes after cake has been placed in oven. if cake browns before it rises to top of pan open oven door two minutes; when cake has risen to top of pan finish baking quickly. the moment cake shrinks back to level of pan remove from oven. this is an old, reliable recipe given mary by her aunt, who had baked cake from it for years. mary's chocolate loaf (made with sour milk) cups brown sugar. / cup lard and butter, mixed. eggs. / cup baker's chocolate, melted. / cup sour milk. / cup warm water. teaspoonful vanilla. pinch of salt. teaspoonful saleratus. cups flour. dissolve the saleratus in a little vinegar or warm water. mix as an ordinary loaf cake. inexpensive sunshine cake eggs. cup granulated sugar. cup sifted flour. beat whites of eggs very stiff and stir in thoroughly, then fold the flour, stirring only just enough to mix it in. if stirred too much, the cake will be tough. bake in a tube pan. this is a delicious cake if carefully made according to directions. no butter or baking powder is used. bake in a very moderate oven at first, gradually adding more heat until cake is baked. mary's recipe for orange cake grate outside rind of orange into a bowl; - / cups sugar and / cup butter and lard, mixed. cream all together. add yolks of three eggs, cup of sweet milk, - / cups flour, sifted with - / teaspoonfuls of baking powder. lastly, add the stiffly beaten whites of the eggs. bake in two layers. filling for orange cake. grated rind and juice of half an orange, half the white of one egg, beaten stiff. add pulverized sugar until stiff enough to spread between cakes and on top. (about two cups of sugar were used.) roll jelly cake cup granulated sugar. - / cups flour. egg yolks. pinch of salt. / cup boiling water. large teaspoonful baking powder. the yolks of eggs left from making "pennsylvania dutch kisses" may be used for this cake by the addition of an extra yolk of egg. beat the yolks quite light, then add the sugar and beat until light and frothy. add the flour sifted with the baking powder and salt. lastly, add the half cup of boiling water. bake in a rather quick oven from to minutes in two square layer cake pans. cover cakes first ten minutes until they have risen. when baked turn cakes out of pans on to a cloth. take one at a time from the oven, spread as quickly as possible with a tart jelly, either currant or grape, and roll as quickly as possible, as when the cakes become cool they cannot be rolled without breaking. roll up in a cloth and when cool and ready to serve slice from end of roll. these cakes are very nice when one is successful, but a little difficult to get just right. aunt sarah's cinnamon cake cup sugar. cups flour. egg. - / teaspoons baking powder piece of butter the size of egg. pinch of salt. cup milk. a little grated nutmeg. beat the butter to a cream and gradually add the sugar. then add the unbeaten egg and beat all together thoroughly. add milk and flour and beat hard for five minutes. add baking powder, salt and nutmeg. pour into two small greased pie-tins and before putting in oven sprinkle sugar and cinnamon over top. this is an excellent breakfast cake, easily and quickly made. "gelb kuchen" mary's aunt taught her to make this exceptionally fine cake, yellow as gold, in texture resembling an "angel cake," from the following ingredients: the whites of eggs, yolks of eggs, / cup of fine, granulated sugar, / cup of high-grade flour, / teaspoonful of cream of tartar (good measure), a few drops of almond extract or / teaspoonful of vanilla. mix ingredients together in the following manner: sift sugar and flour separately times. beat yolks of eggs until light, add sugar to yolks of eggs and beat to a cream. the whites of eggs were placed in a separate bowl and when partly beaten the cream of tartar was sifted over and the whites of eggs were then beaten until dry and frothy. the stiffly beaten whites of eggs were then added alternately with the flour to the yolks and sugar. carefully fold in, do not beat. add flavoring, pour batter in a small, narrow bread tin, previously brushed with lard, over which flour had been dusted. the cake when baked may be readily removed from the tin after it has cooled. bake cake in a very moderate oven about minutes. after cake has been in oven or minutes increase heat of oven. an extra fine, large cake may be baked from this recipe if double the quantity of ingredients are used. devil's food cake cups brown sugar. / cup butter and lard, mixed. eggs. / cup boiling water. ounces baker's chocolate. cups flour. teaspoonful soda. / cup sour cream or milk. cream butter and sugar and add yolks of eggs; then sour milk into which the soda has been dissolved. add hot water, then the eggs. bake in layers or loaf. ice with boiled chocolate icing. if a little of the sour milk is saved until last, the soda dissolved in that, and then added to the cake batter, it will give a brick red appearance. this is an excellent cake. a cheap cocoanut layer cake cream together cup sugar, / cup butter, egg (white of egg beaten separately), add / cup milk, cups flour sifted with teaspoonfuls baking powder. the stiffly beaten white of egg added last. bake in two layers. for the filling, to put between layers, beat the white of one egg to a stiff, dry froth; add one tablespoonful of sugar, mix together, spread between layers of cake and on top and over this strew freshly grated cocoanut grate cocoanut intended for cake the day before using. after it has been grated toss up lightly with a fork and stand in a cool place to dry out before using. lady baltimore cake cup butter. cups sugar. - / cups flour. cup sweet milk. whites of eggs. level teaspoonfuls baking powder sifted with the flour. teaspoonful rosewater. mix in the usual way and bake in three layers. icing for cake. dissolve cups of sugar in a cup of boiling water. cook until it spins a thread, about ten or twelve minutes. take from fire and pour over three stiffly beaten whites of eggs, then add a cup of nut meats (blanched and chopped almonds). one cup of chopped raisins may also be added if liked. stir until thick and creamy. allow cake to get cold before icing. one-half this recipe for icing will be sufficient for an ordinary cake. an inexpensive "white fruit cake" cups sugar. eggs. lb. seeded raisins. cup milk. cup butter. lb. currants. lb. chopped almonds. flavor with almond extract. cups flour sifted with teaspoonfuls of royal baking powder. / lb. figs. / lb. citron. beat to a cream sugar, butter and yolks of eggs. then add milk and flour alternately and fruit and almonds. lastly, add stiffly beaten whites of eggs. flour fruit before adding. chop figs. cut citron fine or shave it thin. this is a cheaper recipe than the one for a "christmas fruit cake," but this is a very good cake. a good and cheap "white cake" cups sugar. / cup butter and lard, mixed. cup milk. add a few drops of almond flavoring. cups flour. teaspoonfuls baking powder. whites of five eggs. cream together the butter and sugar, add flour sifted with baking powder alternately with the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. the five yolks of eggs left from baking white cake may be used when making salad dressing. use five yolks instead of three whole eggs, as called for in recipe for salad dressing. chocolate icing (very good) one-quarter cup grated, unsweetened chocolate, / cup milk, half a cup sugar. boil all together until thick and creamy. this quantity will be sufficient to ice the top of one ordinary cake. spread icing on cake before icing cools. when this icing is used for layer cake, double the recipe. tip-top cake lb. granulated sugar. cup butter. cup milk. eggs. lb. chopped raisins. (citron may be used instead of raisins.) / a nutmeg, grated. scant cups of flour. teaspoonfuls baking powder. mix together same as ordinary cake and bake in a loaf. this aunt sarah considered one of her finest cake recipes. she had used it for years in her family. the friend who gave this recipe to aunt sarah said: "a couple of tablespoonfuls of brandy will improve the cake." orange cake grate the yellow outside rind of orange into a bowl. add - / cups sugar and / cups butter and beat to a cream. then add yolks of eggs. then stir in cup milk, - / cups flour with heaping teaspoonfuls baking powder. lastly, add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. bake in three layers. filling. use the white of one egg, the grated rind and juice of large orange and enough pulverized sugar to stiffen. spread between layers. cheap sponge cake - / cups granulated sugar. eggs. - / cups flour. tablespoonfuls boiling water. - / teaspoonfuls baking powder. pinch of salt; flavor to suit taste. cream yolks and sugar thoroughly, then add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs, then flour, then boiling water. bake in a tube pan about minutes. this is a very easily made cake, which seldom fails and was bought with a set of "van dusen cake pans," which aunt sarah said: "she'd used for many years and found invaluable." caramel cake and icing - / cups pulverized sugar, cup of butter, cups flour, / cup of corn starch, teaspoons of baking powder sifted through flour and corn starch, cup of milk, the whites of eggs. mix like ordinary cake. bake as a loaf cake. ice top the following: cup of light brown sugar, / cup milk, / tablespoonful of butter, / teaspoonful of vanilla. cook all together until a soft ball is formed when dropped in water. beat until creamy and spread on top of cake. a white cake sift together, three times, the following: cup of flour. cup of sugar (granulated). even teaspoonfuls of baking powder. scald one cup of milk and pour hot over the above mixture. beat well. fold into the mixture, carefully, the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. flavor with a few drops of almond extract. bake in a _moderate oven_, exactly as you would bake an angel cake. this is a delicious, light, flaky cake, if directions are closely followed, but a little difficult to get just right. "dutch" currant cake (no yeast used) eggs. cups sugar. cup butter. cup milk. / teaspoonful baking soda. teaspoonful cream of tartar. teaspoonful cinnamon. / teaspoonful grated nutmeg. cup dried currants. to - / cups flour. make about as stiff as ordinary cake mixture. the butter, sugar and yolks of eggs were creamed together. cinnamon and nutmeg were added. milk and flour added alternately, stirring flour in lightly; sift cream of tartar in with the flour. add the baking soda dissolved in a very little water, then add the well-floured currants, and lastly add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. bake in a large cake pan, generally used for fruit cake or bake two medium-sized cakes. bake slowly in a moderately hot oven. these cakes keep well, as do most german cakes. an "old recipe" for coffee cake cups flour. cup sugar. cup raisins. cup of liquid coffee. cup lard. cup molasses. tablespoonful saleratus. spices to taste. mix like any ordinary cake. this is a very old recipe of aunt sarah's mother. the cup used may have been a little larger than the one holding a half pint, used for measuring ingredients in all other cake recipes. a cheap brown sugar cake cup brown sugar. i tablespoonful lard. cup cold water. pinch of salt. cups raisins. / teaspoonful cloves. teaspoonful cinnamon. boil all together three minutes, cool, then add teaspoonful of soda and / teaspoonful of baking powder sifted with cups of flour. frau schmidt's "german christmas cake" cream together in a bowl half a pound of pulverized sugar and half a pound of butter; then add yolks of five eggs, grated lemon rind, pint of milk, - / pounds of flour sifted with teaspoonfuls of baking powder, teaspoonfuls of vanilla extract. bake at once in a moderately hot oven. mary baked an ordinary-sized cake by using one-half of this recipe. the cake was fine grained, similar to a pound cake, although not quite as rich, and she added a couple tablespoonfuls of thinly shaved citron to the batter before baking. this is a particularly fine cake. "aunt sarah's" shellbark layer cake - / cups sugar. / cup butter. / cup water. eggs. - / teaspoonfuls baking powder. flour to stiffen. save out white of one egg for icing. bake cake in three layers. chop cup of hickory nut meats and add to the last layer of cake before putting in pan to bake. use the cake containing nut meats for the middle layer of cake. put layers together with white boiled icing. imperial cake (baked for mary's wedding) pound sugar. pound butter. / pound flour. pound raisins, seeded. pound almonds. / pound thinly shaved citron. lemon. nutmeg. eggs. mix ingredients as for pound cake. a fine cake, but expensive. a light fruit cake (for christmas) pound butter, scant measure. pound pulverized sugar. pound flour (full pound). eggs. pound english walnut kernels. pound raisins. / lb. citron, candied orange and lemon peel. cup brandy. teaspoonful baking powder. bake - / to hours. this is an excellent cake. english cake (similar to a white fruit cake) eggs. the weight of eggs in sugar. the weight of eggs in flour. cup raisins. cup currants. the weight of eggs in butter. / teaspoonful baking powder. tablespoonfuls of brandy. / cup finely shaved citron. / cup english walnut or shellbark meats. small quantity of candied orange and lemon peel. this recipe was given mary by an english friend, an excellent cook and cake-baker, who vouches for its excellence. grandmother's fruit cake (baked for mary's wedding) pound butter. pound sugar. pound flour. pounds raisins. pounds currants. spices of all kinds. / pound thinly sliced citron. eggs. tablespoonful molasses. cup sour milk. teaspoonful soda. mix together in ordinary manner. cream butter and sugar, add yolks of eggs, sour milk and soda; add flour alternately with stiffly beaten whites of eggs. lastly, the well-floured fruit. bake two hours in a moderate oven. this quantity makes one very large cake, or two medium sized ones, and will keep one year. line inside of pan with well-greased heavy paper to prevent bottom of cake baking too hard. aunt sarah never cut this cake until one month from time it was baked, as it improves with age and may be kept one year. an old recipe for pound cake cream together / pound butter and pound sugar and yolks of eggs. then add whites of eggs well beaten alternately with pound of sifted flour. bake in a moderate oven with a steady heat. the bottom of pan should be lined with well-greased paper. "bucks county" molasses cakes (baked in pastry) place in a bowl cup of new orleans molasses and / of a cup of sweet milk. add teaspoonful of baking _soda_. (for this cake aunt sarah was always particular to use the _cow_-brand soda), dissolved in a very little hot water. aunt sarah always used b.t. babbitt's saleratus for other purposes. stir all ingredients together well, then add gradually three even cups of flour, no more, and beat hard. the cake mixture should not be very thick. pour into three medium-sized pie-tins lined with pastry and bake in a moderately hot oven. these are good, cheap breakfast cakes, neither eggs nor shortening being used. brod torte (bread tart) six yolks of eggs and cup sugar, creamed together. beat about minutes. add teaspoonful allspice, teaspoonful cloves, cup baker's chocolate, which had been grated, melted and cooled; cup stale rye bread crumbs, crushed fine with rolling-pin. lastly, add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs, a pinch of salt and / teaspoonful of baking powder sifted over the batter. put into a small cake pan and bake half an hour in a moderate oven. when eggs are cheap and plentiful this is an economical cake, as no flour is used. it is a delicious cake and resembles an ordinary chocolate cake. a delicious chocolate cake / cake of baker's unsweetened chocolate (grated). cup granulated sugar. / cup milk. teaspoonful vanilla. / cup butter. - / to cups flour. eggs. teaspoonfuls baking powder. boil together chocolate, sugar and milk. add butter and when cool add yolk of eggs; then the flour, flavoring and stiffly beaten whites of eggs. beat all thoroughly and bake in a loaf or layers. chocolate icing boil together tablespoonfuls grated chocolate, / cup granulated sugar, tablespoonfuls milk, egg. when the mixture begins to thicken and look creamy, spread on cake. if baked in layers, ice on top and between the two layers. a white cocoanut cake cream together / cup butter and cups sugar. add whites of eggs, cup milk, teaspoonful cream of tartar, / teaspoonful soda sifted with cups flour and grated cocoanut. bake in a loaf. this is an excellent old recipe of aunt sarah's. a potato cake (no yeast required) cream together: cup of sugar. / cup lard and butter, mixed. yolk of eggs. / cup pulverized cocoa. / cup of creamed mashed potatoes, cold. a little ground cinnamon and grated nutmeg. a few drops of essence of vanilla. / cup of sweet milk. / cup finely chopped nut meats. one teaspoonful of baking powder sifted with one cup of flour added to the batter alternately with the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. bake in two layers, in a moderately hot oven. ice top and put layers together with white icing. this is a delicious, if rather unusual cake. a citron cake / cup butter. cup sugar. eggs. tablespoonfuls water. / pound of thinly shaved citron. - / cups flour. - / teaspoonfuls baking powder. several drops of almond flavoring. bake in a loaf in a moderate oven about minutes after mixing ingredients together as for any ordinary cake. this is a very good cake. aunt amanda's spice "kuchen" cup butter. cups granulated sugar. cup of a mixture of sour milk and cream. eggs. teaspoonful soda. / teaspoonful cloves. teaspoonful cinnamon. / teaspoonful nutmeg. teaspoonful vanilla extract. tablespoonfuls cocoa. cups flour. mix all like any ordinary cake. from one-half this recipe was baked an ordinary sized loaf cake. a good, cheap chocolate cake one cup of flour, teaspoonful of baking powder and cup of granulated sugar were sifted together. two eggs were broken into a cup, also large tablespoonful of melted butter. fill up the cup with sweet milk, beat all ingredients well together. flavor with vanilla and add extra tablespoonfuls of flour to the mixture. bake in two layer cake pans. place the following mixture between the two layers: / cup of grated chocolate, / cup sugar and / cup of liquid coffee. cook together a short time until the consistency of thick cream, then spread between layers. an ice cream cake two cups of pulverized sugar, cup of butter, cup sweet milk, whites of eggs, teaspoonful soda, teaspoonfuls of cream of tartar, cups of flour. from same proportions of everything, only using the yolks instead of whites of eggs, may be made a yellow cake, thus having two good sized layer cakes with alternate layers of white and yellow. put cakes together with white icing. this was an old recipe of aunt sarah's mother, used when cream of tartar and soda took the place of baking powder. small sponge cakes for these small cakes take eggs, cup of sugar and / cup of flour and / teaspoonful of baking powder, a pinch of salt, flavor with lemon. beat yolks of eggs separately, then add sugar and beat to a cream, then add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs alternately with the sifted flour and baking powder; add a pinch of salt and flavoring. bake in small muffin tins in a very moderate oven. small cakes and cookies--"aunt sarah's" little lemon cakes cups granulated sugar. eggs (not separated, but added one at a time to the sugar and shortening which had been creamed together). scant cup butter and lard, mixed. teaspoonfuls baking powder. pinch of salt tablespoonful sweet milk. grated rind of lemons and juice of one. stiffen the dough with about - / cups flour and use about extra cup of flour to dredge the bake-board when rolling out dough and for sifting over the greased baking sheets so the cakes will come off readily. roll dough very thin and cut in any desired shape. from this recipe may be made small cakes. the baking sheet (for which i gave measurements in bread recipe) holds of these small round cakes. do all young housewives know that if dough for small cakes be mixed the day before baking and stood in a cool place, the cakes can be cut out more easily and the dough may be rolled thinner, and as less flour may then be used, the cakes will be richer? aunt sarah always cut these cakes with a small round or heart-shaped cutter and when all were on the baking sheet she either placed a half of an english walnut meat in the centre of each cake or cut out the centre of each small cake with the top of a pepper box lid before baking them. oatmeal crisps - / cups rolled oats (oatmeal). tablespoonful melted butter. / cup sugar. teaspoonful baking powder. large eggs. pinch of salt. beat eggs, add salt and sugar, mix baking powder with oats and stir all together. drop from a teaspoon on to flat pan or sheet iron, not too close together, as they spread. flatten very thin with a knife dipped in cold water and bake in a moderate oven a light brown. these cakes are fine and easily made. did you not know differently, you would imagine these cakes to be macaroons made from nuts, which they greatly resemble. aunt sarah's ginger snaps cup molasses, cup sugar, cup of a mixture of lard and butter, egg, teaspoonful of ginger, teaspoonful of cinnamon, / a grated nutmeg, teaspoonful of soda dissolved in teaspoonful of vinegar. about cups of flour should be added. dough should be stiff enough to roll out very thin, and the cakes may be rolled thinner than would be possible otherwise, should the cake-dough stand aside over night, or on ice for several hours, until thoroughly chilled. cut cakes small with an ordinary cake cutter and bake in a quick oven. these are excellent and will remain crisp some time if kept in a warm, dry place. german "lebkuchen" this is a recipe for good, old-fashioned "german christmas cakes," from which aunt sarah's mother always baked. she used: pound dark brown sugar. whole eggs and yolks of more. / pound citron finely shaved on a "slaw-cutter." / pound english walnut meats (chopped fine). quart flour sifted with teaspoonfuls of baking powder. mix well together. do not roll thin like ginger snaps, but about a half inch thick. cut out about size of a large coffee cup. bake in a moderate oven and when cold ice the cakes with the following icing: icing for german lebkuchen. boil cups of sugar and / cup of water seven minutes. pour over the stiffly beaten whites of three eggs; ice the cakes. place cakes in a tin box when icing has become cold and these will keep quite a long time. i have eaten high-priced, imported lebkuchen no better than those made from this recipe. grandmother's molasses cakes one quart of new orleans molasses, eggs, butter size of an egg. place all together in a stew-pan on range, allow it to come to boil, stirring constantly, and when cool stir in one tablespoonful of saleratus dissolved in a very little vinegar, and about pounds of flour. do not have cake dough too stiff. dough should stand until the following day. roll out at least / inch thick. cut cakes as large around as an ordinary coffee cup or cut with a knife into small, oblong pieces, a little larger than half a common soda cracker. bake in a moderate oven. should too much flour be used, cakes will be hard and dry instead of soft and spongy. this very old and excellent recipe had belonged to the grandmother of sarah landis. cakes similar to the ones baked from this recipe, also those baked from recipe for "honey cakes," were sold in large sheets marked off in oblong sections, seventy years ago, and at that time no "vendue," or public sale, in certain localities throughout bucks county, was thought complete unless in sound of the auctioneer's voice, on a temporary stand, these cakes were displayed on the day of "the sale," and were eagerly bought by the crowd which attended such gatherings. angel cakes (baked in gem pans) the whites of four eggs should be beaten very stiff and when partly beaten sprinkle over / teaspoonful of cream of tartan finish beating egg whites and sift in slowly / cup of fine granulated sugar, then sift / cup of flour (good measure). flavor with a few drops of almond flavoring. bake in small gem pans, placing a tablespoonful of butter in each. sift pulverized sugar over tops of cakes. bake minutes in a _very_ moderate oven. the recipe for these dainty little cakes was given mary by a friend who, knowing her liking for angel cake, said these were similar in taste. "almond brod" three-fourths cup sugar, eggs, - / tablespoonfuls olive oil cups flour, / teaspoonfuls baking powder, / cup sweet almonds, pinch of salt. a couple of drops of almond extract. in a bowl place / cup of granulated sugar. add well-beaten eggs, cups of flour sifted with - / teaspoonfuls of baking powder and a pinch of salt. mix all well together. add cup whole (blanched) almonds and - / tablespoonfuls of good olive oil. knead the dough thoroughly. do not have dough too stiff. divide the dough into four equal parts, roll each portion of dough on a _well-floured_ bake board into long, narrow rolls. place the four rolls on a baking sheet over which flour had been previously sifted. place the rolls a short distance apart and bake in a quick oven about twenty minutes or until light brown on top. on removing the baking sheet from the oven cut rolls at once, while the almonds are still warm, into two-inch pieces. from this recipe was made thirty pieces of almond bread. the olive oil, used as shortening, is not tasted when baked. these are a very good little cake, and not bread, as their name would lead one to suppose. "grossmutter's" honey cakes one quart of boiled honey (if possible procure the honey used by bakers, as it is much cheaper and superior for this purpose than the clear, strained honey sold for table use). add to the warm honey two generous tablespoonfuls of butter, yolks of four eggs, two ounces of salaratus (baking soda), dissolved in a very small quantity of vinegar, just enough to moisten the salaratus. add just enough flour to enable one to stir well with a spoon. work the dough a half hour and allow it to stand until the following day, when cut cakes from the dough which had been rolled out on the bake-board one-half inch thick. the dough should be only just stiff enough to roll out, as should the dough be _too soft_ the cakes will become hard and crisp, instead of light and spongy, and if too great a quantity of flour is added the cakes will not be good. as the thickening qualities of flour differ, the exact amount required cannot be given. when about to cut out cakes, the bake-board should be well-floured. cut the cakes the size of the top of a large coffee-cup, or roll out in one-half inch thick on a well-floured baking sheet and mark in small, oblong sections with a knife, they may then be easily broken apart when baked. these cakes should he baked in a moderately hot oven and not a _hot oven_. these are the real, old-time honey cakes as made by aunt sarah's grandmother on a "bucks county" farm, and mary's aunt informed her she still remembered in her earlier days having bought these cakes at "bucks county" sales or "vendues," as they were then designated. lemon wafers or drop cakes eggs. / pound butter. / pound sugar. / pound flour. pinch of salt. flavor with lemon essence. mix the same as other small cakes. drop spoonfuls quite a distance apart on the cold pan or tin on which they are to be baked as the dough spreads. these are very thin, delicious wafers when baked. frau schmidt's sugar cookies cup lard and butter, mixed. cups granulated sugar, and eggs, all creamed together; then add teaspoon soda (mix with a little sour milk). flavor with vanilla. beat all well together. add flour enough that they may be rolled out, no more. flour bake-board well; cut dough with cake cutter into small round cakes and bake in a rather quick oven. this recipe will make a large number of cakes if dough be rolled thin as a wafer. frau schmidt was able to keep these cakes some time--under lock and key. if cake dough be mixed one day and allowed to stand over night, cakes may be rolled out much more easily and cut thinner. almond macaroons (as prepared by mary) three eggs (whites only), / pound of pulverized sugar, / pound of almond paste (which may be bought ready prepared). beat eggs very stiff, add other ingredients. drop teaspoonfuls on a baking sheet and bake in a moderate oven or minutes. macaroons prepared from this recipe are delicious and resemble those sold by confectioners. "honig kuchen" (honey cakes) two pounds of flour, / pound of butter, / pound of almonds, pounds of honey in liquid form, the grated yellow rind of one lemon, / teaspoonful of cloves, / teaspoonful of cinnamon, ounce of hartshorn, dissolved in a small quantity of water. boil together honey and butter, remove from fire, and when mixture has cooled add the hartshorn, coarsely chopped almonds and flour. allow this mixture to stand several days, roll out / inch thick. cut in small round cakes, place a whole almond in centre of each cake. bake a light brown in a moderate oven. frau schmidt's molasses snaps two cups of new orleans molasses, cup of lard, tablespoonful of ginger, teaspoonful of cinnamon, / teaspoonful of cloves, / a grated nutmeg, tablespoonful of saleratus dissolved in a small quantity of hot water. add enough flour to form a _very_ stiff dough. stand dough aside until the following day, when roll out very thin on a well-floured bake-board. cut with a small round cake cutter and bake in a hot oven. these are good, cheap small cakes. hickory nut cakes one cup of hickory nut meals, cup of pulverized sugar, egg, a pinch of salt, teaspoons of flour. mix all ingredients together. drop small pieces on a sheet-iron and bake. "lebkuchen" (as the professor's wife made them) two pounds of sugar, large eggs, / pound of almonds (shelled), / pound of citron, / of a pound each of candied orange and lemon peel, the grated yellow rind of one lemon, teaspoonfuls of cinnamon, teaspoonful allspice, about pounds flour. separate the eggs. cream the yolks of eggs and sugar well together. then add the almonds (which have been blanched by pouring boiling water over them, when the skins may be readily removed), the citron and lemon peel chopped fine. then add level teaspoonful of different spices. then add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs, alternately, with the sifted flour. the recipe called for two pounds of flour, but "frau" schmidt said; "she was never able to use the whole amount, so she added just enough flour to prevent the mixture spreading when dropped on the baking sheet by tablespoonfuls." fruit jumbles two cups sugar, eggs (beaten separately), cup butter, cup milk, - / cups flour, teaspoonfuls baking powder, / of nutmeg, grated, cup currants. mix all together and bake in a broad, shallow pan. this is similar to spanish bun. when cake is cooled, but not cold, cut in two-inch squares or diamonds before removing from the pan in which the cake was baked. brown "pfeffernussen" for these german cakes frau schmidt used the following: pounds of flour, pounds of sugar syrup, / teaspoonful of black pepper, / pound of lard, / teaspoon of cardamom powder, / pound of butter, / teaspoonful of cloves, / pound of brown sugar and eggs. use as much "hirschhorn salz" as can be placed on the point of a knife ("hirschhorn salz" translated is carbonate of ammonia and is used for baking purposes). allow the syrup to heat on the range. skim off the top. when syrup has cooled mix all ingredients together and stand aside for one week or longer, when form the dough into small balls size of a hickory nut. place on greased pans and bake half hour in a slow oven. small oatmeal cakes cream together - / cups of light brown sugar, / cup of lard and butter, mixed, and the yolk of one egg. add / cup of hot water and / teaspoonful of saleratus (baking soda) dissolved in a little boiling water; add - / cups of oatmeal the stiffly beaten white of egg and - / cups of white flour. mix all together. dredge the bake board with flour, roll thin. cut out with a small round cake cutter. sift a little flour over the well-greased baking sheets, on which place cakes and bake in a moderately hot oven. frau schmidt's recipe for "german" almond slices / pound sugar, / pound butter. / pound of seeded raisins (chopped). / pound blanched and chopped almonds. teaspoonful cinnamon, teaspoonful of allspice. grated rind and juice of lemon. cakes german sweet chocolate, grated. whole eggs and extra whites of eggs. teaspoons baking powder, cups flour. tablespoon vanilla, tablespoons of brandy. cream butter and sugar, add eggs, one at a time. then add all the ingredients. mix with flour. flour bake board and take a handful of dough and roll with the hands in shape of a sausage roll. this quantity of dough makes eight rolls. place on greased baking sheets a short distance apart, so they will not touch when being baked. bake them in a _warm_, not hot, oven. take from the oven when baked and cut while still warm into small slices across the roll. slices should be about three-quarters of an inch wide. cover the three sides with the following icing: beat together until smooth and creamy cupful of sweet cream, adding enough confectioners' sugar to make it spread. you may expedite the work by preparing raisins and almonds the day before. the professor's wife always served these almond cakes with coffee when she gave a "kaffee klatch" to her country friends. "july ann's" ginger snaps two cups of molasses (new orleans), cup of light brown sugar, egg, tablespoonful of soda, tablespoonfuls of vinegar, tablespoonful of ginger and about - / cups of flour. place molasses and sugar in a sauce-pan on the range, cook together until sugar is dissolved, no longer. mix the soda and vinegar and when foamy add to the sugar and molasses with a portion of the required amount of flour; then add the egg and the flour remaining. turn dough out on a well-floured bake-beard, roll out into a thin sheet and cut out small cakes with a tin cutter. bake in a moderately hot oven. no shortening of any kind was used in these cakes. one hundred cakes were baked from the above ingredients. cocoanut cookies three cups of sugar, cup of butter, eggs, cup of sweet milk, cup of grated cocoanut, teaspoonfuls of baking powder. mix all together, sift flour with baking powder, add flour to form a dough just stiff enough to roll out, no more. cut with a small tin cake cutter into round cakes and bake. chocolate cookies two cups of white sugar, cup of grated, unsweetened chocolate, eggs, / cup of butter, teaspoonfuls of baking powder. flavor with vanilla. mix together sugar, butter and eggs, add melted chocolate and flour to stiffen, just enough flour being used to allow of their being cut with a cake cutter. the baking powder should have been sifted with a small amount of flour before adding. small "belsnickel" christmas cakes cups "a" sugar. pinch of salt. cup melted butter. teaspoonful baking soda. eggs. about cups of flour. mix in just enough flour so the cake dough may be rolled out quite thin on a floured board, using as little flour as possible. cut out small cakes and bake lightly in a moderately hot oven. the butter, when melted, should fill one cup; pour it over the two cups of sugar in a bowl and beat until smooth and creamy; add the eggs, beating one at a time into the mixture. sift the teaspoonful of baking soda several times through the flour before adding to the cake mixture. stand this dough in a cold place one hour at least before cutting out cakes. no flavoring is used. sift granulated sugar thickly over cakes before placing them in oven to bake. from these ingredients were made over one hundred cakes. one-half this recipe might be used for a small family. the cakes keep well in a dry, cool place. this old recipe of aunt sarah's mother derived its name "belsnickel" from the fact that the belsnickels, who invariably visited the houses of "bucks county" farmers on christmas eve, were always treated to some of these delicious little christmas cakes. "pennsylvania dutch" kisses one cup of pulverized sugar, whites of eggs, heaping cup of nut meats (mary used hickory nut meats), a pinch of salt. to the very stiffly beaten whites of eggs add sugar, salt and lastly the nut meats. drop teaspoonfuls of this batter on a greased, floured baking tin. bake in a moderate oven. little crumb cakes for these small cakes aunt sarah creamed together / cup of granulated sugar, / cup butter. one quite large egg was used. the egg yolk was added to the creamed sugar and butter and thoroughly beaten, then scant / cup of milk was added, and one heaping cup of fine dried bread crumbs sifted with / teaspoonful of baking powder and / cup of finely chopped or rolled _black_ walnut meats. lastly, add the stiffly beaten white of egg. flavor with grated nutmeg. bake in small muffin pans in a moderate oven. this makes nine small cakes. no flour is used in these cakes, but, instead of flour, bread crumbs are used. delicious vanilla wafers (as mary made them) / pound of butter. / pound of flour. / pound of sugar. eggs. cream together butter and sugar, add yolks of eggs, beat well, then add stiffly beaten whites of eggs and flour alternately. flavor with essence of vanilla, drop from spoon on to _cold_ iron pan, not too close together, as the cakes will spread. bake quickly in a hot oven until outer edge of cakes have browned. macaroons (as aunt sarah made them) one-half pound of almonds, blanched and chopped fine, / pound of pulverized sugar, whites of eggs. place sugar and almonds in a pan on the range, until colored a light yellow-brown. beat whites of eggs very stiff, mix all ingredients together, then drop with a spoon on tins waxed with bees' wax, and bake in a quick oven. "springerles" (german christmas cakes) eggs. pound sifted pulverized sugar quarts flour, sifted twice. small teaspoonfuls baking powder. beat whites and yolks of eggs separately, mix with sugar and beat well. add flour until you have a smooth dough. roll out pieces of dough, which should be half an inch thick. press the dough on a floured form or mold, lift the mold, cut out the cakes thus designed and let lie until next day on a floured bread board. the next day grease pans well, sprinkle anise seed over the pans in which the cakes are to be baked; lay in cakes an inch apart and bake in a moderate oven to a straw color. the form used usually makes six impressions or cakes - / inches square, leaving the impression of a small figure or flower on surface when dough is pressed on form. oatmeal cookies cup sugar. cup butter and lard, mixed (scant measure). cup chopped nut meats. cup chopped raisins. eggs, beaten separately, whites added last. teaspoonful baking soda dissolved in tablespoonfuls sour milk. teaspoonful vanilla. little grated nutmeg. cups oatmeal (uncooked). cups white flour. drop with tablespoon on well-greased baking sheet over which has been sifted a little flour. bake in rather quick oven. this recipe makes small cakes. peanut biscuits sift together cups flour and teaspoonfuls baking powder. add egg, / cup sugar, / cup peanuts and pecan nut meats, mixed (run through food-chopper), / cup sweet milk, / teaspoonful salt. beat sugar and yolk of egg together add milk, stiffly beaten white of egg, chopped nut meats and flour, alternately. add salt. place a large spoonful in each of well-greased gem pans. allow to stand in pans about minutes. bake half an hour. plain cookies / cup butter. tablespoonfuls milk. cup sugar. / teaspoonful grated nutmeg. eggs. / cup chopped walnut meats. cups flour. teaspoonfuls baking powder. cream butter and sugar, add milk slowly, add well-beaten eggs. beat well, add flour and baking powder, sifted together. roll thin. cut with a small cake cutter any desired. walnut rocks cream together - / cups of sugar, / cup of butter, a small teaspoonful of salt. dissolve teaspoonful of soda in tablespoonfuls of warm water, two eggs. sift cups of flour, add teaspoonful of ginger, teaspoonful of cloves, / teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, pound of english walnuts, pound of seeded raisins. drop by teaspoon on a cold sheet iron and bake in a moderate oven. these are excellent. cinnamon wafers (as made by aunt sarah) eggs / pound sugar. / pound butter. pound flour. mix like ordinary cake. divide this into three parts. flavor one part with vanilla, with chocolate and the other with cinnamon. these latter will be darker than the first. place a piece of dough as large as a small marble in a small hot, well-greased waffle or wafer iron. press two sides of iron together, which flattens out cake, and hold by a long handle over fire, turning it over occasionally until cakes are baked. the cake, when baked, is a delicious, thin, rich wafer, about the size of half a common soda cracker. i have never eaten these christmas cakes at any place excepting at aunt sarah's. the wafer iron she possessed was brought by her grandmother from germany. the waffle or wafer irons might be obtained in this country. zimmet waffles (as made by frau schmidt) / pound butter. / ounce cinnamon. / pound sugar. eggs. flour. work together and form into small balls. place in hot buttered wafer irons, hold over fire and bake. this is an old german recipe which frau schmidt's grandmother used. "braune lebkuchen" pounds sugar syrup. / pound granulated sugar. / pound butter. / pound coarsely chopped almonds. grate yellow part of one lemon rind. / ounce cinnamon. / ounce cloves. drachm of powdered cardamom. ounce of hartshorn, dissolved in a little milk. place syrup in stew-pan on range to heat, add butter, almonds, spices, etc. remove from range, stir in flour gradually. use about cups of flour. when cool add the dissolved hartshorn. allow the cake dough to stand in a warm place eight to ten days before baking. then place a portion of the cake dough on a greased baking sheet which has been sprinkled lightly with flour, roll cake dough out on the sheet about / inch in thickness; place in a _very moderate_ oven. when well dried out and nicely browned on top cut the sheets into small squares, the size of ordinary soda crackers. this is a very old recipe given mary by frau schmidt. peanut cookies one pint of roasted peanuts, measured, after being shelled. rub off the brown skin, run through a food-chopper. cream together tablespoonfuls of butter, cup of sugar. add eggs, tablespoonfuls of milk, / teaspoonful of salt and the chopped peanuts. add flour to make a soft dough. roll out on a floured board, cut with a small cake cutter and bake in a moderate oven. this recipe was given mary by a friend living in allentown. pies--flaky pie crust have all the materials cold when making pastry. handle as little as possible. place in a bowl - / cups flour, / teaspoonful salt and cup good, sweet lard. cut through with a knife into quite small pieces and mix into a dough with a little less than a half cup of cold water. use only enough water to make dough hold together. this should be done with a knife or tips of the fingers. the water should be poured on the flour and lard carefully, a small quantity at a time, and never twice at the same place. be careful that the dough is not too moist. press the dough with the hands into a lump, but do not knead. take enough of the dough for one pie on the bake board, roll lightly, always in one direction, line greased pie tins and fill crust. if fruit pies, moisten the edge of the lower crust, cover with top crust, which has been rolled quite thin. a knife scraped across the top crust several times before placing over pie causes the crust to have a rough, flaky, rich-looking surface when baked. cut small vents in top crust to allow steam to escape. pinch the edges of fruit pies well together to prevent syrup oozing out. if you wish light, flaky pie crust, bake in a hot oven. if a sheet of paper placed in oven turns a delicate brown, then the oven is right for pies. the best of pastry will be a failure if dried slowly in a cool oven. when baking a crust for a tart to be filled after crust has been baked, always prick the crust with a fork before putting in oven to bake. this prevents the crust forming little blisters. aunt sarah always used for her pies four even cups of flour, / teaspoonful baking powder and one even cup of sweet, _rich, home-made lard_, a pinch of salt with just enough cold water to form a dough, and said her pies were rich enough for any one. they certainly were rich and flaky, without being greasy, and she said, less shortening was necessary when baking powder was used. to cause her pies to have a golden brown color she brushed tops of pies with a mixture of egg and milk or milk and placed immediately in a hot oven. mary noticed her aunt frequently put small dabs of lard or butter on the dough used for top crust of pies before rolling crust the desired size when she wished them particularly rich. aunt sarah always used pastry flour for cake and pie. a smooth flour which showed the impression of the fingers when held tightly in the hand (the more expensive "bread flour") feels like fine sand or granulated sugar, and is a stronger flour and considered better for bread or raised cakes in which yeast is used, better results being obtained by its use alone or combined with a cheaper flour when baking bread. aunt sarah's lemon pie this is a good, old-fashioned recipe for lemon pie, baked with two crusts, and not expensive. grate the yellow outside rind from one lemon, use juice and pulp, but not the white part of rind; mix with small cups of sugar, then add cup of water and cup of milk, and large tablespoonful of corn starch, moistened with a little of the one cup of water. the yolks of eggs were added. mix all ingredients and add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. this quantity will fill three small pastry crusts. the mixture will measure nearly one quart. pour into the three crusts, moisten edges of pies, place top crusts on each pie. pinch edges of crust together and bake in hot oven. the professor's wife's superior pastry for superior pastry use - / cups flour, cup lard, / teaspoonful salt and about / cup of cold water, or three scant tablespoonfuls. put cup of flour on the bake board, sprinkle salt over, chop / cup of sweet lard through the flour with a knife, until the pieces are about the size of a cherry. moisten with about / cup of ice cold water. cut through the flour and lard with a knife, moistening a little of the mixture at a time, until you have a soft dough, easily handled. roll out lightly the size of a tea plate. take / of the lard remaining, put small dabs at different places on the dough (do not spread the lard over), then sprinkle over / of the remaining half cup of flour and roll the dough into a long, narrow roll, folding the opposite ends in the centre of the roll. roll out lightly (one way), then add lard and flour; roll and repeat the process until flour and lard have all been used. the pastry may be set aside in a cold place a short time before using. if particularly fine pastry is required, the dough might be rolled out once more, using small dabs of butter instead of lard, same quantity as was used of lard for one layer, then dredged thickly with flour and rolled over and over, and then ends folded together, when it should be ready to use. when wanted to line pie-tins, cut pieces off one end of the roll of dough and roll out lightly. the layers should show plainly when cut, and the pastry should puff nicely in baking, and be very rich, crisp and flaky. when preparing crusts for custards, lemon meringues and pies having only one crust, cut narrow strips of pastry about half an inch wide, place around the upper edge or rim of crust and press the lower edge of the strip against the crust; make small cuts with a knife about / inch apart, all around the edge of this extra crust, to cause it to look flaky when baked. this makes a rich pie crust. a very good crust may be made by taking the same proportions as used for superior pastry, placing - / to cups flour on the bake board, add salt, cut / cup lard through the flour, moistening with water. roll out crust and line pie-tins or small patty pans for tarts. this pastry is not quite as fine and smooth as the other, but requires less time and trouble to make. the professor's wife taught mary to make this pastry, but mary never could learn from her the knack of making a dainty, crimped, rolled-over edge to her pies, which she made easily with a deft twist of her thumb and forefinger. mary's lemon meringue (made with milk) line two large pie-tins with pie crust, prick with a fork before placing crusts in oven to bake. when baked stand aside to cool while you prepare the following filling: the juice and grated rind of lemon, pint sweet milk, cup sugar, yolks of three eggs, tablespoonfuls flour, butter size of a walnut. cream together sugar, flour, yolks of eggs, then add lemon, mix well then add to the scalded milk on the range and cook until thick. let cool, but do not allow to become quite cold, spread on the two crusts, which have been baked. when quite cold add tablespoonfuls of sugar to the stiffly beaten whites of the three eggs, spread on top of pies, sift tablespoonful pulverized sugar on top of meringue and set in a quick oven until fawn color. serve cold. when mixing pie dough, should you have mixed more than needed at one time, line _agate_ pie-tins with crust (never stand away in tin). they may be kept several days in a cool place and used later for crumb cakes or custards. or a crust might be baked and used later for lemon meringues, etc. apple tart line pie-tins with rich pie crust, sift over each tablespoonful flour and tablespoonfuls sugar. place on the crust enough good, tart baking apples, which have been pared, cored, halved and placed (flat surface down) on the crust. put bits of butter over the top and between the apples, about large tablespoonful altogether, and sprinkle about tablespoonfuls of sugar over, add about tablespoonful of cold water when pies are ready to place in oven. these pies should be baked in a very hot oven. when apples are soft take pies from oven and serve one pie, hot; stand the other one aside until quite cold. to the stiffly beaten white of one egg add one tablespoonful sugar. stir together and place a spoonful on the top of each half of apple and place in oven until meringue has browned and serve pie cold. peach tarts may be made in a similar manner, omitting the meringue and substituting peaches for apples. raisin or "rosina" pie "rosina" pie, as aunt sarah called it, was composed of lemon, egg, cup sugar, tablespoonful flour, cup large, blue, seeded raisins. cover the raisins with one cup of cold water; let soak two hours. cream egg and sugar together, add juice and grated rind of one quite small lemon, or half a large one. mix the tablespoonful of flour smooth with a little cold water, add to the mixture, then add raisins and to the water in which they were soaked add enough water to fill the cup and cook until the mixture thickens. when cool fill pie-tins with the mixture, bake with upper and under crust about minutes in hot oven. aunt sarah used a _generous_ tablespoonful of flour for this pie. "snitz" pie cover a bowlful of well-washed dried apples with cold water and allow to soak over night. the following morning cook until tender and mash through a colander. if quite thick a small quantity of water should be added. season with sugar to taste. some apples require more sugar than others. add cinnamon, if liked. aunt sarah never used any spices in these pies. bake with two crusts or place strips cross-wise over the pie of thinly rolled dough, like lattice work. these are typical "bucks county" pies. mary's recipe for plain pumpkin pie line a pie-tin, one holding cups of liquid, with rich pastry. for the filling for pie mix together the following: cup of steamed pumpkin, which had been mashed through a colander, egg, beaten separately, tablespoonful of flour, - / tablespoonfuls of sugar, / teaspoonful of salt, / teaspoonful of grated nutmeg, same of ginger, - / cups of milk (scant measure). the mixture should measure exactly cups, after adding milk. pour this mixture into the pastry-lined pie-tin and bake in a moderate oven until top of pie is a rich brown. chocolate pie melt one square of baker's unsweetened chocolate, or / cup of powdered cocoa, mix with this / cup of granulated sugar and / cup of corn starch. when well mixed add yolks of eggs, a pinch of salt, cups of milk; cook all together in a double boiler until thickened. when cool flavor with vanilla. fill pastry-lined pie crust with the mixture. beat the whites of eggs to a froth, mix with a couple tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar, spread on top of pie, stand in oven until light brown. "pebble dash" or shoo-fly pie aunt sarah made these to perfection and called them "pebble dash" pie. they are not really pies, they resemble cakes, but having a crust we will class them with pies. she lined three small sized pie-tins with rich pie crust. for the crumbs she placed in a bowl cups of flour, cup brown sugar and / cup of butter and lard, mixed and rubbed all together with the hands, not smooth, but in small rivels. for the liquid part she used cup baking molasses, cup hot water, teaspoonful baking soda dissolved in a few drops of vinegar and stirred this into the molasses and water. she divided the liquid among the three pans, putting one-third in each crust, over which she sprinkled the crumbs. bake one-half hour in a moderate oven. these have the appearance of molasses cakes when baked. vanilla crumb "crusts" cook together a short time / cup molasses, egg, tablespoonful flour, cup sugar, cups cold water. moisten the flour with a little cold water before adding to the other ingredients. when cooled add teaspoonful of vanilla. pour this mixture in the bottom of each of four common sized pie-tins, lined with pastry, and sprinkle over the following crumbs: the crumbs (for vanilla crumb crusts). two cups flour, / cup butter and lard, mixed, / teaspoonful soda and cup sugar, rubbed together with the hands to form crumbs. scatter these crumbs over the four pies. these are not thick pies, but simply what the recipe calls them--vanilla "crusts." "kasha kuchen" or cherry cake aunt sarah sometimes filled the bottom crusts of two small pies (either cheese pie or plain custard) with a layer of fresh cherries and poured the custard over the top of the cherries and baked same as a plain custard pie. aunt sarah might be called extravagant by some, but she always made egg desserts when eggs were cheap and plentiful, in the spring. in winter she baked pies and puddings in which a fewer number of eggs were used and substituted canned and dried fruits for fresh ones. in summer she used fresh fruit when in season, ice cream and sherbets. she never indulged in high-priced, unseasonable fruits--thought it an extravagance for one to do so, and taught mary "a wise expenditure in time means wealth." for banana custard pie she substituted sliced banana for cherries on top of pie. "rivel kuchen" place in a bowl cup flour, / cup sugar (good measure), / cup butter and lard, or all butter is better (scant measure). some like a little grating of nutmeg, especially if part lard is used. mix or crumb the ingredients well together with the hands to form small lumps, or rivels. line pie-tins with a rich pastry crust and strew the rivels thickly over and bake in a quick oven. a couple tablespoons of molasses spread over the crumbs is liked by some. this is a favorite pie or cake of many pennsylvania germans. aunt sarah's lemon meringue two cups of water, - / cups of sugar, rounding tablespoonfuls of corn starch, eggs, tablespoonful of butter, small lemons. mix the water, sugar and corn starch dissolved in a little cold water, pour in sauce-pan, place on range and stir mixture until thickened. beat separately the yolks of eggs and the whites of , then add both to the above mixture. remove from the fire, add the juice of two small lemons and grated rind of one; add butter. fill two previously baked pastry shells with the cooled mixture. beat the remaining whites of egg (another white of an egg added improves the appearance of the pie.) add one tablespoonful of pulverized sugar to each egg used; place the stiffly beaten whites of egg rockily over tops of pies stand in oven until a delicate shade of brown. this is a delicious pie. a country batter pie line two medium-sized pie-tins with pastry crust in which pour the following mixture, composed of / cup of granulated sugar and one egg, creamed together; then add / cup of cold water and the grated yellow rind and juice of one lemon. for the top of pies: cream together cup of sugar, / cup of lard and egg, then add / cup of sour milk alternately with - / cups of flour, sifted with / teaspoonful of baking soda and / teaspoonful of cream of tartar. place / of this mixture on top of each pie. bake in oven. pumpkin pie (aunt sarah's recipe) the best pumpkin for pie is of a deep orange yellow with a rough, warty surface. remove the soft, spongy pulp and seeds of the pumpkin, pare and cut into small pieces. steam until tender. put in a colander to drain, then mash through colander with wooden potato masher. for one deep pie allow one pint of the stewed pumpkin, beat in eggs, one at a time, / teaspoonful salt, teaspoonful ginger, / teaspoonful grated nutmeg, / teaspoonful cinnamon, / cup sugar, scant pint milk. beat all together. this mixture should barely fill a quart measure. pour in a deep pie-tin lined with rich crust, grate nutmeg over the top of pie and bake from to minutes in a moderate oven. have the oven rather hot when the pie is first put in to bake and then reduce the heat, else the filling in the pie will boil and become watery. if liked, two tablespoonfuls of brandy may be added to the mixture before filling the crust. in that case, use two tablespoonfuls less of milk. white potato custard (aunt sarah's recipe) boil one medium-sized potato, mash fine, add large tablespoonful of butter and a generous / cup sugar. beat to a cream. when the mixture has cooled add yolks of eggs, / cup sweet milk and grated rind and juice of half a lemon. lastly, stir in the stiffly beaten whites of the two eggs. bake in a medium-sized pie-tin with one crust in a moderately hot oven about minutes, until a rich brown on top. this is a delicious pie and would puzzle a "bucks county lawyer" to tell of what it is composed. "rhubarb custard" pie two cups of rhubarb, uncooked, do not skin it, cut in half-inch pieces. cream together cup of sugar, tablespoonful of cornstarch, eggs (reserve white of one egg). add the cups of rhubarb to this mixture and place all in a pie-tin lined with pastry. place in oven and bake until rhubarb is tender. remove from oven and when pie has cooled spread over it the stiffly beaten white of the egg, to which had been added one tablespoonful of sugar. place pie in oven and brown a light fawn color. "lemon apple" pie grate the yellow rind from a lemon (discard the white part of rind), grate the remainder of the lemon, also pare and grate apple. add - / cups of sugar, then add well-beaten eggs. pour this mixture into large pie-tin lined with rich pastry; place on a top crust, pinch edges, moistened with water, together; bake in an oven with a steady heat. when pie has baked sift pulverized sugar thickly over top and serve cold. from these materials was baked a fair sized pie. green currant pie line a pie-tin with rich pastry; place oil this crust tablespoonfuls of flour and tablespoonfuls of sugar; then add cups of well-washed and stemmed green currants, previously mixed with tablespoonful of cornstarch, moistened with a small quantity of cold water. add cup of sugar (from which had been taken the tablespoonfuls placed on crust;) add tablespoonfuls of water; cover with a top crust, cut small vents in crust, bake in a moderate oven. when crust loosens from side of pan the pie should be sufficiently baked. a country "molasses" pie place in a mixing bowl / cup flour (generous measure), / cup granulated sugar, generous tablespoonful of butter. crumble all together with the hands until quite fine. then to / cup of new orleans (baking) molasses add / cup of boiling water and / teaspoonful of soda (saleratus). beat together the molasses, water and soda until the mixture is foamy and rises to top of cup. then pour into a medium-sized pie-tin, lined with pie crust (the pie-tin should not be small or the mixture, when baking, will rise over top of pan). sprinkle the prepared crumbs thickly over the molasses mixture and with a spoon distribute the crumbs well through the mixture. bake in a moderate oven from to minutes and you will have the old-fashioned pie your grandmother used to bake. when her baking finished, she had dough remaining for an extra crust. children always called this "molasses candy pie," as 'twas quite different from the "molasses cake batter" usually baked in crusts. a mock cherry pie this pie was composed of / cup of chopped cranberries, / cup of seeded and chopped raisins, / cup of sugar, / cup of cold water, tablespoonful of flour, teaspoonful of vanilla all together and bake with two crusts. aunt sarah's custard pie line an agate pie-pan (one used especially for custards two inches in depth, holding exactly one quart) with a rich pastry. break five large eggs in a bowl, heat lightly with an egg-beater and add / cup of sugar. boil cups of sweet milk, pour over the eggs and sugar, add teaspoonful of butter and a pinch of salt, / teaspoonful of vanilla. the mixture should fill a one-quart measure. when the custard has cooled, pour either into the deep pie-pan, lined with pastry, holding one quart, or into two ordinary pie-tins holding one pint each. place the custard pie in a quick oven, that the crust may bake before the custard soaks into the crust; then allow oven to cool and when the custard is "set" (which should be in about minutes) remove from the oven and serve cold. the custard should be the consistency of thick jelly. scalding the milk produces a richer custard. plain rhubarb pie line a pie-tin with rich crust, skin rhubarb and cut into half-inch pieces a sufficient quantity to fill cups. mix together cup of sugar and / cup of flour. place a couple tablespoonfuls of this on the bottom crust of pie. mix sugar and flour remaining with cups of rhubarb and fill the crust. moisten the edge of crust with water, place on top crust, press two edges of crust together (having cut small vents in top crust to allow steam to escape). bake in a moderate oven about minutes, when top crust has browned pie should be baked. mary's cream pie bake crusts in each of two pie-tins. for filling, pint of milk, generous tablespoonful of corn starch, tablespoonfuls of sugar, yolks of eggs (well beaten), teaspoonful of vanilla. cook all together until mixture thickens and when cooled put in the two baked crusts. mix the stiffly beaten whites of two eggs with two tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar and spread over cream filling in pies and brown lightly in oven. always prick the lower crust of a pie carefully with a fork to allow the air to escape; this will prevent blisters forming in the crusts baked before filling crusts with custards. apple custard pie to cup of hot apple sauce (unsweetened) add a tiny pinch of baking soda, tablespoonful of butter, cup of sugar, grated rind and juice of half a lemon or orange, egg yolks, / cup of sweet cream and large teaspoonful of corn starch. line a pie-tin with pastry, pour in this mixture and bake. when the pie has cooled spread over top a meringue composed of the two stiffly beaten whites of eggs and two tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar flavored with a little grated orange or lemon peel. brown top of pie in oven. lemon pie with crumbs place in a bowl cup (good measure) of soft, crumbled stale bread. pour over this one cup of boiling water, add teaspoonful (good measure) of butter and beat until smooth, then add cup of sugar, the grated rind and juice of lemon and the beaten yolks of eggs. this mixture should measure about pint. pour into a pie-tin lined with rich pastry and bake. when cold spread over a meringue made of the stiffly beaten whites of the eggs and tablespoonfuls of granulated sugar. place in the oven until the meringue is a light fawn color and serve cold. aunt sarah's butter scotch pie boil together cup brown sugar and tablespoons butter until a soft, wax-like consistency. mix together heaping teaspoons flour, yolk of egg and cup of milk. beat until smooth; stir this into the sugar and butter mixture and cook until thick. flavor with lemon or vanilla, pour into baked crust and spread over top the beaten white of egg to which has been added tablespoon sugar and brown in oven. green tomato mince meat one peck of green tomatoes, chopped fine; lemons, seeded raisins, pounds of granulated sugar, cup of vinegar, teaspoonful of cloves, - / tablespoonfuls of nutmeg, tablespoonful of cinnamon. cook tomatoes - / hours, then add the other ingredients and cook all together minutes. a small quantity of grated orange peel, finely minced citron, cider, brandy or canned fruit juice may be added to improve the flavor of the mince meat. fill air-tight jars with the hot mixture and screw on jar-tops. this mince meat may be prepared in season when tomatoes are plentiful; is both good and cheap and is a splendid substitute for old-fashioned mince meat. orange meringue (a pie) into a bowl grate the yellow outside rind of a large, juicy orange; add the juice and pulp, but not any of the tough part enclosing sections. add tablespoonful of lemon juice, cup of granulated sugar, which had been beaten to a cream with tablespoonfuls of butter, the yolks of eggs, large tablespoonfuls of corn starch, mixed smoothly with a little cold water, and cup of boiling water. cook all together until thickened and when cool spread on a rather large pie-tin, lined with a baked crust of superior pastry. add to the stiffly beaten whites of eggs tablespoonfuls of pulverized sugar. place meringue over top of pie and place in oven until a light fawn color. grandmother's recipe for "mince meat" the day preceding that on which mince meat is to be prepared, boil pounds of beef. to the well-cooked, finely-chopped meat add pounds of tart apples, chopped into coarse bits; pounds of finely-chopped suet, pounds of large blue raisins, seeded; pounds of dried, cleaned currants, / pound of finely-shaved citron, tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, tablespoonful of cloves, tablespoonful of grated nutmeg, small tablespoonful of salt, pint of baking molasses, pint of brandy or cider which had been boiled down. mix all well together, add more spices, if liked, also juice of orange or lemon. place all ingredients in a large preserving kettle, allow the mixture to heat through. fill glass jars, seal and stand away until used. add more cider, should it he required, when baking pies. "twentieth century" mince meat two pounds lean beef (uncooked), chopped fine, / pound beef suet, shredded. put the beef and suet in a large stone jar, pour over it / of a quart of whiskey. let stand covered with a lid for a week, then add pounds large, seeded raisins, pounds sultana raisins, pounds currants, / pound citron, juice and grated rind of oranges and of lemons, teaspoonful salt, tablespoon ground cinnamon, grated nutmegs, / teaspoon ground allspice, pound sugar. let stand two weeks, then it is ready to use. when you wish to bake pies take out as much of the mince meat as you wish to use and add chopped apples, two parts of mince meat to one part chopped apples, and add more sugar if not as sweet as liked. if too thick, add a little sherry wine and water, mixed. fill bottom crust with some of the mixture, cover with top crust and bake. there must be just enough liquor in the jar to cover the meat, as that preserves it. this seems like a large quantity of liquor to use, but much of the strength evaporates in baking, so that only an agreeable flavor remains; that is, to those who like liquor in mince meat; some people do not. others there are who think mince meat not good unless made with something stronger than cider. mince pies made by this recipe are excellent. this recipe was given mary by a friend, a noted housekeeper and cook. a "dutch" recipe for pumpkin pie line a medium-sized pie-tin with pastry. cover the crust thickly with thinly-sliced, uncooked pumpkin, cut in inch lengths. place on the pumpkin tablespoonful of syrup molasses, tablespoonful of vinegar, tablespoonful flour and sweeten with sugar to taste, dust over the top a little ground cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg; cover pie with a top crust and bake in a moderately hot oven. when baked the pumpkin filling in the pie should resemble diced citron and the pie have somewhat the flavor of green tomato pie. (the vinegar may be omitted and the result be a very good pie.) mary's cocoanut custard pie line two medium-sized pie-tins with rich pastry and bake. for the custard filling: egg yolks, cups granulated sugar, quart of milk. cook all together, then add tablespoonful of corn starch and one of flour (moistened with a little cold water before adding). cook all together until the mixture thickens. flavor with one teaspoonful of vanilla. allow the mixture to cool. grate one good-sized cocoanut, mix half of it with the custard and fill into the two crusts. spread over the tops of the two pies the stiffly beaten whites of the three eggs to which you have added a small quantity of sugar. over this sprinkle the remaining half of the grated cocoanut, stand in the oven a few minutes, until top of pie is lightly browned. grape pie pulp the grapes. place pulp in a stew-pan and cook a short time. when tender mash pulp through a sieve to remove seeds. add skins to pulp. add one scant cup of sugar and rounded teaspoonful of butter. line a pie plate with rich pastry, sprinkle over one tablespoonful of flour. pour in the grape mixture and sift another tablespoonful of flour over the top of mixture and cover with a top crust in which vents have been cut, to allow the steam to escape, and bake in a hot oven. allow two small cups of grapes to one pie. sour cherry pie one quart of cherries, / cup of flour for juicy sour cherries, (scant measure of flour), - / cups sugar. pit the cherries, saving cherry juice. mix together sugar and flour and place about / of this on a pie-tin lined with pastry. fill with cherries and juice and sprinkle remaining sugar and flour over. bake with an upper crust, having vents cut in to allow steam to escape. aunt sarah's strawberry pie make a rich crust, line a pie-tin and fill with clean, hulled strawberries. allow one quart to each pie. sweeten to taste; sprinkle a generous handful of flour over the berries, having plenty of flour around the inside edge of pie. use / cup of flour all together. cut a teaspoonful of butter into small bits over top of berries, cover with top crust with vents cut in to allow steam to escape, pinch edges of crust together to prevent juice escaping from pie, and bake. florendine pie to apples, cooked soft and mashed fine (after having been pared and cored) add the yolk of one egg (well beaten) one minute before removing the cooked apple from the range. then add small cup of sugar, a piece of butter the size of a hickory nut, teaspoonful of flour; flavor with either lemon or vanilla. line a pie-tin with rich pastry crust. pour in the mixture and bake in a quick oven. this makes a delicious old-fashioned dessert. aunt sarah's cheese cake prepare the following for one cheese cake, to be baked in a pie-tin lined with pastry crust: one heaping cup of rich, creamy "smier kase," or cottage cheese, was placed in a bowl, finely mashed with a spoon until free from lumps. then mixed smooth with tablespoonfuls of sweet milk, tablespoonful of softened butter was added, a pinch of salt, about / cup of sugar, - / table spoonfuls of flour (measure with an ordinary silver tablespoon). one large egg was beaten into the mixture when it was smooth and creamy, cup of milk was added. after adding all the different ingredients the mixture should measure about - / cups and should be very thin. pour the mixture into a pastry-lined pie-tin. this is one of the most delicious pies imaginable, if directions given are closely followed. bake in a moderately hot oven until cheese custard is "set" and nicely browned on top, then allow the oven door to remain open about five minutes before removing the "pie," as i should call it, but bucks county farmers' wives, when speaking of them, invariably say "cheese cakes." should the housewife possess "smier kase," _not_ rich and creamy, use instead of the one tablespoonful of sweet milk, one tablespoonful of sweet cream. "frau schmidt's" lemon pie grated yellow rind and juice of one lemon, cup of sugar, cup of molasses, egg, butter, size of a walnut; tablespoonful of corn starch, / cup of water. cream together the butter, sugar and egg, add the corn starch moistened with a little cold water, add grated rind and juice of one lemon, molasses, and lastly add water. cook all ingredients together. when cool fill or small pie-tins lined with rich pastry; cover with top crust and bake. pickles--spiced cucumbers medium-sized cucumbers. medium-sized onions. red peppers. green peppers. pare cucumbers, then cut in inch lengths. slice onions and peppers quite thin. place all in a large earthenware bowl and sprinkle over about / cup of table salt; mix all well together, let stand four or five hours, when place in a colander; cover with a plate and drain off all the salt water possible or squeeze through a cheese-cloth bag. boil together for minutes the following; quart of vinegar, tablespoonful of cloves, teaspoonful of turmeric powder (dissolved in a little of the vinegar) and scant cup of sugar. add the cucumbers, peppers and onions to the hot vinegar. let come to a boil and allow all to boil two minutes, then place in sterilised jars and seal. mixed sauce to serve with meats yolks of eggs. / cup sugar. tablespoonful mixed yellow mustard. tablespoonful olive oil. teaspoonful salt. tablespoonful vinegar with flavor of peppers. thin with vinegar and boil until thick. add teaspoonful of grated horseradish. to flavor vinegar cover finely-cut green and red peppers with vinegar and allow all to stand about hours, then strain and use the vinegar. pepper relish chop fine sweet red peppers, sweet green peppers and small onions. put all in a bowl and cover with boiling water and let stand five minutes. drain off, cover again with boiling water and let stand ten minutes. then place in an agate colander or muslin bag and let drain over night. the following morning add quart of good sour vinegar, - / cups sugar, even teaspoonfuls salt and boil minutes. while hot fill air-tight jars. this is excellent. pickled red cabbage shred red cabbage, not too fine, and sprinkle liberally with salt. stand in a cool place hours. then press all moisture from the cabbage, having it as dry as possible; stand the earthen bowl containing the cabbage in the sun for a couple of hours. take a sufficient quantity of vinegar to cover the cabbage. a little water may be added to the vinegar if too sour. add cup sugar to a gallon of vinegar and a small quantity of celery seed, pepper, mace, allspice and cinnamon. boil all about five minutes and pour at once over the cabbage. the hot vinegar will restore the bright red color to the cabbage. keep in stone jar. mustard pickles cucumbers, quart of small onions, peppers, heads of cauliflower, cups of sugar, or less; celery or celery seed, quarts of good vinegar, / pound of ground yellow mustard, tablespoonful turmeric powder, / cup of flour. the seeds were removed from the cucumbers and cucumbers were cut in inch-length pieces, or use a few medium-sized cucumbers cut in several pieces and some quite small cucumbers. (the quantity of cucumbers when measured should be the same as if the larger ones had been used.) one quart of small whole onions, peppers, red, green and yellow, two of each, cut in small pieces. place all together in an agate preserving kettle and let stand in salt water over night. in the morning put on the range, the vegetables in agate kettle, let boil a few minutes, then drain well. take three quarts of good vingar, cups of sugar, if liked quite sweet; teaspoons of either celery seed or celery cut in small pieces. put the vinegar, sugar and celery in a preserving kettle, stand on stove and let come to a boil; then add the other ingredients. when boiling have ready a half pound of ground mustard, / cup of flour, tablespoon of turmeric powder, all mixed to a smooth paste with a little water. cook until the mixture thickens. add all the other ingredients and boil until tender. stir frequently to prevent scorching. can while hot in glass air-tight jars. aunt sarah's cucumber pickles always use the cucumbers which come late in the season for pickles. cut small green cucumbers from vine, leaving a half-inch of stem. scrub with vegetable brush, place in a bowl and pour over a brine almost strong enough to float an egg; / cup of salt to seven cups of cold water is about the right proportion. allow them to stand over night in this brine. drain off salt water in the morning. heat a small quantity of the salt water and pour over small onions which have been "skinned." use half the quantity of onions you have of cucumbers, or less. allow the onions to stand in hot salt water on back of range a short time. heat cup of good sharp cider vinegar, if too sour, add / cup of water, also add teaspoonful of sugar, a couple of whole cloves; add cucumbers and onions (drained from salt water, after piercing each cucumber several times with a silver fork). place a layer at a time in an agate stew-pan containing hot vinegar. allow them to remain a few minutes until heated through, when fill heated glass jars with cucumbers and onions; pour hot vinegar over until jars are quite full. place rubbers on jars and screw on tops. these pickles will be found, when jars are opened in six months' time, almost as crisp and fine as when pickles are prepared, when taken fresh from the vines in summer. allow jars to stand hours, when screw down tops again. press a knife around the edge of jar tops before standing away to be sure the jars are perfectly air-tight. "rot pfeffers" filled with cabbage cut the tops from the stem end of twelve sweet (not hot) red peppers or "rot pfeffers," as aunt sarah called them. carefully remove seeds, do not break outside shell of peppers. cut one head of cabbage quite fine on a slaw-cutter; add to the cabbage even tablespoonful of fine salt, tablespoonfuls of whole yellow mustard seed (a very small amount of finely shredded, hot, red pepper may be added if liked quite peppery). mix all together thoroughly, fill peppers with this mixture, pressing it rather tightly into the shells; place tops on pepper cases, tie down with cord. place upright in stone jar, in layers; cover with cold vinegar. if vinegar is very strong add a small quantity of water. tie heavy paper over top of jar and stand away in a cool place until used. these may be kept several months and will still be good at the end of that time. an old recipe for spiced pickles small cucumbers. oz. of allspice. gallons vinegar. / pound of black pepper. quarts salt. oz cloves. ounces of alum. horseradish to flavor. add sugar according to strength of vinegar. place cucumbers and pieces of horseradish in alternate layers in a stone jar, then put salt over them and cover with boiling water. allow pickles to stand hours in this brine, then pour off brine and wash pickles in cold water. boil spices and vinegar together and pour over the pickles. in two weeks they will be ready to use. pickles made over this recipe are excellent. aunt sarah's recipe for chili sauce large red tomatoes. medium-sized onions. sweet peppers (green or red). cup sugar. scant tablespoonfuls salt. - / cups vinegar (cider vinegar). tie in a small cheese cloth bag the following: large teaspoonful whole allspice. large teaspoonful whole cloves. about the same quantity of stick cinnamon. chop tomatoes, onions and peppers rather finely; add vinegar, sugar and salt and the bag of spices and cook slowly about - / hours. fill air-tight glass jars with the mixture while hot. this is a particularly fine recipe of aunt sarah's. this quantity will fill five pint jars. canned tomatoes may be used when fresh ones are not available. tomato catsup - / peck ripe tomatoes, washed and cut in small pieces; also four large onions, sliced. stew together until tender enough to mash through a fine sieve, reject seeds. this quantity of tomato juice should, when measured, be about four good quarts. put tomato juice into a kettle on range, add one pint of vinegar, / teaspoon cayenne pepper, - / tablespoons sugar, - / tablespoons salt; place in a cheese cloth bag ounce of whole black pepper, ounce whole cloves, ounce allspice, ounce yellow mustard seed and add to catsup. boil down one-half. bottle and seal while boiling hot. boil bottles and corks before bottling catsup. pour melted sealing-wax over corks to make them air-tight, unless self-sealing bottles are used. pickled beets one cup of sharp vinegar, cup of water, tablespoonfuls of sugar, whole cloves and a pinch of black, and one of red pepper. heat all together and pour over beets which have been sliced after being boiled tender and skins removed, and pack in glass jars which have been sterilized and if jars are air-tight these keep indefinitely. marmalades, preserves and canned fruits young housewives, if they would be successful in "doing up fruit," should be very particular about sterilizing fruit jars, both tops and rubbers, before using. heat the fruit to destroy all germs, then seal in air-tight jars while fruit is scalding hot. allow jars of canned fruit or vegetables to stand until perfectly cold. then, even should you think the tops perfectly tight, you will probably be able to give them another turn. carefully run the dull edge of a knife blade around the lower edge of jar cap to cause it to fit tightly. this flattens it close to the rubber, making it air-tight. to sterilize jars and tops, place in a pan of cold water, allow water to come to a boil and stand in hot water one hour. for making jelly, use fruit, under-ripe. it will jell more easily, and, not being as sweet as otherwise, will possess a finer flavor. for jelly use an equal amount of sugar to a pint of juice. the old rule holds good--a pound of sugar to a pint of juice. cook fifteen to twenty minutes. fruit juice will jell more quickly if the sugar is heated in the oven before being added. for preserving fruit, use about / of a pound of sugar to pound of fruit and seal in air-tight glass jars. for canning fruit, use from / to / the quantity of sugar that you have of fruit. when making jelly, too long cooking turns the mixture into a syrup that will not jell. cooking fruit with sugar too long a time causes fruit to have a strong, disagreeable flavor. apples, pears and peaches were pared, cut in quarters and dried at the farm for winter use. sour cherries were pitted, dried and placed in glass jars, alternately with a sprinkling of granulated sugar. pieces of sassafras root were always placed with dried apples, peaches, etc. "frau" schmidt's recipe for apple butter for this excellent apple butter take gallons of cider, bucket of "schnitz" (sweet apples were always used for the "schnitz"), - / pounds of brown sugar and ounce of allspice. the cider should be boiled down to one-half the original quantity before adding the apples, which had been pared and cored. cider for apple butter was made from sweet apples usually, but if made from sour apples pounds of sugar should be used. the apple butter should be stirred constantly. when cooked sufficiently, the apple butter should look clear and be thick as marmalade and the cider should not separate from the apple butter. frau schmidt always used "paradise" apples in preference to any other variety of apple for apple butter. cranberry sauce a delicious cranberry sauce, or jelly, was prepared by "aunt sarah" in the following manner: carefully pick over and wash quart of cranberries, place in a stew-pan with cups of water; cook quickly a few moments over a hot fire until berries burst open, then crush with a potato-masher. press through a fine sieve or a fruit press, rejecting skin and seeds. add pound of sugar to the strained pulp in the stew-pan. return to the fire and cook two or three minutes only. long, slow cooking destroys the fine flavor of the berry, as does brown sugar. pour into a bowl, or mold, and place on ice, or stand in a cool place to become cold before serving, as an accompaniment to roast turkey, chicken or deviled oysters. preserved "yellow ground cherries" remove the gossamer-like covering from small yellow "ground cherries" and place on range in a stew-pan with sugar. (three-fourths of a pound of sugar to one pound of fruit.) cook slowly about minutes, until the fruit looks clear and syrup is thick as honey. seal in pint jars. these cherries, which grow abundantly in many town and country gardens without being cultivated, make a delicious preserve and a very appetizing pie may be made from them also. aunt sarah said she preferred these preserved cherries to strawberries. frau schmidt preferred the larger "purple" ground cherries, which, when preserved, greatly resembled "guava" jelly in flavor. "wunderselda" marmalade this was composed of quarts of the pulp and juice combined of ripe kieffer pears, which had been pared and cored, (measured after being run through a food chopper.) the grated yellow rind and juice of five medium-sized tart oranges, and - / cups granulated sugar. cook all together about forty minutes, until a clear amber colored marmalade. watch closely and stir frequently, as the mixture scorches easily. this quantity will fill about twenty small jelly tumblers. if the marmalade is to be kept some time, it should be put into air-tight glass jars. the recipe for this delicious jam was original with the professor's wife, and fritz schmidt, being particularly fond of the confection, gave it the name "wunderselda," as he said "'twas not 'served often.'" aunt sarah's spiced pears bartlett pears may be used, pared and cut in halves and core and seeds removed, or small sweet seckel pears may be pared. left whole, allow stems to remain, weigh, and to pounds of either variety of pear take one pint of good cider vinegar, pounds granulated sugar, a small cheese cloth bag containing several tablespoonfuls of whole cloves and the same amount of stick cinnamon, broken in pieces; all were placed in a preserving kettle and allowed to come to a boil. then the pears were added and cooked until tender. the fruit will look clear when cooked sufficiently. remove from the hot syrup with a perforated spoon. fill pint glass jars with the fruit. stand jars in a warm oven while boiling syrup until thick as honey. pour over fruit, in jars, and seal while hot. peach marmalade thinly pare ripe peaches. cut in quarters and remove pits. place peaches in a preserving kettle with / cup of water; heat slowly, stirring occasionally. when fruit has become tender mash not too fine and to every three pounds of peaches (weighed before being cooked) allow - / pounds of granulated sugar. cook sugar and fruit together about three-quarters of an hour, stirring frequently, until marmalade looks clear. place in pint glass, air-tight jars. aunt sarah always preferred the "morris white," a small, fine flavored, white peach, which ripened quite late in the fall, to any other variety from which to make preserves and marmalade. aunt sarah's ginger pears pounds of fruit. lemons. / pound of ginger root. pounds of sugar. cup water. use a hard, solid pear, not over ripe. pare and core the fruit and cut into thin slivers. use juice of lemons and cut the lemon rind into long, thin strips. place all together in preserving kettle and cook slowly one hour, or until the fruit looks clear. should the juice of fruit not be thick as honey, remove fruit and cook syrup a short time, then add fruit to the syrup. when heated through, place in pint jars and seal. this quantity will fill four pint jars and is a delicious preserve. pear and pineapple marmalade ripe pineapples, quarts kieffer pears. pounds granulated sugar. both pears and pineapples should be pared and eyes removed from the latter. all the fruit should be run through food-chopper using all the juice from fruit. mix sugar with fruit and juice and cook, stirring constantly until thick and clear. (watch closely, as this scorches easily if allowed to stand a minute without stirring.) pour into glass pint jars and seal while hot. any variety of pear may be used, but a rather hard, solid pear is to be preferred. a recipe given mary which she found delicious. grape butter separate pulp and skins of grapes. allow pulp to simmer until tender, then mash through a sieve and reject seeds. add pulp to skins. take / pound of sugar to one pound of fruit. cook until thick, seal in air-tight jars. canned sour cherries for pies pit cherries and cover with cold water and let stand over night. drain in the morning. to heaping cups of pitted cherries take level cups of sugar, / cup water. put all together into stew-pan on range, cook a short time, then add teaspoonful of corn starch mixed with a little cold water and stir well through the cherries; let come to a boil, put in jars and seal. this quantity fills five pint jars. this is the way one country housekeeper taught mary to can common _sour_ cherries for pies and she thought them fine. candied orange peel cut orange peel in long, narrow strips, cover with cold water and boil minutes. pour off water, cover with cold water and boil another minutes, then drain and take equal weight of peel and sugar. let simmer hour, then dip slices in granulated sugar. stand aside to cool. aunt sarah's "cherry marmalade" pitted, red sour cherries were weighed, put through food-chopper, and to each pound of cherries and juice add / pound of granulated sugar. cook about minutes until syrup is thick and fruit looks clear. fill marmalade pots, cover with parafine when cool, or use pint glass jars and seal. one is sure of fruit keeping if placed in air-tight jars. aunt sarah's quince honey pour quart of water, good measure, in an agate stew-pan on the range with three pounds of granulated sugar. when boiling add large, grated quinces, after paring them. grate all but the core of quinces. boil from to minutes, until it looks clear. pour into tumblers. when cold, cover and stand away until used. pickled peaches twelve pounds of peaches, quart of vinegar, pounds brown sugar. rub the fuzz from the peaches. do not pare them. stick half a dozen whole cloves in each peach. add spices to taste, stick-cinnamon, whole doves and mace. put spices in a small cheese cloth bag and do not remove the bag, containing spices, when putting away the peaches. scald sugar, vinegar and spices together and pour over the peaches. cover closely and stand away. do this twice, one day between. the third time place all together in a preserving kettle. cook a few minutes, then place fruit in jars, about three-quarters filled. boil down the syrup until about one-quarter has boiled away, pour over the peaches, hot, and seal in air-tight jars. this is an old and very good recipe used by "aunt sarah" many years. currant jelly always pick currants for jelly before they are "dead ripe," and never directly after a shower of rain. wash and pick over and stem currants. place in a preserving kettle five pounds of currants and / cup of water; stir until heated through then mash with a potato masher. turn into a jelly bag, allow drip, and to every pint of currant juice add one pound of granulated sugar; return to preserving kettle. boil twenty minutes, skim carefully, pour into jelly glasses. when cold cover tops of glasses with melted parafine. pineapple honey pineapple honey was made in a similar manner to quince honey, using one large grated pineapple to one quart of cold water and three pounds of sugar. boil minutes. preserved pineapple pare the pineapples, run through a food chopper, weigh fruit, and to every pound of fruit add three-quarters of a pound of sugar. mix sugar and fruit together and stand in a cool place over night. in the morning cook until fruit is tender and syrup clear; skim top of fruit carefully; fill jars and seal. grape conserve wash and drain ten pounds of ripe grapes, separate the skins from the pulp, stew pulp until soft, mash through a sieve, reject seeds. place pulp and skins in a preserving kettle, add a half pound of seeded raisins and juice and pulp of oranges. measure and add to every quart of this / of a quart of sugar. cook slowly, until the consistency of jam. a cup of coarsely-chopped walnut meats may be added, if liked, a few minutes before removing jam from the range. fill pint jars and seal. mary's recipe for rhubarb jam skin and cut enough rhubarb in half-inch pieces to weigh three pounds. add / cup cold water and pounds of granulated sugar, and the grated yellow rind and juice of large oranges. cook all together, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, a half hour, or until clear. this is a delicious jam. apple sauce when making apple sauce, cut good, tart apples in halves after paring them, cut out the cores, then cook, quickly as possible, in half enough boiling water to cover them. cover the stew-pan closely. this causes them to cook more quickly, and not change color. watch carefully that they do not scorch. when apples are tender, turn into sieve. should the apples be quite juicy and the water drained from the apples measure a half pint, add a half pound of sugar, cook or minutes, until it jells, and you have a glass of clear, amber-colored jelly. add teaspoonful of butter and sugar to taste to the apple sauce, which has been mashed through the sieve. apple sauce made thus should be almost the color of the apples before cooking. if the apple sauce is not liked thick, add some of the strained apple juice instead of making jelly; as some apples contain more juice than others. rhubarb marmalade (as frau schmidt made it) cut rhubarb into small pieces, put in stew-pan with just enough water to prevent sticking fast. when cooked tender, mash fine with potato masher, and to three cups of rhubarb, measured before stewing, add cup of granulated sugar, also dozen almonds which had been blanched and cut as fine as possible, and stewed until tender, then added to hot rhubarb and sugar. cook all together a short time. serve either hot or cold. a large quantity may be canned for winter use. the addition of almonds gave the marmalade a delicious flavor a good marmalade may be made by adding the juice and thinly shaved outside peel of several lemons to rhubarb. put all together in kettle on range with sugar. cook over a slow fire until proper consistency. turn into jars and leave uncovered until day following, when cover and seal air-tight. grape fruit marmalade for this marmalade take large grape fruit, large oranges and lemon. after thoroughly washing the outside of fruit, slice all as thinly as possible, rejecting the seeds. measure and add three times as much water as you have fruit. let all stand over night. the next morning boil minutes, stand over night again, in a large bowl or agate preserving kettle. the next morning add pound (scant measure) of sugar to each pint of the mixture and boil until it jells. this is delicious if you do not object to the slightly bitter taste of the grape fruit. put in tumblers, cover closely with paraffin. this quantity should fill tumblers, if a large grape fruit is used. orange marmalade slice whole oranges very thin and cut in short pieces after washing them. save the seeds. to each pound of sliced oranges add pints of cold water and let stand hours. then boil all together until the chipped rinds are tender. all the seeds should be put in a muslin bag and boiled with the oranges. allow all to stand together until next day, then remove the bag of seeds, and to every pound of boiled fruit add a half pound of sugar. boil continuously, stirring all the time, until the chips are quite clear and the syrup thick as honey on being dropped on a cold dish. the grated rind and juice of lemons will improve the taste of marmalade if added at last boiling. when cooked sufficiently the marmalade should be clear. pour at once into glass jars and cover closely. cherry relish after sour cherries have been pitted, weigh them and cover with vinegar and let stand hours. take from the vinegar and drain well, then put into stone crocks in layers, with sugar, allowing pound of sugar to pound of cherries. stir twice each day for ten days, then fill air-tight jars and put away for winter use. these are an excellent accompaniment to a roast of meat. canned peaches when canning peaches make a syrup composed of cup of sugar to cups of water. place in preserving kettle and when sugar has dissolved cook thinly pared peaches, either sliced or cut in halves, in the hot syrup until clear, watching closely that they do not cook too soft. place carefully in glass jars, pour hot syrup over and seal in jars. aunt sarah also, occasionally, used a wash-boiler in which to can fruit. she placed in it a rack made of small wooden strips to prevent the jars resting on the bottom of the boiler; filled the jars with uncooked fruit or vegetables, poured over the jars of fruit hot syrup and over the vegetables poured water, placed the jars, uncovered, in the boiler; water should cover about half the height of jars. boil until contents of jars are cooked, add boiling syrup to fill fruit jars and screw the tops on tightly. pear conserve use pounds of pears, not too soft or over-ripe, cut like dice. cover with water and boil until tender, then add pounds of sugar. peel oranges, cut in dice the night before using; let diced orange peel stand, covered with cold water until morning. then cook until orange peel is tender. add this to the juice and pulp of the two oranges. add one pound of seeded raisins and cook all together until thick honey. put in glass jars and seal. lemon honey the juice of lemons, mixed with cups of sugar. add eggs, beating in at a time. add cups of water and tablespoonfuls of butter. cook all together minute, until thick as honey. canned string beans aunt sarah used no preservative when canning beans. she gathered the beans when quite small and tender, no thicker than an ordinary lead-pencil, washed them thoroughly, cut off ends and packed them into quart glass jars, filled to overflowing with cold water. placed jar tops on lightly, and stood them in wash boiler in the bottom of which several boards had been placed. filled wash boiler with luke warm water about two-thirds as high as tops of jars, cooked continuously three to four hours after water commenced to boil. then carefully lifted jars from wash boiler, added boiling water to fill jars to overflowing, screwed on cover and let stand until perfectly cold, when give jar tops another turn with the hand when they should be air-tight. a good plan is to run the dull edge of a knife around the outer edge of the jar to be sure it fits close to the rubber, and will not admit air. beans canned in this manner should keep indefinitely. preserved "german prunes" or plums after washing fruit, piece each plum several times with a silver fork, if plums be preserved whole. this is not necessary if pits are removed. weigh fruit and to each pound of plums take about / pound of granulated sugar. place alternate layers of plums and sugar in a preserving kettle, stand on the back of range three or four hours, until sugar has dissolved, then draw kettle containing sugar and plums to front of range and boil so minutes. remove scum which arises on top of boiling syrup. place plums in glass jars, pour boiling syrup over and seal. a good rule is about four pounds of sugar to five pounds of plums. should plums cook soft in less than minutes, take from syrup with a perforated skimmer, place in jars and cook syrup until as thick as honey; then pour over fruit and seal up jars. bucks county apple butter a genuine old-fashioned recipe for apple butter, as "aunt sarah" made it at the farm. a large kettle holding about five gallons was filled with sweet cider. this cider was boiled down to half the quantity. the apple butter was cooked over a wood fire, out of doors. the cider was usually boiled down the day before making the apple butter, as the whole process was quite a lengthy one. fill the kettle holding the cider with apples, which should have been pared and cored the night before at what country folks call an "apple bee," the neighbors assisting to expedite the work. the apples should be put on to cook as early in the morning as possible and cooked slowly over not too hot a fire, being stirred constantly with a long-handled "stirrer" with small perforated piece of wood on one end. there is great danger of the apple butter burning if not carefully watched and constantly stirred. an extra pot of boiling cider was kept near, to add to the apple butter as the cider boiled away. if cooked slowly, a whole day or longer will be consumed in cooking. when the apple butter had almost finished cooking, about the last hour, sweeten to taste with sugar (brown sugar was frequently used). spices destroy the true apple flavor, although aunt sarah used sassafras root, dug from the near-by woods, for flavoring her apple butter, and it was unexcelled. the apple butter, when cooked sufficiently, should be a dark rich color, and thick like marmalade, and the cider should not separate from it when a small quantity is tested on a saucer. an old recipe at the farm called for gallons of cider to buckets of cider apples, and to gallons of apple butter pounds of sugar were used. pour the apple butter in small crocks used for this purpose. cover the top of crocks with paper, place in dry, cool store-room, and the apple butter will keep several years. in olden times sweet apples were used for apple butter, boiled in sweet cider, then no sugar was necessary. small brown, earthen pots were used to keep this apple butter in, it being only necessary to tie paper over the top. dozens of these pots, filled with apple butter, might have been seen in aunt sarah's store-room at the farm at one time. canned tomatoes when canning red tomatoes select those which ripen early in the season, as those which ripen later are usually not as sweet. wash the tomatoes, pour scalding water over, allow them to stand a short time, when skins may be easily removed. cut tomatoes in several pieces, place over fire in porcelain-lined preserving kettle and cook about minutes, or until an orange-colored scum rises to the top. fill perfectly clean sterilised jars with the hot tomatoes fill quickly before they cool. place rubber and top on jar, and when jars have become perfectly cold (although they may, apparently, have been perfectly air-tight), the tops should be given another turn before standing away for the winter; failing to do this has frequently been the cause of inexperienced housewives' ill success when canning tomatoes. also run the dull edge of a knife blade carefully around the top of jar, pressing down the outer edge and causing it to fit more closely. aunt sarah seldom lost a jar of canned tomatoes, and they were as fine flavored as if freshly picked from the vines. she was very particular about using only new tops and rubbers for her jars when canning tomatoes. if the wise housewife takes these precautions, her canned tomatoes should keep indefinitely. aunt sarah allowed her jars of tomatoes to stand until the day following that on which the tomatoes were canned, to be positively sure they were cold, before giving the tops a final turn. stand away in a dark closet. euchered peaches twelve pounds of pared peaches (do not remove pits), pounds of sugar and gill of vinegar boiled together a few minutes, drop peaches into this syrup and cook until heated through, when place peaches in air-tight jars, pour hot syrup over and seal. aunt sarah's method of canning corn three quarts of sweet corn cut from the cob, cup of sugar / cup of salt and pint of cold water. place these ingredients together in a large bowl; do this early in the morning and allow to stand until noon of the same day; then place all together in a preserving kettle on the range and cook twenty minutes. fill glass jars which have been sterilized. the work of filling should be done as expeditiously as possible; be particular to have jar-tops screwed on tightly. when jars have become cool give tops another turn, to be positive they are air-tight before putting away for the winter. when preparing this canned corn for the table, drain all liquid from the corn when taken from the can, pour cold water over and allow to stand a short time on the range until luke-warm. drain and if not _too_ salt, add a small quantity of fresh water, cook a few minutes, season with butter, add a couple tablespoonfuls of sweet milk; serve when hot. this canned corn possesses the flavor of corn freshly cut from the cob. sarah landis had used this recipe for years and 'twas seldom she lost a can. dried sweet corn in season when ears of sweet corn are at their best for cooking purposes, boil double the quantity necessary for one meal, cut off kernels and carefully scrape remaining pulp from cob. spread on agate pans, place in a hot oven a short time (watch closely) and allow it to remain in a cooled oven over night to dry. when perfectly dry place in bags for use later in the season. when the housewife wishes to prepare dried corn for the table, one cup of the dried corn should be covered with cold water and allowed to stand until the following day, when place in a stew-pan on the range and simmer slowly several hours; add / teaspoonful of sugar, tablespoonful of butter, salt and pepper. this corn aunt sarah considered sweeter and more wholesome than canned corn and she said "no preservatives were used in keeping it." when chestnuts were gathered in the fall of the year, at the farm, they were shelled as soon as gathered, then dried and stored away for use in the winter. aunt sarah frequently cooked together an equal amount of chestnuts and dried corn; the combination was excellent. the chestnuts were soaked in cold water over night. the brown skin of the chestnuts may be readily removed after being covered with boiling water a short time. preserved cherries aunt sarah's preserved cherries were fine, and this was her way of preparing them: she used pound of granulated sugar to quart of pitted cherries. she placed the pitted cherries on a large platter and sprinkled the sugar over them. she allowed them to stand several hours until the cherries and sugar formed a syrup on platter. she then put cherries, sugar and juice all together in a preserving kettle, set on range, and cooked minutes. she then skimmed out the cherries and boiled the syrup minutes longer, then returned the cherries to syrup. let come to a boil. she then removed the kettle from the fire, spread all on a platter and let it stand in the hot sun two successive days, then put in glass air-tight jars or in tumblers and covered with paraffin. a combination of cherries and strawberries preserved together is fine, and, strange to say, the flavor of strawberries predominates. a fine flavored preserve is also made from a combination of cherries and pineapple. frozen desserts--aunt sarah's frozen "fruit custard" one tablespoonful of granulated gelatine soaked in enough milk to cover. place cups of sugar and / cup of milk in a stew-pan on the range and boil until it spins a thread; that is, when a little of the syrup is a thread-like consistency when dripped from a spoon. allow it to cool. add dissolved gelatine and quart of sweet cream. one box of strawberries, or the same amount of any fruit liked, may be added to the mixture; freeze as ordinary ice cream. this dessert as prepared by aunt sarah was delicious as any ice cream and was used by her more frequently than any other recipe for a frozen dessert. sherbet frau schmidt gave mary this simple recipe for making any variety of sherbet: cups of sugar, tablespoonful of flour, mixed with the sugar and boiled with quart of water; when cold, add quart of any variety of fruit. freeze in same manner as when making ice cream. ice cream--a simple recipe given mary when preparing this ice cream mary used the following: three cups of cream and cup of milk, egg and cup of pulverized sugar (were beaten together until light and creamy). this, with teaspoonful of vanilla flavoring, was added to the milk and cream. the cream should be scalded in warm weather. the egg and sugar should then be added to the scalded milk and cream, stirring them well together. when the mixture has cooled, strain it into the can of the freezer. three measures of cracked ice to one of salt should be used. the ice and salt, well-mixed, were packed around the freezer. the crank was turned very slowly the first ten minutes, until the mixture had thickened, when it was turned more rapidly until the mixture was frozen. frau schmidt's ice cream this recipe for ice cream is simple and the ice cream is good. a boiled custard was prepared, consisting of quart of milk, eggs, between and cups of granulated sugar. when the custard coated the spoon she considered it cooked sufficiently. removed from the fire. when cold she beat into the custard quart of rich cream and teaspoonful of vanilla, turned the mixture into the freezer, packed outside tub with ice and salt. it was frozen in the ordinary manner. maple parfait for this rich, frozen dessert mary beat eggs lightly, poured slowly over them cup of hot maple syrup, cooked in a double boiler, stirring until very thick. she strained it, and when cold added pint of cream. she beat all together, poured into a mold, packed the mold in ice and salt, and allowed it to stand hours. this is a very rich frozen dessert, too rich to be served alone. it should be served with lemon sherbet or frozen custard with a lemon flavoring, as it is better served with a dessert less rich and sweet. ice cream made by beating with paddle this recipe for a delicious and easily prepared ice cream was given mary by a friend living in philadelphia and is not original. she found the ice cream excellent and after having tried the recipe used no other. a custard was made of quart of scalded milk, eggs, cups of sugar. the eggs were beaten light, then sugar was added, then the hot milk was poured over and all beaten together. she put all in a double boiler and stirred about ten minutes, until thick and creamy. a small pinch of soda was added to prevent curdling. when the custard was perfectly cold she stirred in three cups of sweet, cold cream, flavored with either vanilla or almond flavoring, and beat all together five minutes, then turned the mixture into the freezer, packed well with pounded ice and coarse salt. she covered the freezer with the ice and salt and threw a heavy piece of old carpet or burlap over the freezer to exclude the air. she let it stand one hour, then carefully opened the can containing the cream, not allowing any salt to get in the can. with a long, thin-handled knife she scraped down the frozen custard from the sides of the freezer, and with a thin wooden paddle beat it hard and fast for about five minutes. this made the cream fine and smooth. any fruit may now be added, and should be mixed in before the cream is covered. the cream should be beaten as quickly as possible and covered as soon as the fruit has been added. aunt sarah usually made peach ice cream when peaches were in season. fine ripe peaches were pared and pitted, then finely mashed, small cups of sugar being added to a pint of mashed peaches. she allowed the peach mixture to stand one hour before adding to the beaten cream. when the mashed peaches had been added to the cream, she fastened the lid and drained off part of the water in outer vessel, packed more ice and salt about the can in the freezer, placed a weight on top to hold it down, covered closely with a piece of old carpet to exclude the air, left it stand three or four hours. the beating was all the labor required. the dasher or crank was not turned at all when making the ice cream, and when frozen it was delicious. mary was told by her aunt of a friend in a small town, with a reputation for serving delicious ice cream, who always made ice cream by beating with a paddle, instead of making it by turning a crank in a freezer. aunt sarah's recipe for frozen custard one quart of rich, sweet milk, tablespoons of corn starch, eggs, cup of sugar, small tablespoon of vanilla. cook the milk in a double boiler, moisten corn starch with a little milk. stir it into the hot milk until it begins to thicken. beat sugar and eggs together until creamy, add to the hot milk, cook a minute, remove from fire, add the vanilla, and when cool freeze. crush the ice into small pieces, for the finer the ice the quicker the custard will freeze, then mix the ice with a fourth of the quantity of coarse rock salt, about pounds ice and pounds salt will be required to pack sides and cover top of a four-quart freezer. place can in tub, mix and fill in ice and salt around the can, turn the crank very slowly until the mixture is thoroughly chilled. keep hole in top of tub open. when mixture is cold, turn steadily until it turns rather hard. when custard is frozen, take out inside paddle, close the freezer, run off the salt water, repack and allow to stand several hours. at the end of that time it is ready to serve. pineapple cream this is a delicious dessert, taught mary by aunt sarah. she used quart sweet cream, - / cups sugar, beaten together. it was frozen in an ice cream freezer. she then pared and cut the eyes from one ripe pineapple and flaked the pineapple into small pieces with a silver fork, sprinkled sugar over and let it stand until sugar dissolved. she then stirred this into the frozen cream and added also the beaten white of one egg. packed ice and salt around freezer and allowed it to stand several hours before using. mary's aunt always cooked pineapple or used canned pineapple with a rich syrup when adding fruit before the cream was frozen. mary's recipe for peach cream mary made ice cream when peaches were plentiful; she used quart of sweet cream, sweetened to taste (about cups sugar) and quarts of ripe peaches mashed and sweetened before adding to cream. freeze in ordinary manner. if peaches were not fine flavored, she added a little almond flavoring. lemon sherbet this is the way frau schmidt taught mary to make this dessert. she used for the purpose quart of water, lemons, tablespoons gelatine, large cups sugar. she soaked the gelatine in about cup of water. she squeezed out the juice of lemons, rejecting seeds and pulp. she allowed a cup of water out of the quart to soak the gelatine. this mixture was put in an ice cream freezer and frozen. frau schmidt's frozen custard - / quarts milk. cups sugar. eggs. - / tablespoonfuls of flour. scald the milk in a double boiler. moisten flour (she preferred _flour_ to corn starch for this purpose) with a small quantity of cold milk, and stir into the scalded milk. beat together egg yolks and sugar until light and creamy, then add the stiffly beaten whites of eggs and stir all into the boiling milk. cool thoroughly, flavor with vanilla and freeze as you would ice cream. when partly frozen crushed strawberries or peaches may be added in season. a little more sugar should then he added to the fruit, making a dessert almost equal to ice cream. in winter one cup of dried currants may be added, also one tablespoonful of sherry wine, if liked. caramel ice cream scald one pint of sweet milk in a double boiler. stir into it one cup of sugar and one rounded tablespoonful of flour, which had been mixed smoothly with a small quantity of the milk before scalding. add two eggs which had been beaten together until light and creamy. at the same time the milk was being scalded, a fry-pan containing one cup of granulated sugar was placed on the range; this should be watched carefully, on account of its liability to scorch. when sugar has melted it will be brown in color and liquid, like molasses, and should then be thoroughly mixed with the foundation custard. cook the whole mixture ten minutes and stand aside to cool; when perfectly cold add a pinch of salt, one quart of sweet cream, and freeze in the ordinary manner. cherry sherbet aunt sarah taught mary to prepare this cheap and easily made dessert of the various berries and fruits as they ripened. currants, strawberries, raspberries and cherries were used. they were all delicious and quickly prepared. the ice for freezing was obtained from a near-by creamery. the cherries used for this were not the common, sour pie cherries, so plentiful usually on many "bucks county farms," but a fine, large, red cherry, not very sour. when about to prepare cherry sherbet, mary placed over the fire a stew-pan containing quart of boiling water and pound of granulated sugar. boiled this together minutes. she added tablespoonful of granulated gelatine which had been dissolved in a very little cold water. when the syrup had cooled, she added the juice of half a lemon and quart of pitted cherries, mixed all together. poured it in the ice cream freezer, packed around well with coarse salt and pounded ice. she used part salt to parts ice. she turned the crank slowly at first, allowed it to stand a few minutes, then increased the speed. when the mixture was firm she removed the dasher. she allowed the water to remain with the ice and salt, as the ice-cold water helped to freeze it. she filled in ice and salt around the can in the freezer and on top of the can; covered the top of the freezer with a piece of old carpet and allowed it to stand a couple of hours, when it was ready to serve. almost any fruit or fruit juice, either fresh or canned, may be made into a delicious dessert by this rule. one quart of boiling water and pound of sugar boiled together to form a syrup, then add quart of juice or fruit and juice to measure exactly one quart. mix together according to directions and freeze. grape sherbet grape sherbet was made in this manner: the grapes were washed, picked from the stems and placed in a stew-pan over the fire. when hot remove from the fire and mash with a potato-masher and strain through a jelly bag, as if preparing to make jelly. boil together pound of granulated sugar and quart of water, about minutes. while hot add pint of grape juice and teaspoonful of granulated gelatine, which had been dissolved in a very little cold water, to the hot syrup. when the mixture was partly frozen add the stiffly beaten white of egg and tablespoonful of pulverized sugar, beaten together. all were stirred together, covered and stood away until cold. then placed in a freezer, iced as for ice cream, and frozen in the same manner as for cherry sherbet. the juice of all berries or fruits may be extracted in the same manner as that of grapes. wines and syrups--unfermented grape juice to pounds of stemmed concord grapes add quart of water, allow them to simmer on range until grapes have become soft. strain through a piece of cheese-cloth, being careful to press only the juice through, not the pulp of the grapes. return the grape juice to the preserving kettle and add / of a pound of sugar. allow the juice to just commence to boil, as cooking too long a time spoils the flavor of the juice. bottle at once, while juice is hot. bottles must be sterilized and air-tight if you expect grape juice to keep. cover corks with sealing wax. vinegar made from strawberries "aunt sarah" landis possessed the very finest flavored vinegar for cooking purposes, and this is the way it was made. she having a very plentiful crop of fine strawberries one season, put quarts of very ripe, mashed strawberries in a five-gallon crock, filled the crock with water, covered the top with cheese-cloth and allowed it to stand in a warm place about one week, when it was strained, poured into jugs and placed in the cellar, where it remained six months, perhaps longer, when it became very sharp and sour, and had very much the appearance of white wine with a particularly fine flavor. this was not used as a beverage, but as a substitute for cider in cooking. boiled cider for mince pies in autumn, when cider was cheap and plentiful on the farm, quarts of cider was boiled down to one, or, in this proportion, for use in mince meat during the winter. a quantity prepared in this manner, poured while hot in air-tight jars, will keep indefinitely. lemon syrup boil two cups of granulated sugar and one cup of water together for a few minutes until the sugar is dissolved, then add the juice of six well-scrubbed, medium-sized lemons; let come to a boil and add the grated yellow rind of three of the lemons. be careful not to use any of the white skin of the lemons, which is bitter. put in air-tight glass jars. this quantity fills one pint jar. a couple tablespoonfuls added to a tumbler partly filled with water and chipped ice makes a delicious and quickly prepared drink on a hot day. egg nogg add to the stiffly beaten white of one egg the slightly beaten yolk of egg. pour into glass tumbler, fill with cold sweet milk, sweeten with sugar to taste and a little grated nutmeg on top or a tablespoonful of good brandy. this is excellent for a person needing nourishment, and may be easily taken by those not able to take a raw egg in any other form. the egg nogg will be more easily digested if sipped slowly while eating a cracker or slice of crisply toasted bread. rose wine gather one quart of rose leaves, place in a bowl, pour over one quart of boiling water, let stand nine days, then strain, and to each quart of strained liquid add one pound of granulated sugar. allow to stand until next day, when sugar will be dissolved. pour into bottles, cork tightly, stand away for six months before using. aunt sarah had some which had been keeping two years and it was fine. dandelion wine four good quarts of dandelion blossoms, four pounds of sugar, six oranges, five lemons. wash dandelion blossoms and place them in an earthenware crock. pour five quarts of boiling water over them and let stand hours. then strain through a muslin bag, squeezing out all moisture from dandelions. put the strained juice in a deep stone crock or jug and add to it the grated rind and juice of the six oranges and five lemons. tie a piece of cheese-cloth over the top of jug and stand it in a warm kitchen about one week, until it begins to ferment. then stand away from stove in an outer kitchen or cooler place, not in the cellar, for three months. at the end of three months put in bottles. this is a clear, amber, almost colorless liquid. a pleasant drink of medicinal value. aunt sarah always used this recipe for making dandelion wine, but mary preferred a recipe in which yeast was used, as the wine could be used a short time after making. dandelion wine (made with yeast) four quarts of dandelion blossoms. pour over them four quarts of boiling water; let stand hours, strain and add grated rind and juice of two oranges and two lemons, four pounds of granulated sugar and two tablespoonfuls of home-made yeast. let stand one week, then strain and fill bottles. grape fruit punch two cups of grape juice, cups of water, - / cups of sugar, juice of lemons and oranges, sliced oranges, bananas and pineapples. serve the punch in sherbet glasses, garnished with marachino cherries. a substitute for maple syrup a very excellent substitute for maple syrup to serve on hot griddle cakes is prepared from pounds of either brown or white sugar and - / cups of water, in the following manner: place the stew-pan containing sugar and water on the back part of range, until sugar dissolves, then boil from to minutes, until the mixture thickens to the consistency of honey. remove from the range and add a few drops of vanilla or "mapleine" flavoring. a tiny pinch of cream of tartar, added when syrup commences to boil, prevents syrup granulating; too large a quantity of cream of tartar added to the syrup would cause it to have a sour taste. salted almonds or peanuts blanch pounds of shelled almonds or peanuts (the peanuts, of course, have been well roasted) by pouring quart of boiling water over them. allow them to stand a short time. drain and pour cold water over them, when the skin may be easily removed. place in a cool oven until dry and crisp. put a small quantity of butter into a pan. when hot, throw in the nuts and stir for a few minutes, sprinkle a little salt over. many young cooks do not know that salted peanuts are almost equally as good as salted almonds and cheaper. peanuts should always be freshly roasted and crisp. peanut butter when peanuts have been blanched, are cold, dry and crisp, run them through a food chopper. do not use the _very finest_ cutter, as that makes a soft mass. or they may be crushed with a rolling pin. season with salt, spread on thinly-sliced, buttered bread. they make excellent sandwiches. or run peanuts through food chopper which has an extra fine cutter especially for this purpose. the peanuts are then a thick, creamy mass. thin this with a small quantity of olive oil, or melted butter, if preferred. season with salt and you have "peanut butter," which, spread on slices of buttered bread, makes a delicious sandwich, and may frequently take the place of meat sandwiches. nuts, when added to salads, bread or cake, add to their food value. a club sandwich on a thinly-cut slice of toasted bread lay a crisp lettuce leaf and a thin slice of broiled bacon. on that a slice of cold, boiled chicken and a slice of ripe tomato. place a spoonful of mayonnaise on the tomato, on this a slice of toasted bread. always use stale bread for toast and if placed in a hot oven a minute before toasting it may be more quickly prepared. candies-walnut molasses taffy place cups of new orleans molasses and / cup of brown sugar in a stew-pan on the range and cook; when partly finished cooking (this may be determined by a teaspoonful of the mixture forming a soft ball when dropped in water), add tablespoonful of flour, moistened with a small quantity of water, and cook until a teaspoonful of the mixture becomes brittle when dropped in cold water; at this stage add scant teaspoonful of baking soda (salaratus). stir, then add cup of coarsely chopped black walnut meats; stir all together thoroughly, and pour into buttered pans to become cool. cocoanut creams grate medium-sized cocoanut, place in a bowl, add pounds of confectioners' sugar, mix with the cocoanut; then add the stiffly beaten white of egg and teaspoonful of vanilla; knead this as you would bread for or minutes. if the cocoanut is a large or a dry one, about / pound more sugar will be required. shape the mixture into small balls, press halves of english walnut meats into each ball, or have them plain, if preferred. stand aside in a cool place a half hour. melt a half cake of baker's unsweetened chocolate, add a half teaspoonful of paraffin, roll the small balls in this chocolate mixture until thoroughly coated. place on waxed paper to dry. from the ingredients in this recipe was made pounds of candy. fudge (as made by mary) two cups of granulated sugar, cup of sweet milk, / cup of butter, / cake or squares of baker's unsweetened chocolate. cook all together until when tried in water it forms a soft ball. remove from fire, flavor with vanilla, beat until creamy, pour in buttered pan and when cooled cut in squares. a delicious "chocolate cream" candy place in an agate stew-pan cups of granulated sugar, cup of sweet milk, butter size of an egg. cook all together until it forms a soft ball when a small quantity is dropped into cold water. then beat until creamy. add a half a cup of any kind of chopped nut meats. spread on an agate pie-tin and stand aside to cool. for the top layer take cup of sugar, / cup milk and butter size of an egg, small squares of a cake of baker's unsweetened chocolate. cook together until it forms a soft ball in water. beat until creamy. add half a teaspoonful of vanilla, spread over top of first layer of candy and stand away until it hardens and is quite cold. mary's recipe for molasses taffy four tablespoonfuls new orleans molasses, tablespoonfuls sugar, tablespoonfuls water, teaspoonfuls butter, teaspoonful vanilla. boil all together until it becomes brittle when a small quantity is dropped in water. pour the mixture into buttered pans and when cool enough to handle, pull with the hands until a light creamy yellow shade. pull into long, thin strips, cut into small pieces with scissors. this taffy is fine if boiled a long enough time to become crisp and brittle, and you will be surprised at the quantity this small amount of sugar and molasses will make. recipe for making hard soap without boiling to make hard soap without boiling, empty a can of "lewis perfumed lye" (or any other good, reliable brand of lye) into a stone jar with tablespoonful powdered borax. add - / pints of cold water to the lye. stir until dissolved. be very careful not to allow any of the lye to touch hands or face. wear old gloves when emptying can and stirring lye. stand the dissolved lye in a cool place. the tin cans containing the fat to be used for soap (which have accumulated, been tried out, strained, and put in empty tin cans at different times) should be placed in the oven of range for a few minutes. when warm they may be turned out readily into a large stew-pan. put over fire and when all has dissolved and melted, strain through cheese-cloth bag into an agate dish pan. when weighed you should - / pounds of clear fat. a recipe telling exact quantity of fat and lye usually comes with can of lye. when temperature of fat is degrees by your thermometer (luke-warm), the lye should have been allowed to stand about hour from the time it was dissolved. it should then be the right temperature to mix with strained, luke-warm fat or grease not over degrees by thermometer. now slowly pour the dissolved lye over the fat (a half cup of ammonia added improves soap), stir together until lye and grease are thoroughly incorporated, and the mixture drops from the stirrer like honey. the soap may be scented by adding a few drops of oil of cloves, if liked. stir the mixture with a small wooden paddle or stick. stir slowly from to minutes, not longer, or the lye and fat may separate. pour all into a large agate dish pan lined with a piece of clean muslin. throw an old piece of carpet over the top and stand near the range until evening, when, if made early in the morning, a solid cake of soap, weighing - / pounds, may be turned out on a bake-board (previously covered with brown paper) and cut into pieces of good hard soap. lay the pieces of soap in a basket, cover to protect from dust, and stand in a warm room to dry thoroughly before using. soap made according to these directions should be solid and almost as white as ivory if the fat used has not been scorched. this soap is excellent for scrubbing and laundry purposes. the greater length of time the soap is kept, the better it will become. the grease used may be clarified by adding water and cooking a short time. stand away and when cool remove fat from top, wiping off any moisture that may appear. soap-making is a _small economy_. of course, the young housewife will not use for soap _any fat_ which could be utilized for frying, etc., but she will be surprised to find, when she once gets the saving habit, how quickly she will have the quantity of fat needed for a dollar's worth of soap by the small outlay of the price of a can of lye, not counting her work. the young, inexperienced housewife should be careful not to use too small a stew-pan in which to heat the fat, and should not, under any circumstance, leave the kitchen while the fat is on the range, as grave results might follow carelessness in this respect. to imitate chestnut wood before painting the floor it was scrubbed thoroughly with the following: one-half cup of "household ammonia" added to four quarts of water. the floor, after being well scrubbed with this, was wiped up with pure, clean water and allowed to get perfectly dry before painting. for the ground color, or first coat of paint on the floor, after the cracks in floor had been filled with putty or filler, mix together five pounds of white lead, one pint of turpentine and about a fourth of a pound of yellow ochre, add tablespoon of japan dryer. this should make one quart of paint a light tan or straw color, with which paint the floor and allow it to dry twenty-four hours, when another coat of the same paint was given the floor and allowed to dry another twenty-four hours, then a graining color, light oak, was used. this was composed of one pint of turpentine, one teaspoon of graining color and two tablespoons of linseed oil, and tablespoon of japan dryer, all mixed together. this was about the color of coffee or chocolate. when the wood had been painted with this graining color, before drying, a fine graining comb was passed lightly over to imitate the grain of wood. this was allowed to dry twenty-four hours, when a coat of floor varnish was given. the room was allowed to dry thoroughly before using. the imitation of natural chestnut was excellent. measures and weights when a recipe calls for one cup of anything, it means one even cup, holding one-half pint, or two gills. one cup is equal to four wine glasses. one wine glass is equal to four tablespoons of liquid, or one-quarter cup. two dessertspoonfuls equal one tablespoonful. six tablespoonfuls of liquid equal one gill. two tablespoonfuls dry measure equal one gill. two gills equal one cup. two cups, or four gills, equal one pint. four cups of flour weigh one pound and four cups of flour equal one quart. one even cup of flour is four ounces. two cups (good measure) of granulated sugar weigh one pound and measure one pint. two cups butter equal one pound. a pint of liquid equals one pound. a cup of milk or water is ounces. two tablespoonfuls liquid equal one ounce. one salt spoonful is / teaspoonful. four tablespoonfuls equal one wine glass. piece of butter size of an egg equals two ounces, or two tablespoons. a tablespoonful of butter melted means the butter should be first measured then melted. one even tablespoonful of unmelted butter equals one ounce. one tablespoonful sugar, good measure, equals one ounce. ordinary silver tablespoon was used for measuring, not a large mixing spoon. cooking schedule to use with the oven thermometer of a gas stove _to cook_-- _cook for_-- bread, white ° minutes biscuit, small ° minutes biscuit, large ° minutes beef, roast rare ° minutes per pound beef, roast well done ° minutes per pound { fruit ° hours { sponge ° minutes cake { loaf ° minutes { layer ° minutes { cookies ° minutes chickens ° hours custards ° to ° minutes duck ° hours fish ° to ° hour ginger bread ° to ° minutes halibut ° to ° minutes lamb ° hours mutton, rare ° to ° minutes per pound mutton, well done ° minutes per pound pie crust ° minutes pork ° to ° - / hours potatoes ° hour { bread ° to ° hour { plum ° to ° hour puddings { rice ° to ° minutes { tapioca ° to ° minutes rolls ° to ° minutes turkeys ° hours veal ° - / hours when a teacher of "domestic science," the professor's wife was accustomed to using a pyrometer, or oven thermometer, to determine the proper temperature for baking. she explained its advantages over the old-fashioned way of testing the oven to mary and gave her a copy of the "cooking schedule," to put in her recipe book, which mary found of great assistance, and said she would certainly have a range with an oven thermometer should she have a home of her own, and persuaded aunt sarah to have one placed in the oven door of her range. the end. index to recipes page small economies, "left-overs" or "iverich bleibst" the many uses of stale bread "brod grummella" "croutons" and crumbs "zweibach" german egg bread creamed toast bread and rolls "bucks county" hearth-baked rye bread frau schmidt's good white bread (sponge method) excellent graham bread graham bread (an old recipe) "mary's" recipe for wheat bread frau schmidt's easily-made graham bread whole wheat bread nut bread "frau" schmidt's "quick bread" an "oatmeal loaf" "aunt sarah's" white bread (sponge method) recipe for pulled bread aunt sarah's "hutzel brod" aunt sarah's white bread and rolls aunt sarah's raised rolls clover-leaf rolls "polish" rye bread (as baked in bucks county) perfect breakfast rolls an old recipe for good bread steamed brown bread a wholesome bread (made from bran) "frau" schmidt's "hutzel brod" aunt sarah's "quickly made brown bread" "stirred" oatmeal bread nut and raisin bread "saffron" raisin bread raised rolls "grandmother's" pine raised biscuits "stirred" bread potato biscuits aunt sarah's potato yeast raised cakes "perfection" potato cakes mary's recipe for cinnamon buns "kleina kaffe kuchen" "grossmutter's" potato cakes aunt sarah's "bread dough" cake "good, cheap" dutch cakes recipe for "light cakes" (given to mary by a farmer's wife) butter "schimmel" "bucks county" doughnuts extra fine "quaker bonnet" biscuits bucks county cinnamon "kuchen" moravian sugar cakes "mary's" potato cakes "german" raisin cake "kaffee krantz" (coffee wreath) "mondel krantz" the professor's wife's recipe for dutch cakes farmer's pound cake german "coffee bread" "fast nacht kuchen" (doughnuts) "kaffee kuchen" (coffee cake) "streusel kuchen" muffins, biscuits, griddle cakes and waffles sally lunn (as aunt sarah made it) aunt sarah's recipe for "johnny cake" "mary's" breakfast muffins rice muffins indian pone "pfannkuchen" (pancakes) "extra fine" baking powder biscuits "flannel" cakes made from sour milk "flannel" cakes with baking powder frau schmidt's recipe for waffles "crumb" corn cakes grandmother's recipe for buttermilk waffles "bread" griddle cakes never fail "flannel" cakes waffles made from sweet milk and baking powder "bucks county" buckwheat cakes delicious corn cakes rice waffles (as aunt sarah made them) "german" egg-pancakes (not cheap) "frau schmidt's" griddle cake recipe mary's recipe for corn cakes aunt sarah's delicious cream biscuits mary's muffins "corn muffins" (as made by frau schmidt) strawberry short cake (as frau schmidt made it) perfection waffles recipe for making "baking powder" fritters, croquettes, dumplings and crullers "kartoffle balla" (potato balls) "boova shenkel" rice balls with cheese "kartoffle klose" rice croquets (and lemon sauce) corn oysters banana fritters parsnip fritters aunt sarah's "schnita and knopf" a very old recipe for "knopf" (or dumplings) "kartoffle kuklein" (potato fritter or boofers) rosettes, wafers and rosenkuehen "bairische dampfnudein" "heller bluther kuklein" "apyl kuklein" (apple fritters) dumplings made from "bread sponge" "leber klose" (liver dumplings) frau schmidt's "old recipe for schnitz and knopf" "brod knodel," or bread dumplings "german" pot pie "zwelchen dampfnudeln" green corn fritters "mouldasha" (parsley pies) inexpensive drop crullers batter baked with gravy "german" sour cream crullers grandmother's doughnuts fine "drop crullers" soups and chowders vegetable soup "marklose" balls for soup egg balls for soup "suppee schwangen" cream of oyster bouillon "german" noodle soup cream of celery oyster stew clam broth turkey soup cream of pea soup tomato soup "frau" schmidt's clam soup clam chowder brown potato chowder bean chowder bouillon "farmer's" rice philadelphia "pepperpot" "german" vegetable soup a cheap rice and tomato soup fish, clams and oysters boned shad croquettes of cold cooked fish shad roe scalloped oysters deviled oysters planked shad broiled mackerel codfish bails fried oysters panned oysters oysters steamed in the shell a recipe given mary for "oyster cocktail" oyster croquettes frau schmidt's way of serving "oyster cocktails" salmon loaf creamed salmon oyster canapes meat "sauergebratens" (german pot roast) "hungarian goulash" broiled steak stewed shin of beef hamburg steak meat stew with dumplings extending the meat flavor preparing a pot roast stuffed breast of veal "gedampftes rinderbrust" "paprikash" beef stew savory beef roll veal cutlets meat "snitzel" sirloin steaks meat balls veal loaf sweet breads (breaded) fried "liver and bacon" beef steak served with peas creamed "dried beef" creamed sweetbreads meat croquettes stewed rabbit roast lamb "gefullte rinderbrust" (stuffed breast of beef) german style fried peppers with pork chops boiled ham sliced ham roast pork pork chops "home-made" sausage aunt sarah's method of keeping sausage souse utilizing cold meat "left-overs" fowl roast chicken or turkey bread filling (as aunt sarah prepared it) fried chicken with cream gravy stewed or steamed chicken vegetables white potatoes baked potatoes various ways of using small potatoes scalloped potatoes candied sweet potatoes sweet potato croquettes potato chips fried eggplant baked stuffed peppers chili (as prepared in new mexico) baked cabbage crimson creamed beets buttered beets pickled "mangelwurzel" german steamed cabbage bean "snitzel" boiled spinach fried onions and potatoes steamed asparagus (pine) pasture mushrooms steamed mushrooms (delicious) stewed tomatoes sweet corn fried tomatoes with "cream sauce" baked "stuffed tomatoes" "canned tomatoes," fried or (tomato fritters) "bucks county" baked beans cooked hominy grated parsnip cakes to make "sauer kraut" dumplings to serve with "sauer kraut" parsley dried to preserve its _green_ color time required to cook vegetables common cream sauce preparation of savory gravies the good flavor of "browned flour" butter, cheese and suet a substitute for butter (as aunt sarah prepared it) "butter"--as it was made at the farm, "by aunt sarah" "smier kase," or cottage cheese uses of sweet drippings and suet eggs "eierkuchen," or omelette hard boiled eggs soft boiled eggs an egg and tomato omelette mushroom omelette a clam omelette deviled eggs eggs in cream sauce aunt sarah's method of preserving eggs in "water glass" to test fresh eggs salads aunt sarah's salad dressing dutch cucumber salad carrot salad "an old recipe" for chicken salad german potato salad german turnip salad "german" salad dressing mary's potato salad mary's recipe for salad dressing "fruit" salad dressing grape fruit salad "a good, inexpensive" salad dressing imitation "lobster salad" "german" horseradish sauce mayonnaise dressing (in which olive oil is used) mustard dressing to serve with sliced tomatoes chicken salad pepper hash german bean salad meat salads beverages coffee cocoa chocolate boiled water tea iced tea puddings rice pudding frau schmidt's apple dumplings "caramel custard" as mary prepared it aunt sarah's bread pudding "steamed" bread pudding an economical "bread and apple pudding" cup custards frau schmidt's graham pudding "sponge" bread pudding (sauce) aunt sarah's cottage pudding (sauce) apple "strudel" "lemon meringue" pudding suet pudding (sauce) steamed fruit pudding (sauce) cornmeal pudding huckleberry pudding tapioca custard delicious baked peach pudding caramel custard "aunt sarah's" rhubarb pudding "vanilla sauce" for rhubarb pudding rice custard "mary's" cup pudding (from stale bread) (sauce) "buckwheat minute" pudding peach tapioca aunt sarah's plain boiled pudding pudding sauce apple tapioca steamed walnut pudding "cornmeal sponge" pudding mary's corn starch pudding apple johnny cake (served as a pudding) a good and cheap tapioca pudding "gotterspeise" spanish cream graham pudding "pennsylvania" plum pudding (for thanksgiving day) (sauce) "slice" bread pudding cereals oatmeal porridge cooked rice cornmeal mush macaroni baked macaroni and cheese cakes cake making frau schmidt's lemon cake fine "krum kuchen" aunt sarah's "quick dutch cakes" a reliable layer cake boiled icing a delicious "spice layer cake" (icing) an inexpensive cocoa cake aunt sarah's walnut gingerbread aunt sarah's "german crumb cakes" baked in crusts "sour cream" molasses cake economy cake ginger cake a very economical german clove cake (icing) cake icing for various cakes mary's recipe for "hot milk sponge" cake cheap "molasses gingerbread" aunt sarah's extra fine large sponge cake angel cake (aunt sarah's recipe) aunt sarah's good and cheap "country fruit cake" a "sponge custard" cake custard grandmother's excellent "old" recipe for marble cake mary's molasses cakes chocolate icing for molasses cake hickory nut cake "light brown" sugar cake "angel food" layer cake mary's chocolate cake cocoa filling a cheap orange cake frau schmidt's molasses cake apple sauce cake icing "schwarz" cake (and chocolate filling) apple cream cake apple cream pilling for cake a "half pound" cake a delicious icing (not cheap) cocoanut layer cake the filling gold layer cake sunshine sponge cake an inexpensive dark "chocolate layer cake" angel cake mary's chocolate loaf (made with sour milk) inexpensive sunshine cake mary's recipe for orange cake and filling for cake roll jelly cake aunt sarah's cinnamon cake gelb kuchen (yellow cake) devil's food cake a cheap cocoanut layer cake lady baltimore cake and icing an inexpensive "white fruit cake" a good and cheap "white cake" chocolate icing (very good) tip-top cake orange cake and filling cheap sponge cake caramel cake and icing a white cake "dutch" currant cake (no yeast used) an "old recipe" for coffee cake a "cheap" brown sugar cake fran schmidt's "german christmas cake" aunt sarah's "shellbark layer cake" imperial cake (baked for mary's wedding) a light fruit cake (for christmas) english cake (similar to a white fruit cake) grandmother's fruit cake (baked for mary's wedding) an old recipe for pound cake "bucks county" molasses cakes (baked in pastry) "brod torte" a delicious chocolate cake chocolate icing a white cocoanut cake a potato cake (no yeast required) a citron cake aunt amanda's spice "kuchen" a good, cheap chocolate cake an tee cream cake small sponge cakes small cakes and cookies "aunt sarah's" little lemon cakes oatmeal crisps aunt sarah's ginger snaps german "lebkuchen" (icing) grandmother's molasses cakes angel cakes (baked in gem pans) "almond brod" "grossmutter's" honey cakes lemon wafers or drop cakes frau schmidt's sugar cookies almond macaroons "honig kuchen" (honey cakes) frau schmidt's molasses snaps hickory nut cakes "lebkuchen" fruit jumbles brown pfeffernussen small oatmeal cakes frau schmidt's recipe for "german" almond slices "july ann's" ginger snaps cocoanut cookies chocolate cookies small "belsnickel" christmas cakes "pennsylvania dutch" kisses little crumb cakes delicious vanilla wafers (as mary made them) macaroons (as aunt sarah made them) "springerles" (german christmas cakes) oatmeal cookies peanut biscuits plain cookies walnut rocks cinnamon wafers (as aunt sarah made them) zimmet waffles (as made by frau schmidt) "braune lebkuchen" peanut cookies pies flaky pie crust aunt sarah's lemon pie the professor's wife's superior pastry mary's lemon meringue (made with milk) apple tart raisin or "rosina" pie snitz pie mary's recipe for "plain pumpkin" pies chocolate pie "pebble dash," or shoo fly pie (as aunt sarah made it) vanilla crumb "crusts" (the crumbs for crusts) "kasha kuchen" or cherry cake "rivel kuchen" aunt sarah's lemon meringue a country batter pie pumpkin pie (aunt sarah's recipe) white potato custard (aunt sarah's recipe) "rhubarb custard" pie "lemon apple" pie green currant pie a country "molasses" pie a mock cherry pie aunt sarah's custard pie plain rhubarb pie mary's cream pie apple custard pie lemon pie with crumbs aunt sarah's butter scotch pie green tomato mince meat orange meringue (a pie) grandmother's recipe for "mince meat" "twentieth century" mince meat a "dutch" recipe for pumpkin pie mary's cocoanut custard pie grape pie sour cherry pie aunt sarah's "strawberry" pie "florendine" pie aunt sarah's "cheese cake," or pie "frau" schmidt's lemon pie pickles spiced cucumbers mixed sauce to serve with meats pepper relish pickled red cabbage mustard pickles aunt sarah's cucumber pickles "rot pfeffers" filled with cabbage an old recipe for spiced pickles aunt sarah's recipe for "chili sauce" tomato catsup pickled beets marmalades, preserves and canned fruits "frau" schmidt's recipe for apple butter cranberry sauce preserved "yellow ground cherries" "wunderselda" marmalade aunt sarah's spiced pears peach marmalade aunt sarah's ginger pears pear and pieapple marmalade grape butter canned sour cherries candied orange peel aunt sarah's "cherry marmalade" aunt sarah's "quince honey" pickled peaches currant jelly pineapple honey preserved pineapple grape conserve mary's recipe for rhubarb jam apple sauce rhubarb marmalade as "frau schmidt" made it grape fruit marmalade orange marmalade cherry "relish" canned peaches pear conserve lemon honey canned string beans preserved "german prunes" or plums "bucks county" apple butter canned tomatoes euchered peaches aunt sarah's method of canning corn dried sweet corn preserved cherries frozen desserts aunt sarah's frozen "fruit custard" sherbet ice cream (a simple recipe given mary) frau schmidt's ice cream maple parfait ice cream made by beating with paddle aunt sarah's recipe for frozen custard pineapple cream mary's recipe for peach cream lemon sherbet frau schmidt's frozen custard caramel ice cream cherry sherbet grape sherbet wines and syrups unfermented grape juice vinegar made from strawberries boiled cider for mince pies lemon syrup egg nogg rose wine dandelion wine dandelion wine (made with yeast) grape fruit punch a substitute for maple syrup salted almonds or peanuts peanut butter a club sandwich candies walnut molasses taffy cocoanut creams fudge (as made by mary) a delicious chocolate cream candy mary's recipe for molasses taffy recipe for making hard soap without boiling to imitate chestnut wood measures and weights cooking schedule note: project gutenberg also has an html version of this file which includes the original illustrations. see -h.htm or -h.zip: (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/ / -h/ -h.htm) or (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/ / -h.zip) the kitchen encyclopedia you will find many helpful suggestions in this book; all of them are tried and practical twelfth edition swift & company, u. s. a. copyright, , by swift & company _keep this book in your kitchen for ready reference_ the truth about oleomargarine swift's premium oleomargarine is a sweet, pure, clean, food product made from rich cream and edible fats. it contains _every element of nutrition_ found in the best creamery butter. the process of manufacture is primitive in its simplicity, but modern in its cleanliness and purity. the butter fat in swift's premium oleomargarine is microscopically and chemically _the same_ as in the best butter; the only difference is _in the way_ it is secured from the cow. butter fat in butter is all obtained by churning. in swift's premium oleomargarine from / to / obtained in that way, the remainder is pressed from the choicest fat of government inspected animals. this pressed fat is called "oleo" hence the name "oleomargarine." rich cream, fancy creamery butter, 'oleo' 'neutral,' vegetable oil and dairy salt are the _only_ ingredients of premium oleomargarine. 'neutral' is pressed from leaf fat. it is odorless and tasteless. there is _no coloring matter_ added to premium oleomargarine, yet it is a tempting rich cream color. each week day during the year there has been an average of more than visitors through our chicago oleomargarine factory. in addition to this daily inspection by the visiting public our factories are in complete charge of government inspectors. these men test the quality and character of materials, they see that the contents of every tierce of 'oleo' and 'neutral' received from the refinery is from animals that have passed the rigid government inspection. they see that everything about the factories is kept absolutely clean and sanitary. read what a government expert said about oleomargarine: the late prof. w. o. atwater, director of the united states government agricultural experiment station at washington: "it contains essentially the same ingredients as natural butter from cow's milk. it is perfectly wholesome and healthy and has a high nutritious value." order a carton of swift's premium oleomargarine today to try it. you will find that it is a delicious, wholesome food product that you can use in your home and effect a great saving, still maintaining your standard of good living. we particularly invite you to visit our factories and see for yourself the cleanliness surrounding this interesting industry. {footer: did you know that swift's premium oleomargarine contains essentially the same ingredients as natural butter from cows milk?} recipes you can make exactly as good cakes, pies, cookies, and candies by substituting for the butter named in your recipes / the quantity of swift's premium oleomargarine. on this and the following pages are a few recipes in which this substitution has been made. try them. you will find them good and more economical than when made with butter. you may have some favorite recipes that are too expensive on account of the large amount of butter required. you can reduce their cost by using swift's premium oleomargarine. loaf fig cake light part / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine / cupful sweet milk - / teaspoonfuls baking-powder cupful sugar - / cupfuls flour teaspoonful vanilla whites of eggs cream the oleomargarine and sugar. add the milk, with which the vanilla has been mixed. sift the baking-powder with the flour and add gradually. add the whites, well beaten, last. dark part / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine / cupful milk - / teaspoonfuls baking-powder yolks of eggs / pound of raisins - / cupfuls sugar cupfuls flour dessertspoonful each of cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg pound of figs cream the oleomargarine and sugar. add the egg-yolks, well beaten, then the milk. sift the baking-powder and spices with the flour and add gradually. the raisins should be seeded and dredged with flour, and the figs should be cut in small pieces and dredged with flour and added to the batter the last thing. put in the pan alternate layers of each part and bake in a loaf. {footer: the italian uses olive oil; the swiss, butter from goat's milk; and the thrifty american housewife, swift's premium oleomargarine.} sugar cookies cupful swift's premium oleomargarine cupful sour milk teaspoonful soda cupfuls sugar eggs, well beaten flavoring to taste flour enough to roll out thin cream the oleomargarine and sugar. add the eggs, whites and yolks beaten together. dissolve the soda in the sour milk. add this and then the flour. roll out thin. just before cutting out the cookies sift granulated sugar on top and roll it in slightly, then cut out cookies with cookie-cutter and bake in a moderate oven. lemon pie cupful sugar tablespoonfuls flour yolks of three eggs cupful water juice and grated rind of lemon a lump of swift's premium oleomargarine the size of an egg put all together in an oatmeal cooker and cook over hot water until thick. take from the fire and cool a little. line a deep pie-plate with crust, pour in the lemon mixture, and bake in a moderate oven until the crust is done. remove from the oven and have ready the whites of the three eggs, beaten up stiff, with three level tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar; spread this meringue smoothly over the pie, return to the oven, and bake a light brown. cornbread / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine cupful sweet milk cupful cornmeal / cupful sugar cupful flour teaspoonfuls baking-powder eggs sift together meal, flour, baking-powder, and sugar. to this add in order the milk, the egg-yolks well beaten, the oleomargarine melted and lastly the well-beaten whites of the eggs. bake in a hot oven for thirty to thirty-five minutes. this is particularly delicious if just before it is done half a cupful of cream is poured over the top. {footer: have you tasted swift's premium oleomargarine?} oatmeal crackers / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine cupfuls rolled oats / cupful milk / teaspoonful soda - / cupfuls raisins chopped fine cupfuls flour cupful sugar teaspoonful cinnamon eggs a pinch of salt cream oleomargarine and sugar. add egg-yolks well beaten. dissolve soda in milk and add next. mix oats, flour, salt, and cinnamon together well and add. add the raisins last. beat well and drop with a spoon on to buttered tins and bake in moderate oven. english walnut pudding / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine egg cupful boiling water teaspoonful cinnamon / cupful walnuts cupful molasses teaspoonful soda cupfuls flour / teaspoonful cloves / cupful raisins beat the egg white and yolk together and add it to the molasses. dissolve the soda in the boiling water and add that next. mix flour, cinnamon, and cloves together and add gradually. add the butterine melted. lastly add the raisins. steam two and a half hours. serve warm with sauce made of one cupful swift's premium oleomargarine stirred until smooth with one cupful powdered sugar. add one egg, flavor to taste, and beat until smooth. penoche / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine - / cupfuls rich milk cupfuls light-brown sugar cupful chopped walnuts stir together the oleomargarine, milk, and sugar, and cook until it can be picked up when dropped in cold water. beat until it thickens and add the walnuts slightly salted. pour in buttered tins and cut in squares. {footer: ask your grocer for a carton of swift's premium oleomargarine.} butter scotch / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine cupful molasses cupfuls sugar / cupful vinegar put all together and cook, stirring all the time. cook until brittle when dropped in cold water. pour into buttered tins and mark for breaking before it is cold. ginger bread / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine cupful molasses teaspoonful ginger teaspoonful cloves teaspoonful cinnamon / teaspoonful nutmeg egg, beaten light / cupful sugar cupful sour milk teaspoonful baking soda cupfuls flour mix into a light dough and bake in a flat pan. quick oven. cookies - / cupfuls sugar / cupful swift's premium oleomargarine cupful sour cream eggs / teaspoonful soda teaspoonful nutmeg teaspoonful vanilla teaspoonful almond mix with flour enough to roll thin, and bake in a quick oven. {footer: would you like to reduce your butter bill? then use swift's premium oleomargarine.} on baking-day when you wish a fine-grained cake, beat the whites of the eggs to a stiff foam with a dover egg-beater. if something spongy, such as an angel cake, is desired, use a wire egg-beater, which makes a more air-inflated foam. recipes in the older, much-prized cook-books often call for a teacupful of yeast. a teacupful liquid yeast is equal to one cake of compressed yeast. to remove pecan meats whole, pour boiling water over nuts and let them stand until cold. then stand the nut on end and crack with a hammer, striking the small end of the nut. if beef or mutton drippings are used in making a pie-crust, beat them to a cream with a teaspoonful of baking-powder and the juice of half a lemon. this effectually removes all taste. when a cake sticks to a pan, set it for a few minutes on a cloth wrung out of cold water. it will then come out in good shape. heat the blade of the bread-knife before cutting a loaf of fresh bread. this prevents the usual breaking and crumbling of the slices. for cutting hot fudge, first dip the blade of the knife in boiling water. nothing is better for pudding molds than jelly tumblers with light tin covers. one can readily tell when the puddings are done without removing the covers. the juice will not boil out of apple or berry pies if you dot bits of swift's premium oleomargarine near the outer edge. a little salt in the oven under the baking-tins will prevent burning on the bottom. there is nothing more effective for removing the burned crust from cake or bread than a flat grater. it works evenly and leaves a smooth surface. use a wooden potato masher for stirring butter and sugar together for a cake. it is much quicker than a spoon. {footer: swift's premium oleomargarine is sweet, pure, and clean.} renovating suggestions to clean a velvet suit, sponge the spots with pure alcohol. then suspend the suit on a hanger in the bathroom in such a way that the air can reach all sides of the garment. turn on the hot water in the tub until the steam fills the room; shut the door and windows; shut off the water, and let the steam do its work for an hour. then admit the air, but do not touch the garment until it is perfectly dry. to remove shine from woolen goods, use gentle friction with emery paper. rub just enough to raise the nap, and then rub it over with a piece of silk. to mend kid gloves, first buttonhole around the rent not so close as in a buttonhole; then overcast, taking up the thread of the buttonhole on the edge, and then draw together. to clean men's coat collars, rub with a black stocking saturated with grain alcohol. this will remove the greasy look. to freshen a thin dress, dissolve two teaspoonfuls of elastic starch in half a cupful of lukewarm water, and with a soft rag dampen on the right side, then with a hot iron press on the wrong side. to clean grease spots from silk, split a visiting card and rub the soft internal part on the spot on the wrong side of the silk. the spot will disappear without taking the gloss off the silk. to mend lace curtains, take a small piece of net, dip it and the curtains in hot starch, and apply the patch over the hole. the patch will adhere when dry, and the repair will show much less than if the curtains were mended. to renew veils, dip them in gum-arabic water, and pin them out to dry as you would a lace curtain. when dry they will look like new. to freshen black taffeta or satin, sponge with a cupful of strong tea to which a little ammonia has been added. then press on the wrong side over a damp cloth. to remove perspiration stains, lay the stain over clean white blotting-paper, and sponge with equal parts of alcohol and ether mixed. rub dry, then touch lightly with household ammonia. if this leaves a blur, rub well with powdered french chalk on the wrong side. the blotting-paper prevents the fluids from forming a ring around the spot. house-cleaning hints and helps to clean linen shades, lay them flat and rub with powdered bath-brick. to clean piano keys, rub with muslin dipped in alcohol. if the keys are very yellow, use a piece of flannel moistened with cologne water. to clean books with delicate bindings, which are soiled from handling, rub with chamois skin dipped in powdered pumice stone. to restore straw matting which has become stained or faded, wash with a strong solution of soda water. use ordinary baking soda and plenty of swift's pride soap and wash thoroughly, and when dry it will be found that the spots have all disappeared and the matting is all one color. to clean glass vases, tea-leaves moistened with vinegar will remove the discoloration in glass vases caused by flowers, such as asters. to clean windows and mirrors, rub them over with thin cold starch, let it dry on, and then wipe off with a soft cloth. this will clean the glass and also give it a brilliant polish. to remove paint from window glass, use strong hot vinegar. to remove white spots from furniture, rub first with oil, and then with slightly diluted alcohol. to remove stains from an enameled saucepan, fill with water, add a little chloride of lime, and boil for a few minutes. to clean willow-ware, wash with salt water, using a brush. to polish the globes of gas and electric-light fixtures, wash with water in which a few drops of ammonia have been dissolved. to clean tiling, wipe with a soft cloth wrung out in soapy water. never scrub tiling, as scrubbing or the use of much water will eventually loosen the cement and dislodge the sections. to brighten nickel trimmings on a gas stove, wash with warm water, in which two tablespoonfuls of kerosene have been stirred. to save dusting, a piece of cheese cloth about two yards long placed on the floor in a freshly swept room will save much of the usual dusting. laundry helps a few cents' worth of powdered orris-root put in the wash water will impart a delicate odor to the clothes. hot milk is better than hot water to remove fruit stains. to remove spots from gingham, wet with milk and cover with common salt. leave for two hours, then rinse thoroughly. in washing white goods that have become yellow, put a few drops of turpentine into the water, then lay on the grass to dry in the strong sunshine. to make wash silk look like new, put a tablespoonful of wood alcohol to every quart of water when rinsing and iron while still damp. when washing, if the article is badly soiled, use a small scrubbing brush and scrub the goods over the washboard. to set green or blue, mauve or purple, soak the articles for at least ten minutes in alum water before washing them. use an ounce of alum to a gallon of water. to set brown or tan color, soak for ten minutes in a solution made of a cupful of vinegar in a pail of water. black goods and black-and-white goods need to be soaked in strong salt water, or to have a cupful of turpentine put into the wash water. yellows, buffs, and tans are made much brighter by having a cupful of strong, strained coffee put in the rinsing water. when ironing fine pieces, instead of sprinkling afresh, take a piece of muslin, wring it out in cold water, and lay on the ironing board under the article; press with a warm iron; remove the wet piece and iron. when making starch for light clothes use wool soap in the water. this will give the clothes a glossy appearance and the irons will not stick. badly scorched linen may be improved by using the following solution: boil together well a pint of vinegar, an ounce of wool soap, four ounces of fuller's earth, and the juice of two onions. spread this solution over the scorched spots on the linen and let it dry. afterward wash the garment and the scorch will disappear. to keep the clothes-line from twisting, hold the ball of rope in one hand and wind with the other until a twist appears; then change ball to the other hand and the twist will disappear. keep doing this, changing the rope from one hand to the other until the line is all wound up. about house plants to make ferns grow better, place some thin pieces of raw beef close to the inside of the pot, between the pot and the soil. old-fashioned portulaca makes a pretty low-growing green for a fern dish. to prevent plants from dropping their buds, give extra good drainage and systematic but moderate watering. an infallible wash for destroying the scaly insects that infest house plants is made as follows: place half a bar of swift's pride laundry soap in a deep saucer and pour kerosene around it. let this stand for about a week until the soap has absorbed the oil. then make a strong lather of this soap and with it wash the plants. after which spray them with clear water until clean. to destroy aphis, shower foliage of infested plant on both sides with strong tobacco tea, or, if the plant be small enough, immerse it in this tea. insects in the earth of a potted plant may be destroyed by pouring over the soil a glass of water in which a pinch of mustard has been stirred. if an asparagus fern turns yellow, repot it, giving it a strong loam enriched with one-fifth very old and finely crumbed manure and add a little coarse sand. give the fern only an hour or two of sunlight each day. water when it looks dry, but do not let it stand in any water that may have run through into the saucer. before putting plants in a wooden window box whitewash the inside of the box. this not only keeps the box from rotting, but prevents insects. if sprays of growing nasturtiums are broken off in the late summer and placed in a bowl of water they will root and grow all winter. how to use the cheaper cuts of meat much time has been given in the last few years to the study of foods, their necessary proportions, and the manner of cooking them. educators and scientists have alike agreed that this knowledge ought to be disseminated. on the part of the public also there has been a general awakening in this regard. there has been a wide demand especially from those of limited incomes for information on the purchase and preparation of foods. to meet this demand books have been published and articles have appeared in the various women's papers giving directions for living at all sorts of prices, from the extremely low one, "how to live on ten cents a day," to the normal one which requires the preparation of appetizing and satisfying dinners at a nominal cost. in order to accomplish living comfortably at small cost it is evident that one must understand the comparative values of foods, so as to select those which at low prices furnish the necessary nourishment, and, also, be able to cook them in an appetizing way which will conserve the nourishment. meat is a necessity to most people. yet much of the present expense in the purchase of meat is needless and unwise. many pieces of meat of the best quality are sold at low rates because not in shapes to be served as roasting or broiling pieces. these serve well for entrees or made-up dishes. other pieces which are tough but well flavored can, in the hands of an educated cook, be sent to the table as tender, palatable, sightly and nutritious as the prime cuts. it is to show some methods of preparing these cheaper cuts of meat in an appetizing manner that the following explanation of the processes of cooking and the accompanying recipes are given. meat is cooked, first, to aid digestion; secondly, to develop new flavors and render it more palatable. for cooking there are three essentials besides the material to be cooked--namely, heat, air, and moisture, the latter in the form of water, either found in the food or added to it. the combined effect of heat and moisture swells and bursts starch grains, hardens albumen, and softens fiber. albumen is a substance like the white of an egg. it exists in the juices of meat and contains much nourishment. if allowed to escape, the nourishment is lost and the meat is hard. therefore we have the first general rule for the cooking of meat, namely: _to retain the albumen, the outside of each piece of meat should be seared or sealed at once before the cooking is continued._ albumen is coagulated and hardened by intense heat. therefrom comes the second general rule, namely: _intense heat hardens and toughens meat, while a soft moist heat softens the fiber._ from these general rules we pass to the specific methods of cooking meat, which are nine in number--broiling, roasting, baking, frying, sauteing, steaming, boiling, stewing, or fricasseeing. broiling and roasting are practically the same, the chief difference being in the time employed. both mean to expose one side of the meat to the fire while the other is exposed to the air. by this method the meat is quickly seared and the nutritive juices retained. meat cooked in this way is richer and finer in flavor. baking means cooking in a pan in the oven of a stove, and in these days of hurry has largely superseded roasting. frying is the cooking by immersion in hot fat at a temperature of degrees fahrenheit. there must be sufficient fat to wholly cover each article. this method is employed for croquettes, oysters, etc., and is less injurious to digestion than sauteing. sauteing is cooking in a small quantity of fat, as an omelet or hashed browned potatoes are cooked. this is the least wholesome of all methods of cooking meat, and is often held directly responsible for indigestion. steaming is an admirable method of cooking tough meats or hams. modern housewives use a "cooker," which comes for this purpose, but the old-fashioned perforated steamer over a kettle of boiling water is also good. boiling is one of the simplest methods of cooking the cheaper cuts of meat. properly employed, it consists in plunging the whole piece of meat in a large kettle of rapidly boiling water. the meat should be entirely covered by the water, which should continue to boil rapidly for five minutes after the meat has been immersed in it. the temperature of the water should then be immediately lowered to degrees fahrenheit. if one has not a cooking thermometer, one has only to remember that water boils at degrees fahrenheit, and it will easily be seen that degrees is considerably below the boiling point. stewing or fricasseeing is really cooking slowly in a sauce after the meat has first been browned in a little hot fat. if the mixture is allowed to boil the meat will be tough and shriveled, but if properly stewed it will be soft and easy to digest. fricasseeing is the most economical of all methods of cooking meat, as there is very little loss in weight, and what is lost from the meat is found in the sauce. braising is a method much used in france, and is a cross between boiling and baking. it is done in a covered pan in the oven. the meat is first browned in a little hot fat and then placed in a pan which is partly filled with stock or water. the pan is covered closely and set in a hot oven. after ten minutes the temperature of the oven is reduced to a very low point, and the meat cooks slowly as the stock in the pan evaporates. this method is the best for inferior pieces which require long, slow cooking. it is an excellent method of cooking veal. meat which is lacking in flavor can be flavored by adding vegetables or herbs to the stock in the pan. different cuts of meat require different methods of cooking to bring about the best results. the following diagram and the accompanying suggestions for proper cuts for certain methods of cooking are those given by a prominent teacher in one of the leading domestic science schools in the united states. [illustration: . chuck . ribs . loin . rump . round . hind shank . flank . navel end . clod . fore shank . brisket.] the practical value and use of fireless cookers _the object of the following article is to present in simple and convenient form the history of the growth of fireless cooking and its advantages over the ordinary methods, so that those women who have had no experience in the management of fireless cookers may be encouraged to try them, and those adventurous women who experimented with the earlier cookers and met with disappointment may be induced to try again._ _such eminent authorities as linda hull larned, author of a series of cook-books; margaret j. mitchell, instructor of domestic science at drexel, pa., and formerly dietitian of manhattan institute state hospital, n. y.; mrs. runyon, manager of the lunchroom in the boston chamber of commerce; and miss armstrong, director of the drexel institute lunchroom--all advocate the use of fireless cookers, and unite in the assertion that it has invariably been found that a good understanding of their management has resulted in success followed inevitably by enthusiasm._ the practical value and use of fireless cookers this twentieth century is the age of progress in many directions, but most of all in domestic science. never before has so much attention been devoted to the home. journalists are giving columns of space to this topic. churches are directing their efforts to the betterment of the home. women's clubs and charitable organizations have taken up the study of the home. the most important result of all this action and thought is the widespread awakening to the fact that the social and moral standing of the home is directly dependent upon its hygienic and economic condition. in view of this fact, the national federation of women's clubs has practically covered the united states with their county, state, and national committees on housekeeping. they know that bad cooking in the home means unsatisfied stomachs, to gratify whose cravings the saloons are filled; it means anemic children, a physical condition that tends to produce criminals; it means premature funerals. to remedy these evils, churches, journalists, philanthropists, clubs are alike working, and all are working along the same lines--that is, better home furnishings, better fuels, better utensils, more efficient, more economic, and less laborious methods of housekeeping. they have not only sought and introduced new inventions, but they have studied the past and adapted and bettered the old. among the adaptations of the old ideas with new and modern improvements is the fireless cooker. ages ago norwegian and german peasant women, obliged to be away from the house all day working in the fields, knew the secret of bringing food to the boiling point and then continuing its cooking and keeping it hot by packing it in an improvised box of hay. in the evening when the women returned, weary and worn from their field labor, there was the family dinner all ready to serve. german club women were the first to see the value of this idea adapted to the needs of the german working class of the present day. these german club women revived the hay boxes and distributed numbers of them among poor families and began an educational campaign on their use. the american manufacturer, ever on the alert for ideas, was quick to perceive the economic and commercial advantages of making such an appliance in an up-to-date manner, and so to-day we have on the market numerous fireless cookers. the principle of fireless cooking, though it bears the difficult name of recaloration, is simple enough. it is merely the retention of heat through complete insulation, just as we retain cold in the ice-box by complete insulation. in the first case, a material which is a poor conductor of heat is interposed between the kettle of hot food and the surrounding atmosphere to prevent radiation or the escape of heat into the surrounding air. in the second case, a poor conductor of heat is placed between the ice and the warmer surrounding atmosphere to prevent the contact of the atmosphere with the ice and the consequent equalization of temperatures. a vacuum is an excellent non-conductor of heat and is employed in the thermos bottles advertised for use on automobile trips, but a vacuum is expensive and difficult to obtain, which accounts for the high price of thermos bottles. the effort has been to find some insulating agent within the means of the average housewife. this has now been done in the metal-lined cookers. the explanation of the cooking principle is equally simple. ordinarily we heat food to a certain temperature, say, the boiling point, and then we leave it over the fire for some time, not to get hotter, that would be impossible, but to keep it at the same degree of heat, and to do this we must, on account of radiation into the surrounding atmosphere, keep on supplying heat. in the fireless cooker the heat once generated is conserved, and there is no need to add thereto. herein lies the economy in fuel. you have only to burn gas long enough to bring the food to the boiling point, and the fireless cooker does the rest. you can put dinner on to cook, and go to work, to the theatre, to visit a friend, or read, or sew, without giving your meal any further attention till time to serve it. this sounds like a fairy tale, but it is absolutely true. by the fireless cooker you save nine-tenths of the fuel, and ninety-nine hundredths of your temper, your time, and your labor. you do not become perspiring and cross in a hot kitchen. you do not have scorched pots and kettles to scrape and scour and wash. another point in favor of fireless cooking is that it is attended by absolutely no odors. such vegetables as onions and cabbage can be cooked without any one's suspecting they are in the house. the economy in using the fireless cooker is not confined solely to a saving in gas and labor. there is also an actual and great economy in food, for there is almost no waste in this method of cooking. take for example a -pound piece of beef from the round. put this in the kettle of the fireless cooker with a pint of water for each pound of meat. heat it on the gas range slowly, taking about twenty minutes to bring it to the boiling point. then, according to directions, place it in the fireless cooker and finish the cooking. when it is done and tender, it will be found that there is only a minute loss in weight; to be exact, ounces for pounds. you bought pounds of meat and have to serve on your table pounds and ounces. you could not make any such showing if you had cooked the meat on a gas or coal range. four pounds and ounces, however, is not all that you have to serve. you originally added to your meat pints of water. a little of this evaporated or cooked away in the twenty minutes primary cooking on the stove. all the rest is retained, for there is absolutely no evaporation in a fireless cooker. this water has added to it the nutritive value and flavor acquired from the meat. so besides your pounds and ounces of meat you have over pints of rich soup stock which has cost you absolutely nothing, as it is a by-product of the system of fireless cooking. "but," objects some one, "the meat cooked in such wise will have lost all its juice and flavor." on the contrary, there is a distinct gain in the matter of flavor in fireless cookery. we absolutely know this to be so, for we have had various cuts of meat, especially the cheaper cuts, cooked in a fireless cooker and the dishes so prepared have been submitted to competent judges; the opinion was unanimous that there was a real difference between the flavor of meats so cooked and that of corresponding cuts cooked after the usual methods, and that the delicacy and richness of flavor lay with those meats cooked by the fireless method. when one understands the principles of cookery this richness of flavor of meats cooked by the fireless method is not surprising. every one knows the proverbial deliciousness of french cookery. the special peculiarity of the french cuisine is the long, slow simmering of meats in closely covered earthen pots called casseroles. the principle is essentially that of the fireless cooker, but the casserole not being insulated, the french cook is obliged to keep on supplying a sufficient degree of heat to keep the casserole warm and its contents simmering. examples of fireless cooking with which many persons are familiar by experience or hearsay are the foods cooked in primitive ways, whose deliciousness is generally ascribed to the "hunger sauce" that accompanies outdoor cookery. among such examples are the burying of the saucepan in a hole in the ground, the cooking of food by dropping heated stones into the mixture, and the clambake known among the narragansett indians. in all these cases we have the principle of the fireless cooker--_i. e._, closely-covered food slowly cooked at low temperature. indeed, one fireless cooker is constructed directly on the principle employed in the new england clambake, and every one knows the deliciousness of food so cooked has become proverbial. by the fireless cooker the cheaper cuts of meat can be cooked so that they are delicious, appetizing, tender. there is here a distinct saving in money, for by the employment of the fireless method of cooking, the cheaper cuts of meat can be made to serve all the purposes of the higher-priced pieces. further, if the meats are stewed, boiled, or steamed, you also acquire at no cost whatever as many pints of delicious soup stock, less one, as you have pounds of meat. let us now recapitulate the advantages of fireless cooking:-- a fireless cooker saves money . because by its use cheaper meats can be made to answer as well as higher-priced cuts. . because out of a given quantity of raw material you get, after the cooking is done, more actual food than by any other method. a fireless cooker saves fuel you have only to burn your gas twenty minutes for a -pound piece of meat for fireless cooking, whereas by the usual method you would burn the gas two to four hours, according to the way you desired the meat cooked. a fireless cooker saves time because you have only to watch the meat until it boils. by the usual method you must attend to it all the hours it is on cooking. a fireless cooker saves irritation and worry for by this method of cooking the housewife knows that the food cannot burn or overcook. a fireless cooker adds to the intellectual expansion and the pleasures of the family because it gives the mother time from her kitchen to oversee the development of her children, and to share with them and their father their pleasures and interests. to the wage-earning woman the fireless cooker is a positive godsend. she can put food into the cooker before going to work, and return to find her meal all ready. if the housewife lives in the city and has to serve dinner at night all the preliminary cooking can be done at noon, and the meal placed in the fireless cooker till evening. to the bachelor girl who lives by means of a kitchenette, and must do her cooking in what is at once parlor, bedroom and kitchen, what a blessing is the absence of heat and odors that the fireless cooker assures. in conclusion we quote from a bulletin published by the university of illinois, in which a study is made of the methods of roasting and cooking meats. the authors found that there was no advantage in cooking meat in a very hot oven ( degrees fahrenheit), but rather a difficulty to keep it from burning; that in an oven which was about degrees fahrenheit the meat cooked better; and that in an aladdin oven, which kept the meat at degrees fahrenheit, it cooked best of all--that is, it was of more uniform character all through, more juicy and more highly flavored. these findings point to an advantage in fireless cooking, and miss mitchell asserts that practical experience bears it out. with regard to meats cooked in water in the cooker, miss mitchell asserts that experience has shown that they become well done and are more tender than when boiled, showing that the temperatures necessary to reach that degree of cooking are obtained even in the center of a large piece of meat, without toughening or hardening the outside of the meat, as is done when more intense heat is applied. recipes the following recipes are for the cheaper cuts of meat exclusively, and employ one or another of the preceding methods. note that in all the recipes the two general rules for tender and juicy meat are observed. the outside of the meat is first quickly seared over to prevent the escape of the juices, and after the first five minutes the heat is reduced so as not to harden the albumen. boiled or fricasseed meats should cook slowly. if meat is boiled at a gallop the connective tissue is destroyed, the meat falls from the bones in strings, and is hard and leathery. for stews, meat en casserole, or in any fashion where water is used in the cooking, select the round ( ), either upper or under. for boiling, the clod ( ) or the round ( ) or the extreme lower piece of ( ). for rolled steak, mock fillet, steak à la flamande, or beefsteak pie, the flank steak ( ) is best. for cheap stews use ( ). for beef à la mode, in a large family use a thick slice of the round ( ), for a small family the clod ( ). for soup, use the shin or leg. for beef tea, mince meat, and beef loaf, the neck is best. the chuck ( ) is used only for roasting or baking, and is good value only for a large family. ( ) and ( ) are the standing ribs and carve to the best advantage. the aitch or pin bone (in ) is a desirable roast for a large family. ( ) is the loin, the choicest part of the animal. from it come the fillet or tenderloin, the sirloin, and the porterhouse steaks. ( ) is the rump, from which come good steaks for broiling. beef cannelon with tomato sauce (one of the nicest and easiest of the cheap dishes) use flank steak ( ) pound uncooked beef chopped fine cupful cold boiled potatoes teaspoonful salt egg unbeaten / teaspoonful white pepper / cupful swift's beef extract tablespoonful swift's premium oleomargarine mix together beef, potatoes, salt, and pepper, and stir in egg last. form into a roll inches long. roll this in a piece of white paper which has been oiled on both sides. place in a baking-pan and add the beef extract and the oleomargarine. bake half an hour, basting twice over the paper. {footer: swift's premium oleomargarine reduces the cost of good living.} to serve beef cannelon, remove the paper, place the roll on the platter, and pour over it tomato sauce tablespoonful swift's premium oleomargarine cupful strained tomatoes teaspoonful onion juice tablespoonful flour / teaspoonful white pepper bay-leaf add onion, bay leaf, salt and pepper to tomatoes. rub the oleomargarine and flour together and place in inner kettle of oatmeal cooker, set over the fire, add the tomato, and stir until it boils. then place the kettle over hot water in the lower half of the oatmeal cooker, and cook so for ten minutes, when it is ready to serve. spanish minced beef in meat box (very pretty and palatable) use any of the cheaper cuts. the filling tablespoonful swift's premium oleomargarine onion chopped fine sweet peppers cut in strips tomatoes peeled, cut in halves and seeds squeezed out / teaspoonful salt make the filling first. put the oleomargarine in upper half of an oatmeal kettle, add onion and peppers, and simmer gently for twenty minutes. then add the tomato halves cut into three or four pieces each and cook twenty minutes longer. then add salt and pepper and set over hot water in lower half of kettle to keep hot till wanted. now make the meat box pounds uncooked beef chopped fine egg unbeaten teaspoonful salt / teaspoonful pepper work all well together. form into a box whose sides are about an inch thick. place this box on a piece of oiled paper in the bottom of a baking-pan and bake in a quick oven for thirty minutes, basting twice with melted oleomargarine. to serve, lift box carefully, and place on platter and pour the filling into the center, and send at once to the table. {footer: swift's premium oleomargarine is a delicious, wholesome spread for bread.} beef à la mode use clod ( ) or under round ( ) the day before the beef is to be served rub it all over with the following, well mixed together:-- / teaspoonful ground cloves teaspoonful ground ginger / teaspoonful ground allspice / teaspoonful ground cinnamon / teaspoonful white pepper then sprinkle the beef with about two tablespoonfuls vinegar and let stand overnight. next day put in the bottom of the roasting pan:-- cupful small white button onions (chopped onion will do) cupful carrot cut in dice / teaspoonful celery-seed bay-leaf cupfuls swift's beef extract or of stock tablespoonfuls gelatine that has been soaked in cold water for half an hour lay the meat on the vegetables in the pan, cover closely, and set in an exceedingly hot oven until the meat has browned a little; then reduce the temperature of the oven, and cook very slowly for four hours, basting frequently. serve garnished with the vegetables. make a brown sauce from the stock left in the pan. this is a very good way to prepare meat in warm weather, as the spices enable it to be kept well for over a week. it is excellent served cold with creamed horseradish sauce tablespoonfuls grated horseradish with the vinegar drained off / teaspoonful salt tablespoonfuls thick cream yolk of egg add the salt and egg-yolk to the horseradish and mix thoroughly; whip the cream stiff, and fold it in carefully and send at once to table. {footer: have you seen swift's premium oleomargarine? its appearance is appetizing.} boiled beef use cuts from ( ), ( ), ( ), ( ) put the trimmings and suet of the beef into a large kettle and try out the fat. remove the cracklings or scraps and into the hot fat put the meat and turn quickly until it is red on all sides. cover completely with boiling water and boil rapidly for five minutes, then turn down the gas or remove kettle to back of coal range so that the water cannot possibly boil again, and cook fifteen minutes to each pound of meat. one hour before it is done add one tablespoonful salt and one-quarter teaspoonful pepper. when done garnish with watercress, or boiled cabbage, or vegetables. the liquor in which the meat was boiled can be saved for soup, or made into brown sauce to serve with it. left-over boiled beef may be served cold cut in thin slices, or made into croquettes, or into meat and potato roll, or into various warmed-over dishes. steak en casserole use a round steak ( ) inch thick pounds uncooked steak cut in pieces inches square cupful small white button onions tablespoonful chopped parsley / cupful carrot cut in dice / cupful white turnip cut in dice / teaspoonful celery-seed teaspoonful salt / teaspoonful white pepper cupfuls swift's beef extract or of stock boiling hot cover the bottom of the casserole with a layer of the mixed vegetables. put in an iron frying-pan over the fire to heat. when hot, rub over the bottom with a piece of swift's premium oleomargarine. lay in the pieces of steak and brown quickly on both sides. remove them from the frying-pan and arrange on the vegetables in the casserole. cover them with the remaining vegetables. sprinkle over the celery-seed, salt, and pepper, and then pour the hot stock over all. cover the dish and bake for one hour in a quick oven. steak en casserole should be sent to the table in the same dish in which it is cooked. the steak should be brown and tender, the vegetables slightly brown, and the stock nearly all absorbed. {footer: swift's premium oleomargarine is u. s. government inspected and passed.} beef loaf use cuts from chuck ( ) or the round ( ) pounds uncooked meat chopped fine cupfuls bread-crumbs tablespoonfuls chopped parsley level teaspoonful pepper eggs unbeaten large onion chopped fine rounding teaspoonfuls salt mix meat and onion. add the dry ingredients next. mix well, then add the eggs. pack all down hard in a square bread-pan so the loaf will take the form of the pan. bake for two hours in a moderately quick oven, basting every fifteen minutes with hot swift's beef extract or hot stock. when done, set away in the pan until cold. to serve, turn out on a platter and cut in thin slices and serve with catsup or with cream horseradish sauce. recipe for the latter is given under "beef à la mode." little beef cakes use any of the cheaper cuts pound uncooked beef chopped fine tablespoonful swift's premium oleomargarine tablespoonful flour / teaspoonful salt tablespoonful grated onion cupfuls beef extract or stock teaspoonful kitchen bouquet / teaspoonful white pepper shape the meat into little cakes. put the oleomargarine in a frying-pan, and when hot lay in the cakes and brown quickly on both sides. then remove the cakes. into the oleomargarine left in the pan put the flour and brown. then add the stock gradually, stirring all the time so there will be no lumps. when smooth add the seasonings. then lay in the beef cakes, cover, and cook slowly for five minutes. serve at once with the sauce poured over them. {footer: have you tried swift's premium oleomargarine? it is worth trying.} curry balls use any of the cheaper cuts pound uncooked beef chopped fine tablespoonfuls swift's premium oleomargarine tablespoonful flour level teaspoonful salt teaspoonful curry-powder onion chopped cupful strained tomatoes / teaspoonful white pepper make the meat into little balls. put one tablespoon oleomargarine in frying-pan, and in it cook the onion slowly without browning it until the onion is soft. then add the curry-powder and meat balls, and shake the pan over a quick fire for ten minutes. put the second tablespoonful oleomargarine in another frying-pan, and when hot add to it the flour. stir well, then add the salt, pepper and tomato. let come to a boil and then pour over the meat balls. cover and cook slowly for five minutes. curry balls are nicest served with boiled rice. smothered beef with corn pudding use any of the cheaper cuts pounds uncooked beef chopped fine level teaspoonful salt tablespoonfuls swift's premium oleomargarine / teaspoonful pepper this meat should be free from fat. have ready an iron pan very hot. put the chopped meat in it and set in a very hot oven for fifteen minutes, stirring it once or twice. then add the oleomargarine, salt and pepper, and serve at once with corn pudding can corn cupful milk level teaspoonful salt teaspoonful baking-powder / teaspoonful white pepper eggs - / cupfuls flour mix corn with milk, salt and pepper. add the yolks, well beaten. sift the flour with the baking-powder and add it gradually. lastly, fold in the well-beaten whites of the eggs. bake in a quick oven for thirty minutes. {footer: the high price of butter has no terror for users of swift's premium oleomargarine.} beefsteak pie use the flank steak ( ) or round ( ) pounds uncooked meat cut in inch cubes cupful flour tablespoonful parsley chopped fine / pound suet freed of membrane and chopped fine onion chopped fine cupful swift's beef extract or stock boiling hot teaspoonful salt / teaspoonful pepper put meat in deep pudding-dish and sprinkle over it parsley, onion, salt and pepper. to the suet add the flour, a pinch of salt, and sufficient ice water to moisten, but not to make wet. knead a little until it can be rolled out in a crust large enough to cover the top of the pudding-dish. pour the boiling stock over the meat. spread the crust over it and cut a slit in the top. brush over with milk and bake in a moderate oven one and a quarter hours. serve in same dish with a napkin folded around it. braised beef use inch thick slice from under round ( ) / cupful onion chopped / cupful carrot cut in dice / cupful turnip cut in dice / cupful celery cut in / -inch lengths stem parsley peppercorns cloves bay-leaf teaspoonful salt cupfuls swift's beef extract rub the slice of meat with flour. have ready bacon or pork fat very hot in frying-pan. lay in the meat and brown quickly on both sides. spread the seasonings and vegetables over the bottom of a baking-pan. lay the browned meat upon them; add the swift's beef extract; cover, and bake three hours in very slow oven, basting every fifteen minutes. to serve, lay meat in center of the platter. place vegetables around it. make a brown sauce with the liquor left in pan and pour over the vegetables. {footer: use swift's premium oleomargarine on your table and for cooking.} brown beef stew with dumplings use bony end shoulder ( ) or veiny piece (lower ) pounds uncooked beef cut in inch cubes tablespoonfuls flour teaspoonful kitchen bouquet small carrot cut in dice / teaspoonful pepper teaspoonful salt ounces of suet cupfuls swift's beef extract or of stock onion bay-leaf roll the meat cubes in one tablespoonful of the flour. put suet in frying-pan and shake over fire until melted. remove the crackling, put in the meat cubes and turn till they are slightly browned on all sides. remove the meat. into the fat in the pan stir the second tablespoonful of flour; mix and add gradually the stock, stirring all the while so there will be no lumps. when smooth, return the meat to the pan, add the vegetables and seasonings. cover the pan, draw to the back of the coal range, or reduce the flame of the gas so that the stew will not boil, and let it simmer for one and one-half hours. ten minutes before serving make the dumplings cupfuls flour rounding teaspoonful baking-powder / level teaspoonful salt / cupful milk sift flour, baking-powder, and salt together. add the milk. take to fire and drop the mixture by spoonfuls all over the stew. cover and cook slowly for ten minutes without once removing the cover. to serve, lift the dumplings carefully and lay around the edge of the platter; place stew in the center, and over it pour the sauce. {footer: wherever butter is specified in a recipe use a slightly smaller quantity of swift's premium oleomargarine, it costs less and is just as good.} timetable for baking beans (if prepared by soaking and boiling), to hrs. beef sirloin or rib, rare, weight pounds, hr. min. beef sirloin or rib, well done, weight pounds, hr. min. beef rump, rare, weight pounds, hr. min. biscuit raised, to min. biscuits, baking-powder, to min. bread, white loaf, to min. bread, graham loaf, to min. cake, layer, to min. cake, loaf, to min. cake, sponge, to min. chicken, to pounds, - / to hrs. cookies, to min. custard (baked in cups), to min. duck, domestic, to - / hrs. duck, wild, to min. fish, thick, to pounds, to min. fish, small, to min. gingerbread, to min. lamb leg, well done, - / to hrs. mutton, - / to hrs. pork, well done, pounds, hrs. potatoes, to min. puddings, rice, bread, to min. veal leg, well done, per pound, min. timetable for boiling asparagus, to min. beans, shell, to - / hrs. beans, string, to min. beets, young, to min. beets, old, to hrs. brown bread, steamed, hrs. cabbage, to min. carrots, hr. cauliflower, to min. chickens, young, to pounds, to - / hrs. corn, green, min. corned beef, gentle simmering, to hrs. eggs, soft cooked (in water which does not boil), to min. eggs, hard cooked (in water which does not boil), to min. ham, weight to pounds, to hrs. onions, to min. rice in fast boiling water, min. smoked tongue, hrs. timetable for frying bacon, to min. fritters or doughnuts, to min. croquettes, to min. breaded chops, to min. smelts, to min. small fish, to min. index page baking-day helps, beef à la mode, beef cannelon, beef loaf, beefsteak pie, boiled beef, braised beef, brown beef stew, butter scotch, cookies, cornbread, corn pudding, cream horseradish sauce, curry balls, dumplings, english walnut pudding, fireless cooker, the practical value and use of, - ginger bread, house-cleaning hints, house-plant suggestions, how to use the cheaper cuts of meat, - illustration showing standard cuts of beef, laundry helps, lemon pie, little beef cakes, loaf fig cake, oatmeal crackers, oleomargarine, swift's premium, foot notes oleomargarine, the truth about, penoche, renovating suggestions, recipes, - , - smothered beef with corn pudding, spanish minced beef, steak en casserole, sugar cookies, timetables (baking, boiling, frying), tomato sauce, truth about oleomargarine, [illustration] the shirley press chicago transcriber's note: both "to-day" and "today" appear in the original text. this has not been changed. in the plain-text versions of this book, bolding and italics on page footers (shown as {footer: text}) have not been represented. the following corrections have been made to the text: p. : "dopping" to "dropping" (dropping their buds) p. : "fahrenheat" to "fahrenheit" (at degrees fahrenheit) p. : "a la" to "à la" ("à la flamande" and "à la mode") p. : missing close bracket added (bony end shoulder ( ) or veiny piece)