BERKELEY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 UNIVERSITY Of 
 CALIFORNIA 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 AGRICULTURE 
 BEQUEST 
 
 OF 
 
 ANITA D. S. BLAKE 
 

Digitized by tine Internet Arciiive 
 
 in 2006 witii funding from 
 
 IVIicrosoft Corporation 
 
 littp://www.arcliive.org/details/cateringfortwocoOOjamericli 
 
CATERING FOR TWO 
 
 COMFORT AND ECONOMY 
 FOR SMALL HOUSEHOLDS 
 
 BY 
 ALICE L.- JAMES 
 
 SECOND IMPRESSION 
 
 G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS 
 
 NEW YORK AND LONDON 
 
 %^t Knickerbocker |prws 
 
 1899 
 
Copyright, 1898 
 
 BY 
 
 G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS 
 
 AGRICULTURE 
 GIFT 
 
 Zbc ftnicherbocker iprese, laew l^orft 
 
TXl/s 
 
 AGRIC 
 LIBRARY 
 
 To 
 MARY FRANCES HARMAN 
 
 134 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 THE difficulty of reducing the average rules 
 of the cook books to meet the wants of a 
 family of two or three, added to the urgent 
 solicitations of friends, has suggested to the 
 writer the need of this little book. 
 
 Dining well on small means is an art only to 
 be acquired by long experience, and the object 
 of the following chapters is to give the result 
 of sixteen years' labor and study, so that the 
 way may be made easier for others just taking 
 upon themselves the duties of a housewife. 
 
 In the accompanying menus the directions 
 are exact and absolutely reliable. 
 
 There is no indefinite **a little" of this, or 
 ** just enough " of that, to puzzle the beginner, 
 and the dishes, which are nourishing and ap- 
 petizing, are inexpensive as well, a considera- 
 tion not always taken into account. 
 
 Catering for Two is for the inexperienced 
 cook, and while the proportions are limited to 
 the needs of two, or at most three, it is only 
 necessary to double the rules to make the quan- 
 tities sufficient for the ordinary family. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 DINNERS I 
 
 COMPANY I^UNCHEONS . . . 183 
 
 BREAKFAST, TEA, AND I^UNCHEON DISHES. 1 92 
 
 FANCY DESSERTS 229 
 
 MISCEI,I.ANEOUS RECIPES . . . .245 
 HEI<PFUl< SUGGESTIONS .... 262 
 INDEX 281 
 
 Vll 
 
CATERING FOR TWO. 
 
 DINNERS. 
 
 I. 
 
 Consomm^ with rice. 
 
 Oyster pie. 
 
 Pickled cabbage. Grape jelly. 
 
 Egg salad with greens. 
 
 Crackers. Cheese. 
 
 Roly-poly peach pudding. 
 
 Egg sauce. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Caramel jelly. 
 
 Alternative : Round steak (fried). 
 Farina pudding. 
 
 CONSOMM^ WITH RICE. 
 
 Get a shank of mutton weighing about two 
 
 pounds, or two shanks weighing a pound each. 
 
 Wipe with a damp cloth and cut off any dried 
 
2 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 outer skin, dredge with two tablespoon fuls of 
 flour, pour on a quart of cold water, and, after 
 soaking a few hours, simmer for several hours, 
 covered closely. 
 
 Strain off this liquor, pour over the bones and 
 meat enough cold water to cover, and cook 
 again for another hour. Strain and add to 
 the first quantity of liquor and throw away 
 the bones and meat. Salt to taste, add an 
 onion, carrot, and turnip, and cook until the 
 vegetables are tender ; these may be put away 
 for a salad, and when the broth is cold, take 
 off the cake of fat. There should be nearly a 
 quart of solid jelly. Take a pint of this, add a 
 tablespoonful of washed rice, and cook gently 
 until the rice is tender. 
 
 A little minced parsley may be added at the 
 last moment. 
 
 This broth is much relished by the sick, and 
 may be varied in many ways. 
 
 OYSTER PIE. 
 
 Twenty-five medium-sized freshened oysters. 
 
 Slice very thin a cupful of raw potatoes, pour 
 on them one cup of rich, sweet milk, cover the 
 dish (of earthenware) closely, and cook on top 
 of the stove until done. Do not stir them, but 
 watch carefully that they do not burn. 
 
 When the potatoes are cool, place the oysters 
 on top of them, pepper and salt lightly, add the 
 
Catertng for Zvoo. 3 
 
 oyster liquor and a tablespoonful of butter in 
 small pieces. Place over all a cover of pie- 
 crust, made as follows, and bake in a very hot 
 oven for fifteen minutes. 
 
 Sift together a cup of flour and half a tea- 
 spoonful of salt and cut into it with a knife 
 two heaping tablespoon fuls of lard as cold and 
 hard as ice can make it. 
 
 When the lard is the size of peas, stir in 
 with a fork four tablespooufuls of ice-water, 
 and mould quickly into a ball ; flour the mould- 
 ing-board, roll out once, cut a few little slits or 
 fancy figures in the centre, and lay upon the 
 oysters. Trim off the overlapping edges and 
 bake at once. Make any paste that is left into 
 a little tart. 
 
 ROLY-POLY PUDDING (BAKED). 
 
 Sift together one cup of flour, one teaspoon- 
 ful of baking powder, and half a teaspoonful 
 of salt. Chop this with a scant half-cup of suet 
 (ice cold) and mix quickly with two thirds of 
 a cup of ice-cold water. 
 
 Mould into a long roll and roll out on a 
 floured moulding-board as thin as it will hold 
 together. 
 
 Have ready three or four peeled and sliced 
 fine juicy peaches (canned will do), cover the 
 paste with them, dredge lightly with flour, and 
 roll up like a ielly roll. 
 
4 Caterina tor ^wo. 
 
 Place in an earthen dish, and bake in a mod- 
 erately hot oven for three quarters of an hour. 
 
 Serve hot with the following sauce : 
 
 Cream with a fork a half-cup of sweet butter, 
 add a cupful of granulated sugar, and stir well ; 
 then add the yolk of a small egg and stir, then 
 the frothed white, whipping the whole until 
 very light. 
 
 Now add a quarter-cupful of boiling water, set 
 over the teakettle, and cook and stir for several 
 minutes. It should be a little thick, and quite 
 foamy. 
 
 Flavor with a tablespoonful of wine or 
 brandy, or vanilla to taste. 
 
 This sauce will keep a week or longer in a 
 cool place, and may be warmed up by setting 
 over a teakettle. 
 
 The pudding may be warmed in the oven in a 
 covered dish. 
 
 PICKIvED CABBAGE. 
 
 One cabbage, solid and crisp. 
 
 Two ounces mustard seed, one heaping table- 
 spoonful of black pepper. 
 
 Two tablespoonfuls of salt, one quart cider 
 vinegar, three onions, one red-pepper pod, one 
 tablespoonful sugar, one heaping tablespoonful 
 mixed spices, whole cloves, cinnamon, allspice, 
 and a speck of mace. Tie the spices in a piece 
 of cheese-cloth, giving them plenty of room. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 5 
 
 Chop the cabbage, or, if preferred, shave into 
 ribbons, put it with the onions and pepper 
 pod chopped fine into an earthen crock, in 
 alternate layers with the salt, pepper, and 
 mustard seed. 
 
 Stamp with a potato masher, to press all to- 
 gether closely, but not hard enough to bruise 
 the cabbage. Put the bag of spices on top, and 
 over the whole lay a heavy plate, pouring the 
 vinegar on at the last. Put on the cover of the 
 jar and set in a cool place. It will be ready for 
 the table in a few days, and will keep for months 
 in cool weather if made after frost sets in. 
 
 The vinegar must not be heated, nor the cab- 
 bage. Everything is in the raw state for this 
 pickle. 
 
 CARAMBI. JEIvLY. 
 
 Melt one heaping tablespoonful of gelatine 
 in two tablespoon fuls of cold water, add the 
 juice and grated rind of half a lemon, three 
 tablespoon fuls of granulated sugar, a pinch of 
 ground cinnamon, a teaspoonful of sugar burned 
 brown, a few grains of salt, and one cupful and 
 four tablespoon fuls of boiling water (in hot 
 weather omit the extra four tablespoons of 
 boiling water). Stir and strain, and set away to 
 harden on ice. 
 
 This makes a delicious dessert with whipped 
 cream (and gelatine) heaped on top. 
 
6 Catering tor q:wo. 
 
 FRIED ROUND STEAK. 
 
 Ask for the prime cut of round steak. 
 
 Trim off the outer edges of fat, cut a piece 
 from the steak large enough for a meal, and 
 pound with a hammer until it becomes like 
 jelly. Press into shape and fry in a smoking- 
 hot spider ; it will take only a minute for each 
 side to become brown, as the fire must be very 
 hot. 
 
 Place upon a bed of fresh water-cresses. Add 
 a tablespoonful of butter to the spider, which 
 must now be slightly cooled, stir in an even 
 teaspoon ful of flour, salt, and pepper ; pour in 
 four tablespoonfuls of boiling water, cook a 
 minute, and pour over the steak. Serve at 
 once. The remainder of the steak may be 
 broiled or made into a beefsteak pudding with 
 suet crust. 
 
 FARINA PUDDING. 
 
 Stir with a spoon a cup and a half of boiling 
 milk until it whirls, then slowly pour in a 
 heaping tablespoonful of farina, stirring all the 
 time. Add one fourth of an even teaspoonful 
 of salt, cook five minutes, and then set in 
 another saucepan containing boiling water and 
 cook, covered, fifteen minutes, stirring occa- 
 sionally. Flavor with lemon or vanilla and 
 turn into cups. 
 
 Serve cold with sweetened cream. 
 
II. 
 
 Chicken broth. 
 
 Sirloin steak (oven roast). 
 
 Lyonnaise potatoes. 
 
 Macaroni with cheese. 
 
 Stewed peaches or prunes. 
 
 Tomato salad. French dressing. 
 
 Whipped-cream cake. 
 
 Stewed strawberries. Tea or coffee. 
 
 Alternative : Beef stew with sweet potatoes. 
 Tomato fritters. 
 
 CHICKEN BROTH. 
 
 Put into a kettle the neck, lower parts of the 
 leg, and the wing tips of a large fat fowl. 
 
 Dredge with flour and add a pint ot cold 
 water. After soaking an hour, simmer gently, 
 closely covered, until the meat drops from the 
 bones, strain and put the broth back on the 
 fire, then add a cupful more water to the bones 
 
 7 
 
8 Catertng tor ^wo» 
 
 and cook an hour longer ; add this liquor also 
 to the broth and throw away the chicken. 
 
 There should be a scant pint of broth. 
 
 Season with onion juice, salt and pepper, 
 and a little parsley, boil up, and serve with 
 squares of bread toasted brown in the oven . 
 
 Make chicken salad of the body of the fowl. 
 
 SIRLOIN STEAK. 
 
 A prime cut of sirloin steak will weigh about 
 two pounds and a half. Cut off enough for 
 two broils, and use the rest for the oven roast. 
 Trim off the outside edges of fat, dust the meat 
 lightl}'^ with pepper and flour, and roll it into a 
 compact roll, pinning securely together with a 
 long clinch-nail. 
 
 These nails may be found at a hardware store, 
 and are just the thing to use for little roasts. 
 Broil the meat over a clear, fierce bed of coals 
 just long enough to seal up the juices (hasten- 
 ing the process as much as possible). 
 
 Place a piece of fat on a baking-tin, put the 
 meat upon it, and roast in a hot oven for about 
 twenty minutes. Take from the oven, remove 
 the skewers, being careful not to disturb the 
 shape of the meat, sprinkle with salt, and pour 
 over a gravy made by adding a scant half-cup- 
 ful of boiling water to the baking-pan in which 
 a teaspoonful of flour has been browned ; salt 
 to taste and pour off" the grease. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 9 
 
 LYONNAISE POTATOES. 
 
 Slice a cupful of onions and two cupfuls of 
 cold boiled or baked potatoes. 
 
 Put them in alternate layers in a baking-dish 
 for the table. Cream a tablespoonful of butter 
 with a teaspoonful of flour, add half a teaspoon- 
 ful of salt and a cupful of boiling milk, cook 
 up, and pour over the potatoes and onions. 
 
 Dust with pepper and bake half an hour, un- 
 covered, in a moderate oven, or cover and 
 cook on top of the stove ; they are better baked, 
 however. 
 
 MACARONI WITH CHEESE. 
 
 Soak half a cupful of macaroni in two cups 
 of boiling water twenty minutes, then boil until 
 tender, — about thirty minutes. 
 
 Skim out the macaroni, put into an earthen 
 dish, sprinkle with half a teaspoonful of salt, a 
 dust of pepper, and spread over the top thin 
 slices of old English cheese. 
 
 Add a teaspoonful of butter and half a cup of 
 milk. 
 
 Bake twenty minutes and serve in the baking- 
 dish. 
 
 TOMATO SALAD. 
 
 Serve the tomatoes (pared) on lettuce leaves, 
 either with a mayonnaise or French dressing. 
 They must be ice cold, to be good. 
 
lo Catering for q;wo. 
 
 WHIPPBD-CREAM CAKE. 
 
 Sift three times one and a half cupfuls of 
 flour lightly put into the measure, with one 
 and a half teaspoonfuls of baking-powder, and 
 one scant half-teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Rub into the flour a lump of butter the size of 
 an egg (this will be a little less than a fourth 
 of a cupful). 
 
 Put an egg into a bowl, pour on one scant cup- 
 ful of sugar, and beat together, then add slowly 
 two thirds of a cupful of water. Add flavoring, 
 and pour slowly into the flour, beating it in 
 with the hand until the batter is smooth and 
 foamy. 
 
 This should take about five minutes ; the 
 hand should be freshly washed in hot water for 
 the purpose, and the fingers must be spread 
 apart in order to beat properly. 
 
 Fill two shallow layer-cake pans half full, 
 not more, and bake in a hot oven. When cold, 
 put between and on the top layer two thirds of a 
 cup of cream whipped to a stiff" froth. Keep in 
 a cold place several hours before serving. 
 
 The remainder of the batter may be made 
 into little drop cakes, half a teaspoonful for 
 each, and baked on the bottom of inverted 
 tins. 
 
 If whipped cream is not at hand, proceed as 
 follows, making a lemon cake. 
 
Catering for C^wo. n 
 
 LEMON CAKE. 
 
 Dissolve half a teaspoonful of corn-starch in 
 one tablespoonful of cold water, add three table- 
 spoonfuls of boiling water, a few grains of salt, 
 and boil several minutes. Put into a deep 
 bowl two cupfuls of confectioner's sugar, and 
 one third of the juice of one lemon. Add by 
 the teaspoonful enough of the corn-starch mix- 
 ture to make a paste thin enough to spread 
 easily between and on top of the cakes. This 
 is a delicious frosting for any cake, and it will 
 always be soft. Orange may be substituted for 
 lemon if preferred. 
 
 STEWED STRAWBERRIES. 
 
 One cupful of water, one cupful of sugar, 
 three cupfuls berries, measured after being 
 picked over and rinsed. Boil the sugar and 
 water until clear, add the berries, and cook 
 two or three minutes after boiling begins. 
 This rule will serve for blackberries and rasp- 
 berries also, and may be used when canning 
 these fruits. Fruit should always be put into a 
 boiling syrup ; and this is the rule for dried 
 fruits also. They should never be soaked ; 
 simply washed, and put immediately into the 
 boiling syrup. A cupful of berries with a third 
 of a cup each of sugar and water is enough for 
 one meal. 
 
12 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 STEWED PEACHES (RIPE). 
 
 Rub the down from the peaches with a coarse 
 towel, quarter and stone them. 
 
 Allow one tablespoonful of sugar and one 
 tablespoon ful of water for every medium-sized 
 peach. 
 
 Put the stones, water, and sugar on to boil for 
 a few minutes, remove the former, put in the 
 fruit, and when boiling begins cook gently for 
 five minutes. 
 
 Peaches may be peeled if liked, but the skins 
 are very delicious. 
 
 They may be baked by cutting in halves, 
 filling with a tablespoonful of sugar, and add- 
 ing a tablespoonful of water to the pan. 
 
 Cover and bake. 
 
 STEWED PRUNES (RICH). 
 
 Make a syrup of two cups of water and one 
 cup of sugar, add half a lemon thinly sliced, 
 and one pound of prunes which have been 
 rinsed, but not soaked, in cold water. Sim- 
 mer gently in a covered earthen or agate-ware 
 vessel for four hours. Then pour over them 
 a syrup made of one cupful of sugar and one 
 (or two) cupfuls of boiling water cooked to- 
 gether ten minutes. 
 
 Boil the prunes a few minutes longer and 
 serve either hot or cold. 
 
catering tor ^wo. 13 
 
 Covered, in a cool place they will keep weeks. 
 The little Turkish prune is the best, and this 
 will not need the lemon. 
 
 BEEF STEW WITH SWEET POTATOES. 
 
 Have one pound of chuck or stewing beef cut 
 into two-inch pieces. 
 
 Dredge with a tablespoon of flour, add a table- 
 spoonful of fried salt pork cut into dice (but not 
 the grease), and either a piece of red-pepper pod 
 the size of a thumb-nail, or a pinch of cayenne. 
 
 Use an earthen or agate vessel with a fitted 
 cover, and simmer the meat for two hours in 
 a scant cupful of boiling water. Then add two 
 small sweet potatoes, peeled and washed ; add 
 a scant teaspoonful of salt, cook until the po- 
 tatoes are done, and serve on a platter. 
 
 Be careful not to break the potatoes. 
 
III. 
 
 Broth. 
 Mutton with caper sauce. 
 
 Boiled rice. 
 
 Parsnip with cream sauce. 
 
 Crab-apple jelly. Bread and butter. 
 
 Celery hearts, Neufchatel cheese. 
 
 Salted Saratoga chip crackers. 
 
 Steamed dumpling (raised). 
 
 Caramel sauce. 
 
 Canned or stewed fresh cherries, strawberries, 
 
 or peaches. 
 
 Oranges. Tea or coffee. 
 
 BROTH. 
 
 Take the bone cut from a mutton shank 
 weighing a pound and a half. 
 
 Cover with a quart of cold water, and, after 
 soaking an hour or so, heat gradually, and boil 
 gently until meat and bone separate. 
 
 This will take several hours. Then add two 
 tablespoon fuls of tomatoes, one teaspoonful 
 washed rice, half an onion, grated, and boil 
 
 14 
 
Catcrina tor ^vvo» 15 
 
 until there is a pint of broth. Strain, skim off 
 fat, add salt to taste, and serve. A tiny pinch 
 of red pepper is an addition. 
 
 BOILED MUTTON WITH CAPER SAUCE. 
 
 Get a shank of mutton weighing one and a 
 half pounds. Trim off the outer skin, which 
 generally is the cause of the " woolly taste " so 
 often complained of in mutton. 
 
 Cut out the bone, dredge the meat on all 
 sides with flour, dust with black pepper, and 
 put it into a small deep agate pot with a close- 
 fitting cover ; pour over one and a half cupfuls 
 of boiling water, and when boiling begins, set 
 on the back of the stove to cook gently for 
 about two hours. 
 
 When done, put the mutton on a deep platter 
 and season with salt and pepper. Skim the fat 
 from the gravy, which will be reduced to a cup- 
 ful, add a teaspoon ful of flour blended with .a 
 teaspoonful of butter, stir well, cook a few min- 
 utes, add salt to taste and one or two table- 
 spoonfuls of capers, boil up, and serve either 
 poured around the mutton or in a gravy 
 tureen. 
 
 If capers are not liked, a spoonful of tomato 
 catsup, or an onion sliced ^nd cooked with the 
 mutton, can be substituted. If greater deli- 
 cacy is preferred, do not use the gravy at all, 
 but make a white sauce, called drawn butter. 
 
i6 Catcrins tor Zwo, 
 
 Mix an even tablespoouful of flour with a 
 lump of butter the size of an egg, stir to a 
 cream, and slowly add a cupful of boiling 
 water, stirring and cooking several minutes. 
 Add salt and pepper to taste, with the capers, 
 boil up, and serve. A tablespoouful of minced 
 parsley may be used instead of the capers. The 
 gravy may be added to the broth, or it may 
 form the basis of a soup for another day. 
 
 It is not safe to keep mutton stock more than 
 twenty-four hours, except in freezing weather. 
 
 BOIIvBD RICE. 
 
 Wash half a cupful of rice, drain, and pour 
 it gradually into a pint of fast-boiling water, to 
 which half an even teaspoonful of salt has been 
 added. Stir all the time the rice is being 
 poured in. Boil hard for a minute, then cover 
 closely, and set upon a part of the stove where 
 it will simmer for an hour or a little longer, 
 covered all the time. The rice will be per- 
 fectly soft and yet retain its shape, and the 
 water will all have been absorbed. 
 
 Heap on a dish, butter liberally, and dust 
 with pepper. 
 
 PARSNIP WITH CRBAM SAUCB. 
 
 # 
 
 Scrape and wash, but do not soak, a fine 
 large parsnip. Cover it with boiling water and 
 cook until tender. 
 
Caterfng tor ^wo. 17 
 
 Cut into slices half an inch thick, put into a 
 vegetable dish, and pour over a sauce made by 
 stirring to a cream one tablespoonful of butter 
 and one of flour, and adding a cupful of boiling 
 water, with salt and pepper to taste. This sauce 
 should boil ten minutes. 
 
 Sometimes parsnips have a core so hard that 
 no amount of boiling will make it tender. 
 
 From twenty to thirty minutes is the time 
 allowed, and if the core still remains unyield- 
 ing, cut it out of each slice and discard. 
 
 Any parsnip left over may be mashed and 
 served in a little cake browned in a frying-pan. 
 
 CELERY HEARTS. 
 
 Wash the hearts of fine crisp celery, place 
 upon a celery dish, and pass with Neufchatel 
 cheese and Saratoga chip crackers, salted. It 
 is not necessary to bring on fresh plates for this 
 little course, as the bread-and-butter plates at 
 each place will answer, if one wishes to save 
 steps or time. 
 
 STEAMED DUMPIvING. 
 
 One half yeast-cake, three quarters cup of 
 water, or milk and water mixed, one heaping 
 cup of flour, one half-teaspoonful of salt, one 
 tablespoonful of sugar, one egg, heaping table- 
 spoonful butter. 
 
i8 Catering tor XLvoo. 
 
 Melt the butter and yeast-cake in the warmed 
 milk, beat the egg, and sift flour, salt, and 
 sugar together. 
 
 Mix all these ingredients, and set in a warm 
 place for one hour. 
 
 At the end of this time, beat the mixture, fill 
 a mould one third full, and let the dough rise 
 until it is nearly doubled in bulk, which will 
 be in about half an hour. Set in a steamer and 
 cook one hour, then cover and keep hot until 
 ready to serve. 
 
 CARAMEI. SAUCE FOR STEAMED 
 DUMPLING. 
 
 Stir to a cream one tablespoonful of butter, 
 two tablespoonfuls of confectioner's sugar. 
 Add a little caramel (directions to follow) and 
 the yolk of an egg. Beat for several minutes. 
 
 Add more, or all, of the caramel, and more 
 sugar if desired, and, at the last, one table- 
 spoonful of wine or brandy. 
 
 This pudding will keep a week in a cool place, 
 if covered, and may be warmed for another 
 meal by setting on a plate, covered closely 
 with a bowl, and set in the oven, or in a steamer. 
 
 CARAMEL OR BURNT SUGAR. 
 
 To make the caramel, put on a cool part of 
 the stove, to melt, four heaping tablespoonfuls 
 of granulated sugar with two tablespoonfuls 
 
Catering for Zvoo. 19 
 
 water, and let it cook gently for half an hour, 
 covered. At this time it should be bright, 
 coffee-brown syrup, clear as amber. 
 
 Be careful not to have the fire too hot, or the 
 caramel will be burned and have a bitter taste. 
 It must not be stirred, as this will grain the 
 sugar, but the saucepan can be shifted from 
 side to side, carefully, if necessary. 
 
 Now add to the syrup six tablespoon fuls boil- 
 ing water, one spoonful at a time, pouring it 
 directly into the middle of the mass. Let this 
 boil gently for two minutes without stirring, 
 then mix with a spoon, cooking and stirring 
 for another minute. 
 
 There should be just a half-cupful of syrup, 
 perfectly clear and free from lumps. 
 
 Cool before using. 
 
 ORANGES. 
 
 Select fine, large oranges. Soften them a 
 little by rolling gently on the kitchen table 
 with the hand. 
 
 Cut off an inch-thick slice from the stem end 
 and replace it, so that the fruit will present a 
 whole appearance. 
 
 Serve on dessert plates with orange spoons or 
 stout teaspoons. 
 
 The choice or delicate teaspoons are apt to be 
 twisted and ruined when used as orange scoops. 
 The oranges may be cut in halves if preferred. 
 
IV. 
 
 Tomato bisque. 
 
 Porter-house roast. 
 
 White turnips and potatoes mashed together. 
 
 Baked rhubarb sauce. 
 
 Celery salad. Cream cheese. 
 
 Graham wafers. 
 
 Corn-starch pudding with candied fruits. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Bread and butter served with second course. 
 
 TOMATO BISQUE. 
 
 Put the bone cut from a porter-house roast 
 into an agate pot having a fitted cover, and 
 soak for an hour or so in a quart of cold water. 
 Then bring slowly to a boil and cook gently 
 until the liquor is reduced to a cupful. Bone 
 and meat should have dropped apart by this 
 time (about four hours). Add half a cupful of 
 tomatoes, in which is well mixed a dessert- 
 spoonful of flour ; add also a teaspoonful of 
 onion juice, and boil gently for half an hour. 
 
datering tor Zvco* 21 
 
 Strain, skim off the fat, return to the pot, and 
 add half a cupful of milk (fresh and rich) in 
 which a pinch of baking-soda has been dis- 
 solved. Stir well while heating, and when it 
 boils up, season to taste and serve. 
 
 ROAST BKEF. 
 
 Order about three pounds from prime cut of 
 porter-house roast. Have the bone taken out 
 and sent home for soup-stock, and have also 
 the long coarse end cut off and corned for 
 twenty-four or thirty hours, or a little longer if 
 preferred. 
 
 Cut ofif the outer edge of fat, as it is dry and 
 likely to be bitter. Skewer the meat firmly 
 with a long clinch-nail. These nails make the 
 best skewers for small roasts or cuts, as, having 
 broad, flat heads, they can be removed with 
 ease. 
 
 The meat should now be browned on all 
 sides. This is not necessary for large roasts, 
 but for small ones ; it is the best way to make 
 them retain their juices and sweetness. Either 
 broil over a fierce bed of coals, or fry in a 
 smoking-hot frying-pan. The meat does not 
 want to be cooked, only browned well, and this 
 process should take but a few minutes. Now 
 dredge with flour on all sides, pepper lightly, 
 and place, fat side down, on a meat-rack (a 
 wire tea-stand will do) in a small dripping-pan. 
 
22 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 Roast in a hot oven for fifteen minutes, then 
 add a half-cupful of boiling water, cover the 
 meat with a pan, and in thirty minutes take 
 from the oven. 
 
 Cut a deep, narrow slit, and pry apart to see 
 if it is done to suit. If too rare return to the 
 oven for fifteen or twenty minutes longer. 
 
 Never allow the water in the pan to boil en- 
 tirely away, or the gravy will be scorched to 
 bitterness ; it should be merely browned. 
 
 Put the roast on a platter, dust on all sides 
 with salt, and garnish with celery tops. Stir 
 together a teaspoonful of flour, and enough 
 cold water to blend together smoothly (about 
 two tablespoonfuls), add this to the sediment in 
 the dripping-pan, and boil up. 
 
 Add also a little boiling water and salt to 
 taste. There should be half a cupful of gravy. 
 Serve in a tureen. If the gravy is too pale, add 
 a few drops of caramel. 
 
 If there is no sediment and no grease, which 
 often occurs, put a tablespoonful of butter in 
 the pan, brown it slightly, and then add flour 
 and water as directed. 
 
 The meat is far more delicious when it keeps 
 its juices while cooking. 
 
 In carving, cut across the grain, and always 
 add to each plate a spoonful of red juice from 
 the platter ; this is called " dish grav\'," and is 
 the life of the meat. 
 
 The roast may be served for another dinner by 
 
Catering tor (Two. 23 
 
 putting it in a moderate oven and simply heat- 
 ing it through. 
 
 For still another time, cut the meat into dice, 
 always cutting across the grain, dredge with 
 flour, and cover with boiling water. 
 
 Cover closely and stew gently from two to two 
 and a half hours. 
 
 Add onions or tomatoes, or serve plain. 
 
 Salt and pepper to taste. Chop fine any 
 which may be left, and add one fourth as much 
 cold baked potatoes, a few drops of onion juice, 
 a little flour, butter, and milk, and you have a 
 hash for breakfast. 
 
 Either fry in cakes, or serve with dipped 
 toast. When cutting meat for a stew do not 
 use the fat ; if you want fat, get salt pork and 
 brown it, and use this without the grease. 
 
 If any hash is left, do not throw it away ; it 
 can go into the soup-pot with other scraps of 
 meat, bones, and vegetables. 
 
 When the coarse end comes, which you have 
 left with the butcher to be corned, cover it with 
 a quart of boiling water, and cook gently for 
 three hours. This piece is not good when hot ; 
 let it get cold in the liquor it boiled in, and 
 slice for luncheon or tea, or make into hash. 
 
 Soups and corned beef may be cooked in a 
 slow oven after they are started to boil on top 
 of the stove, thus saving the house from the 
 long-continued odors ; onions and cabbage may 
 be treated in the same way. 
 
24 Catering tor XLvco, 
 
 WHITE TURNIPS AND POTATOES 
 MASHED TOGETHER. 
 
 Wash and peel two medium-sized potatoes 
 and two turnips equal in size to the potatoes. 
 
 Cut in halves and cook, in enough boiling 
 water to cover, from twenty minutes to half an 
 hour. Test with a fork, and when tender drain 
 by turning into a sieve or colander. 
 
 Return them to the pot which has been dried, 
 mash thoroughly, add a dessert-spoonful of 
 butter, and one third of a teaspoonful of salt. 
 Stir with a fork and add more salt if needed. 
 Heap in a vegetable tureen, smooth the top, put 
 on a lump of butter the size of a walnut, sprinkle 
 with pepper, and keep hot, uncovered in the 
 oven, until wanted. If any is left, either make 
 it into a little cake and fry in butter, or add to 
 the soup vegetables. 
 
 CELERY SALAD. 
 
 Break into half-inch pieces one cupful of 
 crisp, blanched celery stalks. Little tough 
 strings will hold the pieces together ; strip 
 these off. 
 
 Make a dressing of one tablespoonful of olive- 
 oil, a dash of cayenne pepper, one fourth of a 
 teaspoonful of salt, and a teaspoonful of real 
 cider vinegar. 
 
 Toss the celery about in this and serve in 
 
Catering tor Zvoo. 25 
 
 shallow salad bowl, either on a bed of lettuce 
 
 leaves, or garnished with watercress or parsley. 
 
 Pass Graham wafers and any preferred cream 
 
 cheese, Bagle, or Philadelphia, Neufchatel, etc. 
 
 CORN-STARCH PUDDING WITH CANDIED 
 FRUIT. 
 
 Put one cup of milk on the stove, and when 
 it boils add two level tablespoon fuls of corn- 
 starch mixed with a pinch of salt, and two 
 tablespoon fuls cold milk. Boil for a few min- 
 utes, stirring constantly from the bottom and 
 sides ; then put the saucepan into another con- 
 taining boiling water, cover, and stir occasion- 
 ally to prevent a crust forming. Cook ten 
 minutes. 
 
 Beat one egg until very light, add one tea- 
 spoonful of sugar, beat a few minutes longer, 
 and stir into the corn-starch. Cook one minute, 
 stirring well, add one fourth of a teaspoonful of 
 lemon extract, remove from the fire. 
 
 Beat a few minutes with a wire spoon and 
 pour into a mould. 
 
 When cold, turn out on a dish, place candied 
 cherries, or any other candied fruit or rich pre- 
 serves, around the edge, and serve with cream 
 sweetened to taste and flavored with a teaspoon- 
 ful of sherry or lemon extract. 
 
 Be exact in measuring the milk and corn -starch, 
 as a little more or less will spoil the pudding. 
 
26 Catering for a:wo. 
 
 Smootli off the corn-starch with a knife-blade, 
 to be sure that the spoonfuls are level ones. 
 
 TEA. -• 
 
 Put into a dry, heated earthenware teapot two 
 level teaspoon fuls of tea, and pour on one pint 
 of freshly boiling water. 
 
 Cover and set on a hot part of the stove where 
 it will not boil-t)ut simply keep hot for ten min- 
 utes ; then strain into a heated china teapot for 
 the table. 
 
 Throw away the tea-leaves ; they have been 
 exhausted of all that is fit for use. 
 
V. 
 
 Soup. 
 
 Roast lamb. Grape jelly. 
 
 Escalloped potatoes. 
 
 White turnips with cream sauce. 
 
 Bread and butter. 
 
 Salad. 
 
 Chicory or lettuce. 
 
 Cheese sandwiches. 
 
 Orange tapioca pudding with whipped cream. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Dates and English walnuts. 
 
 SOUP. 
 
 Take one and a half cupfuls of clear soup- 
 stock, heat, and add the yolk of a hot hard- 
 boiled egg which has been mashed to a smooth 
 paste with a level teaspoonful of flour and a 
 heaping teaspoonful of butter. 
 
 Stir this well into the boiling stock, cook for 
 a minute, add salt and pepper to taste, and 
 serve. 
 
 The white of the egg may be sliced and added 
 if desired. 
 
 27 
 
28 Catering for XLwo, 
 
 If the soup is lumpy after the paste is added, 
 strain before serving. 
 
 If more onion flavor is liked, grate in a few 
 drops. 
 
 CI.EAR SOUP-STOCK. 
 
 In the family where soup is considered a daily 
 necessity, the housekeeper will find that a soup- 
 stock kept in bulk, ready for use, will be not 
 only of great convenience, but a saving of time 
 and labor as well. 
 
 The following is a delicious white stock which 
 will keep a week in cold weather. 
 
 Soak over night in two quarts of cold water, 
 one cupful of split peas. Next morning add a 
 quarter of a pound of delicately browned fried 
 salt pork (do not use the grease), one pound 
 of stewing veal from the neck, dredged lightly 
 with flour, one chopped onion, one chopped 
 carrot, several sprigs of parsley, a pinch of cay- 
 enne pepper, and one teaspoonful of sugar. 
 Set on the back of the range to heat slowly, 
 and cook for five or six hours, closely covered, 
 very gently. Add salt to taste, the last half- 
 hour. 
 
 When done, pour into a soup-strainer set 
 over a deep dish, and let it drain. 
 
 Put that which remains in the sieve back into 
 the pot, add a cup of hot water and boil ten or 
 fifteen minutes, then drain again, throwing 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 29 
 
 away that which remains in the strainer. 
 There should be something over a quart of 
 liquor. 
 
 When cold, carefully remove the clear layer 
 of jelly on top and use it for clear soup. 
 
 The thick part remaining in the bottom of 
 the dish may be converted into a tomato soup 
 by adding the same quantity of tomatoes which 
 have been cooked and strained. 
 
 This makes a fine thick soup for luncheon 
 or for a dinner when cold sliced roasts are 
 used. 
 
 The addition of a turkey or chicken carcass 
 makes this stock still more delicious. Break 
 the bones into small pieces, cover with cold 
 water, and boil for several hours. Strain and 
 add to the stock. 
 
 A fine large turkey carcass will yield a 
 pint of jelly, and a chicken carcass half a cup- 
 ful. 
 
 Hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, rice, noodles, or 
 milk and macaroni, may be added to the clear 
 stock as desired, making agreeable changes 
 from day to day. 
 
 ROAST IvAMB. 
 
 Take a chop two inches thick from the prime 
 part of a fine leg of lamb. Dust it with pepper, 
 dredge with flour, and put it into a hot spider to 
 brown on all sides over a hot fire ; or broil it 
 
30 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 over a clear fierce fire. This seals up the juices, 
 preventing their escape while roasting. 
 
 The meat should cook only long enough to 
 become brown. 
 
 Do not puncture with a fork, but use a broad 
 knife for turning. 
 
 Time, from five to eight minutes. 
 
 Put a meat-rack or wire tea-stand into a drip- 
 ping-pan or pie-pan, lay the meat on it, and 
 roast in a moderate oven from thirty to fifty 
 minutes. Take it out at the expiration of thirty 
 minutes and cut a small deep gash in the cen- 
 tre ; pry apart, and if not cooked to suit, return 
 to the oven and bake longer. 
 
 The juice should be red, but the meat a 
 brownish pink. 
 
 Dust with salt, and put it on a small warmed 
 platter. 
 
 Mix a rounded tablespoonful of flour with two 
 tablespoonfuls of cold water, and stir this into 
 the gravy in the pan ; add a half-cupful of boil- 
 ing water, stir well, boil a few minutes, add salt 
 to taste, and serve either in a gravy-boat or pour 
 it over the meat on the platter. 
 
 Serve as soon as possible, garnished with 
 parsley. 
 
 In carving, serve only the choice portions cut 
 in wedges. 
 
 Reserve the poorer part and bones for a sec- 
 ond meal, which is prepared in this way : Cut 
 into dice, dredge with flour, cover with boiling 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 31 
 
 water, and stew gently, closely covered, for an 
 hour, or longer if necessary. Add any gravy 
 which was left, salt to taste, take out the bones, 
 add two tablespoon fuls of capers, and, after 
 boiling up once, serve. If there was no gravy, 
 make some by blending together one table- 
 spoonful of butter and one teaspoonful of flour, 
 and stir into the stew before adding the capers. 
 Add also a little water if needed. 
 
 BSCAIyLOPBD POTATOES. 
 
 Slice in thin slices two cupfuls of cold boiled 
 or baked potatoes. Dust with flour, salt, and 
 black pepper, put into an earthen baking-dish, 
 distribute a dessert-spoonful of butter over the 
 top in small pieces, and fill the dish with milk 
 to just cover the top of the potatoes. 
 
 Bake in a moderate oven for half an hour. 
 The top should be a delicate brown, and the 
 potatoes a little creamy. If baked too long or 
 too fast they will be hard and dry. 
 
 Serve in the dish in which they were baked. 
 
 TURNIPS WITH CREAM SAUCE. 
 
 Wash and peel two medium-sized white tur- 
 nips. Slice in inch pieces and cook in boiling 
 water just enough to cover, with half a tea- 
 spoonful of salt. When tender, drain and put 
 them in a hot vegetable dish. Make a sauce 
 
32 Catering tor Z\oo, 
 
 of a dessert-spoonful of butter, one of flour, and 
 a pinch of salt blended together. 
 
 Add half a cupful of hot milk, boil up, and 
 pour over the turnips. 
 
 Sprinkle with pepper and send to the table. 
 
 SAIvAD OF CHICORY OR IvKTTUCK 
 WITH FRENCH DRESSING. 
 
 Wash and pull apart a crisp head of chicory 
 and serve with a dressing of three scant table- 
 spoonfuls of vinegar (real cider vinegar), one 
 saltspoonful of salt, a pinch of cayenne pepper, 
 and six tablespoonfuls of olive-oil. 
 
 Pass, with this, small cheese sandwiches made 
 in this way : 
 
 Grate three tablespoonfuls of cheese, add one 
 teaspoonful of butter and a pinch of cayenne 
 pepper; work into a paste with a knife-blade 
 and spread on the end of a loaf of bread. Cut 
 this off in a slice a quarter of an inch thick, re- 
 move the crust and double together, cutting the 
 sandwiches about three inches square. Use old 
 English cheese. 
 
 ORANGE TAPIOCA PUDDING WITH 
 WHIPPED CREAM. 
 
 Put two heaping tablespoonfuls of flake tapi- 
 oca in a cloth and pound it to the size of small 
 peas. Rinse in cold water and soak over night 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 33 
 
 in a cupful of cold water. Next morning add 
 an eighth of a teaspoonful of salt, three table- 
 spoonfuls of sugar, and two thirds of a cupful of 
 orange juice. 
 
 Add more sugar if the oranges are very 
 sour. 
 
 Cook until clear (about five minutes after the 
 boiling begins), stirring constantly to prevent 
 scorching. 
 
 Pour into a glass dish and, when cold, heap 
 whipped cream on top. 
 
 Serve with sponge cake, lady-fingers, or del- 
 icate crackers. 
 
 The cream is prepared in this way : 
 
 Put into an ice-cold bowl four tablespoon fuls 
 of ice-cold cream and whip with a wire spoon 
 for about ten minutes, or until it is stiff, then 
 add a few grains of salt, one heaping table- 
 spoonful of confectioner's sugar, and either a 
 pinch of grated orange rind or a quarter of a 
 teaspoonful of vanilla extract. 
 
 To get the juice from oranges, cut crosswise 
 and take out with a spoon the pulp in each sec- 
 tion, rejecting seeds and all tough portions. 
 
 The cream sold from the dairies where a 
 ** separator " is used is easily whipped. 
 
 It is often called "new process cream " and 
 does not need to be drained after being beaten 
 stiflf. If the cream will not whip readily it may 
 be used plain with a little sugar and gelatine in 
 this way : 
 
34 Catering tor XTwo. 
 
 SUBSTITUTE FOR WHIPPED CREAM. 
 
 Put one even teaspoonful of gelatine in three 
 teaspoonfuls of cold water, soak ten minutes, 
 then melt in a warm place until it is liquid. 
 
 Whip for five or six minutes with a wire 
 spoon in a warm room, when the gelatine will 
 become stiff froth. 
 
 Add five tablespoonfuls of rich cream, very 
 cold, one tablespoonful confectioner's sugar, a 
 few grains of salt, and flavoring to suit. 
 
 Pour immediately over the pudding, which 
 must be quite cold. 
 
VI. 
 
 Potato pur^e. 
 
 Fried ham. Cream gravy. 
 
 Fried hominy. 
 
 Stewed corn or parsnip patties. 
 
 Tomatoes stewed in butter. 
 
 Bscalloped oysters. 
 
 Cold slaw. Crackers. Cheese. 
 
 Lemon meringue pie. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Alternative : Mutton pot-roast. Cherry pudding. 
 
 PUR^B OF POTATOES. 
 
 To a heaping cupful of mashed potatoes add 
 a tablespoonful of butter rubbed with a tea- 
 spoonful of flour. Stir into this a pint of boiling 
 milk (carefully, to prevent lumping), add a tea- 
 spoonful of onion juice, half a teaspoon ful of 
 salt, boil up, and strain. 
 
 Serve with minced parsley and squares of 
 bread toasted brown in the oven. 
 
 35 
 
36 CaterinQ for ^wo. 
 
 FRIED HAM. 
 
 One slice of ham three quarters of an inch 
 thick. 
 
 Cut ofif the rind, put ham into a smoking-hot 
 spider, and fry each side one minute. Remove 
 to a cooler part of the range and fry each side 
 ten minutes ; sprinkle with a teaspoonful of 
 granulated sugar after turning the last time. 
 
 Put the meat on a platter, pour into the spider 
 two thirds of a cup of milk, stir the sediment, 
 boil once, and pour over the ham. 
 
 If ham is suspected of being too salt, soak a 
 few hours in the milk which should afterwards 
 be used for the gravy. 
 
 FRIED HOMINY. 
 
 Slice cold boiled hominy, dredge with flour, 
 and fry brown in a little hot salt-pork drippings. 
 Serve buttered and peppered. 
 
 STEWED CORN. 
 
 Grate a heaping cupful of green uncooked 
 corn, add one fourth of a cupful of rich milk, 
 a dust of flour, pepper and salt to taste, and a 
 teaspoonful of butter. Boil up once and take 
 from the fire. If cooked corn is used, do not 
 boil it, but add to the milk, etc., which must be 
 boiling, stir, and serve as soon as it is hot. 
 
 Canned corn may be used in the same way. 
 
Gatering tor Zxco. 37 
 
 PARSNIP PATTIES. 
 
 Wash and boil till very tender in salted boil- 
 ing water, one large parsnip. Scrape off the 
 skin and mash to a pulp while hot ; there 
 should be a cupful. 
 
 Add one heaping teaspoonful of butter, one 
 of flour, and half an even teaspoonful of salt. 
 Stir well, and add the yolk of an egg, and mould 
 into four little flat cakes. 
 
 If the mixture sticks, dip the hands into cold 
 water, shake off the drops, and proceed. 
 
 Dip the cakes into powdered cracker crumbs, 
 and when cold fry a delicate brown in hot 
 butter. 
 
 It will take a teaspoonful of butter for each 
 side. Do not cook longer than actually neces- 
 sary to brown and heat through, or the egg will 
 harden and the cakes lose their creaminess. 
 
 TOMATOES STEWED IN BUTTER. 
 
 Put a lump of butter the size of a large nut- 
 meg into a saucepan, dredge with half a tea- 
 spoonful of flour, and on this, carefully, so 
 as not to displace the butter, pour two thirds 
 of a cup of canned tomatoes or a full cup of 
 sliced fresh tomatoes. 
 
 Sprinkle with salt and pepper and a tea- 
 spoonful of flour, cover, and cook gently twenty- 
 five minutes. 
 
38 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Do not stir while cooking, and use an earthen- 
 ware dish that may be sent to the table. 
 
 Butter, flour, and tomatoes should all remain 
 in separate masses, blending only at the point 
 of contact. 
 
 ESCALLOPED OYSTERS. 
 
 One solid pint of oysters. 
 
 On the bottom of an earthen- or agate-ware 
 baking-dish put a layer of whole sea-foam or 
 milk crackers, liberally spread with sweet 
 butter. 
 
 Cover with a layer of oysters, then one of 
 buttered whole crackers, and another layer of 
 oysters. 
 
 Pour in a half-pint of milk, sweet and rich ; 
 poor milk is apt to curdle. 
 
 Add to any liquor that remains, enough rolled 
 cracker to make a paste with a tablespoonful 
 of melted butter, and spread over the top of the 
 oysters. 
 
 If not enough liquor remains, use milk in- 
 stead. Bake in a hot oven long enough for the 
 milk to reach the boiling point ; twenty minutes 
 will probably suJB&ce. 
 
 The top should be brown. Serve in the bak- 
 ing-dish. 
 
 COLD SLAW. 
 Shave the crisp inner leaves of cabbage as 
 
Catering tor ITwo. 39 
 
 thinly as possible, cover with ice-water, and set 
 in a cold place until wanted. 
 
 Drain, and serve with any preferred dressing. 
 
 LEMON MERINGUE PIE. 
 
 Line a pie-pan of medium size with pie-crust 
 and bake ; then fill with the following mixture : 
 
 Beat the yolks of two large fresh eggs with 
 four tablespoonfuls of sugar, a pinch of salt, the 
 juice of a whole lemon, and the grated rind of 
 half. 
 
 Mix one even teaspoonful of corn-starch with 
 a tablespoonful of melted butter and stir it 
 into one cupful of boiling milk ; cook and stir 
 for a minute, and when cold pour slowly over 
 the egg mixture. 
 
 Stir all together and bake in the baked crust 
 about fifteen minutes. Take from the oven and 
 spread over the whites of the eggs which have 
 been frothed and beaten with four tablespoon- 
 fuls of sugar and a tiny pinch of salt, return to 
 the oven, and brown a few minutes, being care- 
 ful not to burn. 
 
 Serve cold. 
 
 MUTTON OVEN POT-ROAST. 
 
 Two slices, each one inch thick, from the 
 middle part of the leg, either raw or cold roast. 
 
 Trim off the outer edge of fat, put one slice 
 on a meat-rack in an earthen baking-dish, dust 
 
40 datcrtng tor tTwo. 
 
 with flour and pepper, and dot with butter. 
 Lay the second slice on this and treat in the 
 same way. Pour over half a cup of boiling 
 water, cover closely, and bake in a slow oven 
 two hours. Sprinkle with salt, and send to the 
 table in the baking-dish, after removing the 
 rack. Mint or wine sauce. 
 
 CHERRY PUDDING (STEAMED). 
 
 Stone a pound of cherries, put them in a deep 
 quart bowl, and scatter two tablespoonfuls of 
 sugar and two of water over them. 
 
 Make a crust of one cupful of flour, sifted with 
 one teaspoonful of baking-powder and half a 
 teaspoonful of salt, and chop with half a cupful 
 of kidney suet. 
 
 Mix with a scant half-cupful of ice-water, pat 
 into shape, and lay on top of the cherries. 
 
 Steam in a steamer one hour, and serve on a 
 deep platter with rich sauce. 
 
 The whipped-egg sauce may be used. 
 
VII. 
 
 Consomme. 
 Roast chicken, stuffed. 
 
 Fried rice. 
 
 Bscalloped tomatoes. 
 
 Parsnips browned in butter. 
 
 Radishes or celery. 
 
 Currant or grape jelly. 
 
 Lettuce or celery with French dressing, 
 
 or 
 
 Oyster salad. Cheese. Crackers. 
 
 Strawberry shortcake. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Nuts. Bonbons. 
 
 C0NS0MM6. 
 
 This is a clear soup and the basis of nearly all 
 soups. 
 
 By adding different vegetables and flavorings 
 one has the tomato, julienne, rice, macaroni, etc. 
 
 Consomme is only another term for stock or 
 bouillon : it is made of meat, water, and vege- 
 tables, sometimes spices, and strained through 
 
 41 
 
42 Catering for Zvoo» 
 
 a strainer set over a napkin wrung out of hot 
 water. 
 
 Take two pounds of soup-beef and a bone, 
 extra. 
 
 Soak for two hours in two quarts of cold water 
 to draw out the juices. Add a sliced carrot, an 
 onion, a few celery stalks, and boil slowly until 
 the meat is in shreds. There should be one 
 quart of liquor after straining. Season and set 
 away to get cold, when skim off any fat there 
 may be on top. 
 
 Heat one cupful of this for two portions, and 
 serve with small crackers. 
 
 A few sprigs of parsley or a slice of lemon 
 or a poached egg in each portion makes a 
 change. 
 
 The meat is now useless ; if soup-meat is 
 wanted for food it is better to buy what is called 
 a " fresh plate piece," two pounds of which will 
 make a quart of soup. Wipe off the meat with 
 a cloth, pour on a quart of boiling water, bring 
 to a quick boil for a few minutes, then merely 
 simmer on a cool part of the stove, covered, for 
 four hours, or until the bones drop out. Put the 
 meat on a platter, make a gravy of one cupful 
 of the liquor mixed with a teaspoonful of flour, 
 with pepper and salt, and pour over. 
 
 Add vegetables and a cupful of water to the 
 liquor, cook and strain, and set away for next 
 day's soup. 
 
 The vegetables may be served with the meat. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 43 
 
 ROAST CHICKEN. 
 
 Select a fine fat yellow fowl weighing four 
 or five pounds (a thin white-skinned chicken is 
 apt to be tasteless and tough), and ask the 
 butcher to draw it. Cut off the legs, wings, and 
 neck, and put away for a fricassee. 
 
 Rinse the body of the chicken quickly in cold 
 water inside and out, wipe dry, and fill with the 
 following stuffing : 
 
 Put a quart of stale bread-crumbs into a vessel 
 with a cover, pour in a cup of cold water, drain, 
 and steam, covered, in a hot oven for half an 
 hour. 
 
 Then add a quarter of a teaspoonful of black 
 pepper, half a teaspoonful of salt, two heaping 
 teaspoon fuls of thyme, and one of chopped 
 onion. Work this into a paste with a table- 
 spoonful of butter. Add a few spoonfuls more 
 of water if needed. 
 
 Fill the chicken and sew up with coarse darn- 
 ing-cotton. Dredge with flour and black pep- 
 per, place upon a meat-rack in a deep saucepan 
 or pot with a close-fitting cover, add half a cup 
 of boiling water, and bake from two to four hours 
 in a moderate oven. 
 
 The time will depend on the toughness of the 
 fowl. Leave off the cover the last half-hour, 
 and at this time sprinkle with salt. Meanwhile 
 cook the heart, liver, and gizzard half an hour 
 in a cupful of boiling water. 
 
44 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 Take out the gizzard and put it with the parts 
 reserved for the fricassee. 
 
 Chop heart and liver, mix with them a table- 
 spoonful of flour and half a teaspoonful of salt, 
 stir into the water they boiled in, cook a few 
 minutes, and add any gravy there may be in the 
 roasting-pot. 
 
 For the fricassee wipe the pieces (legs, wings, 
 etc.) with a damp cloth, dredge with flour and 
 black pepper, place in a stew-pan, pour on one 
 and a half cups of boiling water, cover closely, 
 and cook very gently from one to four hours, or 
 until tender. 
 
 When done, blend a tablespoonful of flour 
 with a lump of butter the size of an egg, add 
 half a cupful of boiling water, the gizzard 
 chopped very fine, salt to taste, cook with the 
 chicken, and serve on a deep platter. 
 
 If the chicken is very fat, the butter will not 
 be needed. 
 
 FRIED RICE. 
 
 Pack into a square pan two cupfuls of well- 
 boiled rice. When cold, cut into inch-thick 
 slices, dredge with flour, and fry brown in 
 a spoonful of hot butter or salt-pork drip- 
 pings. 
 
 Serve with a lump of butter on each piece, 
 and dust with black pepper. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 45 
 
 BSCAIvLOPED TOMATOES. 
 
 Use either a small baking-dish or individual 
 moulds (cups will do). Skin and slice two fine 
 ripe tomatoes, and lay them in a dish with al- 
 ternate layers of fine cracker-crumbs, pepper, 
 salt, and bits of butter. A teaspoonful of butter 
 for each tomato is about right. 
 
 Sprinkle with cracker-crumbs and bake half 
 an hour in a hot oven. Serve in the baking- 
 dish. Canned tomatoes may be used, but are 
 not so good as fresh ones. 
 
 BUTTERED PARSNIPS. 
 
 Boil in salted water until tender one fine large 
 parsnip. 
 
 Scrape and cut in halves lengthwise. 
 
 Dredge with a little salt, flour, and pepper, 
 and fry brown in a spoonful of butter. 
 
 OYSTER SAIvAD. 
 
 Dip six freshly opened medium-sized oysters 
 in cracker-crumbs, and fry a delicate brown in 
 a spoonful of hot sweet butter. 
 
 Ivay on a plate to get cold, then cut them into 
 half-inch pieces and mix with six tablespoonfuls 
 of finely chopped crisp white celery. Put this 
 in the salad bowl, first rubbing the inside of 
 the bowl with a slice of raw onion, and set 
 where it will get very cold. 
 
46 Catering tor ITwo. 
 
 Just before serving make the dressing. 
 
 Whip to a stiff froth a fourth of a cupful of 
 sour cream. Beat the yolk of one egg with a 
 pinch each of salt, mustard, cayenne, and 
 sugar ; add one spoonful of olive-oil and then 
 the whipped cream. Add more salt if neces- 
 sary, and a spoonful of either lemon juice or 
 cider vinegar ; the size of the spoonfuls should 
 be governed by the acidity of the cream. 
 
 Pour over the salad and serve. 
 
 STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE. 
 
 Sift together half a cupful of flour, half a 
 rounded teaspoonful of baking-powder, and a 
 large pinch of salt. Cut into this a lump of 
 table butter the size of half an egg, and add 
 one fourth of a cup of milk. Spread this paste 
 on a jelly-cake pan and bake fifteen or twenty 
 minutes in a hot oven, or bake in muffin rings. 
 Spread, when done, liberally with butter, add 
 the fruit, and serve either hot or cold. 
 
 Prepare the berries in the following way : 
 
 An hour before dinner pick over and rinse 
 quickly two cupfuls of fine juicy strawberries, 
 and cover with a cupful of sugar ; set in a cool 
 place until wanted. Just before the shortcake 
 goes to the table, spread over it one cupful of 
 mashed berries, and put on top the berries 
 which have been standing in sugar. 
 
 Serve with cream, or make a sauce as follows : 
 
Catering for ^wo. 47 
 
 Boil a cupful of milk, pour it upon the yolk of 
 an egg beaten with one teaspoonful of sugar, add 
 a few grains of salt, and set over a boiling tea- 
 kettle about two minutes, stirring constantly. 
 
 The white of the egg may be frothed and 
 added if liked. Serve hot or cold. 
 
 Canned cherries or peaches may take the 
 place of the strawberries. 
 
VIII. 
 
 Broth with lemon. 
 
 Stuffed leg of lamb. 
 
 Potatoes with cream sauce. 
 
 Green peas. Cape May omelette. 
 
 Bread and butter. Grape jelly. 
 
 Olives. 
 
 Salad of lettuce or cabbage with a boiled 
 
 dressing. 
 
 Saltine crackers. Cheese. 
 
 lyoaf cake with cut fruit. 
 
 Berries or canned fruit. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Nuts and cream candy. 
 
 BROTH. 
 
 Dredge with flour and cover with cold water 
 the bone taken from a leg of lamb. Add one 
 clove, an inch piece of stick cinnamon, a few 
 inches of carrot, parsnip, and one onion. 
 
 Heat slowly and boil gently until the bones 
 drop apart, which will be at the end of several 
 hours ; there should be a generous pint of broth 
 after straining and skimming ofif the fat. 
 48 
 
Catering tor Cwo. 49 
 
 Add a few sprigs of parsley, salt and pepper, 
 return to the pot, boil up, and serve with a thin 
 slice of lemon in each portion. 
 
 If a larger amount of broth is wanted, add a 
 part of the extreme lower end of the leg to the 
 bone when putting on to cook ; this also should 
 be dredged with flour. One pound of meat will 
 yield a pint of rich broth. 
 
 ROAST IvAMB. 
 
 Order a small leg of lamb, weighing about 
 five pounds, boned and trimmed. From the 
 large end have two slices cut for broiling, and 
 put on ice for next day's breakfast. Have two 
 thirds of the small end cut off also, and reserved 
 for a stew ; the bone is for soup. 
 
 The portion left is the prime part to be used 
 for the roast. Pour a cupful of boiling water 
 over a pint of stale bread-crumbs, and pour off 
 immediately ; cover the bread closely, and set 
 in a warm place to steam for about twenty-five 
 minutes. 
 
 Add a piece of butter the size of half an egg, 
 a salt-spoon of salt, the same of pepper, and 
 mix ; a little more water may be needed to make 
 the stuffing pliable. 
 
 Broil the meat on every side over a fierce fire, 
 or fry in a smoking-hot frying-pan just long 
 enough to seal up the juices ; place it on a small 
 rack in a dripping-pan, and press the stuffing 
 
50 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 into the cavity made by the removal of the bone. 
 Cover with a piece of the sheet of fat accom- 
 panying the lamb, dredge with flour, pour into 
 the pan a cup of boiling water, and roast in a 
 hot oven for half an hour. 
 
 If the rack is not high enough to admit of a 
 cup of water, put in less, as the water must not 
 touch the meat. 
 
 When done, dredge liberally with salt and 
 pepper, and serve on a heated platter. 
 
 Pour off the grease from the gravy in the pan, 
 add a pinch of salt, and a teaspoouful of flour 
 blended with a little cold water, boil up, and 
 serve in a gravy-boat. 
 
 If preferred, a mint sauce may take the place 
 of the gravy, or, if mint is not at hand, a wine 
 sauce. 
 
 When either of these sweet sauces are used, 
 omit the grape jelly. 
 
 Next day the remains of the lamb may be 
 sliced and made into cutlets. Dip them first 
 into beaten egg, and then in bread-crumbs or 
 cracker dust, and fry quickly in hot butter. 
 
 Fry just long enough to heat thoroughly, or 
 the meat will be tough and fit only for the stew- 
 pot. 
 
 For another meal, cut that which remains into 
 dice, cover with boiling water, and stew one 
 hour ; season with salt, and add flour and capers, 
 or serve with dumplings. 
 
 Lamb's kidneys may be added, also a table- 
 
Catering tor Zwo, 51 
 
 spoonful of fried salt pork, or, in time of green 
 peas, a cupful added to the gravy is a great 
 improvement. 
 
 For mint sauce, pour half a cupful of boil- 
 ing water on a tablespoonful of green mint 
 (chopped). Add two tablespoon fuls of sugar, 
 boil up, and serve with or without a spoonful of 
 vinegar. For wine sauce, melt one teaspoonful 
 of grape jelly over a teakettle, add one table- 
 spoonful of sherry, and serve hot. 
 
 BOILED POTATOES. 
 
 Wash, peel, and cut in half-inch slices, two 
 medium-sized potatoes, and rinse in cold water. 
 Cover with boiling water, and cook gently, so as 
 not to break, until a fork will pierce them easily. 
 Then pour off the water, uncover for an instant, 
 replace the lid, and holding it securely shake 
 the pot violently up and down once. Now 
 partly remove the cover, and set the pot on the 
 stove for a few minutes to allow the potatoes to 
 dry and become flaky. Then put them in a hot 
 vegetable dish, sprinkle with salt, and pour over 
 a sauce made as follows : Stir a heaping table- 
 spoonful of butter to a cream, add a rounded 
 dessert-spoonful of flour, a fourth of a teaspoon- 
 ful of salt, beat well, and add a cupful of boiling 
 milk. Boil gently, about ten minutes, adding 
 a tablespoonful of finely minced parsley, and a 
 dust of pepper. Serve at once. 
 
52 Catering for c:wo. 
 
 GREEN PEAS. 
 
 Peas will take from twenty to forty minutes 
 to cook, according to size and age. 
 
 Boil in two cups of boiling water, with an even 
 teaspoonful of salt, three cups of peas, which 
 are fresh and crisp. 
 
 Do not wash them at all, and see that they are 
 not shelled long before using. 
 
 If the water cooks awa}-, add more from the 
 boiling teakettle, just enough to keep them 
 covered. 
 
 When done, add pepper, dredge in a little 
 flour, and stir in a tablespoonful of butter. 
 Serve in sauce-plates. 
 
 If preferred, they may be boiled down very 
 dry, and poured around the lamb ; in which case 
 a portion should be served with each plate. 
 
 CAPE MAY OMEIyETTE. 
 
 Pour one third of a cup of cold milk on half a 
 cup of stale bread-crumbs ; if the crumbs are 
 very dry, a little more milk may be required. 
 
 Beat well one egg with half an even tea- 
 spoonful of salt, a dust of pepper, and a table- 
 spoonful of butter, melted. Add half a cup of 
 green corn, grated, or the same amount of 
 canned corn, and mix with the crumbs and 
 milk. 
 
 Bake in a buttered earthen dish in a hot oven, 
 
Catering tor tCwo, 53 
 
 just long enough to set the egg and brown the 
 top, from ten to fifteen minutes. 
 
 Be careful about the quantity of milk, as too 
 much will make the omelette thin, while it will 
 be stiff if too little is used. 
 
 To be right, it should be about as stiff as light 
 mashed potatoes. 
 
 CABBAGE SALAD. 
 
 Shave very fine half a pint of cabbage ; only 
 the tender inner parts should be used. 
 
 Make a dressing of the yolk of one egg beaten 
 with one third of a teaspoonful of flour, the 
 same of salt, and a pinch of sugar, and a dust 
 of cayenne pepper. 
 
 Add two tablespoonfuls of boiling water and 
 cook and stir over a boiling teakettle until 
 thick ; then add a tablespoonful of cider 
 vinegar, a tablespoonful of cream or milk, and 
 a teaspoonful of butter. 
 
 Beat until cold and mix with the cabbage, or 
 pour over lettuce leaves and serve in a salad 
 bowl. Oil may be used instead of butter, if 
 preferred. 
 
 LOAF CAKE. 
 
 Haifa cupful of butter, one cupful granulated 
 sugar, three eggs, half a cupful of lukewarm 
 water, one and a half cupfuls flour, one and a 
 
54 Catering for O^wo. 
 
 half teaspoonfuls baking-powder, one teaspoon- 
 ful flavoring, half a scant teaspoonful salt. 
 
 Beat the butter to a cream with the hand, 
 add the sugar, and mix until it is a creamy- 
 mass. 
 
 Add the yolks of the eggs, beating (still with 
 the hand) for fully five minutes, then add by 
 degrees the water. Beat from five to ten 
 minutes and put in the flavoring. Measure the 
 flour carefully, lifting it lightly in the cup, add 
 the baking-powder and salt, and sift four times. 
 
 Beat the flour into the ^%% mixture with a 
 spoon, putting it in by degrees, about a third at 
 a time. 
 
 Beat thoroughly for five minutes, then grease 
 the baking-pan ; then beat the cake again for a 
 few minutes ; this alternate beating and resting 
 improves it very much. 
 
 Whisk the whites of the eggs, which have 
 been standing in a cool place, and, as soon as 
 they are stiff", beat up the cake batter once more 
 and fold or cut them in lightly. The cake should 
 only be beaten enough at this stage to mix in 
 the whites of the eggs, as long beating after they 
 are in always tends to make cake tough. 
 
 Pour into a paper-lined tin (fill a little over half 
 full), smooth the top evenly, and bake in a 
 moderate oven from fifty to sixty minutes. In 
 baking see that the fire is right before adding 
 flour to the cake, and after it goes into the 
 oven do not slam doors nor open' windows to 
 
Catering tor itwo. 55 
 
 make a draught across the stove. A jar or 
 draught will often cause cakes to fall. 
 
 When looking into the oven, open the door 
 only part way (to prevent the escape of hot air), 
 and always open and close it gently. 
 
 When the cake is done it will be a beautiful 
 golden brown, slightly raised in the centre, with 
 the edges fallen away from the sides of the pan. 
 
 This cake will keep for a week in a closely 
 covered stone jar and is almost equal to pound 
 cake in closeness and richness. 
 
 Do not use milk instead of water, and be 
 exact in measuring everything. The butter 
 should be pressed closely into the cup in order 
 to get the full quantity. 
 
 This same batter may be used for layer cake. 
 Do not fill the pans quite full ; and smooth 
 the top of each with a knife-blade, or the cakes 
 will not be even when baked. 
 
 Have a quick oven and turn the cakes, when 
 done, upon a clean cloth, with the inverted 
 pans over them so they will keep moist until 
 ready for the filling, which may be either 
 chocolate, jelly, or custard. 
 
 Layer-cake batter needs but little beating 
 after the flour is added. 
 
IX. 
 
 Macaroni soup. 
 
 Chicken browned in butter ; 
 
 Giblet gravy. Currant jelly. 
 
 Hashed potatoes with parsley. 
 
 lyima beans. 
 
 Bread and butter. Olives. 
 
 Lettuce ; French dressing. 
 
 Philadelphia cream cheese. 
 
 Educator crackers. 
 
 Jelly with preserved pineapple and whipped 
 
 cream. 
 
 Lady-fingers or sponge cake. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Nut cream candy. 
 
 MACARONI SOUP. 
 
 Use stock, but if none is at hand, then, sev- 
 eral hours before dinner, put into an earthen 
 pot half a pound of raw chopped soup beef, a 
 small bone, and a generous half-pint of cold 
 water. Set on a cool part of the range for three 
 hours where it will heat gradually ; then bring 
 
 56 
 
Catering for ^wo. 57 
 
 to a boil and cook gently for half an hour with 
 one chopped onion, two inches of carrot, and a 
 sprig of parsley. 
 
 Strain through a soup-strainer, and again 
 through a piece of old table-linen wet in cold 
 water, if a clear soup is desired. If the soup 
 has boiled away, add enough boiling water to 
 make a generous half-pint and set away in a cold 
 place. 
 
 Half an hour before it is wanted, break into 
 a cup of boiling water a heaping tablespoonful 
 of macaroni and cook until tender. Remove 
 the cake of fat from the soup, add one third of 
 a teaspoonful of salt, a dust of pepper, a pinch 
 of sugar, and one clove, heat, and pour over the 
 macaroni just before serving. There should be 
 a cupful and a half of soup. 
 
 The coarse end of porter-house steak and its 
 bone can be used for this soup, and also the 
 ends from lamb chops. 
 
 CHICKEN BROWNED IN BUTTER; 
 GIBLET GRAVY. 
 
 Cut wings and legs from a fine fat chicken 
 weighing four or five pounds. 
 
 Singe over a flame to burn off hairs and the 
 little feathers which cannot be plucked out. 
 
 Rinse quickly in cold water, wipe dry, and 
 put into a saucepan or frying-pan in which a 
 lump of butter the size of an egg is heating. 
 
58 Catering tor Zvoo. 
 
 The bottom of the pan should be broad enough 
 to admit of all the pieces of chicken being 
 spread upon it at one time. 
 
 Dust each piece with a little flour and pepper 
 and fry delicately upon both sides for a few 
 minutes : then cover the saucepan closely, set 
 on a cool part of the stove where it will only 
 simmer very gently, and cook from half an 
 hour to two hours, according to the age of the 
 fowl. 
 
 Turn each piece occasionally and keep con- 
 stant watch to see that the heat is not too great, 
 as burning would impart bitterness to the gravy. 
 
 The chicken when done should be a rich 
 golden brown and so tender that the meat can 
 easily be twisted apart with a fork. 
 
 Place on a hot platter and garnish either with 
 parsley or watercress. 
 
 Do not season with salt until ready to go to 
 the table. 
 
 Stir into the saucepan one teaspoonful of flour, 
 one fourth of a teaspoonful of salt, and half a 
 cup of boiling water. 
 
 Chop the heart and half of the liver, and add 
 this with a little pepper. Cook gently for 
 fifteen minutes and serve in a small gravy- 
 boat. 
 
 If the butter in the pan should have become 
 scorched, do not use it for the gravy, but take a 
 fresh supply. 
 
 The body of the chicken can be roasted 
 
Catering tor ^wo, 59 
 
 another day, using the gizzard and the other 
 half of the liver for gravy. 
 
 The grease from salt pork may be used instead 
 of butter, and if the chicken is known to be 
 old it may be steamed for an hour, to make it 
 tender, before frying. 
 
 HASHED POTATOES WITH MINCED 
 PARSIyEY. 
 
 Stir together in a small frying-pan one even 
 dessert-spoonful of flour, one teaspoon ful of 
 butter, one fourth of a teaspoonful of salt, and, 
 when hot, add a third of a cup of rich milk ; 
 stir constantly and cook for a minute, then add 
 two even cupfuls of thinly sliced, cold, baked or 
 boiled potatoes. Stir lightly so that every piece 
 may be coated with the sauce, add a tablespoon- 
 ful of minced parsley, and do not stir again. 
 Cover and cook gently a few minutes, then dust 
 with pepper and serve. 
 
 IvIMA BEANS (DRIED.) 
 
 Soak half a cupful of dried lima beans for 
 twenty-four hours in one pint of cold water. 
 Rinse thoroughly, and cook gently for two 
 hours in a cup of cold water : if cooked fast 
 they will break and become mushy. 
 
 When tender, add a lump of butter the size of 
 an English walnut, a quarter of a teaspoonful 
 
6o Catering for Zvoo, 
 
 of salt, and a sprinkle of pepper. If too dry, 
 add one or two spoonfuls of milk just before 
 serving. 
 
 LETTUCE; FRENCH DRESSING. 
 
 Wash with care, in cold water, the tender 
 inner leaves of a crisp head of lettuce. 
 
 Shake out the water, put in a salad bowl, and 
 serve with the following dressing : Mix one 
 tablespoonful of real cider vinegar with three 
 tablespoonfuls of olive-oil, a generous pinch of 
 salt, a tiny one of red pepper, and a dust of black 
 pepper. Toss the leaves about in this, being 
 careful that each is well coated. 
 
 Pass crackers and cheese with this course. 
 
 JBIvIvY WITH PRESERVED PINEAPPLE 
 AND WHIPPED CREAM. 
 
 Soak four even teaspoonfuls of gelatine in 
 two tablespoonfuls of cold water for ten minutes. 
 Add the juice of half a lemon, granulated sugar 
 to taste, one cup of boiling water, and four table- 
 spoonfuls of juice from some canned pineapples. 
 
 Cut into dice two slices of the pineapple and 
 cook gently for fifteen minutes with two table- 
 spoonfuls of sugar, being careful not to let it 
 burn. 
 
 Spread this on the bottom of a glass dish, 
 and pour the gelatine mixture over it. 
 
 When ice-cold and hard, heap on top four 
 
Catering tor ^wo, 6i 
 
 tablespoonfuls of cream, whicli have been 
 whipped with one teaspoonful of confectioner's 
 sugar. 
 
 In warm weather use three tablespoonfuls 
 less water in the jelly. 
 
X. 
 
 Pur^e of green peas. 
 
 Veal pot-pie (raised crust). 
 
 Cauliflower fritters. 
 
 Baked tomatoes. 
 
 Bread and butter. Olives. 
 
 Green corn on the cob. 
 
 Lemon pudding. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Chocolate creams. 
 
 PUR^E OF GREEN PEAS. 
 
 Barely cover with boiling water one cup- 
 ful of fresh green peas, adding more from the 
 boiling teakettle as the peas become dry. 
 
 When tender, press through a coarse sieve or 
 mash very fine, add two scant cupfuls of boil- 
 ing milk, and to this a teaspoonful of butter 
 blended with one of flour. Boil a few minutes, 
 add salt to taste, a dust of pepper, strain if 
 lumpy, and serve with small squares of bread 
 browned in the oven. 
 
 62 
 
Catering tor Zvoo. 63 
 
 VEAL POT-PIE. (YEAST CRUST.) 
 
 Put one pound of stewing veal lightly 
 dredged with flour into one pint of boiling 
 water. Add two tablespoonfuls of chopped salt 
 pork fried a rich brown (not the grease) and a 
 piece of red pepper pod the size of a thumb- 
 nail or a pinch of cayenne. Cover the pot and 
 stew gently for three hours, then add a dessert- 
 spoonful of flour and an even teaspoonful of 
 salt to half a cupful of melted butter, stir well, 
 and mix with the veal. 
 
 Boil a few minutes, add a half-cup of boiling 
 water, stir and boil up, then set away until next 
 day in a very cold place. 
 
 Veal is always improved by standing a day 
 in its juices, being sweeter and firmer. 
 
 Six hours before dinner mix the sponge for 
 the crust. 
 
 Take a half-teaspoonful of salt, the same 
 of sugar, a half-cup of warm water, a half- 
 teaspoonful of butter, and one fourth of a 
 yeast-cake. Melt and mix all together and 
 stir in one cupful of flour sifted after measur- 
 ing. 
 
 Let it rise to double its bulk in a temperature 
 of about ninety degrees : this will take about 
 three hours. Make into biscuits by rolling 
 small pieces between the floured palms, and 
 set to rise again in the same temperature, 
 always keeping the vessel closely covered. 
 
64 CatcriiiQ tor Zvoo, 
 
 At the end of this time the rolls should have 
 become three times the original size and are 
 now ready for the steamer : steam one hour : 
 break apart, place on a deep platter, and 
 pour the stew (which has been getting hot 
 but not cooking for the past half-hour) over 
 them. 
 
 If more gravy is needed, melt and brown 
 slightly one tablespoon ful of butter, add a 
 teaspoonful of flour, a little salt and pepper, 
 and half a cup of boiling water. Lamb may be 
 used instead of veal, and should be cooked in 
 the same way. 
 
 Get stewing lamb, and remove the fat, if 
 there is any, before cooking. 
 
 Buy large, old veal. 
 
 CAULIFLOWER FRITTERS. 
 
 Boil for twenty minutes in boiling salted 
 water three cupfuls of cauliflower. 
 
 Take from the fire, mash fine with a fork, 
 add a tablespoonful of butter, and form into 
 little flat cakes. When cold, dip them in a 
 batter made of beaten egg, a pinch of salt, a v. 
 tablespoonful of milk, and a teaspoonful of 
 flour. 
 
 Fry to a light brown in a spoonful of hot 
 butter, or, if preferred, in salt-pork drippings. 
 Cook the fritters the last thing, as they should 
 be served at once. 
 
Catering for Zvoo 65 
 
 BAKED TOMATOES. 
 
 Skin ripe tomatoes by pouring boiling water 
 over them to cover. 
 
 Place them in an earthenware dish, put on 
 each tomato a walnut of butter, a large pinch 
 of salt, and a dust of pepper, and dredge with 
 flour. Cover the dish closely and bake in a 
 moderately hot oven from one and a half to 
 two hours or longer, according to the size and 
 ripeness of the tomatoes. 
 
 Remove the cover and bake fifteen minutes 
 to half an hour longer. If there is any juice at 
 this time, dip it out of the dish, and add to it 
 butter, flour, and salt enough to make a rich 
 sauce ; pour this over the tomatoes and serve 
 hot in the baking-dish. 
 
 If there is no juice (which will be the case if 
 the tomatoes are not particularly fine and ripe, 
 or if they have cooked in an oven that is too 
 hot or too cool), make a sauce of butter and 
 flour stirred smooth with a little boiling water 
 added. 
 
 Each tomato of medium size will require 
 half a teaspoonful of butter, the same of flour, 
 and two dessert-spoonfuls of boiling water, with 
 a pinch each of salt and pepper. 
 
 The tomatoes when done should be soft and 
 juicy but not broken. They may be browned 
 by sprinkling with bread crumbs and holding 
 over them a hot stove-lid. 
 
66 Catertng tor ^wo 
 
 GREEN CORN ON THE COB. 
 
 Strip the husks and silk from two ears of 
 freshly pulled corn. 
 
 The sooner corn is eaten after being gathered, 
 the sweeter it is. 
 
 Steam in a steamer for twenty minutes, or 
 boil ten minutes. 
 
 In either case serve soon, each ear wrapped 
 in a small napkin. 
 
 To roast, lay on a gridiron over a clear but 
 not fierce fire, turning over a little at a time as 
 the surface becomes browned : time about 
 twenty-five minutes. Wrap in a napkin and eat 
 with butter, salt, and pepper the same as boiled 
 corn. The napkin is used to protect the fingers 
 from the heat. Serve as a separate course. 
 
 LEMON PUDDING (MERINGUE). 
 
 Heat two thirds of a cup of rich milk, add an 
 even tablespoonful of sugar, and the same of 
 melted butter. Pour this over a cupful of bread 
 crumbs, two days old, freed from crust, and, 
 without stirring, set it on the stove to keep hot, 
 but not to cook, while the yolk of an egg is be- 
 ing beaten with an even tablespoonful of sugar, 
 the grated rind of a quarter of a lemon, and the 
 juice of a fourth of it. 
 
 Add a pinch of salt, stir, and then pour in 
 one third of a cupful of cold milk. 
 
Catering tor q;wo 67 
 
 Pour this over the bread, and bake in a hot 
 oven a few minutes. 
 
 Whip the white of the egg to a stiff froth, add 
 the j uice from one fourth of the lemon with one 
 third of a cupful of sugar, spread over the hot 
 pudding, and brown in the oven from eight to 
 ten minutes. 
 
 Serve cold the day it is made. 
 
 The dish must be a third larger than the pud- 
 ding to prevent the meringue from overflowing. 
 
 BAKED MEAT PIE. 
 
 The preceding dinner may be varied by serv- 
 ing a meat pie instead of the veal pot-pie, in 
 which case a strawberry jelly may take the 
 place of the lemon meringue. 
 
 For the meat pie, use any meat from roast or 
 poultry, and if it is not perfectly tender dredge 
 it (one cupful) with flour, barely cover with boil- 
 ing water, and simmer from one to three hours, 
 or fry it in a closely covered saucepan, just al- 
 lowing it to simmer (using a thin slice of fat 
 salt pork in the bottom of the pan to furnish 
 fat) for the same length of time. 
 
 Put the meat, cut into dice, in a deep baking- 
 dish, fill up with gravy, cover with the follow- 
 ing crust, and bake half an hour in a hot 
 oven. 
 
 Take half a cupful of flour, sift it with half a 
 
68 Catering tor ^wo, 
 
 teaspoonful of baking-powder, a salt-spoonful 
 of salt, and chop with it a lump of suet the size 
 of a hen's egg. 
 
 Mix in four tablespoonfuls of ice-cold water, 
 roll out very light!}-, place lightly on top of the 
 meat, and get it into the oven as quickly as 
 possible. 
 
 If no gravy remained from the roast, make 
 some after directions previously given. 
 
 STRAWBERRY JKIvLY. 
 
 Soak for half an hour three tablespoonfuls of 
 gelatine in one cup of cold water, with the juice 
 of a quarter of a lemon. Stem and mash a quart 
 box of juicy strawberries and strain through a 
 coarse cloth wrung out of cold water : squeeze 
 out all the juice possible. Add five tablespoon- 
 fuls of confectioner's sugar, a few grains of salt, 
 and set the gelatine on the stove, stirring until 
 it is all melted. 
 
 Then add the strawberry juice and taste to see 
 if more sugar or lemon is needed. 
 
 When cold, but before it stiffens, whip with 
 an egg-beater until nothing is visible but a 
 froth : this will take from ten minutes to half 
 an hour. Now add the frothed white of an egg, 
 whip a few minutes longer, and set on ice for 
 several hours in the dish in which it is to be 
 served. 
 
Catering tor ^wo, 69 
 
 Whipped cream is an addition to this jelly 
 but it is very nice without. 
 
 To be right, one third should be a rose col- 
 ored foam, resting upon a clear rose jelly. 
 
 Currant juice may be used instead of lemon. 
 
XI. 
 
 split-pea soup. 
 
 Pot roast, top sirloin. 
 
 Mashed potatoes. 
 
 Tomatoes on toast. 
 
 Watercress. Bread and butter. 
 
 Tapioca pudding. 
 
 Hard sauce. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Dates. English walnuts. 
 
 Serve cresses with the meat, or, if preferred, 
 in a separate course with crackers and cheese. 
 
 SPLIT-PKA SOUP. 
 
 Wash half a cupful of split peas and soak 
 them over night in a quart of cold water. 
 
 About noon put them, with the water they 
 have soaked in, on a cool part of the stove, add 
 two tablespoon fuls of chopped salt pork, fried 
 brown (do not use the grease), a half-cupful of 
 tomatoes, a few sprigs of parsely and celery 
 
 70 
 
Caterina tor ^wo. 71 
 
 stalks, and one onion, one small turnip, and a 
 medium-sized carrot chopped fine. 
 
 Heat gradually and cook slowly until the 
 peas are a mush, which will take several hours. 
 Then add one half of the gravy from the pot 
 roast, boil a few minutes, and strain through a 
 soup-strainer. There should be a quart of soup. 
 If the liquor has boiled away, add boiling water 
 to the pot, cook a little longer, and strain. Salt 
 and pepper to taste and serve with small oyster- 
 crackers. 
 
 This quantity is enough for two meals. That 
 which is left can be warmed up with a few 
 spoonfuls of milk to thin it. Heat milk and 
 soup in separate vessels and put together after 
 taking from the fire. Add a little salt and some 
 minced parsley. 
 
 POT-ROAST. 
 Top Sirloin (Two Pounds). 
 
 Trim off all the dried outer edges and brown 
 on all sides in a hot spider over a hot fire to 
 seal up the juices. 
 
 Dredge plentifully with flour and place the 
 meat on a layer of thin slices of salt pork, or 
 suet if preferred. Use an agate-ware pot and 
 keep the meat closely covered so that the steam 
 will not escape. 
 
 Set on a hot part of the stove until the fat 
 
72 Catering for tTwo, 
 
 begins to fry vigorously, then place where it 
 will only simmer. 
 
 Cook for two hours and a half, being careful 
 that it does not burn. Suet especially is most 
 disagreeable when burned, making the gravy 
 quite unfit for use. 
 
 Be sure that the salt pork is fresh and sweet, 
 as otherwise the dish will be ruined. 
 
 When done, take out the meat, dust it liber- 
 ally with salt and a little pepper, and put it on 
 a dish which can be covered, so that it will keep 
 moist until ready to serve. 
 
 After taking out the pork, skim the fat from 
 the gravy and put half of it in the soup as di- 
 rected. Add to the remaining half a teaspoon- 
 ful of flour mixed with a spoonful of cold water 
 and a half-cupful of boiling water, salt to taste, 
 and boil five minutes. If lumpy, strain through 
 a wire strainer. 
 
 In serving the roast be sure to cut across the 
 grain, and always observe the same rule when 
 cutting meat for stews or pies, or to serve cold, 
 sliced. 
 
 A delicious pie may be made from the re- 
 mains of this roast for the following day. Cut 
 up a heaping cupful of the meat into dice and 
 put it into a small, deep pie-dish. Make a 
 gravy of one heaping tablespoonful of butter, 
 a tablespoonful of flour, half a teaspoonful of 
 salt, pepper, and a cupful of boiling water. 
 (Brown the butter before adding the other 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 73 
 
 ingredients.) Pour this gravy over the meat, 
 place on top a crust which has been previously 
 baked, and set in the oven for fifteen or twenty 
 minutes. Make the crust of one half cup of 
 flour sifted with one fourth of a teaspoonful of 
 salt, one fourth of a cup of lard (solid and cold), 
 and two tablespoon fuls of ice-water. Roll out 
 an eighth of an inch thick, spread on half a 
 teaspoonful of butter,, dust with flour, fold up 
 into a ball and roll out again to the size and 
 shape of the baking-dish, slash it once or twice, 
 and bake in a hot oven. Handle the dough as 
 little and as lightly as possible ; have the hands 
 cool and work quickly. The crust may be 
 baked at any time so as to be in readiness when 
 wanted. 
 
 MASHED POTATOES. 
 
 Wash, peel, and cook in enough boiling water 
 to cover, three medium-sized potatoes. 
 
 When done a fork will pierce to the heart 
 without resistance. Potatoes boil more quickly 
 if cut in halves, but if small they do not need 
 to be cut ; try to have them of uniform size. 
 
 Drain off" the water, take the lid off for a 
 moment, slip it back, and, holding the pot 
 and lid firmly together, shake up and down 
 twice violently. This forces the steam to escape 
 and makes the potatoes mealy, if it is possible 
 for them to be so. Now pass through the potato 
 
74 Catering for tlwo, 
 
 press or mash thoroughly, until every lump dis- 
 appears. 
 
 Add one third of a teaspoonful of salt, one 
 teaspoonful of butter, and three tablespoonfuls 
 of boiling milk. 
 
 Whip with a fork for two minutes and if not 
 creamy enough add another spoonful of hot 
 milk. 
 
 If too much milk is used the potatoes will be 
 thin, if too little, they will not be creamy. 
 
 If possible use cream instead of milk. 
 
 Heap in a vegetable dish, put on top a lump 
 of butter the size of a walnut, dust with pepper, 
 and set in the oven until wanted for the table. 
 
 TOMATOES ON TOAST. 
 
 Skin two solid, ripe tomatoes, slice, dredge 
 with flour, salt and pepper, and fry slowly in a 
 teaspoonful of hot butter ; they should be done 
 in about ten minutes. Ivift out carefully with 
 a cake-turner and lay upon a thin slice of deli- 
 cately toasted bread which has been freed from 
 crust. 
 
 Add to the gravy in the pan an even table- 
 spoonful of butter, one teaspoonful of flour, and 
 two spoonfuls of milk or cream ; cook a few 
 minutes, salt and pepper lightly, pour over the 
 tomatoes and toast, and serve. 
 
 If canned tomatoes are used, put a tablespoon- 
 ful of butter in small lumps in the bottom of a 
 
catering for ^wo, 75 
 
 saucepan, dredge lightly with flour, and pour 
 over a scant cupful of canned tomatoes. 
 
 Add one fourth of a teaspoon ful of salt, a 
 dust of pepper and another sprinkling of flour, 
 cover, and stew gently half an hour or longer 
 without stirring. Pour over toast, and serve. 
 
 TAPIOCA PUDDING (BAKED). 
 
 Soak over night one even gill of flake tapioca 
 in one cupful of cold water. An hour before 
 dinner add half a cupful of cold milk, and heat 
 gradually. 
 
 Beat up one egg with one tablespoon ful of 
 sugar, half a teaspoonful of salt, the grated rind 
 of one third of a lemon, and pour upon this a 
 half-cupful of boiling milk, stir well, and add 
 to the tapioca. 
 
 Bake in a moderate oven about fifteen min- 
 utes ; long cooking makes tapioca tough. 
 
 Serve hot with a sauce made of one scant 
 cupful of confectioner's sugar, stirred with a 
 lump of butter the size of a small egg and one 
 teaspoonful of lemon juice. 
 
 The longer and harder this sauce is beaten 
 the creamier it will be. 
 
 A gill measures one half of a cup. Be care- 
 ful to have the measure exact, as too much 
 tapioca will make the pudding stiff, and too 
 much milk and water will make it insipid. 
 
XII. 
 
 Celery soup. 
 
 Loin of lamb chops (broiled). 
 
 Baked potatoes. 
 
 Ivemon marmalade. 
 
 Salted almonds. 
 
 Pot-cheese. Saltine crackers. 
 
 Watercress or celery. 
 
 Fruit dumplings (baked). 
 
 Liquid and hard sauce. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Mixed nuts and raisins. 
 
 Any preferred table water. 
 
 Claret or cider. 
 
 CELERY SOUP. 
 
 This soup is made from white stock of mut- 
 ton, veal, or chicken. The long stringy ends 
 from loin of lamb or mutton chops can be 
 used to advantage here, and four chops with 
 the bones will generally yield sufficient for two 
 people. 
 
 76 
 
Caterlncj tor ^wo. 77 
 
 Free the meat from fat and chop fine in a 
 chopping-bowl ; it must be raw, and should 
 measure a cupful. Dredge with a tablespoon- 
 ful of flour, and put it into an agate-ware pot 
 having a close-fitting cover. 
 
 Add the bones, pour over a pint of cold water, 
 and let it soak an hour or longer before putting 
 on to cook. 
 
 Heat gradually, and let simmer, closely cov- 
 ered, for several hours. When done, the bones 
 will drop apart, and the meat will slip from 
 them. 
 
 Now add a cupful of celery stalks and roots, 
 chopped fine, and a tablespoonful of onion 
 juice, and cook an hour or a little less ; strain 
 through a soup-strainer, add three tablespoon- 
 fuls sweet cream, boil up, salt and pepper to 
 taste, and serve in cups. Pass the salted crack- 
 ers known as "Banquets." There should be, 
 when the soup is done, three fourths of a pint ; 
 if cooked so fast as to cook away, add a little 
 boiling water. Use milk in the absence of 
 cream, and thicken with a teaspoonful of flour 
 blended with the same quantity of butter. 
 
 This substitute does not equal rich cream, 
 but it will serve if necessary. 
 
 LAMB CHOPS (BROILED). 
 
 Order four fine lamb chops from the loin, lay 
 them on a meat-board, and with a small, sharp 
 
78 Catering tor tTwo. 
 
 knife cut out the bone from each one, careful 
 not to spoil the shape of the chops. 
 
 Cut away carefully the long stringy ends, but 
 leave the border of fat and the outer pink skin 
 intact. Scrape from the bone the tiny roll of 
 marrow, put it in the chop, press together gen- 
 tly, and wrap the long strip of fat around the 
 whole, pinning securely with a small wooden 
 skewer or a long clinch-nail. 
 
 You now have a round, compact chop, encir- 
 cled with a border of delicious fat. The ends 
 and bones are to be used for celery soup. 
 
 If but two chops are required for dinner, the 
 others may be kept in the ice-chest and served, 
 with a slice of lemon, for next morning's break- 
 fast. 
 
 In broiling, observe the directions with the 
 rule for serving porter-house steak. 
 
 Chops an inch in thickness will take about 
 ten minutes to cook. 
 
 Count one hundred and fifty, turn ; then 
 count the same number for the other side. Now 
 count ten, turn, and keep on in this way until 
 four hundred has been counted. 
 
 Test by cutting into one of the chops, and if 
 the meat looks red and raw return to the fire 
 for a few more turns, counting five between 
 each turn. 
 
 This constant turning prevents burning and 
 over-cooking. 
 
 Take out the skewers, and put the chops on 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 79 
 
 warm, but not hot, plates, with a piece of but- 
 ter, salt, and a spring of parsley or cress on 
 each. 
 
 Broiled meats must be served immediately to 
 be at their best. 
 
 BAKED POTATOES. 
 
 Select six potatoes, all of one size and as free 
 from blemishes as possible. 
 
 Wash thoroughly in several waters, cut a 
 small strip of skin from each end, and bake in a 
 hot oven from thirty to sixty minutes. 
 
 The time required depends upon the size, 
 age, and quality of the potatoes and the heat of 
 the oven. Test occasionally with a fork, and 
 when done puncture them all over to enable 
 the steam to escape : this makes them light and 
 mealy. 
 
 Keep hot in the open oven, uncovered, until 
 ready to serve. 
 
 Peel those which are left over, slice, and warm 
 up with white sauce for another meal. 
 
 LEMON MARMALADE. 
 
 Put the rind of a lemon on the stove to boil 
 for half an hour in a pint of cold water. Drain 
 (throw away the water) and chop very fine, add- 
 ing also the lemon pulp, which should be freed 
 from seeds, and a cupful of fresh water. Return 
 
8o Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 to the fire and cook gently until the rind is very- 
 soft, about an hour : add a cupful of sugar and 
 cook fifteen or twenty minutes longer, stirring 
 occasionally to prevent burning. When skim- 
 ming take off only the fine yellow froth gath- 
 ered in little patches here and there. 
 
 When cool, put in a glass dish for the table. 
 
 This marmalade may be boiled down very 
 thick, when it will keep in a dry place for 
 months. Put in tumblers with brandied paper 
 over the top the same as jellies. 
 
 SAIvTBD AIvMONDS. 
 
 These may be purchased at the confectioner's 
 but can easily be done at home by any one with 
 suflBcient leisure. 
 
 Blanch the almonds by pouring boiling water 
 over them ; the skins will slip off readily in a 
 few minutes. 
 
 Then coat them with melted butter or olive- 
 oil — a teaspoonful of oil to a cupful of nuts will 
 be about right ; spread on an agate-ware dish 
 and brown in a hot oven. 
 
 They will need close watching and stirring to 
 prevent burning. Sprinkle with salt while 
 roasting. 
 
 Salted almonds are passed between the courses 
 as an appetizer. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 8i 
 
 POT-CHBESE WITH WATERCRESSES. 
 
 Take half a cupful of fine fresh pot-cheese, 
 add salt to taste, and as much sweet butter and 
 cream as will be needed to make a soft, pliable 
 mass ; butter size of an egg will generally be 
 enough. Work this together with a four-tined 
 fork and afterwards with a broad-bladed knife 
 until thoroughly incorporated, then smooth 
 into a round mound, and garnish with water- 
 cresses. 
 
 Do not add the cream until the butter and 
 cheese are thoroughly mixed together. 
 
 Pass saltine crackers. 
 
 If this is made a separate course, use little 
 cheese-plates, and pass any candied fruit pre- 
 ferred, cherries or plums, ginger or pineapple. 
 
 FRUIT DUMPLINGS (BAKED). 
 
 Rub together a heaping dessert-spoonful of 
 sweet butter with an even half-cupful of flour 
 sifted with half a teaspoonful of baking-powder 
 and one third of a teaspoonful of salt. Add 
 three even tablespoonfuls of cold water and 
 mix lightly with a spoon. Divide into halves, 
 form each in a ball, lay on a floured board, and 
 roll out lightly and quickly to the size of a large 
 saucer. Put into the middle of each round, half 
 of a fine winter greening (sliced), add a table- 
 spoonful of sugar, a dust of flour, and a small 
 lump of butter, and bring the paste up to the 
 
 6 
 
82 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 top and pinch it into ball shape, leaving a half- 
 inch opening at the top for the steam to escape. 
 
 Bake in deep saucers, well buttered, for half 
 an hour in a hot oven. Serve hot with sauce 
 made of one even tablespoonful of flour with 
 two tablespoonfuls of sugar and one tablespoon- 
 ful of butter. Add a pinch of salt, stir until 
 creamy, and then add a cupful of boiling water. 
 Cook several minutes, and just before serving 
 add flavoring of vanilla, wine, or brandy. 
 
 For the hard sauce, cream a dessert-spoonful 
 of butter, add two thirds of a cup of confection- 
 er's sugar, and a teaspoonful of water if neces- 
 sary to make it soft and creamy. Stir at least 
 ten minutes and grate nutmeg over it. 
 
 Peaches, fresh or canned, or cherries, pitted, 
 may be substituted for the apples, if preferred. 
 
XIII. 
 
 Tomato cream pur^e. 
 
 Pork chops or tenderloin. Cream gravy. 
 
 Browned sweet potatoes, or turnips browned in 
 
 butter. 
 
 Hot apple sauce. 
 
 Bread and butter. 
 
 Celery. Water crackers. Cheese. 
 
 Preserved citron. 
 
 Tapioca meringue. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Salted almonds. 
 
 TOMATO CREAM PUR^E. 
 
 Fry a slice of salt pork, half an inch thick, 
 until brown and put it, without the grease, into 
 a saucepan with one cupful of tomatoes ; boil 
 gently half an hour, then strain through a coarse 
 sieve and put back upon the stove while the 
 dumplings are being prepared, thus : 
 
 Rub together half a teaspoonful of butter 
 with two rounded tablespoonfuls of prepared 
 flour, add a pinch of salt, and mix with the 
 
 83 
 
84 Catering tor Zwo, 
 
 yolk of one egg beaten with a tablespoonful of 
 milk. Mould into ten flat cakes, put them into 
 the boiling tomatoes, cover, and cook two min- 
 utes ; then add a cupful of rich, creamy milk in 
 which has been boiled a teaspoonful of butter 
 mixed with a teaspoonful of flour, and a piece 
 of soda the size of a pea. 
 
 Take from the fire immediately, season to 
 taste, and serve. 
 
 PORK TENDERLOIN OR FRIED PORK 
 CHOPS. (TWO RIBS OF FRESH PORK.) 
 
 Have the chops cut from the prime part of 
 the meat about an inch in thickness. Heat a 
 spider smoking hot so as to brown the chops 
 instantly when they go in. 
 
 Cover and fry rapidly for a minute, turn and 
 fry the other side, then remove to a cooler 
 part of the stove and cook each side ten 
 minutes. 
 
 Pork should always be cooked slowly and 
 thoroughly. 
 
 Put the chops on a platter, season, and set in 
 the oven to keep hot. 
 
 Put a level teaspoonful of flour into the spi- 
 der with a salt-spoonful of salt and a dust of 
 pepper, stir the grease and brown sediment well 
 into the flour, cook a moment, and add half a 
 cupful of good, rich milk ; stir till it is a smooth, 
 creamy gravy and pour over the chops. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 85 
 
 Pork tenderloins should be cut in pieces of 
 uniform size, and a quarter of a pound of fresh 
 fat pork should be allowed for each one. Make 
 gravy as directed for the chops. 
 
 APPLE SAUCK (HOT). 
 
 Pare, quarter, and core four medium-sized 
 Rhode Island Greening or Baldwin apples, put 
 them in an earthen or agate dish with a close 
 cover, pour on six tablespoonfuls of boiling 
 water and six tablespoonfuls of granulated su- 
 gar. Cook rapidly ten minutes, then remove 
 to a part of the stove where they will cook 
 gently for an hour. Do not stir, and keep con- 
 stantly covered. Be careful not to burn, but if 
 they color a fine golden brown the flavor will 
 be improved. 
 
 SWEET POTATOES BROWNED IN 
 THE OVEN. 
 
 Wash two medium-sized sweet potatoes and 
 cook either in boiling water or steam in a 
 steamer ; time from twenty to forty minutes. 
 
 Scrape off the skins with a knife, holding the 
 potatoes in a napkin during the process. 
 
 Slice once lengthwise, sprinkle with sugar 
 and a little butter, and brown in a quick oven. 
 
 Salt and pepper to taste. 
 
86 Catering tor Zvoo. 
 
 TURNIPS BROWNED IN BUTTER. 
 
 Slice very thin two boiled white turnips, and 
 dust them with flour, salt, and pepper. 
 
 Heat a tablespoonful of butter and one of 
 milk, and fry the slices in this until a delicate 
 brown. Only a moderate heat is required, as 
 butter burns quickly. 
 
 The milk produces a fine crust. 
 
 TAPIOCA MERINGUE. 
 
 Scald a pint of rich fresh milk, and when 
 cold soak a half-cupful of flake tapioca in it 
 over night ; in warm weather keep it in the re- 
 frigerator. 
 
 The next morning add the yolks of two eggs 
 beaten with one heaping tablespoonful of gran- 
 ulated sugar, half a teaspoonful of salt, and the 
 grated rind of nearly half a lemon. Bake half 
 an hour in a moderate oven in a deep dish. 
 
 Whisk the whites of the eggs to a froth, add 
 the juice of half of the lemon and two thirds 
 of a cupful of sugar, spread over the top of the 
 pudding, and brown a few minutes in the oven. 
 
 Serve cold. 
 
XIV. 
 
 Ox-tail soup. 
 
 Roast veal, stuffed. 
 
 Rice croquettes. Mashed squash. 
 
 or 
 
 Boiled onions. Drawn butter. 
 
 Rhubarb sauce (cold). 
 
 Bread and butter. 
 
 Asparagus on toast. 
 
 Wine jelly. Macaroons. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Crystallized fruit. 
 
 OX-TAIL SOUP. 
 
 Order a fresh ox-tail jointed. 
 
 Wash in cold water and put it into a porce- 
 lain or agate kettle. 
 
 Pour on five quarts of cold water and after 
 soaking for two hours bring gradually to a boil 
 and simmer until the meat drops from the 
 bones. Add a chopped carrot, a leek, several 
 stalks of celery, some parsley, and a cupful of 
 tomatoes. When these are soft, strain the soup 
 and set it away to get cold : there should be a 
 
 87 
 
88 Catering tor tTwo. 
 
 quart. Next day skim off the fat, put the soup 
 over the fire, and, when hot, add a teaspoonful 
 of salt, a tablespoonful of browned flour, half a 
 teaspoonful of mixed spices (cloves, allspice, 
 cinnamon, and nutmeg), a pinch of cayenne, 
 and half a teaspoonful of sugar. 
 
 Sealed up hot in a glass preserving-jar, this 
 soup will keep for two weeks in cold weather. 
 
 Use one cupful for two people, and add a few 
 spoonfuls of water when re-heating it. 
 
 ROAST VEAL, STUFFED. 
 
 Cut the edges of a veal cutlet (to prevent 
 curling) weighing about a pound and a half 
 
 Pepper lightly and sprinkle over it about a 
 quarter of a teaspoonful of thyme. Dredge with 
 flour, put a bread-and-butter stuffing on one 
 half, fold the other half over it, and lay the veal 
 on a thin slice of fresh fat pork, on a deep 
 earthen dish, cover tightly, and bake in a mod- 
 erate oven for two hours. 
 
 Remove the veal to another dish, sprinkle 
 with salt and browned bread crumbs, and return 
 to the oven for a few minutes. 
 
 Add a little flour and water to the sediment 
 in the baking-dish, salt to taste, boil up, and 
 pour around the veal. 
 
 STEWED RHUBARB. 
 Make a syrup of one and a half cupfuls of 
 
Catering tor Cwo. 89 
 
 boiling water and one heaping cup of sugar: 
 boil for a few minutes and add three cupfuls of 
 rhubarb, skinned and cut into inch pieces. Do 
 not skim the rhubarb, as much of the richness is 
 lost in this way. 
 
 Stir for a minute, cover closely, and do not 
 stir again. Simmer for fifteen minutes, and 
 when cold pour carefully, so as not to break the 
 pieces, into a dish for the table. 
 
 Each piece should lie by itself, surrounded by 
 the rich syrup. 
 
 Rhubarb becomes very acid late in the sea- 
 son, when it would be well to make an extra 
 quantity of syrup, which might be passed when 
 serving the dish. One cup of sugar to half a 
 cup of water is right proportion for the syrup. 
 
 RICH CROQUETTES. 
 
 Boil for half an hour, in a covered saucepan, 
 a scant half-cupful of rice in one pint of boiling 
 water, with half a teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Make into oblong rolls the size of a hen's egg 
 before the rice becomes entirely cold, and set 
 away. When cold, dip each into a batter made 
 of an egg beaten with a tablespoonful of flour, 
 one of melted butter, and one of milk. Fry in a 
 tablespoonful of salt-pork drippings or butter, 
 turning frequently so that all sides will be deli- 
 cately browned. 
 
 Some cooks prefer deep fat for frying cro- 
 
90 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 quettes. In this case, use a frying-basket, see 
 that the fat is smoking hot, and lay the cro- 
 quettes, when done, on brown paper, or, better 
 still, on a piece of soft linen. Old table-linen 
 when good for nothing else is of use here, but 
 it must be kept scrupulously clean. 
 
 MASHED SQUASH. 
 
 Cut from a fine Hubbard squash enough to 
 fill a pint bowl heaping full. Remove the seeds 
 and soft part, peel, and cook in a steamer until 
 very tender. 
 
 Mash fine, stir in one fourth of a teaspoonful 
 of salt and one of butter, heap smoothly in a 
 vegetable dish, pepper lightly, and put in the 
 centre a lump of butter the size of an English 
 walnut. 
 
 If summer squash is used, steam whole and 
 mash seeds and skin. 
 
 BOILED ONIONS. 
 
 Peel and boil in boiling salted water, four 
 medium-sized white onions ; time, about thirty- 
 five to forty minutes. 
 
 Take out with a skimmer, drain, and pour 
 over them a sauce made in this way : 
 
 Stir to a cream a dessert-spoonful of butter, 
 add one of flour, one third of a teaspoonful of 
 salt, and, slowly, one third of a cupful of boil- 
 
Catering for XLvco. 91 
 
 ing milk, stirring constantly until smooth : 
 cook a few minutes. 
 
 If preferred, the onions may be served with a 
 simple dressing of salt and pepper, with a small 
 lump of butter in each onion. 
 
 ASPARAGUS ON TOAST. 
 
 Get large-sized white asparagus ; Oyster Bay 
 is considered fine. 
 
 Remove the string, put in a pan of cold water, 
 and rinse well to get out the grit. Tie together 
 loosely with a broad band of muslin (or lay in 
 the frame of an asparagus boiler) so that it may 
 be lifted out easily when done. Pour on about 
 a quart of boiling water with half a teaspoon ful 
 of salt, and cook gently, but steadily, for twenty 
 minutes. Reserve, when done, a dozen stalks 
 for next day's salad. 
 
 Lay the asparagus on a platter with the heads 
 on two slices of well-toasted bread which have 
 been slightly moistened with asparagus water. 
 Make a sauce of one dessert-spoonful of butter, 
 one of flour, a pinch of salt, dust of pepper, 
 and one third of a cupful of the water the as- 
 paragus boiled in : cook a few minutes and pour 
 over. 
 
 Serve as a separate course in place of a salad. 
 
 WINK JELLY. 
 Soak for ten minutes, four rounded teaspoon- 
 
92 Catering tor Zvoo, 
 
 fuls of gelatine in two tablespoonfuls of cold 
 water. Add a pinch of cinnamon, three heap- 
 ing tablespoonfuls of granulated sugar, a few 
 grains of salt, one even cup of boiling water, 
 and stir well together. When cool, add five 
 tablespoonfuls of sherry, cover closely to keep 
 in the flavor of the wine, and set on ice to 
 harden. 
 
 In hot weather use five teaspoon fuls of gela- 
 tine and make the day before it is wanted. 
 
XV. 
 
 Boiled fish. 
 
 HoUandaise sauce. 
 
 Cucumbers or pickled cabbage. 
 
 Beef d la mode. 
 
 French fried potatoes. 
 
 Succotash. Preserved grapes. 
 
 Lettuce 
 
 or 
 
 Apple salad. 
 
 Crackers. Cheese. 
 
 Prune pudding. 
 Tea or coffee. Nuts. 
 Crystallized ginger. 
 
 BOILED FISH. 
 
 Wash the fish quickly in cold water and wipe 
 dry. 
 
 Dredge lightly with flour and pepper, roll in a 
 napkin, place in a quart of boiling water to 
 which has been added a little salt and a spoon- 
 ful of vinegar, and cook, allowing about ten 
 
 93 
 
94 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 mintues to the pound for fresh fish. Salt, and 
 serve on a platter garnished with parsley. 
 
 Any fish which remains may be made into a 
 salad or into cakes and warmed in a steamer for 
 next day. 
 
 HOIvIvANDAISB SAUCE. 
 
 Put into a saucepan which fits into the tea- 
 kettle, a tablespoonful of butter ; whip into it 
 the yolk of an egg, add a pinch of salt and 
 cayenne, two tablespoonfuls of boiling water, 
 and a teaspoonful of cider vinegar. 
 
 Cook and stir until it is a little thick. 
 
 A few drops of lemon juice may be added. 
 See that it is very hot, and keep the vessel cov- 
 ered to prevent a crust forming. 
 
 Serve a portion with each plate of fish. 
 
 BEEF A LA MODE. 
 (Top sirloin, one pound.) 
 
 Dredge a pound of top sirloin with a table- 
 spoonful of flour and a dust of pepper, roll up, 
 and put in a pot with a cupful of tomatoes. 
 Add a tablespoonful of chopped salt pork (fried 
 to extract the grease), pepper, dredge again 
 with flour, cover closely, and bake four hours 
 in a slow oven. 
 
 Serve the meat on a deep platter and pour 
 the gravy (salted) over it. 
 
 The " Universal Pot " is best for this dish. 
 
Catering tor g:wo, 95 
 
 FRENCH FRIED POTATOES. 
 
 Wash and peel three potatoes, each the size of 
 an egg, quarter them lengthwise, soak in cold 
 water a few minutes, wipe dry, and fry in hot 
 lard in a frying-basket. 
 
 Salt and pepper and serve hot. 
 
 If preferred the potatoes may be fried in a 
 spider in a spoonful of hot pork drippings : 
 keep the cover on until they are done, turning 
 as the underside becomes brown. 
 
 Then remove the cover and allow them to 
 get crisp. Serve at once. 
 
 SUCCOTASH. 
 
 A half-cupful of corn, either grated or canned, 
 a half-cupful of cooked beans, salt and pepper 
 to taste, and enough milk to make it a little 
 juicy : add also a teaspoonful of flour and a 
 heaping tablespoonful of butter. Stir, boil up 
 and serve ; long cooking toughens com. 
 
 If string-beans are used, cut them into inch 
 pieces and cook until tender in just enough 
 salted water to cover : if lima beans, cook these 
 also until done, or if they have been dried, soak 
 twenty-four hours in cold water and then cook 
 before adding. 
 
 APPIvE SAIvAD. 
 
 Chop fine or slice in very thin slices a juicy 
 Greening or Baldwin apple. 
 
96 Catering for q;wo. 
 
 Add an equal amount of crisp white celery, a 
 pinch each of salt and mustard and pepper, 
 and finally two tablespoonfuls of cider vinegar. 
 Stir and cover closely in a cold place for half an 
 hour. 
 
 A few minutes before serving pour over the 
 following dressing : 
 
 Stir together the yolk of an egg, a pinch of 
 salt, one of sugar, a dust of cayenne, and add, 
 drop by drop, two spoonfuls of olive-oil or 
 melted butter. 
 
 The bowl may be rubbed with a slice of onion 
 if that flavor is liked. 
 
 PRUNE PUDDING. 
 
 Rinse one scant cupful of prunes in cold 
 water, pour on them one cupful of boiling 
 water, add a scant cupful of granulated sugar, 
 the grated rind and juice of a quarter of a 
 lemon, and cook gently four or five hours, 
 covered closely, in an earthern dish. 
 
 About three hours before dinner, melt a 
 rounded tablespoonful of sweet butter in a cup 
 nearly full of lukewarm milk which has been 
 scalded. 
 
 Add half a compressed yeast-cake, one table- 
 spoonful of sugar, one level teaspoonful of salt, 
 and when these are dissolved, a well-beaten egg. 
 
 Beat and add two cupfuls of flour, sifted be- 
 fore measuring. 
 
Catering for Zvoo. 97 
 
 Stir thoroughly and set to rise, covered, iu a 
 temperature of about 90 degrees. 
 
 At the expiration of an hour, stir, and pour 
 one third of the batter over the prunes, which 
 have been taken out of the syrup and placed 
 close together in an earthen pudding-dish (they 
 should be cooled). 
 
 Sprinkle over the top of the batter a table- 
 spoonful of sugar and grate on a little lemon 
 rind, cover closely with a high cover (to give 
 room for the batter to rise), and set for another 
 hour in a warm place (90 degrees). 
 
 Bake in a moderate oven twenty or twenty- 
 five minutes, uncovered. Serve hot with a 
 sauce made from the juice of the prunes as 
 follows : 
 
 Mix together one dessert-spoonful of butter, 
 one teaspoonful of flour, one tablespoonful of 
 sugar, the juice of quarter a lemon, the juice 
 from the prunes, and enough boiling water to 
 make a cupful. 
 
 Boil and serve hot. Pour the remainder of 
 the batter into patty- pans, let them rise, covered, 
 the same as the pudding, and bake. Eat hot, in 
 place of bread, for dinner. 
 
XVI. 
 
 Consommd julienne. 
 
 Fresh fish (baked).* 
 
 Potato cakes. Hot slaw. 
 
 String- or butter-beans. 
 
 Bread and butter. Cucumbers. 
 
 Chicken salad. 
 
 Crackers. Cheese. 
 
 Apple, peach, or rhubarb pie. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Crystallized pineapple. 
 
 Alternative : Fried oysters. Suet pudding. 
 Oranges. 
 
 CONSOMM^ JULIENNE. 
 
 Heat a pint of soup-stock and add to it half a 
 cupful of spring vegetables, shredded fine ; cook 
 until tender and serve. 
 
 FRESH SHAD, BLUEFISH OR MACKEREL, 
 
 WHITEFISH, PIKE, BASS, ETC. 
 
 (One to two pounds, stuffed and baked. ) 
 
 If small use the whole fish, but if a large one 
 
 take only one side. After cleaning inside and 
 
 98 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 99 
 
 out, immerse in cold water, wash thoroughly, 
 but quickly to avoid losing the sweet flavor, 
 wipe gently with a clean napkin, dredge all 
 over with flour, dust with pepper and a tea- 
 spoonful of salt, and fill with a stufl&ng of bread 
 crumbs, the rule for which is given in Roast 
 Pork. 
 
 Place the fish in a pan just wide enough for 
 it and if half a fish is used lay two thin slices 
 of salt pork on top of the stuffing — if an entire 
 fish, on top of the fish. Dredge with flour and 
 bake in a hot oven one hour. I^ift carefully, so 
 as not to break, and serve on a platter. If pre- 
 ferred the head and tail may be cut off before 
 cooking ; some cooks prefer to send to table 
 whole, but to do so one must be expert in dish- 
 ing, as the fish breaks easily. 
 
 The remainder of the uncooked part may be 
 broiled or fried for another meal, but it must be 
 kept directly on ice, as it spoils quickly. 
 
 The sooner fish reaches the fire after being 
 taken from the water the finer the flavor. 
 
 Cold fish makes an excellent salad. 
 
 POTATO CAKES. 
 
 Mince very fine in a chopping-bowl two cup- 
 fuls of cold boiled or baked potatoes ; sprinkle 
 with half a teaspoon ful of salt and a teaspoonful 
 of flour ; mix thoroughly with the yolk of an 
 egg and a teaspoonful of butter, and mold into 
 
loo Caterina tor ^wo» 
 
 four round flat cakes. If the potatoes are too 
 mealy to knead easily, add enough milk to make 
 them of proper consistency ; the cakes should 
 be so soft as barely to hold together before 
 cooking. 
 
 Make a batter of one tablespoonful of 
 melted butter, two tablespoonfuls of cold 
 milk, and one tablespoonful of flour, in a 
 saucer. Dip each cake in the batter, careful 
 not to break, and fry a delicate brown in either 
 a teaspoonful of hot butter or salt-pork drip- 
 pings. If any batter is left, pour it over the 
 cakes before turning to fry on other side. 
 
 Use a pancake-turner. 
 
 Garnish with parsley. 
 
 HOT SIvAW. 
 
 Put into a saucepan a quart of finely shredded 
 cabbage ; sprinkle with half a teaspoonful of 
 salt, pour on a cupful of boiling water, cover, 
 and cook half an hour. At the end of this time 
 add half a cup of milk and a teaspoonful of 
 butter, and cook down quite dry. Serve in a 
 vegetable-dish with the following sauce : Beat 
 an egg until frothy, add a tablespoonful of cider 
 vinegar in which have been dissolved a pinch 
 each of red pepper, mustard, salt, and sugar. 
 Add a teaspoonful of butter, and set over a tea- 
 kettle until a little thick, then add a quarter of 
 a cup of boiling milk. 
 
 Stir, and serve. 
 
Catering tor tlwo. loi 
 
 STRING-BEANS. 
 
 Wash and pull the strings from a quart of fresh 
 brittle string-beans ; break into inch pieces. If 
 they do not snap easily they are old and will 
 prove neither tender nor delicious. Cook for 
 two hours in one pint of boiling water with half 
 a teaspoonful of salt and a thin slice of fried 
 salt pork without the grease. 
 
 Throw away the pork at the end of two hours, 
 add to the beans a heaping tablespoonful of but- 
 ter, a tablespoonful of flour, and plenty of pep- 
 per, cook up, and serve in a vegetable-tureen. 
 
 BUTTER-BEANS. 
 
 These are string-beans of a bright yellow 
 color which will require only half as long time 
 to cook as the green variety. Cook until tender 
 in enough boiling salted water to cover. 
 
 Add a tablespoonful each of butter and flour, 
 and cook down to a rich sauce. 
 
 A quart is enough for two meals, and they 
 will be just as good warmed over. 
 
 Do not use pork with the butter-bean. 
 
 CUCUMBERS. 
 
 Peel a fresh, crisp cucumber, slice as thin as 
 a knife blade and lay in strongly salted ice- 
 water in the refrigerator for several hours. 
 
 Ik 
 
I02 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Drain and serve (in a dish rubbed with an 
 onion) with cayenne pepper, oil, and vinegar. 
 The hot slaw should be omitted if cucumbers 
 are served. 
 
 CHICKEN SALAD. 
 
 Place the body of a chicken, with the giblets, 
 in a kettle, dredge with two teaspoonfuls of 
 flour, pour on one cupful of boiling water, 
 cover, and cook until the meat is so tender that 
 it will break easily when twisted gently with a 
 fork. 
 
 Cook so slowly and cover so closely that there 
 need be no renewing of the water. 
 
 When done, take a cupful of the meat freed 
 from bone and skin, cut (do not chop) into 
 half-inch bits. Mash the liver with a knife- 
 blade and stir it into the gravy. Take a table- 
 spoonful of the gravy prepared in this way and 
 stir it in with the cupful of chicken, add salt 
 and pepper and, when cold, a cupful of celery, 
 salted, peppered, and cut into half-inch pieces. 
 Cover and put away in a cold place. Only the 
 finest and whitest celery is fit to use for chicken 
 salad. Just before sending to the table pour 
 over the salad the following dressing. The 
 quantity is sufficient for several salads and it 
 will keep in a cold place for a week. 
 
 The cream may be sweet or sour, and if it 
 will not whip readily, use it plain. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 103 
 
 CREAM DRESSING. 
 
 In an agate-ware saucepan that fits over the 
 teakettle, beat the yolk of one egg with half an 
 even teaspoonful of salt, same of sugar, a pinch 
 of cayenne, and l^alf an even teaspoonful of 
 flour. 
 
 Mix in a cup one tablespoonful of cider 
 vinegar and half a teaspoonful of mustard, and 
 add to the mixture in the saucepan. Stir well 
 and add two tablespoonfuls of milk ; cook over 
 the teakettle for two minutes, stirring constantly 
 from the bottom and sides. Remove from the 
 fire and whip until cold, with a fork ; then 
 add four tablespoonfuls of cream, whipped to a 
 stifi" froth, and from three to eight tablespoon- 
 fuls of olive-oil. 
 
 If it should separate, warm it slightly by set- 
 ting the bowl in warm water for a minute, and 
 beat thoroughly. 
 
 PIE-CRUST (FLAKY). 
 
 Dip from the bag one even cupful of flour, 
 add half a teaspoonful of salt, and sift two or 
 three times. 
 
 With a knife cut into the flour half a cup of 
 ice-cold lard to the size of peas, add four table- 
 spoonfuls of ice-cold water, and stir with a 
 spoon. If more water is needed, sprinkle in 
 a few drops, but not as much as a tablespoon- 
 ftd. 
 
I04 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Divide the paste in two equal parts, roll out 
 one half and fit it into a pie pan. 
 
 Roll out the other half an eighth of an inch 
 in thickness, dot it with a tablespoon ful of 
 sweet butter, dredge lightly with flour, fold up 
 to the smallest compass possible, beat with the 
 rolling-pin, and roll out once, pressing the roll- 
 ing-pin this way and that during the process. 
 
 Slash with a knife in any desired pattern, 
 lay upon the fruit in the pan, which contains the 
 under crust, and pinch the edges together ; then 
 trim and bind the edges with a strip of muslin 
 two inches wide, wet in cold water: this will 
 keep in the juices. Bake at once in a hot oven. 
 The under crust may be baked first if preferred. 
 
 Prick it all over with a fork to prevent blis- 
 tering. 
 
 Never handle pie-crust any more than is 
 absolutely necessary ; the quicker it is made, 
 and the colder the materials, the better it will 
 lie when baked. 
 
 Use just enough flour to keep it from stick- 
 ing to the board and rolling-pin, and see that 
 the hands are cool. 
 
 Prepare the fruit before beginning the paste, 
 and be particular to have lard and butter as 
 cold as possible. 
 
 RHUBARB, PBACH, OR APPLE PIE. 
 Rhubarb pies need an upper and lower crust, 
 but peach and apple pies are delicious if made 
 
Catering tor XTwo. 105 
 
 in deep saucers with only a round of upper 
 crust laid lightly on top of the fruit, and not 
 pinched to the edge of the saucer. 
 
 Peel and cut the fruit in slices, fill the saucers, 
 sprinkle with sugar (two tablespoonfuls for 
 each greening apple, and more or less accord- 
 ing to the sourness of peaches), dredge with 
 flour, dust on nutmeg or cinnamon, and they 
 are ready for the covers. 
 
 Peel and cut the pie-plant into inch pieces, 
 add one cup of sugar to three heaping cupfuls 
 of rhubarb and a tablespoonful of flour, mix 
 together, and place on the pan with the under 
 crust, cover and bind as directed, and bake. 
 Some cooks prefer not to peel the pie-plant for 
 pies ; the flavor however is more delicate to 
 peel. 
 
 If cherries are used do not stone them. If 
 canned fruit, reserve the juice, boil it with 
 sugar and a little flour, and pour it into the 
 pie after baking. 
 
 Pies need plenty of sugar. 
 
 CANDIED PINKAPPI.E. 
 
 Cover one pint of sliced pineapple with half 
 a pint of granulated sugar, let it stand until 
 the sugar is dissolved, then drain off the juice 
 closely. Cook for a few minutes, add the pine- 
 apple, cook two minutes, spread on a platter, 
 and keep either in the warming-oven or the 
 
io6 Catering for Ewo. 
 
 sunshine for a day. Turn the pieces and let 
 it stand for another day. 
 
 Put away in glass, covered, in a dry place. 
 
 frie;d oysters. 
 
 (Twenty medium-sized oysters.) 
 
 Crush to a powder four milk or sea-foam 
 crackers : mix thoroughly with a half-teaspoon- 
 ful of salt, unless the oysters are of the salt 
 variety, which may be ascertained by tasting 
 the juice. 
 
 Roll each oyster in the cracker crumbs and 
 fry to a delicate brown in hot butter. 
 
 A lump of butter the size of an egg will be 
 required, putting on the second half when the 
 oysters are turned. Fry quickly, as oysters 
 toughen and deteriorate by long contact with 
 heat, every instant counting after they are 
 done. 
 
 Have the pan and half of the butter hot when 
 the oysters go in, but do not cover. 
 
 As soon as they are browned, turn with a 
 broad-bladed knife : avoid using a fork, as oys- 
 ters should not be pierced. 
 
 Put in the other half of the butter and brown 
 the other side of the oysters. 
 
 Pepper lightly and serve on a hot platter. 
 The sooner oysters and clams are cooked after 
 leaving the shell, the better. 
 
 If any juice is left, mix with rolled cracker 
 and fry in butter. 
 
Catering tor Ewo. 107 
 
 SUET PUDDING. 
 
 Sift twice, one and a half cupfuls of flour with 
 one teaspoonful of baking-powder, half a tea- 
 spoonful of salt, and a quarter of a teaspoonful 
 each of cloves and cinnamon. Chop into this 
 half a cupful of suet, add half a cupful of stoned 
 raisins, and mix well with the flour. 
 
 Beat together half a cupful each of milk and 
 molasses and stir with the other ingredients. 
 
 Steam in a steamer an hour and a half. The 
 fire should be steady and the water boiling be- 
 fore the pudding is put together. 
 
 The fire should not get low nor the water 
 stop boiling before it is done. 
 
 For the sauce, cream a lump of butter the 
 size of an egg, add a scant cupful of sugar, a 
 tablespoonful of flour, a pinch of salt, and, 
 gradually, a generous half-cup of boiling water. 
 
 Cook a few minutes and flavor with a wine- 
 glass of wine or brandy. 
 
XVII. 
 
 Cream of Asparagus. 
 
 Veal cutlet (breaded). 
 
 Potatoes browned in milk. 
 
 Spinach. Bgg sauce. 
 
 Bread and butter. Grape jelly. 
 
 Sliced tomatoes. French dressing. 
 
 American club-house cheese. 
 
 Saratoga chip crackers. 
 
 Cottage pudding. Wine sauce. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Bananas. Bonbons. 
 
 CREAM OF ASPARAGUS SOUP. 
 
 Two thirds of a pint of water in which aspara- 
 gus has boiled. 
 
 To this add three or four stalks of fresh aspar- 
 agus and one dessert-spoonful of butter mixed 
 with one teaspoon ful of flour, and let it boil 
 until the stalks are tender. Mash these through 
 the soup, add a pinch of cayenne pepper, two 
 tablespoonfuls of cream, and salt to taste ; 
 
 io8 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 109 
 
 strain and serve with any kind of delicate 
 crackers. If preferred, instead of using water 
 in which asparagus has been boiled, cut up 
 half a dozen stalks, and cook until tender in a 
 pint (scant) of water : mash, and proceed as 
 directed. 
 
 VEAL CUTLET. 
 
 Get a slice from the thick part of the leg 
 weighing about a pound and a half. Divide in 
 two pieces, using but one for the present dinner : 
 the butcher will keep the other in his ice- 
 chest. 
 
 Lay the veal on a meat-block or old pie tin 
 and pound with a hammer until it becomes a 
 jelly, pushing it together here and there to 
 keep it thick and in shape : cut the edges 
 every half-inch to prevent curling. Roll lightly 
 in fine cracker crumbs and put it in a spider 
 where a dessert-spoonful of butter is frying. 
 Put another spoonful of butter in dots over the 
 meat, fry rapidly for a minute, careful not to 
 burn the butter ; then remove to a cooler part 
 of the range and cook each side for twenty 
 minutes : it should be a fine brown. 
 
 Put the cutlet on a heated platter, and salt 
 and pepper lightly. Add to the pan a teaspoon- 
 ful of flour, stir and pour on half a cupful of 
 boiling water : cook, add salt, and pour over 
 the meat. Garnish with slices of lemon and 
 serve a slice with each plate. 
 
no daterin^ for Zvoo. 
 
 »Fresli fat pork is very nice for frying veal in 
 instead of butter. Cut it into bits and use two 
 tablespoon fuls. Six oyster crackers are suffi- 
 cient for the breading. 
 
 Pound and cut the second cutlet in the same 
 way : dip into a batter made of one tablespoon- 
 ful of flour, a heaping tablespoouful of butter, 
 melted, and half of a beaten egg. 
 
 Fry slowly in a little butter and make the 
 gravy as directed for the breaded cutlet, adding 
 a teaspoonful of lemon juice. 
 
 Garnish with watercresses. 
 
 Any meat left may be used for a salad ; chop, 
 mix with lettuce, and serve with salad dressing. 
 
 POTATOES BROWNED IN MILK. 
 
 Melt in a small spider a heaping teaspoonful 
 of table butter ; take from the fire and add a 
 large pinch of salt, one third of a cup of milk, 
 and one teaspoonful of flour ; stir, and add two 
 cupfuls of very thinly sliced cold baked or boiled 
 potatoes. 
 
 Stir all together, dust with black pepper, 
 cover, and cook without further stirring for 
 about fifteen minutes. 
 
 Set the spider on a wet cloth for a few min- 
 utes to sweat, and turn out on a dish for serv- 
 ing. The bottom will be brown and richly 
 glazed, and the upper portion will be creamy. 
 
Catering tor ITwo. m 
 
 Serve bottom upward and be careful not to 
 break. 
 
 SPINACH WITH BGG SAUCE. 
 
 Put a small measure of spinach (beet tops, or 
 dandelions may be substituted) in a pan of cold 
 water for several hours. 
 
 Pick over each leaf carefully, using the en- 
 tire root of the beets and as much of the roots 
 of the spinach as possible. Wash in several 
 waters to get out all the sand ; when perfectly 
 clean there will not be any sand on the bottom 
 of the pan. 
 
 Cook in one quart of boiling water, to which 
 a teaspoonful of salt has been added, for twenty 
 minutes. 
 
 Skim out the greens and heap in a mound on 
 a vegetable dish ; serve with the following 
 sauce : 
 
 Mash fine the yolk of a hard-boiled egg with 
 a tablespoonful of melted butter ; add a large 
 pinch of salt, one of cayenne and one of mus- 
 tard. 
 
 Beat the whole of one raw egg with a table- 
 spoonful of melted butter, or olive-oil, add two 
 tablespoonfuls cider vinegar, add the other in- 
 gredients, also two tablespoonfuls of milk. 
 Cook over the teakettle until it is a little thick, 
 add the white of the hard-boiled egg, finely 
 chopped, and pass with the spinach. 
 
112 Catering tor XTwo. 
 
 Greens may also be served with hard-boiled 
 eggs, sliced, and with a French dressing of 
 vinegar, salt, oil, and pepper, 
 
 SLICED TOMATOES. 
 
 Pare with a sharp knife, two medium-sized, 
 ripe, sound tomatoes. Put them on ice to be- 
 come very cold, and, when ready to serve, slice 
 and arrange them on a salad dish. The dish 
 may first be rubbed with a slice of raw onion, 
 if that flavor is liked. 
 
 Serve with French dressing ladled from a 
 gravy-boat. 
 
 COTTAGE PUDDING. 
 
 Cream with the hand one fourth of a cup of 
 butter, add a half-cup of sugar and the yolk 
 of one egg. When very light add half a cup 
 of milk which is blood warm, then one cup of 
 flour sifted four times with a rounded teaspoon- 
 ful of baking-powder and one fourth of a tea- 
 spoonful of salt. Whisk the white of the egg 
 to a stiff froth, stir the cake up again, and add 
 the egg. 
 
 Bake in muffin-rings, filling them a little less 
 than half full. 
 
 Use two of these little cakes for dinner. 
 
 They should be served with wine sauce, made 
 as follows : 
 
 Mix one even teaspoonful of corn-starch with 
 
Catering toe ITwo. 113 
 
 an even teaspoon ful of butter and one heaping 
 tablespoonful of sugar, add half a cup of boiling 
 water, half a teaspoonful of caramel, and a 
 small pinch of salt, and boil, covered, for a few 
 minutes. 
 
 When ready to serve add a tablespoonful of 
 sherry. 
 
 Oranges may be cut up and placed around 
 the base of these puddings. 
 
 The remainder of the cakes may be frosted 
 with confectioner's sugar and a little lemon 
 juice, with suflficient water to make it a pliable 
 paste. 
 
 This batter makes a good layer cake : bake 
 in three layers, in a quick oven. 
 
 For chocolate filling, melt one cake (square) 
 of chocolate in a saucepan over the teakettle, 
 add eight even tablespoonfuls of confectioner's 
 sugar, and thin the mixture with four table- 
 spoonfuls of cream : flavor with half a teaspoon- 
 ful of vanilla extract. 
 
 For cream cake, beat one egg with a table- 
 spoonful of sugar, a pinch of salt, half a tea- 
 spoonful of lemon extract, and add slowly half 
 a cup of boiling milk in which a heaping tea- 
 spoonful of flour has been cooked. Boil over 
 the teakettle a few minutes, stirring constantly. 
 Mix the flour first with a spoonful of cold milk, 
 then add to the boiling milk. 
 
 Spread on the cakes when cool : frost the top 
 layer. 
 
XVIII. 
 
 Vegetable soup. 
 
 Beefsteak pudding. 
 
 Browned potatoes. 
 
 Stewed tomatoes. 
 
 Bread and butter. 
 
 Onion salad. French dressing. 
 
 Banq^uet crackers. Old English cheese. 
 
 Floating island. 
 
 Wafers. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Apples. Assorted nuts. 
 
 VEGETABLE SOUP. 
 
 Blend a tablespoonful of butter with one tea- 
 spoonful of flour, and pour on it, stirring con- 
 stantly, three cupfuls of boiling water ; cook 
 for fifteen minutes, then add one and a half 
 cupfuls of onion, turnip, and carrot, cut in 
 quarters, salt to taste, a pinch of cayenne, and 
 boil half an hour. At the end of this time skim 
 out the vegetables, add to the soup two table- 
 spoonfuls of tomatoes, and boil fifteen or twenty 
 minutes. 
 
 "4 
 
Catering for ^wo. 115 
 
 strain, and serve with minced parsley stirred 
 through it. 
 
 Small oyster-crackers or Saratoga chips may 
 be passed with this soup. 
 
 Serve the vegetables the following day 
 warmed up in a cream sauce. 
 
 BEEFSTEAK PUDDING. 
 
 Put into the bottom of a quart earthen bowl 
 two slices of salt pork which have been fried 
 a delicate brown, but do not use the grease 
 which tried out in the frying. 
 
 Place upon the pork one pound of raw round 
 steak (freed from fat), and upon the steak a 
 lump of butter the size of an egg; dust on 
 black pepper, cover the bowl, and set in a pot 
 with boiling water reaching half-way up the 
 sides of the bowl. 
 
 Put a wire tea-stand, or meat-rack, in the 
 bottom of the pot for the bowl to rest on, cover 
 closely, and boil three hours, replenishing the 
 the water as it cooks away from the boiling 
 teakettle. 
 
 At the end of two and a quarter hours pour 
 ofiF half of the gravy, salt the meat with one 
 third of a teaspoonful of salt, and lay over it a 
 crust made in the following way : 
 
 Put one fourth of a cup of finely chopped suet 
 into the chopping-bowl, add half a cup of flour 
 in which has been sifted one half of a rounded 
 
ii6 Catering for Zwo. 
 
 teaspoonful of baking-powder and half of an 
 even teaspoonful of salt ; chop flour and suet 
 together, and mix in with a spoon three table- 
 spoonfuls of ice-water. If more wetting is 
 needed, sprinkle in a few more drops of water ; 
 it should be of the consistency of biscuit-dough. 
 
 See that the suet is ice cold, and do not 
 handle the dough more than is absolutely 
 necessary, but get it over the fire as soon as 
 possible. 
 
 The bowl should be left uncovered, so that 
 the steam may reach the crust, and the pot 
 must be covered closely. 
 
 When done, pour out on a deep platter, meat- 
 side down, and over all pour the gravy. This 
 is made by cooking two lamb kidneys (chopped 
 fine), with one slice of onion and a pinch of 
 cayenne pepper, in a cup of cold water for 
 thirty minutes. Cook gently, and take off the 
 scum carefully as it rises, or the gravy will be 
 strong and disagreeable. The little veins and 
 fat in the centre of the kidneys should be re- 
 moved, and they should be washed in cold 
 water before being chopped. 
 
 Thicken the gravy with a tablespoonful of 
 flour which has been mixed smooth with the 
 gravy from the meat. 
 
 If too thick add a little boiling water. 
 
 This dish may be prepared on the previous 
 day, and will be fully as delicious as when first 
 cooked. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 117 
 
 Warm over by setting the bowl containing it 
 in a steamer over boiling water. 
 
 BROWNED POTATOES. 
 
 Wash and peel two medium-sized potatoes, 
 split them, dust with salt, dredge lightly with 
 flour, lay upon a baking-tin, closely covered, 
 and bake in a hot oven. When soft, turn 
 them, put a small lump of butter on each piece, 
 dust with pepper, and brown a little longer, 
 uncovered. 
 
 To be right they should have a crisp brown 
 coat and be mealy inside. 
 
 The mealiness depends on the quality of the 
 potatoes and the heat of the oven. A slow oven 
 is not good. 
 
 STEWED TOMATOES. 
 
 Add to two cupfuls of tomatoes a scant half- 
 teaspoonful of salt and a sprinkle of cayenne 
 pepper, and stew gently for half an hour, stir- 
 ring occasionally to prevent burning. 
 
 Add a pinch of sugar and a teaspoonful of 
 butter, and cook for ten minutes longer with 
 the saucepan covered. 
 
 Use agate or earthenware, as the acid of to- 
 matoes corrodes tin. 
 
 ONION SALAD. 
 Slice a Bernmda or Spanish onion in wafer- 
 like slices, and soak in enough cold salted water 
 
ii8 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 to cover, several hours. Drain, rinse in cold 
 fresh water, and serve with a simple dressing 
 of vinegar, pepper (black and cayenne) and 
 salt, with oil in any desired proportion. 
 
 This is a most healthful salad, and it may be 
 eaten with cold sliced potatoes and lettuce. 
 
 The silver-skinned, or white, onion, may be 
 used if the others are out of market. 
 
 FLOATING ISLAND. 
 
 Mix half even teaspoonful of flour with one 
 of cold milk, add two thirds of a cup of boiling 
 milk, and place the vessel containing it in a 
 saucepan of boiling water to cook, stirring oc- 
 casionally, while whipping the white of an egg 
 to a stiff" froth. 
 
 Then beat to a cream the yolk of the egg 
 with a heaping tablespoonful of granulated 
 sugar and a pinch of salt. Pour the boiling 
 milk upon the yolk and sugar, beat well and 
 return to the saucepan, stirring continually 
 while cooking two minutes. 
 
 Remove from fire and add half a teaspoonful 
 of lemon extract (or other flavoring). 
 
 Add to the frothed white one teaspoonful of 
 lemon juice, a few grains of salt, and a tea- 
 spoonful of confectioner's sugar. 
 
 Whisk together and lay on top of the hot 
 custard. Cover closely, and, when cold, pour 
 into a glass dish for the table. 
 
Catering tor Zvtfo, 119 
 
 Serve ice cold. 
 
 Strawberries, or ripe peaches (cut up), may be 
 served with this dish if liked. 
 Pass almond or vanilla wafers. 
 
 VANIIvIvA WAFERS. 
 
 One fourth of a cup of butter, one cup of 
 flour lightly put in, one rounded teaspoon ful of 
 baking-powder, one fourth of a teaspoonful 
 of salt, one yolk of egg, one half-cup of moist 
 sugar, three tablespoon fuls of cold water, one 
 scant teaspoonful of flavoring. 
 
 Sift flour, baking-powder, and salt four times, 
 and rub in the butter. 
 
 Beat the yolk and sugar to a cream, add fla- 
 voring, and, by the spoonful, the water. 
 
 Then add this to the flour, stirring it in with 
 the hand till the mass is light and smooth. 
 Keep the fingers spread apart while beating. 
 
 Put this mixture in half-teaspoon fuls on the 
 inverted bottoms of well-buttered pans, at inter- 
 vals of two inches. Spread a little by a circular 
 motion of the spoon tip, and bake in a quick, 
 but not fierce, oven a few minutes. 
 
XIX. 
 
 Oyster soup. 
 
 Pork and beans. 
 
 Spiced tomato sauce (hot). 
 
 Hot corn bread. Cider. 
 
 Salted almonds. 
 
 Celery. Cream cheese. Crackers, 
 
 Preserved ginger. 
 
 Indian pudding. 
 
 Tea or coffee. 
 
 Nut candies. Apples. 
 
 OYSTER STEW. 
 (Twenty-five freshened oysters.) 
 See the oysters opened and if possible get 
 those which have been " freshened," as they 
 are preferable to the salt ones. Put a pint of 
 rich sweet milk on the fire to scald, and in an- 
 other saucepan the strained oyster liquor : skim 
 the latter well as it boils. Add to it a lump of 
 butter the size of an egg, blended with a half- 
 teaspoonful of flour (not more), and when this 
 
Catering for ^wo. 121 
 
 is cooked, add the oysters and set the saucepan 
 where the contents will keep at the boiling- 
 point for a minute or two. Then add the 
 scalding milk and serve at once. Add salt and 
 pepper to taste, with a few drops of onion juice. 
 Do not allow the stew even to boil up or 
 simmer after the milk goes in, or it will be sure 
 to curdle. Serve with oyster-crackers or small 
 squares of toasted bread. 
 
 PORK AND BEANS. 
 
 Pick over and wash one pint of pea-beans and 
 soak over night in a pint of cold water. In the 
 morning add two more cups of water and cook 
 for ten minutes. At the expiration of this time 
 stir in a half-teaspoonful of baking-soda and 
 skim ofiF the froth. Drain ofiF all the water and 
 put the beans in a pot with a fitted cover : a 
 pipkin or agate-ware vessel will do if a regular 
 bean-pot is not at hand. 
 
 Mix a pint of fresh boiling water with half a 
 teaspoonful of salt, a pinch of cayenne, and an 
 even tablespoonful of either sugar or molasses. 
 Pour this over the beans, set in a moderate 
 oven, and bake slowly for three hours, covered : 
 at the end of this time add half a pound of 
 washed salt pork (score the rind every half 
 inch), and press it down so that the top comes 
 even with the top of the beans, and dust with 
 black pepper. 
 
122 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 If the water has cooked away, add a little 
 from boiling teakettle, just enough to cover. 
 Bake another hour, uncovered, then cover 
 closely and cook until night, but do not add any 
 more water. 
 
 Beans should cook continuously in a slow 
 oven from ten in the morning until six at night : 
 if cooked fast they will be too dry. 
 
 When done, to be just right, the juice should 
 show itself when the pot is tilted half-way up. 
 The pork rind should be almost like jelly, and 
 slightly browned, and every bean should be 
 whole but soft. 
 
 Serve in a deep dish and put the pork on a 
 platter garnished with any seasonable greens. 
 
 SPICBD TOMATO SAUCE (HOT). 
 
 Melt a lump of butter the size of a large nut- 
 meg, and pour in one cupful of tomatoes, either 
 fresh or canned. Add salt to taste ; a pinch of 
 cayenne, a slice of onion, a dust of flour, and a 
 pinch of ground cloves and cinnamon. Stew 
 gently one hour, stirring often to prevent burn- 
 ing, and keep the saucepan covered. 
 
 Strain through a sieve which will keep back 
 the seeds, and add a teaspoonful of vinegar 
 if liked. 
 
 This sauce is delicious poured over hashed 
 meats which are served on toast. 
 
Catering tor ^wo, 123 
 
 CORN BREAD. 
 
 Half an even cup of Graham flour, half an 
 even cup of yellow corn-meal sifted, with one 
 teaspoonful of baking-powder, half a teaspoon- 
 ful of salt, and one teaspoonful of sugar. Add 
 half a cup of suet and chop all together. Add 
 one well-beaten egg, and one full cup of cold 
 water ; beat the egg in the water. 
 
 Pour into a greased pan or pudding-mould, 
 set in a steamer, and steam one hour ; then bake 
 in the oven half an hour. 
 
 Half a pint of loppered milk may be used in- 
 stead of the water, in which case half a level 
 teaspoonful of baking-soda should take the 
 place of the baking-powder ; this should be 
 well beaten into the milk. 
 
 Sour milk makes a much better corn bread 
 than water, and may easily be secured by a 
 little planning beforehand. 
 
 INDIAN PUDDING. 
 
 Heaf one cup of milk, add two rounded 
 tablespoon fuls of yellow corn-meal, stir, and 
 boil for three minutes, take from the fire, add 
 one teaspoonful of butter, one tablespoonful of 
 New Orleans molasses, one cup of cold milk, 
 one well-beaten egg, a half-teaspoonful of 
 ground ginger, a pinch of cloves and cinnamon, 
 and a quarter of a teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Bake in a very slow oven two hours. 
 
124 Catering tor XLvoo, 
 
 To be right, the pudding should be like a solid 
 custard floating in whey. 
 
 Serve with a sauce of powdered sugar, three 
 spoonfuls, stirred to a cream with one of 
 creamed butter. 
 
XX. 
 
 Oysters on the half-shell. 
 
 Ban quet-crackers. 
 
 Roast pork. 
 
 ♦ Boiled hominy. 
 
 Baked apple-sauce. 
 
 Bread and butter. Celery. 
 
 Grapefruit. 
 
 Chocolate pudding with Sea-foam cream. 
 
 Tea or coflfee. 
 
 Bonbons. 
 
 ROAST RIB AND LOIN OF PORK. 
 (THREE POUNDS.) 
 
 Always buy young pork, as it is sweeter and 
 more tender. 
 
 Put meat on a rack in a roasting-pot ; an 
 agate kettle with a close-fitting cover will 
 answer. 
 
 Dredge the pork liberally with flour, pour 
 over a scant pint of boiling water, cover, and 
 cook slowly an hour and a half. 
 
 Take up the meat and put it in a dripping- 
 
 125 
 
126 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 pan, ribs upward, and lay on it a stuffing made 
 of one quart of stale bread crumbs steamed 
 moist in a cup of water, and mixed thoroughly 
 with a salt-spoon of salt, a half-teaspoonful of 
 black pepper, and a dessert-spoonful of butter. 
 
 Roast one hour in a hot oven, basting occa- 
 sionally with the gravy in the roasting-pot 
 (from which all grease has been skimmed.) 
 
 Keep the gravy hot. Serve the meat on a 
 platter garnished with any seasonable green. 
 Thicken the gravy with one dessert-spoonful of 
 flour blended with two of cold water, add salt 
 to taste, a dust of cayenne, boil up, and serve. 
 
 The second day the pork may be sliced and 
 served cold with fried hominy. 
 
 A succeeding meal may be prepared in this 
 way : 
 
 Free it from all fat and mince one cupful and 
 warm up in a sauce made of a dessert-spoonful 
 of butter, one of browned flour, and half a cup 
 of boiling water, with salt and pepper. Serve 
 on stale bread, toasted and dipped in salted 
 boiling water. Butter the toast slightly after it 
 is moistened. 
 
 BOIIvED HOMINY. 
 Put one cupful of hominy into three cupfuls 
 of boiling water ; add half a teaspoonful of salt, 
 stir until the hominy boils, then set on back of 
 stove, closely covered, to simmer four or five 
 hours : stir occasionally. Use the Universal pot. 
 
Catering tor ^wo» 127 
 
 or an earthen one set upon a stand, so that the 
 hominy will not burn. 
 
 A double boiler is not so good, as hominy 
 needs a closer action of the fire than it can get 
 through water. 
 
 BAKBD-APPLE SAUCB. 
 
 Peel, quarter, and core four Rhode Island 
 Greening apples. Put them in an agate or 
 earthern dish with four tablespoon fuls of granu- 
 lated sugar and four of boiling water. 
 
 Cover closely and bake in a moderate oven 
 from one half to three quarters of an hour. 
 
 If desired hot, dot the apples with small 
 pieces of butter just before taking from the 
 oven, leave the cover off, and bake a little longer. 
 Serve in the baking-dish, with a napkin pinned 
 around it. If to be served cold, pour carefully, 
 when cool, into a glass dish, but do not break 
 the fruit, as the pieces should retain their shape. 
 
 CHOCOIvATB JBLLY. 
 
 Mix two even teaspoon fuls of cocoa with one 
 heaping tablespoonful of granulated sugar, and 
 pour on slowly, stirring constantly, one cupful 
 of boiling water. Boil one minute, and add 
 four even teaspoonfuls of corn-starch mixed with 
 one teaspoonful of cold water, and one table- 
 spoonful of rich cream and a pinch of salt. 
 Boil and stir for seven or eight minutes. 
 
128 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Take from the fire and add half a teaspoonful 
 of extract of vanilla : pour into a shallow dish, 
 and when cold spread Sea-foam cream on top. 
 
 Serve ice cold. 
 
XXI. 
 
 Broth. 
 I/amb (browned in spiced sauce.) 
 
 Saratoga potatoes. Onions. 
 
 Dinner rolls. Lemon marmalade. 
 
 Potato salad. 
 
 Cream cheese. Biscuits. 
 
 Tapioca cream. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Fruit. 
 
 IvAMB BROWNED IN SPICED SAUCE. 
 
 Get a shank of mutton weighing about a 
 pound. Trim off the dried outer skin, wipe 
 carefully with a damp cloth, dredge all parts 
 plentifully with flour, and dust with black pep- 
 per. 
 
 Lay the meat in an agate kettle, add a tiny 
 piece of bay leaf, one clove, a pinch of cayenne, 
 one thin slice of onion, and an inch piece of 
 cinnamon stick, pour on a full cup of boiling 
 water, and cook gently two hours, being careful 
 that it does not bum. The water should all be 
 cooked away by this time, only a spoonful or 
 
 9 
 
 129 
 
I30 Catering for q:wo. 
 
 two of rich brown gravy remaining, and the 
 meat should slip easily from the bones. 
 
 Transfer the meat (do not use the bones) to 
 a deep platter. 
 
 Season with salt, and pour over a grav}^ made 
 from the sediment in the baking-pan : a spoon- 
 ful of wine or lemon juice may be added to 
 this if desired. 
 
 Pour into the pot in which the meat was 
 cooked, a cupful and a half of boiling water, 
 add the water which was drained from the 
 onions, and cook gently ten or fifteen minutes. 
 Add a little salt and a few sprigs of parsley, 
 boil up and strain ; this makes the soup, and 
 there should be about three fourths of a 
 pint. 
 
 Serve a thin slice of lemon with each portion. 
 
 SARATOGA CHIPS. 
 
 Slice in wafer-like slices, two medium-sized 
 potatoes and let them soak for half an hour in 
 a quart of salted water. 
 
 Drain and dry with a cloth and fry in boiling- 
 hot lard until they are a pale brown. Put 
 in only a few at a time, and lay them when 
 done on a sheet of brown paper, to absorb the 
 grease ; serve hot. 
 
 Saratoga potatoes may now be found at any 
 first-class grocer's shop and these need only be 
 warmed a few minutes in an open dish in the 
 oven. 
 
i 
 
 Catering for XTwo. 131 
 
 ONIONS BROWNED IN BUTTER. 
 
 Slice two cupfuls of onions, add one fourth of 
 a teaspoonful of vSalt and one cupful of boiling 
 water. Cook, covered, until tender, then drain 
 off the water (reserve this for the soup-pot), add 
 one even tablespoonful of butter, and stir well 
 after the butter is melted, and fry until a deli- 
 cate brown. 
 
 Do not stir again but move the spider about 
 to prevent burning. 
 
 Keep onions in cold water while paring, to 
 prevent the eyes from smarting. 
 
 POTATO SAIvAD. 
 
 Beat the yolk of an egg with half a level tea- 
 spoonful of flour, one third of a teaspoonful of 
 salt, a pinch of sugar, and two pinches of 
 cayenne pepper. 
 
 Add two tablespoonfuls of boiling water and 
 cook over the teakettle, stirring constantly, two 
 minutes. 
 
 Then remove, add one tablespoonful of cider 
 vinegar, three tablespoonfuls of cream or milk, 
 and either a tablespoonful of oil or melted but- 
 ter with a few drops of onion juice. Beat well, 
 and to two tablespoonfuls of this sauce add a 
 half-cupful of mashed and seasoned potatoes. 
 
 Beat for several minutes, and heap on a 
 mound of spinach which has been cooked, 
 
132 Catcving for ^wo, 
 
 drained, and seasoned. Pour the remainder of 
 sauce over all. 
 
 This may be eaten hot or cold. Water- 
 cresses, celery, or cabbage, or any salad greens 
 may be substituted for the spinach. 
 
 RAISED BISCUIT OR DINNER ROIvLS AND 
 BREAD. 
 
 Two heaping cups of flour sifted three times. 
 Put into an agate two-quart vessel having a fitted 
 cover one even cupful of lukewarm water, a 
 heaping teaspoon ful of sweet butter, one even 
 teaspoonful of salt and one of sugar. 
 
 Add to this one fourth of a cake of Fleisch- 
 mann's compressed yeast, dissolved in one tea- 
 spoonful of the water. 
 
 Mix well and stir in the flour, using a stout 
 spoon for the purpose and mixing thoroughly. 
 
 Cover closely and let rise about five hours. 
 At the end of this time the dough should be 
 light and soft and nearly fill the dish. Turn 
 out on a lightly floured board or pie pan and 
 knead a few minutes, using not more than a 
 teaspoonful of flour for the entire kneading. 
 
 Put into a saucer another spoonful of flour, 
 cut the dough into twenty pieces, roll each into 
 a ball between the palms, dipping them in the 
 flour in the saucer to prevent sticking. 
 
 Put them in a greased pan which is two 
 inches deep, and do not let the rolls touch at 
 
Catering tor ^wo» 133 
 
 any point. Cover closely with a high cover, or 
 another pan, and let them rise about three hours. 
 
 They should by that time have become as one, 
 with slight depressions showing the dividing 
 line, and they should also be moist to the touch. 
 Bake in a hot oven fifteen minutes, wrap in a 
 hot napkin, and serve. 
 
 They may be heated for breakfast by putting 
 them in the oven in a closely covered dish. 
 
 If wanted for six o'clock dinner, begin opera- 
 tions by nine in the morning. 
 
 The temperature for raising should be from 
 80° to 90°. 
 
 Never set sponge on a hot surface ; the found- 
 ation on which the pans rest should only be 
 blood-warm ; the heat must come from radia- 
 tion. 
 
 Too much heat from any source will cause 
 sponge to become thin and pasty, and the 
 dough will lose all its elasticity. 
 
 For bread, put into a three-quart basin two 
 even cupfuls of lukewarm water, one heaping 
 tablespoouful of sweet butter, one teaspoonful 
 of sugar, and one heaping teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Melt half a yeast-cake in a spoonful of the water, 
 add, and stir until all has been dissolved ; then 
 stir in five cupfuls of flour, measured before sift- 
 ing, and sifted three times. Stir very thoroughly, 
 cover closely with a tin cover, and when the 
 mass has risen to the top of the basin, turn on 
 a lightly floured board and knead half an hour, 
 
134 Caterinci tor ^wo. 
 
 kneading in one scant half-cupful of flour. The 
 dough should now be almost as elastic as a 
 rubber ball. 
 
 Put it back in the basin, cover, and let rise to 
 double its bulk or a little more. Then knead 
 again a minute, using not more than ateaspoon- 
 ful of flour. 
 
 Cut off four little pieces, roll into balls, set to 
 rise again, and when they have trebled in size, 
 set in a steamer for half an hour ; they will 
 keep several days in the bread-box and may be 
 used for dumplings in meat stews. 
 
 Cut the remainder of the dough into loaves 
 of any desired size, fill pans one third full, cover, 
 and raise until they have doubled in bulk, when 
 bake in a moderate oven. 
 
 Small individual loaves arfe best. 
 
 Temperature and time for raising are the 
 same as for biscuit. Kneading should be done 
 with the "heel of the palm." 
 
 TAPIOCA CREAM. 
 
 Soak three tablespoon fuls of flake tapioca 
 over night in half a cup of cold water. 
 
 In the morning add one cup of rich milk and 
 a large pinch of salt and cook half an hour in 
 a double boiler, stirring frequently. 
 
 Beat the yolk of one egg with two tablespoon- 
 fuls of sugar, thin with a little of the hot milk, 
 stir well, and add to the tapioca. 
 
Catering tor Ewo. 135 
 
 Whisk to a stiff froth the white of the egg, 
 add this also, cook a minute, flavor with a half- 
 teaspoonful of vanilla and a dust of nutmeg, and 
 pour into a dish for the table. 
 
 Serve ice cold. 
 
 This dessert may be varied by adding to the 
 top a few spoonfuls of whipped cream and serv- 
 ing with it a teaspoonful of grape jelly to each 
 plate. 
 
XXII. 
 
 Pur^e of beans. 
 
 Porter-house steak. 
 
 Potato croquettes. 
 
 Boiled beets. 
 
 Onions baked in milk. 
 
 Bread and butter. Tomato marmalade. 
 
 Asparagus salad. 
 
 Crackers. Cheese. 
 
 Chocolate pudding. 
 
 Tea or coflfee. Oranges. 
 
 pur]§:e of beans. 
 
 Soak over night a half-cupful of dried beans 
 in a quart of cold water. 
 
 In the morning throw away the water, cover 
 with a pint of fresh cold water, add a slice of 
 lightly browned salt pork (but not the grease), 
 a slice of onion, a quarter of a teaspoon ful of 
 salt, and cook until the beans are mushy. 
 Strain, add to the liquor a half-teaspoonful of 
 butter nibbed with the same of flour, boil up, 
 
 136 
 
Catering for Cwo. 137 
 
 and add enough boiling milk to make the soup 
 of an agreeable consistency, with salt and pep- 
 per to taste. 
 
 POTATO CROQUETTES. 
 
 Mash two cupfuls of boiled potatoes and three 
 tablespoon fuls of hot milk, in which is melted 
 a tablespoon ful of butter and a third of a tea- 
 spoonful of salt. 
 
 Whip to a cream with a fork, form into egg- 
 shaped rolls, dip, when cold, into cracker-dust, 
 then into beaten egg, and fry in a frying-basket 
 in deep hot lard. 
 
 Try first a small piece of bread to ascertain 
 the amount of heat. If too hot the croquettes 
 will bum ; if not hot enough they will soak fat, 
 which renders them unfit to eat. 
 
 If preferred, they may be browned in a spoon- 
 ful of butter. 
 
 BOILED BEETS. 
 
 Select three beets of equal size, wash care- 
 fully so as not to break the skins, and do not 
 trim the stalks too closely, as they will bleed 
 and lose their sweetness. Cook in a steamer, 
 and when tender put into cold water long 
 enough to enable you to slip the skins off. 
 
 Serve hot, sliced, with butter, pepper, and 
 salt, or heat two tablespoonfuls of cider vine- 
 
 I 
 
138 Catering tor tlwo. 
 
 gar, add a tablespoonful of butter, with salt and 
 pepper, and pour this dressing over them. 
 Serve hot. 
 
 While cooking, do not pierce the beets any 
 oftener than is necessary ; the time for cooking 
 will be from one to three hours, according to 
 their age. 
 
 ONIONS BAKED IN MII.K. 
 
 Peel and slice thin three cupfuls of white on- 
 ions. Put in a deep earthen dish, dredge with 
 a tablespoonful of flour and a little pepper, dot 
 with a lump of butter the size of half an egg, 
 and pour on a cupful of rich milk. 
 
 Bake in a good oven half an hour, sprinkle 
 on a half-teaspoonful of salt, and serve in the 
 baking-dish. 
 
 TOMATO MARMALADE. 
 
 One quart of ripe tomatoes, skinned and 
 sliced. Put on the stove, with half a cupful of 
 cider vinegar, one third of a cup of sugar, one 
 teaspoonful of salt, one teaspoon ful of mixed 
 ground spices ; cook slowly, and stir often with 
 a wooden spoon. 
 
 When reduced to a little less than one half, 
 it is done. 
 
 Put away in tumblers covered with brandied 
 paper. Canned tomatoes may be used, but are 
 not so good. 
 
Catering tor ZTwo. 139 
 
 ASPARAGUS SALAD. 
 
 Lay one dozen asparagus stalks, boiled in 
 salted water, on a salad dish, and serve with a 
 simple French dressing of vinegar, oil, salt, 
 and pepper. 
 
 CHOCOLATE PUDDING. 
 
 Heat one and one quarter cups of rich milk 
 with half a square of chocolate, stirring con- 
 stantly until the chocolate is dissolved ; then 
 add two rounded tablespoonfuls of corn-starch 
 mixed with a quarter of a cup of cold milk. Let 
 this boil for ten minutes in a saucepan of boil- 
 ing water ; then add the yolk of an egg beaten 
 with one tablespoonful of sugar and a pinch of 
 salt. 
 
 Beat well, cook one minute, flavor with half 
 a teaspoonful of vanilla, turn into a mould, and 
 serve ice cold with the following sauce : 
 
 Froth the white of the egg, and whip it into 
 half a cup of boiling milk, sweetened with a 
 tablespoonful of sugar, add a few grains of salt, 
 and flavor with half a teaspoonful of vanilla 
 and a dust of nutmeg. Set on ice. 
 
XXIII. 
 
 Clam chowder. 
 
 Salad of cold meat. 
 
 Cream cheese. Crackers. 
 
 Blackberry pudding. 
 
 Tea or cofifee. Cream nut candies. 
 
 CLAM CHOWDER. 
 (One dozen clams.) 
 
 Peel and slice very thinly a cupful of raw po- 
 tatoes ; add a thinly sliced, medium-sized onion, 
 and a cupful of boiling water, with a tablespoon- 
 ful of fried salt pork (without the grease), and 
 boil gently until the vegetables are tender ; 
 then add a half-cupful of stewed tomatoes. 
 
 When this boils, add the strained clam juice 
 (there should be about a cupful), and skim, 
 after boiling up. Now stir in a tablespoonful 
 of butter, blended with half a teaspoonful of 
 flour. 
 
 Boil a few minutes, and add the clams, 
 chopped very fine in the chopping-bowl, or 
 meat-grinder. 
 
 140 
 
i 
 
 Catering for ^wo. 141 
 
 Allow the chowder to come quickly to a boil, 
 and remove from the fire immediately. 
 
 Simmering or long boiling will make clams 
 tough and indigestible. Pour into a hot tureen, 
 and set in the oven until wanted. 
 
 COLD MEAT SALAD. 
 
 Any cold meat of the white kind, such as veal, 
 lamb, or poultry ; cut a cupful into small pieces 
 without the fat, add salt and pepper, and mix 
 with the same amount of celery, cut up, or 
 watercresses. 
 
 Heap upon lettuce leaves ; the large outside 
 leaves will answer. Pour on a salad dressing 
 of any preferred kind, and serve ice cold. 
 
 The crisp inner parts of white cabbage may 
 be used if other greens are not obtainable. 
 
 The following dressing may be used : 
 
 SALAD DRESSING. 
 
 Stir the yolk of an egg with two tablespoon- 
 fuls of either olive-oil or melted butter ; add 
 one tablespoonful of vinegar in which has been 
 dissolved a salt-spoonful of salt, a small pinch 
 of cayenne, and a large pinch of mustard. 
 
 BLACKBERRY PUDDING. 
 
 Take half a cupful of flour and mix with it 
 half a teaspoonful of baking-powder and a large 
 
142 Catering for Cwo. 
 
 pinch of salt. Sift several times. Cut into this, 
 with a knife, an even dessert-spoonful of butter 
 and add one fovurth of a cup of milk. The mix- 
 ture should be quite soft. 
 
 With a spoon spread it on the bottom of a 
 baking-dish or cake-mold, cover the paste with 
 a thick layer of blackberries, and steam half an 
 hour in a steamer, or bake in the oven with a 
 cover over the dish. Serve with sugar and 
 cream, or with a creamy hard sauce. 
 
 Cherries or huckleberries, apples or peaches, 
 may be used in the same way. 
 
XXIV. 
 
 Clam soup. 
 
 Round steak with onions. 
 
 Yellow turnips and potatoes mashed together. 
 
 ' Baked Hubbard squash. 
 
 Celery. 
 
 Sweet-clover cheese. Crackers. 
 
 Steamed pudding with oranges or canned or 
 
 stewed fruit. 
 
 Tea or coflFee. Chocolate creams. 
 
 CI.AM SOUP. 
 
 Drain the jtiice from a dozen clams and put it 
 on the stove to scald. If soft-shell clams are 
 used, first wash them thoroughly in their own 
 liquor, with the addition of a half-cup of cold 
 water, and strain through cheese-cloth. Chop 
 the clams very fine and add to the juice when it 
 reaches the boiling-point : boil up quickly once 
 and immediately remove to a part of the stove 
 where they will merely keep hot. The longer 
 clams boil, the tougher and more indigestible 
 
 143 
 
144 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 they become. Do not even allow them to sim- 
 mer after the first quick boil. 
 
 In another saucepan put two cupfuls of rich 
 milk (skimmed milk will never produce the best 
 results), and when it boils add a tablespoonful 
 of butter blended with an even teaspoonful of 
 flour, and a small pinch of cayenne pepper. Boil 
 a moment and set where it will keep hot, but 
 not cook. 
 
 When ready to serve, pour the clams into the 
 milk, stir and serve immediately in hot soup 
 plates with any preferred crackers. * 
 
 BEEFSTEAK AND ONIONS (FRIED). 
 
 Round steak is usually preferred for this dish. 
 Cut off a piece measuring about five inches 
 square. Pound to a jelly with a hammer on a 
 meat-block or old pie tin. 
 
 Slice four medium-sized onions after peeling, 
 put them into a frying-pan with a cup of boiling 
 water, and stew until the water is all gone ; do 
 not stir. 
 
 Then add a little salt and pepper, and a heap- 
 ing tablespoonful of butter, and fry until the 
 onions are a fine brown. 
 
 Fry the steak in a hot frying pan, and do not 
 salt until it is on the platter. Then add salt and 
 butter, pile the onions on top and serve immedi- 
 ately. 
 
i 
 
 Catering tor ^wo. 145 
 
 POTATOES AND TURNIPS MASHED TO- 
 GETHER. 
 
 Wash, peel, and slice iu inch-thick slices, 
 enough yellow (Rutabaga) turnips to fill a pint 
 bowl. Cover with boiling water, and cook 
 rapidly thirty or forty minutes. When tender, 
 drain and mash fine ; pass through the potato- 
 press, or mash fine a pint bowl of hot boiled 
 potatoes and add to the turnips, season with 
 a teaspoouful of salt, beat well together and 
 heap in a dish, smoothing the top over with a 
 knife-blade. 
 
 Make a long deep trench, on top of which 
 put a lump of butter the size of a small egg. 
 
 Set in a hot oven until wanted. 
 
 Next day, slice, dredge with flour, and fry in 
 salt-pork drippings or butter. 
 
 BAKED SQUASH. 
 
 Cut a slice four inches thick from a fine 
 Hubbard squash. 
 
 Remove the seeds, place on a baking-dish, 
 cover closely, and bake in a hot oven for an 
 hour, or until soft. 
 
 Then scrape squash from the rind, mash, 
 season with a spoonful of butter, salt and 
 pepper to taste, pile on a vegetable-dish, 
 and keep hot in the oven until wanted ; or 
 send to the table on a platter, just as it comes 
 
146 Catering for XLvqo, 
 
 from the oven, in which case each person will 
 season his own portion. 
 
 STEAMED PUDDING WITH ORANGES. 
 
 Sift three times, one even half-cupful of flour, 
 with one half rounded teaspoon ful of baking- 
 powder and one third even teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Cut into this one heaping teaspoonful of 
 ice-cold butter with a knife. Add three heap- 
 ing tablespoon fuls of cold milk, stir together 
 lightly and quickly, using a spoon for the pur- 
 pose, put into a buttered mold or bowl and set 
 in a steamer for half on hour. When done, 
 turn into a shallow pudding-dish and serve 
 with the following sauce : Cook for ten min- 
 utes one half cupful of boiling water, a few 
 grains of salt, and two heaping tablespoonfuls 
 of granulated sugar. Then add a half-teas- 
 poonful of corn -starch, wet with one spoonful 
 of cold water, cook and add a teaspoonful of 
 caramel and a fine orange which has been 
 peeled and cut into pieces the size of nutmegs. 
 When this is thoroughly hot, but not boiling, 
 pour over the pudding. 
 
 Pass with this pudding, a hard sauce made 
 of one tablespoonful of butter stirred to a cream, 
 the half of a raw egg yolk, and half a cupful of 
 confectioner's sugar, beaten together until very 
 light. Flavor with a pinch of grated orange- 
 rind. 
 
I 
 
 I 
 
 Catering for Zvoo. 147 
 
 If canned cherries or fruit are used instead 
 of oranges, heat them for a few minutes and 
 add more sugar to the juice. 
 
 Only the egg sauce will be needed with can- 
 ned or stewed fruit. 
 
 AFTBR-DINNBR COFFEE. 
 
 Mix two dessert-spoonfuls of coffee ground 
 moderately fine with a scant teaspoonful of 
 raw egg and two dessert-spoonfuls of cold 
 water. 
 
 Pour on this two thirds of a cup of boiling 
 water, stir, cover closely, and let it boil up ; 
 then remove from the fire immediately. 
 
 Let it stand, to settle, a few minutes, and strain 
 into a hot coffee-pot through a wet cheese-cloth 
 laid on a wire strainer. 
 
 In this way the last drop of coffee will be 
 perfectly clear. 
 
XXV. 
 
 Raw oysters or clams. 
 
 Fresh ham. Savory stuffing. 
 
 Apple sauce (hot or cold). 
 
 Breaded turnips. 
 
 Baked sweet potatoes. 
 
 Green tomato chili sauce. 
 
 French bread. Butter. 
 
 Celery or any salad of the chicory family. 
 
 Roquefort cheese on brown-bread fingers. 
 
 Princess cream, or pineapple with floating 
 
 island. 
 
 Wafers, or sponge cake. 
 
 Tea or coffee. California grapes. 
 
 Alternative : Roast duck. Onion stuffing. 
 
 Potato balls (baked). 
 
 Spiced peaches. 
 
 Corn-starch pudding, or chocolate jelly with 
 
 custard. 
 
 FRESH HAM. 
 Order a small fresh pig ham. Have one third 
 
 148 
 
I 
 
 Catering tor tlwo. 149 
 
 of it sliced off from the large end for frying 
 (this maybe left in the butcher's ice-chest until 
 needed) ; the remaining part should be boned 
 and trimmed for roasting. 
 
 Put a quart of bread-crumbs a little stale in 
 a bowl, pour over enough boiling water to 
 make a pliable paste, stir in a tablespoonful of 
 thyme, a teaspoonful of salt, a half-teaspoonful 
 of black pepper, one pinch of red pepper, and 
 a rounded dessert-spoonful of butter. Work 
 this into a mass, and stuff the ham with it. 
 Dredge thoroughly with flour, pepper liberally, 
 and set on a meat-rack in a dripping-pan. 
 
 The oven should be quite hot for the first 
 hour. At the end of this time pour a cup of 
 boiling water in the pan, and moderate the fire. 
 Bake three hours slowly. 
 
 Salt the meat, and if it is not brown, quicken 
 the fire with kindlings, and set in the oven for 
 fifteen minutes longer. Make the gravy by 
 blending a tablespoonful of flour with two 
 tablespoon fuls of cold water; pour in a cupful 
 of boiling water and add to the dripping-pan. 
 Salt to taste, boil up, skim off the fat and serve 
 in a gravy-boat. 
 
 For succeeding meals serve the ham sliced 
 cold with hot gravy. 
 
 BREADED TURNIPS. 
 Peel and boil until tender one large white 
 
ISO Catering for ^wo. 
 
 turnip. When cold, slice in four slices, bread 
 with saltine cracker dust, and brown in a half- 
 teaspoonful of butter in a frying-pan. 
 
 BAKED SWEET POTATOES. 
 
 Brush clean two or three sweet potatoes of 
 one size, and bake in a moderate oven, from an 
 hour to an hour and a half, according to the 
 size of the potatoes and the heat of the oven. 
 When done the}- should feel soft and yielding 
 when pressed with the fingers. Try them occa- 
 sionally while cooking with a fork. 
 
 Any that are left over may be peeled, sliced, 
 and broiled ; butter and salt them as soon as 
 they leave the gridiron. 
 
 They may also be browned in the oven by 
 brushing with butter and sprinkling with sugar. 
 
 GREEN TOMATO CHILI SAUCE. 
 
 One quart of sliced green tomatoes, one pint 
 of sliced white onions, two chopped green pep- 
 pers, one heaping tablespoonful of salt ; mix 
 all together and set away in an earthen dish over- 
 night. 
 
 Next morning drain thoroughly, chop into 
 peas, pour over one pint of cider vinegar, add 
 one teaspoonful of mixed ground spice (cinna- 
 mon, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg), one table- 
 spoonful of brown sugar, and cook slowly for 
 twenty minutes. 
 
Catering for ^wo. 151 
 
 Add a red-pepper pod to the sauce, and let it 
 remain until peppery enough. Add more salt 
 if needed. Keep in a cool place in a stone jar, 
 tightly covered. A few mustard seeds may be 
 added, also chopped celery and grated horse- 
 radish if liked. 
 
 PRINCESS CREAM. 
 
 Soak for half an hour one rounded table- 
 spoonful of gelatine and a pinch of salt in four 
 tablespoonfuls of rich milk. Beat the yolk of 
 one egg with two tablespoonfuls of granulated 
 sugar and a tiny pinch of salt until creamy, 
 and add one cupful of boiling milk. 
 
 Set this in another saucepan containing boil- 
 ing water, and boil and stir four minutes. 
 
 Now add the gelatine, cook (stirring) for one 
 minute, take from the fire, and whip in the 
 white of the egg, which has been beaten to a 
 stiff froth. 
 
 Flavor with three fourths of a teaspoonful of 
 vanilla, or, ^'f preferred, a little sherry. 
 
 Pour into a glass dish, and serve ice cold with 
 cake or wafers. 
 
 Princess cream should be made the day be- 
 fore it is to be used, in summer, and kept on 
 ice until wanted. 
 
 In cold weather it may be made in the morn- 
 ing if it is to be used at a late dinner. 
 
 Spread the Sea-foam cream over the top, 
 
152 Catering Tor ^wo. 
 
 delicately flavored with caramel, wine, or 
 coffee. 
 Serve with caramel cream sauce. 
 
 PINEAPPLE WITH FLOATING ISLAND. 
 
 Peel and remove the eyes from a fine ripe 
 pineapple. Tear shreds from it with a fork 
 and throw away the core. Sugar to taste, and 
 serve ice cold, with floating island in separate 
 dishes or on the same plates, as preferred. 
 
 In the opinion of many cooks, pineapples are 
 more delicious and also more healthful if 
 allowed to lie covered in wine, several hours be- 
 fore serving. 
 
 Bananas may be sliced and served with the 
 floating island instead of pineapple ; sugar to 
 taste, pour orange juice over them, and serve 
 ice cold. 
 
 The floating island must also be as cold as 
 possible. 
 
 DUCK, ROASTED (THREE POUNDS). 
 ONION STUFFING. 
 
 Rinse the duck quickly in cold water, wipe, 
 and stuff with a quart of bread-crumbs moistened 
 with one cup of water, and the following season- 
 ing : one half a teaspoonful of pepper, two tea- 
 spoonfuls of thyme, a half- teaspoonful of salt, 
 one heaping teaspoonful of butter, one table- 
 spoonful of chopped fat salt pork, and one 
 
Catering for ^wo. 153 
 
 small onion finely minced. Sew up with coarse 
 thread, pepper, salt, and dredge with flour, and 
 roast two hours (covered) in a moderate oven. 
 
 The duck should be placed on a meat-rack, 
 and a cup of boiling water must be poured in 
 the pan when it goes in the oven. 
 
 Stew the giblets in a cupful of boiling water, 
 chop, add salt, a teaspoonful of flour, stir in the 
 water they were cooked in, and add to the 
 gravy in the roasting-pan . 
 
 POTATO BAIvLS (BAKED). 
 
 Take mashed potatoes seasoned for the table, 
 form into egg-shaped rolls, and brown in a hot 
 oven on a buttered tin. 
 
 These make an attractive border for a platter 
 of meat. 
 
 BAKED CORN-STARCH LEMON ME- 
 RINGUE PUDDING. 
 
 Heat one cupful of milk, and when at the boil- 
 ing point stir in an even tablespoonful of corn- 
 starch blended with a teaspoonful of best 
 butter; cook one minute, stirring constantly, 
 and add the yolk of one egg beaten with two 
 tablespoon fuls of granulated sugar, the grated 
 rind of a quarter and the juice of half a lemoo, 
 and a pinch of salt. 
 
 Pour this mixture into an earthen baking- 
 dish and bake twenty minutes. 
 
 L 
 
154 Catering tor ITwo. 
 
 Take from the oven, add the white of the egg 
 whisked to a stiflF froth, to which has been 
 added, after frothing, three tablespoonfuls of 
 sugar and a tiny pinch of salt. Brown deli- 
 cately in the oven and serve cold. 
 
 CHOCOLATE JELLY WITH CUSTARD. 
 
 Soak, then melt, four heaping teaspoonfuls 
 of gelatine in two tablespoonfuls of cold water. 
 
 Add one cupful of boiling water, two pinches 
 of salt, and two rounded tablespoonfuls of gran- 
 ulated sugar. 
 
 Melt in a double boiler one square of choco- 
 late, then add two tablespoonfuls of boiling 
 water, stir and cook until thick (time, about a 
 quarter of a minute). 
 
 Now add very gradually, stirring constantly, 
 half a cupful of boiling water, and when per- 
 fectly smooth, take from the fire ; when cool, 
 stir in the cooled gelatine, set in a pan of ice- 
 water, and stir from the bottom and sides until 
 thick enough to prevent the chocolate from 
 settling. 
 
 Pour into a mould, set on ice, and when 
 solid, serve with a custard made in the follow- 
 ing way : 
 
 Beat the yolks of two eggs with two table- 
 spoonfuls of granulated sugar and a pinch of 
 salt ; add one cupful of boiling milk and cook 
 in the double boiler five minutes (longer cook- 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 155 
 
 ing may curdle the mixture). Add half a tea- 
 spoonful of vanilla, or a spoonful of brandy or 
 cordial, or any flavoring preferred. (lycmon, 
 rose, or almond does not blend well with choco- 
 late.) 
 
 Use the whites of the eggs in the following 
 for another meal. 
 
 BAKED APPLES WITH MERINGUE. 
 
 Peel six Greening or Baldwin apples, core, 
 fill with sugar, cover, and bake in a hot oven. 
 When nearly done, remove the cover, brown 
 and pile upon each apple a spoonful of frothed 
 white of eggs beaten with one cup of sugar. 
 Return to the oven and brown lightly. 
 
 Serve very cold. 
 
XXVI. 
 
 Consommd with green peas. 
 
 Ham, baked, with or without tomatoes. 
 
 Hashed or stewed potatoes. Cream gravy. 
 
 Fried cabbage. Fried apples. 
 
 Hot biscuits with butter. 
 
 Olives. 
 
 String-bean salad. 
 
 Cream cheese. Biscuits. 
 
 Rice pudding, baked, 
 
 or 
 
 Baked apples, cream and sugar, 
 
 or 
 
 Sultana pudding. 
 
 Chocolate, tea, or coffee. Fruit. 
 
 CONSOMM^ WITH GREEN PEAS. 
 
 Heat one and one half cupfuls of stock sea- 
 soned with onions, carrots, and the savory soup 
 herbs. Add a tablespoon ful of cooked peas, 
 and two lengths of spaghetti broken into inch 
 pieces. 
 
 Any other diced or small vegetable may be 
 substituted for the peas. 
 
 156 
 
Catering for Zvoo. 157 
 
 BAKED SMOKED HAM. 
 
 One slice of ham one inch thick. 
 
 When found too salt ham may be made very 
 palatable by soaking for an hour in a cupful of 
 sweet milk. Cut oflF the rind and put the ham 
 in an earthen pudding-dish which is just large 
 enough to hold it without folding. Sprinkle 
 over it an even teaspoonful of granulated sugar, 
 a dust of pepper, and a teaspoonful of flour. 
 Cover closely and bake in a slow oven two 
 hours ; then add the cupful of milk in which it 
 was soaked, unless the milk has curdled, in 
 which case substitute fresh, boil up once, and 
 serve in the dish it was baked in or on a deep 
 platter. 
 
 Ham baked with tomatoes, either fresh or 
 canned, is a most appetizing dish, the acid of 
 the tomato and the salt of the ham blending 
 most agreeably. 
 
 After freshening, sugaring, and dredging with 
 flour, place on top of the slice of ham a large 
 tomato, skinned and sliced. 
 
 Dredge this also with flour and pepper, and 
 bake. A spoonful of butter may be added if 
 the ham is not very fat ; the fatter the ham the 
 sweeter and more tender it will be. Do not use 
 the milk in which the ham was freshened, with 
 tomatoes. 
 
158 Catcrinc} for Zvoo, 
 
 HASHED OR STEWED POTATOES. 
 CREAM GRAVY. 
 
 Slice very thin a heaping cupful of cold baked 
 potatoes ; dredge with a teaspoonful of flour, a 
 third of a teaspoonful of salt, and a dust of 
 pepper. 
 
 Put a heaping teaspoonful of butter in a sauce- 
 pan with a half-cupful of milk, and when hot, 
 add the potatoes, stir once, and cook covered, 
 about eight minutes, without further stirring ; 
 the slices should lie lightly in the gravy and be 
 unbroken. 
 
 Water will not take the place of milk, which 
 must be fresh and rich. If milk is not at hand, 
 fry the potatoes in a little butter. 
 
 FRIED CABBAGE. 
 
 Cut into shavings enough cabbage to fill a 
 quart measure ; sprinkle with an even half-tea- 
 spoonful of salt, pour on two cups of boiling 
 water, and cook rapidly until the cabbage be- 
 comes dry. Then add a tablespoonful of butter, 
 two of milk, dust with pepper, and fry brown. 
 Serve hot. 
 
 FRIED APPLES. 
 
 Slice two large Greening apples with a 
 teaspoonful of melted butter. Pour over a des- 
 sertspoonful of water, and two heaping table- 
 
Catering for ^wo, 159 
 
 spoonfuls of sugar. Put dots of butter all over 
 the top (a piece as large as a pea every two 
 inches apart), cover closely, and fry gently with- 
 out stirring until the bottom of the apples is 
 a rich brown. 
 
 If cooked too fast they will burn and be bit- 
 ter ; twenty minutes or half an hour slow cook- 
 ing will be about right. Cook in an earthen 
 dish or agate pie plate. 
 
 BAKING-POWDER BISCUITS. 
 
 One cupful of flour sifted with one teaspoon- 
 ful of baking-powder and one fourth of a tea- 
 spoonful of salt. Cut into this one heaping 
 tablespoonful of butter and add a half-cupful of 
 milk. Dredge with flour, cut into small pieces, 
 pat each one into a ball, flatten lightly and lay 
 them in a greased pan as close together as possi- 
 ble, and bake at once in a hot oven ; fifteen 
 minutes will be about the right time. This is 
 the rule for pot-pies and stew-pies, although 
 less shortening is required for these. 
 
 Pot-pies are made of meat, stew-pies of fruit. 
 The dough is steamed on top of the meat (or 
 fruit) instead of being baked as for biscuits. 
 Time, about ten minutes. This dough is also 
 called crust or dumplings. For pot-pie it is put 
 in after the meat is done. 
 
 For stew-pies, put the fruit in a kettle with 
 sugar and a dust of flour with a few spoonfuls 
 
i6o Catering tor ^wo^ 
 
 of water, lay the crust, made into little walnut- 
 shaped balls, on top ; cover the pot closely, and 
 as soon as boiling begins, count the time. 
 
 Remember it is the steam which cooks dump- 
 lings ; if the dough is submerged in the juices 
 or gravy it will be soggy. 
 
 In serving, use plenty of gravy, and make an 
 extra sauce for the stew-pies. 
 
 One half of the rule is enough for two persons. 
 Suet makes a delicious shortening, using a little 
 more salt, and ice-water instead of milk. 
 
 STRING-BEAN SALAD. 
 
 Wash a dozen fresh, crisp string-beans, and 
 steam in a steamer until tender. 
 
 Pull off the strings, salt, and serve them 
 whole, on a lettuce leaf. 
 
 Garnish with a raw tomato sliced. 
 
 Use any dressing preferred. 
 
 RICE PUDDING (BAKED). 
 
 Stir into a pint of rich, fresh milk two heap- 
 ing tablespoonfuls of granulated sugar, a salt- 
 spoonful of salt, and one tablespoonful of rice. 
 Flavor with lemon rind, grated from a quarter 
 of a lemon, and nutmeg. 
 
 Bake in an earthen dish in a very slow oven 
 three hours. Keep the dish covered until the 
 last twenty minutes. 
 
I 
 
 Catering tor ^wo. i6i 
 
 Serve very cold. 
 
 Add more salt, if needed, before baking. 
 
 BAKED APPLES WITH CREAM. 
 
 Wipe carefully four Greening apples of equal 
 size. Baldwins or Spitzenbergs will answer, but 
 Greenings are best. 
 
 Remove the cores from the blossom end, 
 making a little well in each ; use an apple-corer 
 or a broad knife rounded at the end of the blade. 
 
 Place the apples in a deep earthen pie dish, 
 and put a heaping tablespoonful of granulated 
 sugar in each apple with an extra spoonful over 
 all. 
 
 Pour on the bottom of the dish a half-cup of 
 boiling water, set in a moderate oven, and bake 
 from an hour to an hour and a half, according 
 to the size of the apples and the heat of the 
 oven. 
 
 When done, place them carefully in the dish 
 they are to be served in, and when cold pour 
 over them the jelly that exuded while baking. 
 Do not make the mistake of not eating the 
 skins. If the apples have been cooked slowly 
 enough, the skins will be deliciously tender 
 and rich. 
 
 Serve with cream and powdered sugar. 
 
 SULTANA PUDDING 
 One cupful of flour, one teaspoon baking- 
 
i62 Catering for XLvoo. 
 
 powder, one third of a teaspoon salt, one cupful 
 Sultana raisins, one half-cupful rich milk, one 
 tablespoonful sugar, yolk of one egg. 
 
 Sift flour, salt, and baking-powder together 
 several times, and stir in the raisins, which have 
 been picked over, rinsed, and dried in the oven. 
 
 Stir egg and milk together, add sugar, and 
 then the flour, etc. 
 
 Steam for an hour in a buttered mould ; cover 
 the steamer, but leave the mould open. Serve 
 with a sauce made of one cupful of confection- 
 er's sugar, a scant half-cupful of butter, and 
 brandy to taste. Add the frothed white of the 
 egg, and beat about ten minutes. 
 
 CHOCOLATE. 
 
 Put one cupful of rich milk into a saucepan, 
 add one third of a square of chocolate, and cook, 
 stirring constantly (using a wooden or silver 
 spoon), until the chocolate is all dissolved. 
 
 Use a double kettle, or a saucepan set in an- 
 other of boiling water. Chocolate should never 
 be grated, but put into cold milk in large pieces ; 
 grating results in loss of oil and flavor. One 
 and one half squares will make a quart. 
 
 Do not use any water. 
 
 A spoonful of whipped cream added to each 
 cup when serving is an elegant addition. 
 
 Sweeten to taste. 
 
XXVII. 
 
 Corn soup. 
 
 Pot-roast (under-round or cross-rib). 
 
 Fried potatoes. Stewed tomatoes. 
 
 Bread and butter. 
 
 Olives. Grape or crab-apple jelly. 
 
 Lettuce or cauliflower. HoUandaise sauce. 
 
 Cream cheese. Brown-bread fingers. 
 
 Huckleberry or squash pie, or banana pudding 
 
 meringue. 
 
 Tea or coffee. Fruit. 
 
 Alternative : Broiled chicken or porter-house 
 
 steak (broiled). 
 
 Charlotte russe or queen's pudding. 
 
 CORN SOUP. 
 
 Chop, or grate, a cupful of corn, add a slice 
 of onion, a dessert-spoonful of butter, and an 
 even teaspoonful of flour. Boil these in a pint 
 of milk ten minutes, and then pour it upon an 
 egg lightly beaten, stirring briskly. Add salt 
 and pepper to taste, and strain back into the 
 163 
 
i64 Catering for XLxoo. 
 
 saucepan ; boil up once, take from the fire im- 
 mediately, or the egg will curdle, and serve 
 with small oyster-crackers. 
 
 POT-ROAST. 
 (Under-round or cross-rib, two pounds.) 
 
 Trim the meat free of all dried skin and dried 
 fat, and brown all sides in a hot spider ; then 
 put it in an agate-ware pot, pour on one cupful 
 of boiling water, cover closely, and boil for a 
 minute ; turn the meat, and boil the other side. 
 This is necessary, in order to seal up the rich 
 juices of the meat, which would otherwise drip 
 out into the gravy, leaving the meat dry and 
 tasteless. Remove the meat to a platter, put in 
 the pot a meat-rack tall enough to have its upper 
 side at least two inches above the surface of the 
 water, to prevent the meat from coming in con- 
 tact with the water when it boils. 
 
 Dredge the meat all over with flour, dust on 
 black pepper, place it on the rack, cover the 
 pot closely, and cook gently, but steadily, three 
 hours, adding more water occasionally from the 
 boiling-kettle if it cooks away. 
 
 Always try to keep the original amount of 
 water (one cupful). 
 
 Three or four pepper-corns may be added. 
 
 At the end of two and a half hours, add a 
 half-teaspoonful of salt, sprinkling it over the 
 meat, and a tablespoonful of parsley. 
 
I 
 
 Catering tor ^wo. 165 
 
 Remove the rack, and stir into the gravy a 
 dessert-spoonful of flour blended with a few 
 spoonfuls of cold water, and salt to taste. Re- 
 cover the pot, and resume the cooking, only 
 simmering gently for this last half-hour. Serve 
 the meat on a warm platter, garnished with 
 parsley or celery, and put the gravy in a sauce- 
 boat. If fat is desired, fry delicately a piece of 
 suet, and place beside the meat. 
 
 For a second meal, cook two lamb's kidneys 
 (chopped) in a cupful of water, with one sliced 
 onion, a tablespoonful of fried, diced, salt pork, 
 a pinch of cayenne, salt to taste, and flour to 
 thicken. Add the pot-roast, and boil up. 
 
 Pass cold spiced tomato sauce. 
 
 FRIED POTATOES. 
 
 Heat very hot a tablespoonful of drippings 
 from salt pork, or the same amount of butter, 
 being careful not to let them burn. Slice two 
 medium-sized potatoes (baked or boiled) in 
 quarter inch slices, and fry a rich brown, un- 
 covered. If the pan is covered the potatoes 
 will be flabby instead of crisp. 
 
 After dishing, sprinkle with salt and pepper 
 and serve immediately. If preferred the pota- 
 toes may be broiled. 
 
 Spread each side of the slices with butter, and 
 broil over a clear hot fire ; season with salt and 
 pepper and an extra lump of butter before serving. 
 
i66 Catering for Cwo. 
 
 CAUUFLOWER, HOLLANDAISE OR 
 CREAM SAUCE. 
 
 Cut a fourth of a medium-sized cauliflower in 
 four parts, salt, and steam, until tender, in a 
 steamer, or wrap in a napkin and boil in a quart 
 of boiling water (salted) twenty minutes. 
 
 Serve with Hollandaise sauce, or make a 
 cream sauce of a tablespoonful of butter blended 
 with a teaspoonful of flour and cooked with a 
 half-cup of boiling milk. 
 
 Add a pinch of salt and a dust of pepper. 
 
 Pour the cream over the cauliflower and lay 
 a slice of lemon on each piece. 
 
 Fine white cabbage may be boiled and served 
 the same way. 
 
 Serve as a separate course with brown bread 
 cut in finger-lengths. 
 
 SQUASH PIE. 
 
 Cut in half, scrape out the seeds, and peel one 
 part of a Hubbard squash. 
 
 Steam until tender in a steamer, or boil in 
 salted water. 
 
 Mash fine ; a heaping cupful will make the 
 pie. Put the rest away for other pies, or to use 
 as a vegetable ; it will keep several days in a 
 cold place in cool weather. 
 
 Line a pie dish with pie-crust and bake as di- 
 rected for other pies, while beating the yolk of 
 an egg with four tablespoonfuls of granulated 
 
Catering tor Cwo. 167 
 
 sugar, a half-teaspoon ful of ground ginger, a 
 half-teaspoon ful of salt, and two thirds of a cup 
 of hot milk poured on slowly, stirring all the 
 time. Add a heaping teaspoonful of butter and 
 a heaping cup of the hot mashed squash, a half- 
 teaspoonful of flour, and a little grated nutmeg. 
 Beat all together, and add the white of the egg 
 beaten to a stiff froth. Beat thoroughly, pour 
 into the pie pan, sprinkle with a teaspoonful 
 of sugar, and bake in a quick oven ten or fifteen 
 minutes. 
 
 HUCKLEBERRY PIE. 
 
 Use two large, deep saucers, as these will hold 
 plenty of juice. Put in each one a cupful of 
 huckleberries which have been looked over and 
 washed. 
 
 Sprinkle with a tablespoonful of sugar, and 
 the same of water, and cover with a flaky crust 
 a little smaller than the top of the saucer ; bake 
 twenty minutes in a hot oven. 
 
 Heat, mash, and strain through a coarse cloth 
 wrung out of cold water, either a cupful of ripe 
 currants or blackberries, and mix with this juice 
 nearly a cupful of sugar, into which has been 
 stirred a teaspoonful of flour. Cook a minute, 
 and when the pies come from the oven, raise 
 the crust and pour this juice over the huckle- 
 berries. 
 
 Replace the crust and serve either hot or cold. 
 
i68 Catering toe ^wo. 
 
 BANANA PUDDING MBRINGUK. 
 
 Beat the yolk of one egg with two tablespoon- 
 fuls of sugar and a quarter of a teaspoonful of 
 salt ; add the juice of half a tart orange and a 
 cupful of milk, and pour this over a cupful of 
 bread-crumbs (two or three days old) and one 
 banana sliced and laid in alternate layers in a 
 deep earthen pudding-dish. Bake twenty min- 
 utes in a hot oven. 
 
 Whisk the white of the egg to a stiff froth, 
 add two tablespoonfuls of sugar, and after 
 beating well, add the juice from the remainder 
 of the orange and a pinch of grated rind ; 
 spread this upon the pudding and brown in the 
 oven a few minutes. 
 
 BROILED CHICKEN. 
 
 Order a plump young chicken split for broil- 
 ing. Wipe with a towel, and brush all over 
 inside and out with melted butter or olive oil. 
 Lay it on a broiler over a slow fire and broil 
 twenty minutes, turning often to prevent burn- 
 ing. 
 
 Cook the inside first, to seal up the juices. 
 
 Lay, now, on a small rack (skin side down) in 
 a spider which contains a large spoonful of but- 
 ter and a half-cup of hot water ; cover closely 
 and simmer twenty minutes to a half-hour, or 
 bake in the oven for the same length of time. 
 Sprinkle with salt and pepper, add a little pars- 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 169 
 
 ley, and pour over any juice or butter left in 
 the spider. 
 
 If the chicken is not tender, simmer longer, 
 with the addition of a little water, if it boils 
 away. Any left over may be re-heated on the 
 broiler. 
 
 PORTER-HOUSE STEAK (BROILED). 
 
 A medium-sized porter-house steak one and 
 a quarter inches in thickness will make three 
 meals for two moderate eaters, two broils and 
 a hash. 
 
 Lay the steak on the meat-board, and with a 
 sharp knife trim off the outer edge of the fat, 
 which is always bitter from long contact with 
 the air. Do not take oflF more than is necessary, 
 as steak without a supply of fat is not delicious. 
 Broil a piece of suet extra if it lacks a suflBi- 
 cient quantity. 
 
 Cut off the long coarse end, and remove the 
 bone. Divide the remainder into two even 
 portions, and put away one for another meal. 
 
 Broil the piece that is left, using a wire broiler 
 in which the wires are about a third of an inch 
 apart. 
 
 If a heavy iron broiler is used, it must be 
 thoroughly heated before the meat goes on it. 
 Have the fire a glowing, but not a fierce bed of 
 coals. A fierce fire burns and hardens the 
 meat before it is cooked through. 
 
I70 Catering for Zwo, 
 
 Do not use the broiler door with which most 
 ranges are supplied, but remove the lid from 
 the hottest place of the range and set the steak 
 here to broil. 
 
 To keep the vSmoke from entering the house, 
 open all the draughts, and put a tin cover over 
 the broiler ; every time the steak is turned 
 with one hand, the cover is lifted with the 
 other. 
 
 Broiled meats should be seared immediately 
 to keep in the juices. 
 
 Count at first one hundred for each side ; 
 if the fire is very hot, fifty counts will be 
 enough to begin on ; then turn every ten 
 counts, until four hundred have been counted. 
 A steak an inch thick will most likely be done 
 by this time, but to be certain open the broiler, 
 and cut into the meat with a sharp knife ; if 
 not done enough, broil a few turns longer. 
 
 To be properly cooked it should be brown 
 without, pink inside, and the gravy which runs 
 from the cut should be red. 
 
 Have the platter warmed but not hot, sprinkle 
 the steak with salt, and add butter the size of 
 a walnut. 
 
 The steak is the last thing to be cooked for 
 the meal, and everything else should be ready 
 before beginning to broil it. 
 
 Serve immediately. 
 
 Here are several ways of treating the coarse 
 end for little breakfast dishes. 
 
Catering tor XLvoo, 171 
 
 Reduced to a pulp by passing it through a 
 meat-grinder (or chopped in the chopping- 
 bowl) it may then be made into a round flat 
 cake and broiled the same as the steak, oi* 
 fried and served with fried onions. 
 
 If broiled, serve with two slices of salt pork 
 fried a delicate brown, and potatoes sliced and 
 browned in the grease from the pork. 
 
 Put the meat in the centre of a platter and 
 arrange the potatoes around it with slices of 
 lemon as a garnish. 
 
 Another way is to fry it (the coarse end) in a 
 small closely covered vessel until it is so tender 
 that it can be cut without tearing. This will 
 take from an hour to an hour and a half. Turn 
 frequently and fry slowly. The edge of fat 
 surrounding it will furnish enough grease for 
 frying. 
 
 When cold, trim off the fat and throw it 
 away ; chop the meat fine, dredge with flour, 
 add salt and pepper, and warm up with a few 
 spoonfuls of milk or water, and a teaspoonful 
 of butter. 
 
 Place upon toasted bread dipped in boiling, 
 salted water, and then buttered. Pour over 
 all hot spiced tomato sauce or sauce espagnole, 
 and serve with fried potatoes. Ends of lamb 
 chops may be cooked in the same way. An- 
 other way is to put the bone into water and 
 boil until the scraps of meat and gristle drop 
 away, then remove the bone, add a table- 
 
172 Catering for a;wo. 
 
 spoonful of browned salt pork without the 
 grease, an inch of carrot, a slice of onion, and 
 the coarse end of the steak. 
 
 Cook gently about two hours, keeping the 
 meat barely covered with water. Then remove 
 the vegetables, add salt to taste, and when 
 cold take off the fat. Chop with one third as 
 much cold potato, dredge with flour, and warm 
 up with gravy in which the meat was cooked. 
 This is a delicious hash. 
 
 SPICED TOMATO SAUCE TO BE SERVED 
 WITH COLD MEATS, STEWS OR HASH. 
 
 I onion chopped fine, i quart of ripe toma- 
 toes, I small red-pepper pod or half of an even 
 teaspoonful of cayenne, i teaspoonful of salt, 
 2 teaspoonfuls of sugar, i teaspoonful of mixed 
 ground spices (mace, cloves, allspice, and cin- 
 namon), I cupful of genuine cider vinegar. 
 
 Boil tomatoes and vinegar together two hours. 
 
 The tomatoes should be skinned and sliced 
 if fresh ones are used. 
 
 Add onion and other ingredients and cook 
 another hour. 
 
 If a smooth sauce is liked strain through a 
 sieve. Keep in a cool place, covered. 
 
Catering for ^wo. 173 
 
 CHARLOTTE RUSSB. 
 
 Place slices of stale cake in a covered dish, 
 and set in a steamer until they become soft. 
 
 When cold, arrange on a dish for the table, 
 and pour over them Sea-foam cream flavored 
 with wine. 
 
 If preferred, whipped cream sweetened and 
 flavored may be used instead. Sea-foam must 
 stand on the ice awhile, but the whipped cream 
 may be used immediately. 
 
 Substitute for whipped cream must also 
 stand on ice to thicken. 
 
 QUEEN'S PUDDING. 
 
 Scald one cupful of milk, and soak in it 
 one fourth of a cupful of bread-crumbs while 
 beating the yolk of an eggy with two even 
 tablespoon fuls of granulated sugar, a pinch of 
 salt, and the grated rind of a quarter of a 
 lemon. 
 
 Stir all together and bake in an earthen pud- 
 ding-dish about fifteen minutes. Then spread 
 on top a layer of jam, jelly, marmalade, or any 
 rich preserves (using half a cupful), and on top 
 of this the frothed white of the egg, sweetened, 
 after frothing, with two tablespoonfuls of 
 granulated sugar, and the juice of a quarter 
 of a lemon. Return to the oven and brown 
 (time, about seven minutes). 
 
174 Catering tor Qiwo. 
 
 Serve cold, but not ice cold. 
 
 This becomes a new pudding with each 
 change of preserves. The bread-crumbs are 
 from the bread which is dried in the oven and 
 then rolled to a powder on the moulding-board. 
 Measure after rolling, and be exact in measur- 
 ing. 
 
XXVIII. 
 
 Raw oysters. 
 
 Roast turkey. 
 
 Mashed potatoes. Boiled onious. 
 
 Cranberry sauce. 
 
 Bread and butter. Celery. 
 
 Salted almonds or olives. 
 
 lyettuce if desired. 
 
 Cream cheese and wafers. 
 
 Orange jelly (ice cold). 
 
 Plum pudding. 
 
 Pineapple jardinidre. 
 
 Coffee. Cream candies. 
 
 This menu is for Christmas Day. 
 That for Thanksgiving is the same, substitut- 
 ing mince pie for plum pudding. 
 
 ROAST TURKEY. 
 
 Select a fat turkey weighing nine or ten 
 pounds. After it has been drawn, trimmed, 
 and singed, rinse quickly in cold water and fill 
 both cavities with stufl&ng, breaking the neck 
 and turning it into the upper one. 
 
 175 
 
176 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Sew with a large darning-needle threaded with 
 coarse darning-cotton, tie the legs together close 
 to the body, and treat the wings the same way. 
 Rub the outside of the turkey with salt, sprinkle 
 over pepper and a tablespoonful of thyme, 
 dredge plentifully with flour, lay on a meat- 
 rack in a large dripping-pan, pour in two cups of 
 water, and roast in a moderate oven from three 
 to six hours, according to age. Lay a pan over 
 the top to keep in the steam and juices ; this 
 must be removed the last hour if the turkey is 
 not brown enough. 
 
 When half the time is up, turn the turkey 
 over. 
 
 If thin slices of fat salt pork are laid on top 
 there will be no need for basting. 
 
 The stuffing for a nine-pound turkey will re- 
 quire three quarts of bread-crumbs a few days 
 old, and about a pint of boiling water (a little 
 more if the bread is very dry), two heaping 
 tablespoon fuls of thyme, a heaping teaspoonful 
 of salt, a heaping teaspoonful of black pepper, 
 a heaping tablespoonful of butter, and the same 
 amount of the turkey-fat, chopped. 
 
 Mix all together thoroughly with the hand, 
 see that all the lumps are dissolved and that 
 butter, thyme, salt, and pepper are evenly dis- 
 tributed. The mixture should be quite soft, but 
 not soft enough to run. 
 
 Put the gizzard in the dripping-pan when the 
 turkey goes in ; it can hardly be cooked too 
 
Caterina for Zvoo. 177 
 
 much if kept under water ; turn it frequently 
 and keep an inch of water in the pan, pour- 
 ing in from the boiling teakettle as it cooks 
 away. 
 
 Boil the heart and liver in a half-pint of 
 water thirty minutes, and, when cold, chop in 
 the chopping-bowl with the gizzard (very 
 fine). 
 
 Blend two tablespoon fuls of flour with enough 
 cold water to make it like cream, pour this in 
 the dripping-pan after the turkey is removed, 
 add the chopped giblets with the water they 
 were cooked in and an extra cupful of boiling 
 water, cook a few minutes, skim off most of 
 the fat, and serve. 
 
 Put the turkey on a large platter garnished 
 with celery. 
 
 Keep the turkey-fat, covered, in a cold place, 
 and use it for frying potatoes. 
 
 CRANBERRY SAUCE (STRAINED). 
 
 Pick over and wash a pint of cranberries. 
 Put them on a slow fire in an earthen vessel 
 with a cup of cold water. Cover and cook 
 gently two hours. 
 
 Then mash and strain through a coarse cloth. 
 Add a cup of sugar, return to the fire, cook a 
 few minutes, pour into a dish, and serve cold. 
 
 A quart of cranberries will be needed for a 
 dozen people. 
 
178 Catering tor Xiwo. 
 
 CRANBERRY SAUCE (WHOLE). 
 
 Pick over and wash two cupfuls of fine cran- 
 berries. Put them in an earthen dish, pour over 
 a cup of sugar, add a cupful of boiling water, 
 cover, and cook gently nearly two hours. Serve 
 hot or cold. 
 
 ORANGE JELLY. 
 
 Soak four rounded teaspoonfuls of gelatine in 
 two tablespoon fuls of water ten minutes. 
 
 Add three tablespoonfuls of sugar, a scant 
 cupful of boiling water, and half a cupful of 
 tart orange juice. Altogether this should meas- 
 ure one and a half cupfuls. 
 
 If only sweet oranges are obtainable, add a 
 spoonful of lemon juice to give the required 
 acidity. Add a few grains of salt and a pinch 
 of grated orange rind. In hot weather use five 
 teaspoonfuls of gelatine. 
 
 When this dish is used as a dessert, serve 
 with it whipped cream, or Sea-foam cream. 
 
 GENUINE ENGLISH PLUM PUDDING. 
 
 One half-pound each of bread-crumbs,^ kidney 
 suet, brown sugar, Zante currants, table raisins^ 
 assorted candied fruits (lemon and orange peel 
 and citron weighing half a pound altogether), 
 sultana raisins (one pound), five eggs, one table- 
 spoonful of flour, four tablespoonfuls molasses^ 
 * Weigh the bread-crumbs before drying. 
 
Catering for XLxoo, 179 
 
 one teaspoonful of salt (rounded), one half-tea- 
 spoonful each of cinnamon and cloves, and a 
 quarter of a nutmeg, one teaspoonful of ginger, 
 one half-cupful of wine or brandy, or cider, if 
 preferred. Wine or brandy makes a finer 
 pudding, however. 
 
 Sift flour and spices together and chop in the 
 suet. Add the candied fruit and chop as fine as 
 peas. 
 
 Pick over carefully one by one the currants, 
 wash in cold water, changing this until no sand 
 is seen on the bottom of the dish, skimming 
 the fruit out. 
 
 Then pour over them enough boiling water 
 to barely cover and let them stand to swell. 
 
 Soak the table raisins in boiling water for a 
 few minutes and take out the seeds. Pick over 
 the sultanas and set them in the oven to get soft. 
 
 Now put all the fruit together and add the 
 bread-crumbs, which must be stale, dried in the 
 oven, and rolled to powder. 
 
 Beat up the eggs, add the sugar, molasses, and 
 wine, and stir this well with the fruit, chopped 
 suet, etc. 
 
 Butter three tin pails having covers, each 
 holding a quart, and divide the pudding between 
 them ; it must have room to expand. 
 
 Steam steadily eight hours with water half- 
 way up the sides. 
 
 Set the pails on wire tea-stands or a meat-rack. 
 
 Serve with brandy and hard sauces. 
 
i8o Catering for (Two. 
 
 WINK SAUCE FOR PIvUM PUDDING. 
 
 Cream half a cupful of best butter and one 
 and a half cupfuls of light brown sugar until 
 foamy, add two heaping tablespoonfuls of flour, 
 beat and stir in slowly one and a half cups of 
 boiling water and an even teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Boil, stirring constantly, ten minutes, then 
 add half a cupful of wine or brandy and serve 
 hot in a sauce-boat. Color with a teaspoonful 
 of caramel. 
 
 HARD SAUCK. 
 
 Cream half a cupful of butter, add one cupful 
 of confectioner's sugar, beat fifteen minutes, 
 and pile into a serving bowl. 
 
 Grate nutmeg over the top. 
 
 This quantity of sauce will be sufficient for 
 twelve people. 
 
 Plum pudding improves with age. It must 
 be kept closely covered in the pails in which it 
 was cooked. 
 
 When wanted, cut off slices and heat (covered) 
 in the oven, or in a steamer. Half a slice, 
 half an inch thick, is enough for one portion. 
 
 Get the fruit and bread-crumbs ready for 
 mixing the day before and cook the pudding at 
 least a week before it is to be served. One of 
 the puddings may be cut in half and frosted 
 with a deep soft frosting and passed as fruit 
 
Catering tor ^wo. isi 
 
 cake. It must be eaten with a fork, however, 
 as it is too soft and sticky to be held in the 
 fingers. 
 
 MINCE-MBAT FOR ONE I.ARGE PIE. 
 
 One gill of mixed candied citron, lemon, and 
 orange peels, one gill of chopped suet, three 
 gills of mixed raisins and currants, three gills 
 chopped apples, raw, one cupful of chopped 
 cooked beef, two tablespoonfuls molasses, three 
 tablespoonfuls brown sugar, one heaping tea- 
 spoonful of mixed spices (nutmeg, allspice, 
 cloves, cinnamon, and black pepper), one quarter 
 of a teaspoonful salt, one cupful of cider or 
 wine and cider mixed. 
 
 Cover the raisins with cold water and seed 
 them. Pick over the currants and wash them, 
 and cover both raisins and currants with cold 
 water and cook slowly until the water has 
 boiled off. Then add the candied fruit and 
 suet (chopped fine), sugar, molasses, spices, and 
 cider, and boil an hour, stirring frequently. 
 
 Mix apples and meat together, add salt and 
 the other ingredients, and cook up thoroughly 
 (about ten minutes). Put away in a jar until 
 wanted. 
 
 The meat should be boiled or stewed until 
 very tender, and well salted before it gets cold. 
 Cover with boiling water and cook until the 
 water is all gone, being careful not to scorch. 
 
i82 Catering for (Two. 
 
 Under-round pot-roast will make good mince- 
 meat, also stewing beef. Chop when cold. 
 
 A little brandy may be poured over the pie 
 just before serving. 
 
 Raise the crust and allow a spoonful for each 
 portion. 
 
 PINEAPPLE JARDINi:^RE. 
 
 Cut the top from a ripe pineapple and re- 
 serve it for the cover. 
 
 Cut out the inside, rejecting the core, and 
 scoop out the juice and the part lying next to 
 the rind, with a spoon, being careful not to 
 break nor puncture it. Put the rind and the 
 cover in a cool place. Put the pineapple into a 
 bowl, add half a cupful of sherry (a few spoon- 
 fuls of brandy, rum, or champagne may be 
 substituted for the sherry), and let it stand on 
 ice until wanted at table, then mix with orange 
 pulp, seeded and halved Tokay grapes, banana, 
 or peaches and plums, stoned cherries, or ber- 
 ries according to season, sugar to taste, fill the 
 rind, put on the cover, and set the pineapple on 
 a dish of cracked ice. Serve in flaring cham- 
 pagne glasses. 
 
 One pineapple, two oranges, one banana, and 
 half a pound of grapes will fill the rind twice 
 and serve twelve people. 
 
I 
 
 MENUS FOR COMPANY 
 IvUNCHEONS. 
 
 Oyster cocktails. 
 
 Breaded French chops. White sauce. 
 
 Mashed potatoes. Celery. 
 
 Tomato mayonnaise. 
 Cheese. Crackers. 
 
 Vanilla ice-cream. 
 Coffee. Fruit. 
 
 II. 
 
 Grape fruit. 
 Beauregarde eggs. 
 
 Fried chicken. 
 
 Escalloped potatoes. 
 
 Stuffed tomatoes. 
 
 Lettuce salad. 
 
 Cream cheese. Crackers. 
 
 Coffee Bavarian cream. 
 
 Fruit. Coffee. 
 
 183 
 
i84 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 III. 
 
 Bouillon in cups. 
 
 French chops. Green peas. 
 
 Fried potatoes. 
 
 Croustade of oysters. 
 
 Lettuce salad. 
 
 Crackers. Cheese. 
 
 Vanilla ice-cream. Caramel sauce. 
 
 Fruit. Coffee. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Oysters on half-shell. 
 
 Fried smelts. Sauce tartare. 
 
 Blanquette of chicken. 
 
 Mashed potatoes. 
 
 Tomato and celery salad. 
 
 Cheese. Crackers. 
 
 Pineapple jardiniere. 
 
 Coffee. 
 
 SUPPI.EMKNTARY DISHES IN 
 
 COMPANY LUNCHEONS. 
 
 OYSTER COCKTAILS. 
 
 Oyster cocktails are served in small cocktail 
 glasses, with a dressing of catsup, etc. 
 
Catering tor XLxoo. . 185 
 
 Order very small oysters, drain, and see that 
 they are very cold and free from bits of shell. 
 
 Put half a dozen in each glass, and pour over 
 them several spoonfuls of the dressing made as 
 follows : 
 
 One tablespoonful of lemon juice, one table- 
 spoonful of tomato catsup, half a teaspoonful 
 of Worcestershire sauce, five drops of Tobasco 
 sauce, and a little salt. 
 
 This quantity will be sufficient for three peo- 
 ple, but the rule may be doubled or trebled 
 according to need. 
 
 BREADED CHOPS. 
 
 The chops should be breaded and delicately 
 fried, and arranged on a hot platter. 
 
 At the moment of serving, pour over a rich 
 white sauce. 
 
 VANILIvA ICE-CREAM. 
 
 Put one pint of milk in the double boiler with 
 a piece of vanilla bean about an inch in length. 
 
 Cream together two eggs, half a cup of sugar, 
 and two rounded tablespoonfuls of flour until 
 very light, and stir gradually into the milk 
 when it reaches the boiling point. 
 
 Allow this to cook ten minutes, stirring fre- 
 quently. Add a small pinch of salt, and turn 
 into a stone dish, beating at intervals while it 
 cools to prevent it from forming into lumps. 
 
i86 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 When cold add one and a half pints of cream 
 (or rich country milk) and half a cup of sugar. 
 
 This mixture may be prepared early in the 
 day and kept in the ice-box. 
 
 If a larger quantity is desired, a quart of 
 cream may be used, the foundation being the 
 same. 
 
 Care must be taken in measuring the flour, 
 as too much is sure to taste ; the spoon must be 
 rounding full instead of heaping — about one 
 ounce in all. 
 
 Be sure and use the vanilla bean for flavoring, 
 as it is quite impossible to make a good ice- 
 cream with vanilla extract. 
 
 All large grocery houses keep vanilla in this 
 form, and it would doubtless be easy to have one 
 or more sent by post to any place where they 
 were not obtainable. 
 
 Before freezing, remove the bit of pod, care- 
 fully scraping all the little seeds into the 
 custard. 
 
 Prepare the ice by pounding it fine in a coarse, 
 strong bag, and use rock salt in the proportion 
 of three pints for a gallon freezer. 
 
 Put the can in the centre of the tub with the 
 beater in place, fasten the lid securely, and 
 pack ice and salt in alternate layers until the tub 
 is full. 
 
 Turn the crank a few minutes, and as the ice 
 works down, add more, until it is firmly and 
 solidly packed. 
 
Catcrfng for XLvoo. 187 
 
 If plenty of ice is used, twenty minutes will 
 serve to freeze the cream. 
 
 The crank need not be turned constantly, and 
 the motion at first should be rather slow. 
 When the custard begins to harden, turn rap- 
 idly, as this is the stage when rapid beating 
 makes the cream smooth and light. 
 
 When it is firm enough, take out the paddle, 
 beat well with a wooden spoon to fill up the 
 space made by the beater, and scrape well from 
 the sides. 
 
 Cover the tub with a blanket and set away in 
 a cool place, and let two hours elapse before 
 serving. 
 
 When ready to do so, dip the can in warm (not 
 hot) water, wipe dry, and invert on a cold dish. 
 
 It should come out in firm and perfect shape. 
 
 It is possible to have several varieties of cream 
 in the same mould with only one freezing, and 
 various combinations may be made to suit the 
 individual taste. 
 
 After the cream is frozen a portion may be 
 taken out into a cold bowl and a cupful of well- 
 sweetened strawberry or raspberry juice stirred 
 into it. Pour this back into the can and it will 
 soon harden to the proper consistency. 
 
 A quarter of a cupful of very strong coflFee 
 may be used in the same way. 
 
 A banana or two may be sliced thin and added 
 as another variation, or a little shredded pine- 
 apple. 
 
i88 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Ripe peaches, if cut up and sweetened, may 
 also be used, but they should not be added until 
 about half an hour before serving-time, as they 
 should only be chilled and not frozen. 
 
 Candied fruits, particularly apricots and 
 cherries, are also a pleasant addition, if cut into 
 very minute pieces and well mixed through the 
 cream. 
 
 GRAPE FRUIT. 
 
 Grape fruit should be well chilled, cut in half, 
 the core removed, and the pulp loosened slightly 
 around the outside edge ; use a sharp knife and 
 be careful not to let any of the white part ad- 
 here, as this is very bitter. 
 
 Fill the core cavity with cracked ice and 
 sugar and serve a half to each person, on a 
 pretty plate. 
 
 These may be on the table when the meal is 
 announced. 
 
 This course is eaten with orange-spoons or 
 the ordinary teaspoon. 
 
 BEAURBGARDE EGGS. 
 
 Boil six eggs twenty minutes. Make a pint 
 of cream sauce. Cut the whites of the eggs in 
 thin strips, mix with the sauce, and fill baking 
 shells, one for each person. 
 
 Rub the yolks of the eggs through a sieve on 
 top of each shell, put in the oven for two or three 
 minutes, and serve. 
 
Catering for Zvoo, 189 
 
 OYSTER CROUSTADB.* 
 
 Get a round loaf of baker's bread which is 
 two or three days old, and scoop out all the 
 crumb, being careful not to break the crust. 
 
 Break up the crumbs very fine and dry them 
 slowly in the oven. 
 
 When dry, fry three cupfuls in two tablespoon- 
 fuls of butter, stirring all the time (about three 
 minutes). 
 
 Put one quart of cream, or rich milk, on the 
 fire, and when it reaches the boiling point stir 
 in three tablespoonfuls of flour which have been 
 mixed with half a cupful of cold milk. Cook 
 for a few minutes and season with salt and 
 pepper. 
 
 Now put a layer of this sauce in the loaf, then 
 a layer of oysters salted and peppered, another 
 layer of sauce, and then one of the fried crumbs. 
 
 Repeat this until the croustade is nearly full, 
 having a thick layer of crumbs on top. 
 
 Bake slowly half an hour and serve with a 
 garnish of parsley. 
 
 Three pints of oysters are required for this 
 dish, but half the quantity of ingredients given 
 will be sufficient when the croustade is to form 
 a single course. 
 
 CARAMEIv CREAM SAUCE. 
 
 Caramel sauce is made by stirring into a cup- 
 
 * Miss Parloa. 
 
igo Catering for Zvoo, 
 
 ful of cold cream two tablespoon fuls of caramel, 
 directions for which have been given elsewhere. 
 
 Serve in a pretty bowl and pass to each guest. 
 
 A pint or more of caramel may be made at a 
 time and bottled ; it will keep indefinitely. 
 
 OYSTERS ON THE HALF-SHEI.I.. 
 
 Four or five small oysters on the half-shell 
 are sufficient for each portion. 
 
 Arrange on a small plate on a bed of cracked 
 ice with a quarter of a lemon in the centre. 
 
 Pass horse radish and crackers with this 
 course. 
 
 FRIED SMELTS. 
 
 The smelts should be breaded some time 
 before the meal, and fried either in deep fat 
 or in a little beef dripping, until a delicate 
 brown. 
 
 Serve with a sauce tartare, which is a mayon- 
 naise with an addition of chopped pickles and 
 capers. 
 
 BIvANQUETTE OF CHICKEN.* 
 
 One quart of cooked chicken, cut in delicate 
 pieces ; one large cupful of white stock, three 
 tablespoon fuls of butter, a heaping tablespoon- 
 ful of flour, one teaspoonful of lemon juice, 
 one cupful of cream or milk, the yolks of four 
 eggs, salt, pepper. 
 
 * Miss Parloa. 
 
I 
 
 Catering tor tTwo. 191 
 
 Put the butter into the saucepan, and when 
 hot, add the flour. 
 
 Stir until smooth, but do not let it brown. 
 Add the stock and cook two minutes, then add 
 the seasoning and cream. 
 
 As soon as this boils up add the chicken and 
 cook ten minutes. 
 
 Beat the yolks of the eggs with four table- 
 spoonfuls of milk ; stir into the blanquette and 
 cook about half a minute longer. 
 
 This may be served in a rice border or with 
 a garnish of toasted bread. 
 
 TOMATO AND CELERY SALAD.* 
 
 Select firm, good-sized ripe tomatoes. Cut 
 a lid from the top and scoop out all the seeds 
 and soft pulp with a spoon, being very care- 
 ful not to break the tomato. Mix celery cut 
 as for salad in small pieces, with mayonnaise 
 dressing. 
 
 Fill the tomatoes with this mixture, put 
 a teaspoonful of dressing on the top of each 
 tomato, and serve on crisp lettuce leaves. 
 * Table Talk. 
 
BREAKFAST, TEA, AND LUNCH- 
 EON DISHES. 
 
 EGGS AU GRATIN FOR LUNCHEON. 
 
 Heat one third of a cupful of milk with a 
 tablespoonful of butter in a broad, shallow bak- 
 ing-dish. Put into this four muffin-rings and 
 break an egg into each ring ; sprinkle with 
 salt and peppet and add a layer of grated 
 cheese. Brown delicately in a quick oven, or 
 cook on top of the stove and brown the top 
 with a hot stove-lid or red- hot shovel. 
 
 Eggs require only a few minutes' cooking. 
 
 A tiny pinch of mustard and cayenne may be 
 added to the milk if liked. 
 
 SMOKED TONGUE. 
 
 Wash, cover with cold water, and soak over- 
 night a fine beef tongue. Next morning put 
 it into a two-gallon pot, cover with boiling 
 water, and cook gently five or six hours. 
 
 When cold pull off the skin and slice in thin 
 slices. 
 
 Any scraps that remain may be chopped, 
 
 192 
 
Catering for XTwo. 193 
 
 mashed to a paste, seasoned with cayenne 
 pepper, and used for sandwiches. 
 
 CRUST FOR OYSTER PATTIES. 
 
 Beat one fresh ice-cold egg with four table- 
 spoonfuls of ice-water until it appears to be a 
 mass of froth. Set it on the ice while cutting 
 one cupful of ice-cold butter into two cupfuls 
 of flour which have been sifted several times 
 with a salt-spoonful of salt. 
 
 When the butter has been cut to the size of 
 peas beat up again, quickly, the egg mixture, 
 and with a spoon mix it into the flour. Beat 
 with the rolling-pin and roll out an eighth of 
 an inch thick, cut into circles the right size 
 to fit in patty pans, cut covers, and bake in a 
 quick oven. 
 
 The covers are baked on tins or dripping- 
 pans. 
 
 Do not handle the paste more than is abso- 
 lutely necessary ; simply pinch it together with 
 the tips of the fingers, roll out once, and put 
 in the oven as quickly as possible. 
 
 Make the paste in a cool room, and only roll 
 out a portion at a time, keeping the rest in the 
 ice-box. 
 
 Keep the trimmings separate, pinch them 
 all together at the last, and roll out once. Take 
 the last little scraps, form into balls, and roll 
 each one out by itself for tarts. 
 13 
 
194 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 This prevents too much working with the 
 dough and also does away with the necessity 
 of using too much flour. 
 
 If the butter softens before baking, the crust 
 will not be crisp and flaky. 
 
 These patties will keep two weeks in a cool, 
 dry place, and may be filled at any time and 
 heated in the oven. 
 
 If oyster filling is desired, make a cream 
 sauce of a tablespoonful of butter, an even 
 teaspoonful of flour, the juice of a dozen small 
 oysters, salt and pepper to taste, cook a few 
 minutes, then add the oysters and a tablespoon- 
 ful of cream, boil up once, and serve in the hot 
 shells. 
 
 A little lemon and onion juice may be added. 
 
 For chicken patties, make the sauce of butter, 
 flour, and milk, with the yolk of a hard-boiled 
 egg mashed fine ; add parsley and onion juice, 
 salt and pepper, and minced chicken. The 
 tart shells may be filled with jellies, marma- 
 lades, or preserved or rich stewed fruits. 
 
 souffle:s. 
 
 (Chicken or Fish.) 
 
 Take half a cupful of the white part of boiled 
 chicken, pound to a paste, moisten with two ta- 
 blespoonfuls of cream (or milk and butter), add 
 the beaten yolk of a raw egg, season with pars- 
 ley, mushrooms, or any preferred herb, salt and 
 
Catering for ^wo. 195 
 
 pepper to taste, add the frothed white of the 
 egg, put quickly and lightly into a buttered 
 mould, and either set in a hot oven for a few 
 minutes, or in a saucepan of boiling water. 
 Cook only long enough to set the egg; too 
 much cooking will toughen and spoil a souffle, 
 which must be served and eaten the moment it 
 comes from the fire. Put on a heated dish, and 
 pour around it a sauce made from chicken broth, 
 thickened with a little browned flour mixed with 
 butter, and flavored either with mushrooms, 
 onion, lemon juice, or wine. 
 
 Boiled fish may be used in the same way with 
 a seasoning of anchovies, wine, and cayenne. 
 Canned salmon is a very good basis for a soujQ36, 
 and the sauce of thin drawn butter may be im- 
 proved by the addition of capers. 
 
 SALMON, WITH HOLLANDAISB SAUCE. 
 
 Canned salmon may be used for this dish, 
 which will be found valuable in an emergency. 
 
 Heat a little butter in a frying-pan, and lay 
 the salmon in it long enough to cook and heat 
 thoroughly ; then put it on a dish, salt and pep- 
 per to taste, and serve either with HoUandaise 
 sauce, or cream sauce, or drawn butter, with 
 parsley or capers. 
 
 BAKED HAMBURG STEAK. 
 A "meat-cutter" is a most valuable kitchen 
 
196 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 utensil, and meat-balls and Hamburg steaks 
 may be prepared very quickly with it. Remove 
 all of the fat, tendons, and gristle from half a 
 pound of round steak, pass this through the cut- 
 ter, and then grind through a lump of fine kid- 
 ney suet the size of a hen's egg. 
 
 Mix all together, smooth into a square mound, 
 pepper, and dredge with flour, and bake in a 
 quick oven, rare or well done, as preferred. 
 
 Serve with butter and salt, pouring off the 
 grease first. This dish is delicious cold. Onion 
 juice may be added if liked, also sliced lemon 
 or watercress. 
 
 FRIZZLED BEEF. 
 
 Make a sauce of a dessert-spoonful of butter 
 stirred to a cream with one of flour, add a cup- 
 ful of boiling milk (water will do), stir, and cook 
 several minutes ; then add half a cupful of dried 
 beef, torn into inch pieces, and set on the back of 
 the range fifteen minutes to swell and get hot, 
 but not cook. 
 
 Stir occasionally, and add a little more milk 
 if it seems too thick or too salt. Pepper lightly, 
 and serve with bread toasted, dipped in salted 
 boiling water, and buttered liberally. 
 
 The toast should be on a separate dish. 
 
 Hot hard-boiled eggs make an excellent gar' 
 nish. 
 
Catering for ^wo. 197 
 
 REMNANTS OF COLD OVBN-ROASTS OR 
 BROILS. 
 
 Take any oven-roast, steak or chops, and fry 
 slowly two hours, or until tender, with a slice 
 of fat salt pork ; or stew in just enough water to 
 cover. 
 
 Be careful not to burn, and keep closely cov- 
 ered. When done, throw away the grease, trim 
 off fat, gristle, and bones, cut the meat into 
 mouthfuls, sprinkle with salt, pepper, butter, 
 and flour, add a little water and beef extract, 
 or any gravy at hand. Lay on top of the meat 
 hot mashed potatoes, and brown in the oven. 
 
 For a change add a well-beaten egg to the po- 
 tatoes (two cupfuls), and a little more milk. 
 
 Bake in a quick oven. 
 
 Boiled meats or pot-roasts will not need to be 
 cooked before baking ; they are tender enough. 
 
 REMNANTS OF COLD POULTRY, VEJAL, 
 OR LAMB. 
 
 Mince the meat into pieces as large as large- 
 sized peas ; pick out all bone, gristle, fat, and 
 skin, and mix with the following sauce : Mash 
 the yolk of a hard-boiled egg with a table- 
 spoonful of butter, a little salt, and a pinch of 
 cayenne, and when it becomes a paste add a tea- 
 spoonful of flour. Pour on two thirds of a cup- 
 ful of boiling milk, cook a few minutes, add the 
 
igs Catering for ^wo. 
 
 white of the egg, chopped fine, and then stir in 
 the meat. Set on the stove long enough to heat, 
 but not cook, and serve on thin slices of dipped 
 and buttered toast. 
 
 Another way is to make a dressing of equal 
 parts of cracker- or bread-crumbs and oysters, 
 salt, pepper, and butter to taste ; lay this on 
 meat, and brown in oven. 
 
 Another way is to chop the meat fine, bind to- 
 gether with a thick drawn butter, form into flat 
 cakes, dip into powdered cracker-crumbs (or 
 beaten egg and cracker), and fry in a little but- 
 ter or hot lard (salt to taste). 
 
 Still another way is to cut the meat in slices 
 half an inch thick, trim off the fat, brush with 
 milk or water (or dip into beaten egg), bread 
 with powdered cracker-crumbs, and fry just long 
 enough to brown outside. 
 
 Serve on a bed of watercress, and cover each 
 cutlet with a thick sauce made of a little flour, 
 cracker-crumbs, butter, boiling water, and 
 lemon juice, or minced parsley. 
 
 Pass currant or grape jelly. 
 
 Roast pork may be made into cutlets, in which 
 case pass crab-apple jelly or stewed apples. 
 Saltine crackers are nice for breading. 
 
 BSPAGNOLB, OR BROWN SAUCE, FOR 
 STEWS, ETC. 
 
 Fry one slice of onion (and a slice each of 
 
Catering for C^wo. 199 
 
 carrot and turnip, adding parsley and celery if 
 liked) in a tablespoonful of chopped salt pork 
 or butter, until a rich brown. 
 
 Then add an even tablespoonful of flour, cook 
 up, and add salt and a half-cupful of boiling 
 water in which has been dissolved a quarter of 
 a spoonful of beef extract. 
 
 Cook a few minutes and strain. Rich stock 
 may be used instead of the extract. 
 
 This sauce may be made with the onion alone 
 if the other vegetables are not at hand, and a 
 half-teaspoon ful of curry-powder converts it 
 into a curry sauce. 
 
 ONION BUTTER. 
 
 For flavoring gravies, stews, and dishes of 
 cooked-over meats, an onion butter is a great 
 convenience, as it will keep for weeks in a cold 
 place. This butter can be used where onion is 
 objected to, even the most suspicious not being 
 able to detect its presence. 
 
 Slice a large white onion and fry it in two 
 tablespoonfuls of butter until the onion has 
 shrivelled and turned brown. 
 
 Then strain through a wire strainer into a 
 little earthen jar with a close cover. Throw 
 away the onion. A quarter-teaspoonful of this 
 is enough flavoring for a dish for two or three 
 persons. 
 
200 Catering tor ITwo. 
 
 SWEETBREAD SALAD. 
 
 One pair of lamb sweetbreads will make 
 enough salad for two people when served for 
 dinner as a separate course, but more will be 
 required for lighter meals. Pour boiling water 
 on them, let stand for a few minutes, and then 
 plunge them in ice-water. 
 
 When thoroughly chilled, pour on hot water 
 to cover, bring to a boil, and cook gently about 
 eight minutes. 
 
 They should be tender by this time. 
 
 Cool quickly by plunging again in ice-water, 
 break into small pieces, removing all gristle 
 and fat, and mix with cream salad dressing or 
 mayonnaise. Serve on crisp lettuce leaves. 
 
 Veal sweetbreads will take about twenty 
 minutes to cook, as they are much larger. 
 
 POTATO SALAD FOR TEA OR 
 LUNCHEON. 
 
 Chop fine one cupful of cold baked potato 
 and add the following sauce : Mix together one 
 teaspoonful of butter, one even teaspoonful of 
 flour, a pinch of mustard and one of cayenne, 
 one third of a teaspoonful of salt, and then add 
 half a cupful of boiling milk and a few drops 
 of onion juice. Cook until creamy, then add 
 the chopped potato and stir until the mass is 
 heated through. 
 
Catering for Zvoo, 201 
 
 When cold, serve with hard-boiled eggs and 
 French dressing. 
 
 This may be served with lettuce leaves or 
 with a simple garnish of capers and parsley. 
 Chopped meat is sometimes added to this salad, 
 in the proportion of one third potatoes to two 
 thirds meat. 
 
 SMOTHERED CHICKEN. 
 
 The chicken for this dish must be young, 
 tender, and plump. 
 
 Have it split as for broiling. 
 
 Wipe dry with a cloth, spread it liberally 
 with butter all over, dust with flour and pepper, 
 and lay it, skin side down, on a meat-rack in a 
 dripping-pan. Pour in a cupful of boiling 
 water, add a few sprigs of parsley, cover closely, 
 and bake in a hot oven thirty minutes, or longer 
 if necessary. 
 
 Then turn the chicken skin side up, and 
 brown uncovered ten or fifteen minutes. 
 
 Cut up the giblets, cooked tender in one cup- 
 ful of water, add a spoonful of flour and a lump 
 of butter the size of a hen's egg, add the water 
 from the giblets, stir all in the dripping-pan, 
 and cook, seasoning with salt, pepper, parsley, 
 or sweet marjoram. Joint the chicken so 
 it may be easily carved, but do not separate 
 it. Serve on a platter with the gravy poured 
 around. 
 
202 Catering for Ewo. 
 
 PICKED-UP CODFISH. 
 
 Pour boiling water on half a pound of salt 
 codfish picked into bits and bones removed. 
 Pour the water off in a few minutes and cover 
 with more. This will make the fish fresh 
 enough when it 'is drained the second time. 
 
 Blend a tablespoonful of butter and a dessert- 
 spoonful of flour together, add half a cup of 
 milk, and cook a few minutes. Then add the 
 codfish and a little minced parsley, simmer a 
 few minutes, and serve on a platter with a hard- 
 boiled egg cut in slices distributed over the 
 surface. 
 
 Add black pepper and capers if desired. 
 
 MAPLE-SUGAR SYRUP. 
 
 Break up one pound of genuine maple sugar, 
 pour over it three cupfuls of boiling water, and 
 set on back of the range to melt. Then strain 
 through several thicknesses of cheese-cloth 
 wrung out of water. Return to the fire and 
 boil and skim half an hour. There should be 
 one pint of syrup. 
 
 MILK TOAST. 
 
 Take dry pieces of bread, heat them in the 
 oven, then toast a fine even brown. Dip into 
 boiling salted water, butter, and place in a dish. 
 
 Boil a pint of rich milk and stir in it half a 
 
Catering for ^wo. 203 
 
 teaspoonful of corn-starch (or flour) mixed with 
 a heaping teaspoonful of butter; add salt to 
 taste, and after cooking a few minutes pour 
 over the toast. 
 
 CHEESB ON TOAST. 
 
 One half-cupful of old English cheese, grated ; 
 four tablespoonfuls of milk, one teaspoonful 
 of butter, one even teaspoonful of flour, one 
 pinch of salt. Blend flour and butter, add the 
 milk, boil up, add the cheese, boil up again, 
 and pour on toasted bread which has been 
 dipped in salted boiling water and slightly 
 buttered. 
 
 Set in the oven, covered, until wanted, but it 
 should be served soon after it is ready. 
 
 FRESH FISH (FRIED). 
 (Any preferred kind. One pound.) 
 
 After cleaning and scaling, wash in cold 
 water. Do this quickly and dry gently with a 
 napkin. Either dredge with flour or dip in 
 rolled cracker-crumbs (half a cup of crumbs 
 will be required). Sprinkle on half a teaspoon- 
 ful of salt and a dust of pepper, and fry a fine 
 brown in any fat preferred. A tablespoon ful 
 of butter, or the grease from two slices of fat 
 salt pork, will be sufl5cient. 
 
 Fry rapidly at first, then cook about ten min- 
 utes for each side on a cooler part of the stove. 
 
204 Catering for Zvoo* 
 
 Serve on a platter with lumps of butter dot- 
 ting the fish. Roes of shad or mackerel are 
 cooked the same way. 
 
 CODFISH BALLS. 
 
 Cut into inch pieces one heaping cupful of 
 salt codfish. Remove the bones and skin and 
 put into an earthen dish, pour on three cupfuls 
 of boiling water, and set on the stove to keep 
 warm, but not boil, for two hours. It should 
 be freshened enough by this time. Pour off the 
 water, pick into tiny bits, or chop, add one 
 heaping cupful of hot mashed potato and the 
 following drawn butter : Mix one teaspoonful 
 of flour with one heaping tablespoonful of but- 
 ter, add three tablespoonful s of boiling water 
 and a dust of pepper, and cook a few minutes. 
 
 Make into eight little flat cakes, dredge with 
 flour, and fry (next day) a delicate brown, in 
 salt-pork drippings. Serve on a platter with 
 the slices of fried salt pork, garnished with 
 parsley. 
 
 A border of hard-boiled eggs (hot) may be 
 added. 
 
 SAUSAGES (FRIED AND BAKED). 
 
 Sausages should be well cooked ; in fact pork 
 in any form should never be served unless it is 
 thoroughly well done. 
 
 Put the sausages in a pan, cover, and fry 
 
Catering tor Cwo. 205 
 
 slowly, turning from side to side until every 
 part has come in contact with the fire. Add a 
 little boiling water to the gravy, stir, boil up, 
 and pour over the sausages. 
 
 If baked, more time will be required. 
 
 Have the oven quite hot. Some cooks prefer 
 to cut each sausage in half, lengthwise, adding 
 a little extra seasoning of sage and pepper. 
 
 OATMEAL. 
 
 One scant cupful of *' pin-head '* oatmeal, 
 three and a half cupfuls of boiling water, and 
 one even teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Stir until it begins to boil, and in a little 
 while stir again ; then cover and cook slowly 
 two hours. 
 
 In cool weather this will keep several days, 
 and may be warmed up as required. 
 
 The "Universal" pot is the best utensil in 
 which to cook oatmeal and hominy ; it is a 
 crock set in a bottomless tin frame. 
 
 Pin-head oatmeal is far superior to any of the 
 steam-cooked oats. 
 
 INDIAN-MEAL MUSH. 
 
 Pour one pint of boiling water on one cupful 
 of yellow Indian meal and a scant teaspoonful 
 of salt. 
 
 Stir constantly to prevent lumping. 
 
2o6 Catering tot c:wo. 
 
 When well mixed, tie closely in a wet cloth 
 and boil steadily two or three hours, or longer, 
 in a pot of salted boiling water. Set a tea-stand 
 in the bottom of the pot to prevent the cloth 
 from sticking. 
 
 Turn into a dish, and when cold, slice, dredge 
 with flour (or bread-crumbs), and fry in hot salt- 
 pork drippings or butter. 
 
 Serve hot with butter and syrup. 
 
 MUFFINS. 
 (Baki n g-Powder . ) 
 
 Sift one heaping cupful of flour with one tea- 
 spoonful of baking-powder and a scant half- 
 teaspoonful of salt. 
 
 Beat one egg, and one cup of milk and water 
 (half and half), one teaspoon ful of sugar, a heap- 
 ing tablespoonful of butter, melted ; stir well, 
 and then add the flour. 
 
 Bake in gem pans or muffin-rings twenty 
 minutes in a hot oven. 
 
 POACHED EGGS. 
 
 Half fill a frying-pan with boiling water, put 
 in a little salt and half a dozen muffin-rings. 
 
 Break the eggs, one at a time, in a saucer, and 
 slip one into each muffin-ring. 
 
 Boil until the whites assume a milky color. 
 
 Serve on buttered toast which has been freed 
 from crust. 
 
Catering tor Zxoo, 207 
 
 A perforated skimmer should be used to take 
 up the eggs. 
 They will require about one minute to cook. 
 
 SCRAMBLED EGGS. 
 
 Allow a teaspoon ful of butter for each egg. 
 
 Heat the butter, add the eggs unbeaten, and 
 stir, cooking slowly a few minutes ; they should 
 be soft when taken from the fire, and a trifle 
 juicy. If hard, the dish will be spoiled. 
 
 Serve immediately. 
 
 HAM OMELETTE. 
 
 Beat three eggs until whites and yolks are 
 blended, — no longer ; eggs for omelettes do not 
 require much beating. 
 
 Add a quarter of a cup of milk in which one 
 heaping tablespoonful of finely powdered bread 
 crumbs have soaked thoroughly, and a table- 
 spoonful of melted butter. 
 
 Fry in a sheet-iron frying-pan, heated very 
 hot, two minutes, drawing the omelette away 
 from the sides of the pan so that the uncooked 
 part can reach the fire. 
 
 Sprinkle with pepper, and lay over the top 
 two tablespoon fuls of finely minced ham (either 
 fried or boiled). Cover the pan until the ham is 
 hot ; then loosen the omelette with a broad knife- 
 blade, and roll it up. 
 
 Serve at once. ' 
 
2o8 Catering tot Q;wo. 
 
 Sliced raw tomatoes make an appetizing gar- 
 nish for this dish. To be right the omelette 
 must be soft inside ; too hot a fire, or too long 
 cooking, will make it tough and hard. Bacon, 
 freed from rind and fried delicately brown, 
 chopped fine, may be used instead of ham. No 
 butter will be required, as the omelette should 
 be fried in the bacon-drippings. 
 
 If preferred, omelettes may be baked in a hot 
 oven ; they should be left in just long enough 
 to set the eggs. 
 
 BACON AND EGGS. 
 
 Fry the bacon a delicate brown. 
 
 Put the eggs into mufiin -rings in the hot bacon 
 fat (first removing the bacon), and baste them 
 constantly with the fat until the white of the 
 eggs becomes milk-white ; then serve, arranged 
 around the bacon. 
 
 If liked, a gravy may be made of flour, bacon 
 fat, and milk, and poured over. 
 
 Thirty seconds should cook the eggs. 
 
 LIVER AND BACON. 
 
 Fry a quarter of a pound of bacon, and when 
 nicely browned, but not crisp, put it on a plat- 
 ter. Into the hot drippings put two slices of 
 liver, floured and peppered. Cook about ten 
 minutes, basting continually with the bacon fat. 
 
Catering for ^wo. 209 
 
 Add one teaspoonful of flour to three table- 
 spoonfuls of fat, and half a cup of boiling milk, 
 to make a gravy ; cook, and pour over the liver. 
 A teaspoonful of lemon may be added, and a 
 few drops of onion-juice if liked ; in that case 
 make the gravy of water. 
 
 Serve with dipped toast or pan-cakes. 
 
 I^amb's kidneys may be substituted for the 
 liver ; split them through the centre, remove 
 the veins of fat, cover with cold water, boil un- 
 til scum rises ; skim ; then drain and dredge 
 with flour, and proceed the same as for liver ; 
 the water may be used for the gravy. 
 
 Lamb's kidneys may be fried in butter, and 
 breaded, instead of floured, if preferred. They 
 may also be served without the bacon. 
 
 BROILED FISH. 
 
 Flour the fish (which has been cleaned, 
 rinsed, and dried) lightly, and broil on a well- 
 greased gridiron over a clear but quiet fire, 
 turning frequently enough to prevent burning. 
 
 It should take about half an hour to broil a 
 fish one inch thick. Fish must be cooked 
 slowly and thoroughly. Serve with butter, 
 salt, and pepper to taste. Salt fish must be 
 freshened by soaking over night in enough 
 water to fully cover. Wipe dry before cooking. 
 
 Lemons, pickles, or parsley may be used as 
 a garnish. 
 
2IO Catering for ^wo. 
 
 HAM ON TOASl. 
 
 Make a drawn-butter sauce ; add some cold 
 ham, finely minced, and as soon as it is warmed 
 through spread on squares of dipped toast. 
 
 The dish may be garnished with poached eggs 
 or sliced hard-boiled eggs. 
 
 After hard-boiled eggs are shelled they may 
 be kept hot by putting them in a bowl of hot 
 water until ready to serve. 
 
 One tablespoonful of minced ham is a por- 
 tion. If fried ham is used, and any milk gravy 
 remains, use that in the sauce. Use only enough 
 sauce to make the ham stick together in a com- 
 pact mass. 
 
 VEAL IvOAF. 
 
 Fry one eighth of a pound of sliced salt pork. 
 When delicately browned, but before it becomes 
 crisp, put it, without the grease, into an agate, 
 or the "Universal" pot, and arrange on top a 
 pound of veal cut from the thick part of the leg. 
 
 Sprinkle some parsley on top, add a gill of 
 water, cover closely, and simmer three hours. 
 Set away to get cold, when chop into pieces the 
 size of peas ; remove the parsley. Add a pinch 
 each of thyme, cayenne pepper, and black pep- 
 per, one teaspoonful of onion-juice, one well- 
 beaten egg, a tablespoonful of melted butter, 
 and the melted jelly from the meat. 
 
 Salt to taste, and pack smoothly in a baking- 
 
Catering for Zvoo, 211 
 
 dish ; if there is not enough jelly to make it 
 moist and rather juicy, add a little water. 
 Cover the top with bread crumbs, and bake 
 slowly one hour, covered. 
 
 Slice cold, garnish with celery, and pass 
 pickled peaches ; or garnish with skinned ripe 
 tomatoes or sliced lemon, and pass celery. 
 
 WHEAT AND INDIAN GRIDDLE-CAKES. 
 
 One overflowing cup of sour (loppered) milk, 
 one scant half-level teaspoonful of soda, one well- 
 beaten egg, one tablespoonful of butter (melted), 
 two thirds of a teaspoonful of salt, three even 
 tablespoonfuls of yellow corn meal, one half 
 cup of flour measured before sifting. Mix half 
 an hour before baking, and then add the soda 
 dissolved in one teaspoonful of cold water. 
 
 Beat it in thoroughly and bake on a hot 
 griddle. 
 
 In cold weather sour milk may be secured by 
 setting fresh milk in a temperature of about 
 75° for a few days. Whip a few minutes before 
 using to make it light and foamy. 
 
 Bread cakes are made in the same way by 
 substituting bread crumbs for the flour, and 
 flour for the meal. A pinch of salt will be 
 sufficient for these. 
 
 If too thin add an extra spoonful of flour. 
 
 Prepare the bread crumbs in the following 
 way : 
 
212 Catering tor q:wo. 
 
 Cut the crusts from stale bread, put both 
 (crusts and inside) in the oven to dry ; then roll 
 to powder. The crusts, being brown, should be 
 kept by themselves for browning the tops of 
 dishes : the inside part is for griddle-cakes and 
 puddings. 
 
 These cakes are delicious served for dessert 
 at luncheon, with sugar and butter, or butter 
 and maple-syrup. 
 
 QUICK BBEF-TBA. 
 
 Pass through the meat grinder, or chop very 
 fine, one pound of round or stewing beef (raw) 
 freed from fat before grinding. Put into a 
 bowl, cover with one cupful of cold water, set 
 in a saucepan of cold water and cook (after 
 boiling begins) ten minutes, stirring occasion- 
 ally. Strain through a coarse sieve, and add 
 salt and pepper to taste. If too strong add a 
 little more water to the meat and cook up again. 
 Beef-tea is apt to be too weak as it is generally 
 made ; therefore be careful not to add too much 
 water ; a few spoonfuls is enough. 
 
 TO BOIIv NEW POTATOES. 
 
 New potatoes are at their best when baked, 
 but they can generally be made light and mealy 
 if the following rules are observed. Scrape off 
 the skin, cut in three-quarter-inch slices, soak 
 in cold water a few minutes and then put them 
 
Catertna tor ^wo. 213 
 
 into rapidly boiling (salted) water, cover until 
 hard boiling begins, then partly uncover. 
 They must boil continuously and vigorously. 
 When done, drain, spread a muslin over the 
 potatoes, replace the cover and shake the pot 
 up and down several times as violently as pos- 
 sible : the potatoes will be broken and they 
 will lie in a drifting, snowy mass. 
 
 Set on the stove a minute only, covered with 
 the muslin ; then put into a heated dish, 
 sprinkle with salt and pepper and keep hot 
 covered with muslin until ready to serve. 
 
 BAKED HASH. 
 
 Hash may be baked in the oven until it is a 
 fine brown on top. Cooked in this way it 
 makes a nice dinner dish if garnished. 
 
 Serve in baking-dish, or slip it onto a platter, 
 and border with potatoes sliced, breaded with 
 bread crumbs, and fried a rich brown in a spoon- 
 ful of salt-pork drippings. 
 
 GRAHAM MUFFINS. 
 
 Follow the rule for Raised Steamed Dump- 
 ling, substituting two cupfuls of Graham flour 
 for the one cupful of white flour and use 
 molasses instead of sugar. 
 
 Raise and bake in patty-pans instead of 
 steaming. 
 
214 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 SARDINE SALAD. 
 
 Lay the sardines upon brown paper to absorb 
 the oil. Scrape off the skin and remove the 
 bones, and squeeze lemon juice over them. 
 
 Arrange them upon crisp lettuce leaves and 
 serve with either French or mayonnaise dress- 
 ing. 
 
 Sliced hard-boiled eggs make a pretty gar- 
 nish. For sandwiches mix the sardines with 
 mayonnaise and spread upon thin slices of 
 bread and butter. 
 
 BUCKWHEAT CAKES. 
 
 Mix together one cup of buckwheat flour, 
 half an even teaspoonful of salt, one cupful of 
 lukewarm water, and one eighth of a yeast- 
 cake dissolved in three extra tablespoon fuls of 
 water. Set to rise over night. Just before 
 breakfast add one teaspoonful of New Orleans 
 molasses and three tablespoonfuls of hot water 
 in which has been dissolved one eighth of a 
 teaspoonful of soda, and beat together well. 
 
 One or two spoonfuls of the batter may be 
 saved from the batch to add to the next 
 mixing. 
 
 This gives a pleasing acidity to the cakes. 
 
 Buckwheat may be eaten from October until 
 April ; it is too heating during the rest of the 
 year. 
 
CateciuQ toe Zvoo, 215 
 
 Properly made, buckwheat cakes are nutri- 
 tious and have great " staying " qualities; they 
 are to Americans what oatmeal is to the Scotch. 
 Grease griddle delicately with olive-oil. 
 
 MIIyK BREAD (TWO LOAVES). 
 
 Between five and six o'clock in the afternoon 
 make a sponge in the following way : 
 
 Pour one and a half cupfuls of boiling water 
 on six hops and when just lukewarm, strain, 
 squeezing the hops dry. 
 
 Measure this water and add enough more 
 water to make an exact cup and a half. Melt 
 in this hop-water half a cake of yeast and add 
 three even cupfuls of flour dipped from the bag 
 and sifted after measuring. Use a three-quart 
 basin ; cover closely, and set in a warm place 
 until about nine o'clock, when the sponge 
 should fill the basin about two thirds full or a 
 little over. Measure and sift three more cup- 
 fuls of flour, add one heaping teaspoonful of 
 salt and a pinch over, and put into a six-quart 
 vessel (agate or earthenware). Add a heaping 
 teaspoonful of lard and one tablespoonful of 
 sugar, and mix. Then pour in the sponge ; 
 rinse out the basin with one and a half cupfuls 
 of rich, creamy milk, even measure ; add this 
 to the flour, and mix. Turn on a lightly floured 
 board and knead into a soft springy mass, using 
 an even half-cupful, or less, of flour (according 
 
2i6 Catering for Zwo. 
 
 to its compactness) for this purpose. More flour 
 will make the bread hard. 
 
 Put it back into the large basin ; cover closely 
 and raise all night in a temperature of about 
 68° or 70°. 
 
 By seven in the morning or a little earlier, 
 it should nearly or quite fill the basin. Turn 
 out and knead just long enough to form into 
 loaves. Use not more than a teaspoonful of 
 flour for this last kneading, as the dough must 
 be soft and elastic. 
 
 Put into pans ; prick all over with a fork and 
 raise, covered, an hour or two in about 90° of 
 heat, when the dough should have more than 
 doubled in size. 
 
 For the first ten minutes the oven should be 
 hot enough to lightly brown the top ; at the 
 end of this time, moderate the fire a little, or 
 place the bread in a cooler part of the oven, 
 and continue to bake for thirty-five minutes 
 longer. Use new milk when possible, other- 
 wise scald and cool. In hot weather use it 
 cold ; in cold weather, lukewarm. 
 
 In cold weather set the dough on a feather 
 cushion while it is rising, and cover with a 
 woollen blanket at night. 
 
 This bread is not at its best the day it is 
 baked. It will keep a week properly protected 
 from the air in an earthen crock, and should 
 be entirely cold before being put away. 
 
Catering for ^wo. 217 
 
 Use the square-cornered bread pans, filling 
 each a little less than half full : when the 
 dough rises to the top, it is ready for the oven. 
 
 Flour varies in degree of compactness from 
 one time to another, owing to certain con- 
 ditions, so that a cupful from one bag will 
 measure when sifted, more than a cupful from 
 another bag of the same brand when that is 
 sifted. Only experience and practice can teach 
 one how to regulate and overcome these vari- 
 ations. Wheat grown at different seasons 
 yields a different quality of flour. Its age after 
 grinding has something to do with its quality ; 
 also a humid climate. 
 
 When bread and cake deteriorate after the 
 middle of the barrel is passed, the cause will 
 sometimes be found to be dampness. Drying 
 the flour in the oven, sifting and cooling it, will 
 in all probability improve it greatly. 
 
 Flour should always be kept in a cool, dry 
 place : a bag may stand on a shelf, but a barrel 
 should be set on a raised frame of slats, for it 
 surely will become damp if allowed to rest upon 
 the basement floor. 
 
 Flour of a very compact nature will require 
 more wetting in the sponge. 
 
 When mixing, if the sponge is stiff and flaky 
 instead of smooth and moist, add a spoonful or 
 two of lukewarm water, sprinkling it on and 
 stirring it in. 
 
2i8 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Too much moisture will make bread tough 
 and flabby, and it will make cake heavy ; on 
 the other hand, too much flour will make bread 
 stiff and cake "floury." 
 
 When of an unusually compact quality, try 
 sifting before measuring, for cake. 
 
 Some cake-makers have better success by 
 greasing only the bottom of the pans, cutting 
 the cake from the sides after it becomes cold. 
 
 Cake should be put into a moderate oven at 
 first, the heat being increased towards the last. 
 
 This allows the batter to expand before the 
 cake browns. 
 
 Pastry flour is preferred by some people for 
 cake and pastry ; this is made from winter 
 wheat. 
 
 Flour made from spring wheat is considered 
 best for bread. 
 
 Spring- wheat flour generally requires more 
 moisture than winter-wheat flour. 
 
 If by adding extra wetting, by sifting or 
 heating, flour still yields unsatisfactory results, 
 mix with one or two cups of pastry flour, which 
 will give bread of lighter texture. 
 
 GLUTEN BREAD. 
 
 Six cups entire-wheat flour, three cups of 
 water, half a yeast-cake, one teaspoon ful of salt, 
 two tablespoon fuls New Orleans molasses. 
 
 Make a sponge between six and seven p. m. 
 
Catering for ^wo. 2ig 
 
 of one half the flour, half the water, and the 
 yeast. At nine o'clock, or thereabouts, add 
 the remainder of the water and flour, the salt 
 and molasses, and knead with one half cup 
 extra of flour, into a smooth, soft mass. 
 
 Set to rise until morning, then make into 
 two loaves, let rise again to double the size, 
 and bake in a moderate oven about fifty min- 
 utes. 
 
 HOME-MADE YEAST. 
 
 Put into a small preserving jar half a cake 
 of yeast, and add one cupful of lukewarm water 
 in which potatoes have been boiled (unsalted), 
 and two even tablespoonfuls of sugar ; let stand 
 covered in a warm place, (about 90°), to ferment 
 for three hours. 
 
 Half of this yeast is equal to half a yeast- 
 cake, and in a cold place will keep sweet for 
 a week. 
 
 When any yeast is taken out replace it (three 
 hours before using) with potato-water and one 
 spoonful of sugar, and allow it to ferment, as at 
 first directed. 
 
 If at the end of a week none has been taken 
 out, pour ofi" one half and replace with potato- 
 water and sugar. Always stir well before 
 taking any out, and in making bread use a half- 
 cupful less of water on the hops. 
 
 This yeast may be kept alive indefinitely if 
 
220 Catering for CTwo. 
 
 the potato-water and sugar are added at the 
 right time (three hours before using), and the 
 other directions are observed. After the first 
 week the yeast should be used directly after 
 fermenting or the bread may be sour. 
 
 It should be renewed at least every seventh 
 day. It can, however, be made daily if one 
 requires yeast so often. If potato-water is not 
 at hand pour a half-cupful of boiling water 
 upon one tablespoonful of scraped raw potato, 
 and use this when lukewarm. 
 
 POTTED MEATS. 
 
 Remove bones, fat, and gristle, from any cold 
 pot-roast of veal, lamb, or poultry, and pound 
 to a paste in a mortar (or use chopping-bowl 
 and potato-masher). Add spice, or any of the 
 seasoning sauces to taste, or season simply with 
 salt and cayenne pepper. Put into an earthen 
 dish and steam in the steamer for two or three 
 hours. Meanwhile, cover the bones (broken if 
 poultry) with water, and boil down to a glaze. 
 Add this to the pounded meat with a teaspoon- 
 ful of melted butter for each half-cupful of meat. 
 Pack into small jars, holding enough for one 
 occasion, and bake in a slow oven half an hour. 
 When cold, pour over each jar a quarter of an 
 inch of melted butter, and set away in a cold 
 place. Boiled ham or tongue will need no salt. 
 Scraps may be used for potting. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 221 
 
 CLAM FRITTERS. 
 
 If the soft-shell clams are used, they must be 
 washed several times in their own liquor, with 
 a little water added to free them from sand, 
 straining the liquor each time. 
 
 The rule for the batter is given in Fruit 
 Fritters, and will require one pint of clams 
 chopped in the chopping bowl. Leave out the 
 salt and substitute a little of the clam-juice for 
 the milk. 
 
 CUCUMBERS SERVED WITH CREAM. 
 
 Peel, slice very thin, and soak for an hour 
 in ice-water, one cucumber and one onion. 
 
 Drain, arrange in salad-bowl, add salt and 
 pepper to taste, and pour on sweet cream which 
 has had a sufficient quantity of cider vinegar 
 stirred into it to make it agreeably sour. Add 
 a pinch of salt. Serve with the main part of 
 the meal. This is a delicious dish, and it is 
 claimed that the cream makes the cucumbers 
 digestible. 
 
 SPICED FISH (SOMETIMES CALLED 
 SOUSED OR POTTED FISH). 
 
 Whitefish, bass, shad, or mackerel may be 
 used. Cut the raw fish into pieces suitable in 
 size to serve as a portion. Put them in layers 
 with salt, peppercorns, two or three whole 
 
222 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 cloves, and a little cinnamon stick, into an 
 earthen jar, cover with cider vinegar, and bake 
 covered in a very slow oven for about eight 
 hours. Keep in a dry, cool place. 
 
 Serve for luncheon or tea. The cloves and 
 cinnamon can be omitted if desired. 
 
 BIRDS. 
 
 It is a good plan to vary the monotony of 
 every-day fare, by having a bird for dinner as 
 often as once a week — chicken, duck, squab, 
 pigeon, partridge, grouse, etc., can all be had 
 at certain times in their season at moderate 
 cost, if one takes the trouble to study the mar- 
 ket. All of these birds make delicious fricas- 
 sees, or they can be roasted in the oven, broiled 
 or smothered, or be made into pies. The scraps 
 can be made into croquettes for the next day's 
 dinner, or potted for sandwiches. The rules 
 given for preparing and cooking chicken and 
 duck may be applied to game birds. 
 
 A half-cupful of meat minced fine in chop- 
 ping-bowl, after discarding all bone, gristle, 
 and fat, will make two croquettes. Add salt 
 and pepper to taste, and enough gravy (thick- 
 ened with flour), to mould into egg-shaped 
 rolls. Sprinkle liberally with powdered bread 
 crumbs, and brown in a teaspoonful of hot 
 butter in an uncovered frying-pan. If covered 
 they will fall to pieces. If no gravy is at hand 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 223 
 
 with which to bind the meat together, make 
 a thick drawn-butter and use that instead. 
 Serve with a spoonful of bread-sauce made as 
 follows : Soak one teaspoonful of rolled bread 
 crumbs in one fourth of a cupful of boiling 
 water ; add this to the butter left in the pan, 
 after removing the croquettes, and boil until 
 thick enough to spread evenly. Add any 
 seasoning sauce, onion-, lemon-juice, or beef 
 extract. Send to table with a sprig of celery 
 or watercress, on each croquette. Croquettes 
 may be made the day before they are needed 
 and kept in the ice-box. Bread them just 
 before frying. 
 
 CHOCOLATE CUSTARD FOR LAYER 
 CAKE. 
 
 Two squares of chocolate, one half-cup of 
 granulated sugar, one half-cup of rich milk, 
 one rounded tablespoonful of flour, one half 
 of an egg, one pinch of salt, one half-tea- 
 spoonful of vanilla. Stir the flour, salt, sugar, 
 and chocolate broken into bits, together ; add 
 the egg and three spoonfuls of the milk ; stir, 
 and set over hot water, stirring until the choco- 
 late is melted. Then add slowly the rest of 
 the milk ; stand the saucepan on the stove and 
 cook gently for a few minutes, being careful 
 not to scorch, and stir constantly. It should 
 be jelly-like but not stiff; take from the fire, 
 
224 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 add vanilla, and when a little cool spread on 
 the cakes. Frost the top layer, or dust on 
 powdered sugar. 
 
 INDIAN MUFFINS. 
 Two heaping cupfuls of flour, one heaping 
 cupful of yellow corn-meal, one half-cupful of 
 butter (scant), one even cupful of sugar, three 
 eggs, two cupfuls of milk, three teaspoonfuls of 
 baking powder, one half level teaspoon ful 
 of salt. Sift together thoroughly the flour 
 meal, salt, and powder. Beat the eggs and 
 sugar, and stir in the milk ; add this to the flour, 
 etc., and at the last add the butter, melted. 
 Bake in the deep muflSn-pans in a moderately 
 hot oven ; serve hot. Warm up by standing 
 in a steamer on a plate. 
 
 SOUSE (PICKLED PIGS' FEET). 
 
 The butcher will send the feet parboiled. 
 Brush and scrape them with scrupulous care, 
 and boil in enough boiling water to cover for 
 five or six hours, replenishing from the boiling 
 teakettle as needed. Pigs' feet must be cooked 
 very tender, almost jelly-like, but not so long 
 that they will fall to pieces. When done, 
 sprinkle all sides with salt (after taking them 
 from 'the pot) and put them in an earthen jar. 
 Add cayenne pepper, a few peppercorns, 
 cloves, cinnamon, a bay leaf, and enough boil- 
 ing cider vinegar to cover. In a cold place, 
 
Catering tor ^wo, 225 
 
 souse will keep a month or longer. Warm up 
 in the chafing-dish or frying-pan. Serve with 
 lettuce or watercress sandwiches. Souse makes 
 a relishable little after-theatre supper. 
 
 SAUSAGE MEAT. 
 Three fourths of a pound of lean, and one 
 fourth of a pound of fat pork, one level 
 teaspoonful of salt, one rounded teaspoonful of 
 finely powdered sage ; add one half-teaspoonful 
 of black pepper. Chop the pork very fine, or 
 grind it, distribute the salt, etc., evenly through 
 the meat and pack in an earthen dish. It will 
 be ready to use in a day. In cold weather sev- 
 eral pounds may be made up at one time ; pour 
 melted (not hot) lard over the top to exclude 
 the air ; cover closely and keep in a cold, even 
 temperature. Corn-fed young pork makes the 
 most delicious sausage. Home-dried sage is 
 the best and most savory to use. 
 
 TOMATO FRITTERS. 
 
 Skin and slice cold, ripe tomatoes ; pepper and 
 salt lightly, and dip each slice into a batter made 
 of equal parts of milk, melted butter, and flour. 
 Fry in a frying-pan, turn with a cake-turner so 
 as not to break, and after browning one side 
 cook slowly. 
 
 Time, about twenty minutes. 
 
 If preferred the tomatoes may be breaded and 
 then fried in hot butter. 
 
226 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 CORN BREAD. 
 
 One generous tablespoonful of butter, one 
 fourth cup of sugar, and two eggs creamed 
 together ; one and a half cupfuls of milk, two 
 cupfuls of flour, one cupful of yellow Indian 
 meal, three teaspoonfuls baking-powder, and an 
 even half-teaspoonful of salt. Bake in a mod- 
 erate oven, in a bread pan. Serve hot the first 
 meal. 
 
 SPONGE CAKE. 
 
 Four eggs, one cup of granulated sugar, three 
 quarters of a cup of sifted flour, two pinches of 
 salt, juice and grated rind of half a lemon. 
 Whisk the yolks until thick and foaming, 
 which will take some ten minutes. Add the 
 sugar and grated lemon-rind and beat (always 
 beating — never stirring), forten minutes longer . 
 add the whisked whites, beating them in 
 lightly ; then sift in the flour and fold together 
 lightly, then add the lemon -juice, beating as 
 delicately as possible, and bake immediately, 
 either in the deep sponge-cake pan, or the deep 
 muflBn-pans, for about twenty minutes, in a 
 rather quick oven. To measure the flour for 
 this cake it must be sifted into the measure, the 
 salt added, and then sifted eight or nine times 
 more. No baking-powder is required, for if put 
 together as directed, it will be light enough. 
 The whites of eggs for cake should be beaten 
 
datering tor ^wo, 227 
 
 only long enough to make a coarse light froth, 
 and beating should cease the moment that they 
 are stiff. For meringues, they can be beaten a 
 little longer ; too much beating toughens them. 
 
 SPAGHETTI WITH TOMATO SAUCE. 
 
 Spaghetti is the small pipe macaroni. It can 
 be cooked augratin (that is, baked with cheese), 
 or served buttered with grated cheese passed, or 
 with a rich tomato-sauce as follows : Into a 
 quart of fast-boiling water put a cupful of 
 spaghetti broken into pieces ; add half a tea- 
 spoonful of salt, and boil for several minutes, 
 stirring to keep the pieces separated. 
 
 Cover and stand the pot where it will keep 
 just below the boiling point, for twenty min- 
 utes ; then bring forward and boil steadily for 
 about thirty -five minutes. 
 
 It must cook just long enough to mash easily. 
 Too long cooking will destroy its nutritive 
 qualities. The cover may be left partly off dur- 
 ing the last half-hour, so that the water may 
 cook away, thus avoiding the necessity for 
 draining. Macaroni is sweeter not to be drained. 
 To make the sauce, put into another saucepan 
 a slice of onion, a clove, and a sprig of parsley 
 or celery. Add a heaping tablespoonful of but- 
 ter and fry delicately ; add a tablespoonful of 
 flour, and stir until a pale brown ; then add two 
 cupfuls of cooked and strained tomatoes. Cook 
 
228 Catering tor tlwo. 
 
 a few minutes ; remove the onion, clove, and 
 parsley ; add the spaghetti. Salt, and pepper to 
 taste, and serve hot. Macaroni may be warmed 
 up by setting the dish covered in a place where 
 it will heat but not cook. It may have bouillon 
 added and make a delicious soup. It may have 
 milk and a little soda added, making a tomato 
 bisque. 
 
FANCY DESSERTS. 
 
 STRAWBERRY WHIP. 
 
 Mash to a pulp one cupful of ripe strawberries, 
 and sweeten to taste. Add one teaspoonful of 
 gelatine soaked in a tablespoonful of cold water 
 and then melted ; also the white of an egg 
 whisked to a froth. Set on ice, and serve ice 
 cold in champagne glasses. Pass ladyfingers. 
 
 Cherries or raspberries may be served in the 
 same way. 
 
 A teaspoonful of whipped cream to each por- 
 tion is a great addition. 
 
 COFFEE BAVARIAN CREAM. 
 
 Soak for half an hour one heaping table- 
 spoonful of gelatine, in one quarter of a cupful 
 of milk. Beat until very creamy (in an agate 
 saucepan) the yolk of one egg, and two heaping 
 tablespoonfuls of granulated sugar, and pour on 
 this slowly, stirring continually, two thirds of 
 a cupful of milk, boiling hot. Set into another 
 saucepan containing boiling water, and cook 
 22g 
 
230 Catering tor tTwo. 
 
 four minutes, stirring constantly from the bot- 
 tom and sides. 
 
 Then add the soaked gelatine, stir and cook 
 one minute longer, and add a pinch of salt. 
 
 When cold, and before it is set, add half a 
 cupful of cold, strong coffee. (Java is best.) 
 
 As soon as the coffee is well stirred in, whip 
 in the cream, which is prepared in this way. 
 
 Whip to a stiff froth five tablespoonfuls of 
 cream ; add the white of the egg whisked to a 
 stiff froth, then add the coffee and pour into 
 a shallow glass dish. Set in a cold, but not 
 freezing place for several hours : in summer set 
 on ice. When thoroughly set, add the Sea-foam 
 cream, flavored with two teaspoonfuls of coffee. 
 
 To be a success the quantities must be meas- 
 ured very carefully ; it is a delicious dish when 
 made just right. 
 
 Five even teaspoonfuls of gelatine will make 
 the one heaping tablespoonful required. 
 
 Two heaping dessert-spoonfuls of coffee in 
 two thirds of a cupful of boiling water will 
 make the coffee. 
 
 To get a level teaspoonful of gelatine, press 
 down with a broad knife-blade. 
 
 CARAMEL SEA-FOAM CREAM MOUSSE. 
 
 Sea-foam cream is made of whipped cream 
 and whipped gelatine, and it cannot be a suc- 
 cess unless both will whip perfectly. The cream 
 
Catering for ^wo. 231 
 
 must be stiflf, and the gelatine a solid froth be- 
 fore they are put together. 
 
 Put one cupful of ice-cold cream and two tea- 
 spoonfuls of caramel into a cold bowl set in an- 
 other of cracked ice and salt. 
 
 Whip until stiff; then add three tablespoon- 
 fuls of confectioner's sugar, a few drops of ex- 
 tract of vanilla, and a few grains of salt. 
 
 Soak four level teaspoonfuls of gelatine in 
 twenty teaspoonfuls of cold water ten minutes. 
 
 Then melt over the teakettle, and when a 
 little cool whip until it is a solid froth, which 
 will take about ten minutes. 
 
 Add this to the cream, and whip all together 
 thoroughly ; turn into a cold mould, and pack 
 in ice and salt for three hours. 
 
 When ready to serve, turn out on a cold dish, 
 and serve with any seasonable fruit, such as 
 berries, or oranges cut in slices. Ripe peaches 
 may be peeled and halved, the stone-cavities 
 filled with cracked ice, and covered with sugar ; 
 half a fine peach is a portion. The fruit should 
 be chilled. Care should be taken to have all 
 utensils perfectly dry and clean, as gelatine 
 will not whip to a froth if salt, cream, white of 
 egg, or any foreign substance touches it before 
 frothing. 
 
 Cream sold in half-pint glass jars is reliable 
 for whipping. 
 
«32 Catering for ^wo, 
 
 SKA-FOAM CREAM FOR PUDDINGS. 
 
 Whip to a stifiF froth four tablespoon fuls of 
 cream ; add two teaspoon fuls of confectioner's 
 sugar and a few grains of salt. 
 
 Soak one level teaspoon ful of gelatine in four 
 teaspoon fuls of cold water ten minutes ; then 
 melt over the teakettle or in the oven. 
 
 When a little cool, whip with a wire spoon 
 six or seven minutes ; it should be well frothed 
 at the end of this time. Add immediately to the 
 whipped cream, and beat well for a minute or 
 two ; flavor with vanilla, wine, coffee, or cara- 
 mel, according to the dish it is to be used 
 on. 
 
 Pour on the cold pudding or cake, and set on 
 ice for an hour or two. 
 
 BOIIyED RICE WITH WHIPPED-EGG 
 SAUCE. 
 
 Wash, but do not soak, a scant half-cupful of 
 rice (Carolina rice is best). Pour this into two 
 cupfuls of milk, stirring until it boils ; then add 
 an even half-teaspoonful of salt, cover closely, 
 and boil very slowly for half an hour on a cool 
 part of the stove. Serve hot, either with 
 whipped-egg sauce, or with butter and sugar, 
 or cream and sugar, or with tutti-frutti sauce. 
 
Catering tor Zvoo. 233 
 
 TUTTI-FRUTTI SAUCE FOR PLAIN 
 PUDDINGS. 
 
 Seed half a cupful of table raisins, pour over 
 them a cupful of cold water, and set on the 
 stove to get hot gradually. Simmer half an 
 hour ; then add a teaspoouful each of candied 
 citron, orange, and lemon peel, chopped fine ; 
 also, if desired, a few blanched almonds, also 
 chopped, and one third of a cupful of sugar ; 
 simmer until the candied fruit is soft enough 
 to break when pressed between the fingers. 
 Thicken with one level teaspoonful of corn- 
 starch blended with one heaping teaspoonful 
 of butter. Add brandy or wine. 
 
 If the water boils away, add more from the 
 boiling kettle. 
 
 SAUCE FOR STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE. 
 
 Beat together one tablespoonful of butter and 
 two of sugar. Add the yolk of an egg and 
 beat several minutes ; then whisk in the frothed 
 white and one third of a cupful of boiling 
 water. 
 
 Cook over the teakettle about two minutes, 
 and add any part of or the whole of a cup of 
 cream. 
 
 Keep hot, but do not cook. 
 
 Heat the cream before adding it to the egg 
 mixture. Salt to taste and flavor with a table- 
 spoonful of sherry. 
 
234 Catering tor Cwo. 
 
 FRUIT FRITTERS : PEACHES, APPLES, 
 OR BERRIES. 
 
 One half-cupful flour, one third cupful milk, 
 one half-teaspoonful baking-powder, one egg, 
 a large pinch of salt, one dessert-spoonful of 
 melted butter, one pint of sliced fruit or berries 
 or stoned cherries. 
 
 Sift flour, baking-powder and salt together ; 
 beat the egg ; add the butter and milk, then the 
 flour, and lastly the fruit, lightly sugared if 
 desired. 
 
 Bake in spoonfuls on a griddle. 
 
 Serve hot, either with butter and powdered 
 sugar or hot sugar syrup, (one cup of sugar 
 cooked until clear with one third of a cup of 
 water). Corn fritters may be made of this rule 
 by adding a pint of grated or chopped corn 
 to the batter. 
 
 MUSKMELONS WITH ICE-CREAM AND 
 FRUIT. 
 
 Put small muskmelons on ice, and just be- 
 fore serving, cut in halves, remove the seeds, 
 and serve with a spoonful of ice-cream in each 
 half. 
 
 Ice-cold whipped cream may be used in place 
 of ice-cream. Flavor and sweeten to taste. 
 
 If Sea-foam cream is preferred, set the 
 melons on ice for an hour or two before and 
 after putting in the cream. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 235 
 
 If muskmelons are not sweet and delicious, 
 cut them into cubes (of course rejecting the 
 rind) and serve slightly salted with sweetened 
 cream, or cream and powdered sugar. Melons 
 that would be disappointing by themselves, 
 are excellent when served with well sugared 
 fruit. 
 
 A single variety of fruit may be used, or a 
 mixture of berries and cherries, pineapple, 
 peaches, plums, grapes and orange juice in the 
 following way : Shred the pineapple, peel and 
 quarter the peaches, quarter and stone the 
 plums and seed the grapes. 
 
 Mix together, add a little orange juice and 
 some brandy or Jamaica rum, and when it is ice 
 cold arrange in small melon-halves, one for 
 each portion. 
 
 Sugar to taste. 
 
 LUNCHKON DESSERT. FRENCH TOAST 
 WITH SUGAR, SYRUP, OR HONEY. 
 
 Beat an egg with a gill of milk ; add salt to 
 taste ; dip slices of bread, or the steamed raised 
 dumpling in this batter, and fry a delicate 
 brown in hot butter. 
 
 Melt one cupful of sugar with half a cupful 
 of water, cook a few minutes, flavor with lemon 
 extract, brandy, or fruit syrup, and serve hot. 
 
236 Catering for tTwo. 
 
 FRUIT CAKB. 
 
 Sift together one teaspoonful each of nutmeg, 
 allspice, cloves, salt, two teaspoonfuls cin- 
 namon, three cups flour, and one heaping tea- 
 spoonful of baking powder. 
 
 Add to this one pound of currants, one pound 
 of raisins, seeded, and half a pound of citron 
 sliced fine. 
 
 Beat two eggs into one cup of molasses, cream 
 one cup of butter with one cup of brown sugar ; 
 add to the molasses ; beat well ; add one cupful 
 of strong coffee, and then the flour, etc. Bake 
 two and a half hours in a slow oven, careful not 
 to let it burn. 
 
 In a close tin box, this cake has been kept 
 for three years. 
 
 GOLD AND SILVER CAKE WITH OR 
 WITHOUT FRUIT. 
 
 Use the rule for loaf cake as to quantities, 
 beating, etc., for each cake excepting the eggs. 
 The three eggs will do for the two cakes ; the 
 yolks for the gold cake, and the whites for the 
 silver cake. 
 
 Add two tablespoon fuls of water to the gold 
 cake and if desired two cupfuls of seeded raisins 
 ■well floured. 
 
 Citron is the proper fruit for silver cake. 
 
 Slice half a pound in thin slices and add 
 
Catering for Zxoo* 237 
 
 about two tablespoon fuls of flour. (No extra 
 flour will be needed if the citron is not used.) 
 
 Flavor with a few drops of almond extract. 
 
 Sometimes fruit is found to be more evenly- 
 distributed if it is put in the pan in alternate 
 layers with the batter. 
 
 Citron cake will keep a month or longer. 
 
 POUND CAKE. 
 
 Three eighths of a cupful of butter, one cupful 
 of flour, put lightly into the cup, one slightly 
 rounded teaspoonful of baking-powder, a large 
 pinch of salt, one half-cupful of granulated 
 sugar, two eggs, one teaspoonful of brandy or 
 other flavoring. 
 
 With the hand cream the butter ; add the flour 
 (sifted three times with salt and powder) and 
 stir until light, (it should look like whipped 
 cream at this stage) then add the sugar and 
 flavoring and stir for several minutes. Add 
 the eggs (unbeaten) and beat (still with the 
 hand) for two minutes longer. 
 
 Bake in a moderate oven about forty minutes. 
 
 MOLASSES CAKE. 
 
 Stir together in a mixing-bowl, half a cupful 
 of Porto Rico molasses, half a cupful of dark- 
 est brown sugar, one third of a cupful of 
 softened (not melted) butter, one egg, half a tea- 
 spoonful of cinnamon, the same of ginger, a 
 
238 Catering tor XTwo. 
 
 pinch each of cloves, allspice, mace (or nutmeg) 
 and salt. 
 
 Sift with one and a half cupfuls of flour, one 
 teaspoonful of cream of tartar ; add two cupfuls 
 of raisins, which have been stoned and steamed 
 (on a plate) for an hour in a steamer. Add one 
 fourth of a cupful of warm water (in which has 
 been dissolved one half of a level teaspoonful of 
 soda), then add the flour and raisins. Stir 
 lightly, but thoroughly, and pour into a shallow 
 pan lined with greased paper and bake one hour 
 in a moderate oven. 
 
 When a broom straw will come out free from 
 dough, the cake is done. 
 
 GINGER SNAPS. 
 
 Stir together until thoroughly mixed, one 
 cup either of butter or beef drippings, one cup- 
 ful of molasses, one cupful brown sugar, pressed 
 down, two heaping teaspoon fuls ground ginger, 
 and half a level teaspoonful of soda, dissolved 
 in four heaping tablespoonfuls of cold water. 
 Add four cups of flour dipped from the bag, and 
 sifted after measuring. Roll out an eighth of an 
 inch in thickness and cut with a 2|-inch cutter. 
 Lift with a broad knife-blade or cake-turner, 
 and arrange on the inverted bottom of buttered 
 tins; bake in a moderate hot oven, very careful 
 not to burn. If butter or the fat from corned beef 
 is used, a pinch of salt will be required, but with 
 lard or beef drippings salt to taste. 
 
Catering tor tlwo. 239 
 
 Porto Rico molasses makes a dark colored 
 snap and it is preferred on this account as well 
 as for its flavor by some cooks. 
 
 New Orleans molasses, on the other hand, 
 has a yellow hue and is more delicate in flavor. 
 Mash the soda very fine and smooth oflF with a 
 knife-blade ; then divide exactly in the middle, 
 lengthwise of the spoon. 
 
 Flour the board and rolling-pin and only roll 
 out about one eighth of the quantity at a time. 
 Put the trimmings aside and roll out by them- 
 selves at the last. Use as little flour as possible 
 in rolling out. This quantity will make one 
 hundred snaps. Keep in air-tight glass jars in 
 a dry place. 
 
 HOT GINGERBREAD AND WAFERS. 
 
 Mix together half a cupful of butter (softened 
 but not melted) two thirds of a cupful of New 
 Orleans molasses, three tablespoonfuls of cold 
 water in which has been dissolved one third of 
 a level teaspoonful of soda (mashed before 
 measuring) and one teaspoonful of ground 
 ginger. 
 
 Add one heaping cupful of flour dipped from 
 the bag and sifted after measuring, with a pinch 
 of salt. 
 
 Stir till smooth and pour one half of the bat- 
 ter into a very shallow pan ; bake in a hot oven 
 
240 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 and serve hot, breaking into portions instead of 
 cutting. 
 
 Put the remainder of the batter in half tea- 
 spoonfuls (two inches apart) upon the bottom 
 of inverted tins lightly buttered, and bake in a 
 quick oven. 
 
 These wafers are crisp when fresh ; if thej^ 
 become soft, set them in a hot oven for a few 
 minutes and when cold they will be crisp again. 
 
 Served hot, with cream for sauce, gingerbread 
 makes a very nice dessert. 
 
 SOFT GINGERBREAD. (HOT OR COLD.) 
 
 One cup of molasses, one half-cup butter, 
 one fourth of a cup of warm water, one level 
 teaspoonful of soda, two teaspoonfuls of ginger, 
 one egg, two cups of sifted flour. 
 
 Stir the soda into the molasses until it foams, 
 beat in the egg, add the butter (softened but 
 not melted) then the water, ginger and flour. 
 
 Bake in a shallow tin about thirty minutes 
 in a moderate oven. 
 
 Put the flour lightly in the cup when measur- 
 ing, as too much flour will spoil the cake. 
 
 A pinch of salt may be added. If the taste 
 of soda is objected to, add half a teaspoonful of 
 cream of tartar to the flour. 
 
catering tor Ewo. 241 
 
 FONDANT, OR FOUNDATION FOR CREAM 
 CANDIES. 
 
 Stir while dissolving on the edge of the stove, 
 two cupfuls of granulated sugar, one cupful of 
 water, a few grains of salt, and a big pinch of 
 cream of tartar ; then boil gently without further 
 stirring. 
 
 Wipe away any crystals that form above the 
 edge of the syrup while boiling, but do not 
 touch the syrup or jar it, or it will grain. Use 
 for the purpose a sharp stick with a piece of 
 wet muslin upon it. 
 
 Boil, not too vigorously, fifteen minutes, then 
 dip a smooth stick into ice-water, then into the 
 syrup, and back again into the ice-water. If 
 the syrup thickly adhering to the stick will be- 
 come like soft putty when worked between the 
 thumb and finger, it is ready to turn out. Keep 
 on testing every minute until this stage is 
 reached, then turn it out into a deep and rather 
 flaring earthen bowl, lightly oiled or buttered. 
 
 IvCt it coola few minutes, and when the finger- 
 tip pressed gently, will dent it, stir (before a 
 crust forms) round and round with a stout 
 wooden spoon, until it becomes a snow-white 
 creamy mass. 
 
 Put in the flavoring while stirring : a half- 
 
 teaspoonful each of rose and vanilla is a good 
 
 combination which blends well with nuts, 
 
 chocolate, or candied fruit. 
 16 
 
242 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 Kneading improves the fondant. 
 
 For sugar-plums, form the fondant around 
 whole nut meats, dip into granulated sugar and 
 shake violently in a bowl with a few additional 
 spoonfuls of sugar : almonds are the nuts gen- 
 erally used for this candy. 
 
 An inch piece of the fondant with an English 
 walnut meat on each side makes another varia- 
 tion. 
 
 For chocolate cream bar, melt one half-square 
 of chocolate over the teakettle, and stir in a 
 lump of fondant the size of an egg. A knife 
 and fork facilitates this process. 
 
 Put a layer of plain fondant on either side, an 
 inch in thickness and cover all over with a coat 
 of melted chocolate (one square will be enough) 
 flavored with a few drops of vanilla. 
 
 In a day, this may be cut into squares. 
 
 For nut bar, mix nuts with the fondant, press 
 into a square, and in a day cut into small cubes. 
 Candied fruit, candied orange peel, crystallized 
 ginger, etc., may also be covered with fondant 
 for sugar-plums. 
 
 If properly made, fondant will keep for 
 months in air-tight glass jars and be improved 
 in quality. 
 
 If the syrup boils a little too long, the fond- 
 ant will not mass, but on being stirred will 
 crumble when it reaches the snow-white stage. 
 When this occurs a few drops of water or wine 
 
Catering tor Cwo. 243 
 
 may be sprinkled over the surface and stirred 
 in (a drop too much will spoil it). 
 
 Set the bowl in a basin of boiling water, boil 
 and stir constantly until smooth. If the stirring 
 is not kept up the fondant will turn into syrup. 
 To be right it should be pliable enough to be 
 moulded into any shape when it is cool enough 
 to handle. 
 
 If the fondant grains from too much boiling 
 or jarring of the syrup, a few spoonfuls of water 
 may be added and a new trial made, melting, 
 boiling and testing as before, or it may be 
 melted into syrup for the table. 
 
 If the fondant after being creamed seems soft 
 and gummy and does not retain its shape it 
 has not been boiled quite long enough. 
 
 This condition is worse than the other. 
 
 To remedy it knead in confectioner's sugar, 
 until it will take no more : the candies will be 
 eatable, but that is all. 
 
 Vanilla and sherry make a fine flavor. 
 
 The novice in candy-making, would do well 
 to try only a quarter of the quantities given, at 
 first. 
 
 Begin testing after the sugar has been cook- 
 ing ten minutes, for small quantities. 
 
 A dry atmosphere is desirable while boiling 
 syrup for candies, and it is well to choose a 
 fine bright day for the work. 
 
 Sarah E. Craig, in 20th Century Cookery^ says : 
 
244 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 "I would suggest the sugar thermometer to 
 those having trouble in testing their syrups for 
 candy-making. 
 
 ** One can be bought for |i.75, and will save 
 the amateur a world of trouble. In making fond- 
 ant the thermometer will register about 2388, 
 and the syrup is then ready to turn out." 
 
 A very satisfactory cream can be easily made 
 with confectioner's sugar, but it is not nearly 
 so good as that just described. 
 
 Beat the white of an egg with a tablespoonful 
 of water or cream, and stir in confectioner's 
 sugar until enough has been added to form a 
 pliable dough. Flavor while mixing. 
 
 Fruit juice or fruit syrups may be used in- 
 stead of water or cream. 
 
 If preferred, the egg may be omitted. 
 
MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 
 
 HOW TO MAKE COFFEE. 
 
 There are various ways of making coflfee, and 
 where one fails, others may be tried with suc- 
 cess. 
 
 Some kinds of coffee are best when made by 
 the French method, which consists in pouring 
 boiling water on the finely ground coffee placed 
 upon a set of strainers in a cylinder, and allow- 
 ing it to percolate slowly through. 
 
 Another way is to mix the coffee with egg 
 and cold water, and bring it to a boil ; then 
 settle, strain, and serve. 
 
 Yet another is to mix coffee and egg, add a 
 little cold water, and then boiling water ; bring 
 to a boil ; stand to settle ; strain, and serve. 
 
 In all cases the pot should be tight as possi- 
 ble, to prevent the escape of the aroma, and the 
 coffee should be served soon after being made. 
 
 An earthen pipkin makes a good coffee-pot : 
 place a doubled cheese-cloth under the lid, and 
 tuck it in closely. The cheese-cloth is to be 
 used as a strainer, and it must be thoroughly 
 washed and boiled every time it is used, and 
 
 245 
 
246 Catering for (Two. 
 
 renewed often, as otherwise the flavor of the 
 coffee would be spoiled. 
 
 Buy only the best grades of coffee, and when 
 possible have it ground at home. A third each 
 of Java, Mocha, and Maracaibo makes a favor- 
 ite blend. Another is two thirds Java and one 
 third Mocha. 
 
 To make one quart of coffee take one heap- 
 ing cupful of coffee, one third of a raw egg, half 
 a cupful of cold water, and one quart of boiling. 
 
 To make one cupful of coffee take two heap- 
 ing dessert-spoonfuls of coffee, two spoonfuls of 
 cold water, one teaspoonful of raw egg, and one 
 cupful of boiling water. 
 
 Too much egg will weaken the coffee. 
 
 MINCE-MEAT. 
 
 Five pounds of cooked beef. After the meat 
 is chopped, measure it in a bowl, and to each 
 bowl of meat add two bowls of chopped apples 
 and one of chopped raisins ; mix these together, 
 and set aside. 
 
 Chop a pound of suet fine, add one heaping 
 tablespoouful of salt, the same each of cinnamon 
 and allspice, two tablepoonfuls of clove, two 
 nutmegs, and not quite a tablespoonful of 
 mace. Add also one pound of sugar, a scant 
 pint of molasses, and one quart of cider ; put 
 these ingredients in a kettle, and let them come 
 to a boil ; this melts the sugar and suet and 
 mixes the spices. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 247 
 
 Take from the fire, and when cool add to the 
 meat, apples and raisins, and stir in, finally, 
 half a pint of whiskey. The sugar, salt, and 
 spices may be varied to suit the individual 
 taste. 
 
 CANDIED ORANGE PEEL. 
 
 Soak the orange peel in a brine strong enough 
 to float a potato, for several days ; then steep in 
 cold water until it is so tender that it can be 
 broken easily under slight pressure. The water 
 should be changed six or eight times in order 
 to make the flavor of the peel more delicate. 
 Drain for several hours ; then cut it into inch 
 squares ; measure, and put it on the back part 
 of the stove, with an equal amount of granu- 
 lated sugar. When thoroughly dissolved, spread 
 upon platters, and keep in the open oven or in 
 the sunshine until candied, which will be in a 
 few days. Pack away in covered glass jars. 
 
 Lemon peel may be prepared in the same 
 •way. 
 
 CANNED PEACHES. 
 
 Allow one pint of water and one cupful of 
 sugar for every quart of peaches. Boil sugar 
 and water for ten minutes ; then add the peaches 
 (peeled, but not stoned), a few at a time, and 
 boil until a broom-straw will pierce them easily ; 
 be sure to have them cooked enough. 
 
 Put the peaches in jars (two thirds full), boil, 
 
248 Catering for ^wo. 
 
 and skim the syrup, and pour it over the peaches 
 until the jars overflow. 
 
 Seal at once. 
 
 Use new rubbers each season, as old ones are 
 apt to be unelastic. If there is not enough 
 syrup for the last jar, make more of sugar and 
 water ; canned fruit is always improved bv 
 plenty of syrup. Keep canned goods in a cool, 
 dry place, the darker the better. 
 
 PRESERVED PEACHES. 
 
 Select sound, ripe peaches of a fine, rich 
 variety ; peel, halve, and stone them. 
 
 Weigh, and make a syrup of an equal amount 
 of granulated sugar. 
 
 To every three pounds of sugar add one cup- 
 ful of water ; melt, and boil ten minutes ; then 
 drop in the peaches and cook them until a 
 broom-straw will pierce them easily. 
 
 Skim carefully. 
 
 Put the fruit in jars, boil and skim the syrup 
 a few minutes longer, fill the jars to overflowing 
 with the syrup, and seal. 
 
 A few stones may be boiled with the syrup, 
 and two or three put in each jar to flavor. 
 
 This is the old-fashioned peach preserve of our 
 grandmothers. 
 
 When serving, a teaspoonful of fine brandy 
 may be added to the juice for each portion. 
 
 Peaches may be easily peeled by pouring 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 249 
 
 boiling water on them and allowing them to 
 stand about a minute ; a longer time would 
 soften them too much. Scald only a half a 
 dozen at a time. 
 
 Keep peeled fruit covered with a wet cloth to 
 prevent discoloration. 
 
 When peeling with a knife, a good plan is to 
 halve and stone them before peeling. 
 
 SPICBD PEACHES. 
 
 Seven pounds of peaches, three and a half 
 pounds of sugar, one scant pint of cider vine- 
 gar, half an ounce of stick cinnamon, half an 
 ounce of whole cloves, half a teaspoonful of 
 whole allspice, and one quarter of a nutmeg 
 broken into bits. 
 
 Make a syrup by boiling the sugar and vine- 
 gar together about ten minutes. Put in enough 
 peeled peaches to cover the bottom of the kettle 
 and cook gently and steadily until a broom- 
 straw will pierce them easily. Skim the peaches 
 out carefully ; put them on a platter and cook 
 the remainder of the fruit in the same way. 
 
 When all are done, drain off the juice, put it 
 in the kettle, boil up, and skim off the froth. 
 
 Put the peaches in a stone jar, pour the hot 
 syrup over them, tie the spices in a bag and lay 
 it on top ; cover closely, and at the end of a week 
 pour off the juice, boil up, and pour it hot over 
 the peaches. 
 
250 Catering tor XLvoo, 
 
 If the vinegar is too sharp, a few spoonfuls 
 of water maybe added. If preferred a few of 
 the cloves may be stuck in the peaches before 
 boiling. 
 
 Some cooks prefer to leave the skins on 
 peaches put up this way, considering them 
 richer. Use late fruit and select only the best 
 and largest. 
 
 The bag for spices should be of very coarse 
 muslin and must be large enough to cover the 
 top. 
 
 Keep in a cool, dry place where the tempera- 
 ture is even. 
 
 QUINCES. 
 
 Wash, peel, and cut into slices an inch thick ; 
 remove the cores and cook until very tender in 
 water. Skim out the fruit and set aside. 
 
 Add sugar to the water ; boil and skim ; re- 
 turn the quinces to this syrup ; boil up and 
 seal at once in glass jars. 
 
 Pour water on the seeds and skins, boil and 
 strain and add sugar ; this makes a very good 
 jelly. 
 
 Follow the rule for crab-apple jelly. 
 
 For quince preserves use a pound of sugar to 
 one of fruit. 
 
 PRESERVED PINEAPPLE. 
 Make a syrup of one pint of sugar and half a 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 251 
 
 cupful of water ; boil until clear, and add a pint 
 of pineapple which has been peeled, sliced, and 
 cored. 
 
 Cook fifteen minutes. 
 
 Put in glass jars, and when cold tie the jars 
 up in thick brown paper to exclude the light. 
 
 CANNED CHERRIES. 
 
 One quart of fine large cherries, three heaping 
 tablespoonfuls granulated sugar and four table- 
 spoonfuls of water. 
 
 Boil water and sugar until clear ; add the 
 cherries which have been stemmed, washed, 
 and drained, and cook them, covered, ten min- 
 utes. Seal in pint jars. 
 
 More sugar will make a richer preserve. 
 
 Prepared in this way cherries are very nice 
 for steamed puddings, but they may also be 
 used as a sauce by adding more sugar at the 
 table. 
 
 In canning always fill the jars brimming full ; 
 let them stand a minute to settle; then add 
 more juice and seal, hot. 
 
 PIvUMS. (DAMSON OR LARGE BLUE 
 VARIETY). STEWED OR FOR CANNING. 
 
 Wipe the plums with a soft cloth : use the 
 firmest for preserving, the others for stewing. 
 Measure, and allow nearly an equal amount 
 
252 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 of granulated sugat and the same of water. 
 Cook sugar and water ten minutes after it boils 
 clear. 
 
 Add the fruit and cook several minutes or 
 until a broom straw will pierce easily. A heap- 
 ing pint of plums will take a scant pint of 
 sugar, and an even pint of water. Seal hot in 
 air-tight glass jars. 
 
 Plum juice diluted to taste with water and 
 cracked ice makes a delicious and refreshing 
 drink. 
 
 GRAPE PRESERVES. 
 
 Use Catawba grapes and pulp them. 
 
 Measure the skins and allow as much sugar 
 as there are skins, and the same amount of 
 water. 
 
 Put half of the sugar in the oven to get hot, 
 and put the other half in a kettle with the 
 water ; boil until clear and add the skins, a few 
 at a time, so that the syrup may not stop 
 boiling. 
 
 Keep the pot covered, and do not stir, as 
 stirring will cause the skins to lose their plump- 
 ness and become tough. 
 
 Shaking the pot occasionally will prevent 
 burning. It will take a quart of skins about 
 half an hour to cook. 
 
 Cook the pulps about ten minutes to loosen 
 the seeds, and when cool enough, strain closely 
 through a piece of cheese-cloth. Put back 
 
Catering tor Zvco. 253 
 
 over the fire, boil and skim ; then add to the 
 skins, stir, add the hot sugar, boil a minute or 
 two, and put away in glasses the same as jelly. 
 In cooking syrup or anything that needs 
 skimming let the vessel boil only on one side ; 
 the froth will then be thrown to the opposite 
 side and may be easily removed. 
 
 PRESERVED CITRON. 
 
 Cut citron in halves ; turn the cut side down 
 and slice with a broad, strong knife in slices a 
 little more than an inch wide. 
 
 Peel, seed, and cut into inch-size pieces. 
 
 Soak over night in cold water (a quart of 
 water to every quart of fruit, with a lump of 
 alum the size of a large pea dissolved in each 
 quart of water). Next morning rinse the citron 
 in salted water (a teaspoonful of salt to a quart 
 of water), and cook forty minutes in fresh warm 
 water, (a quart of water to one of citron). 
 
 Meanwhile, make a syrup of six pounds of 
 sugar and a pint of water in which two ounces 
 of scraped and sliced ginger root has been boiled. 
 
 The ginger may be soaked first for half an 
 hour or so in cold water to make it scrape 
 more easily. Slice, and pour on it three cups 
 of cold water, bring slowly to a boil and use 
 two cups (one pint) for the syrup, throwing 
 away the remainder. 
 
 Boil the syrup about ten minutes, tie half an 
 
254 Catering tor tlwo. 
 
 ounce of cinnamon stick, one teaspoon ful of 
 whole cloves, and half a teaspoonful of whole 
 allspice in a piece of net or cheese-cloth and 
 cook this in the syrup. Add the citron after 
 draining and cook slowly half an hour. 
 
 Skim out and put in a stone jar. 
 
 Add to the syrup two thinly sliced lemons 
 which have been cooked fifteen minutes in half 
 a cupful of cold water (use water and all) and 
 boil and skim for half an hour ; then pour 
 over the citron. 
 
 The spices and ginger root may be added also 
 if preferred. 
 
 Keep in a cold place. When cold add one fine 
 orange thinly sliced. 
 
 The following is the exact proportion of 
 ingredients : 
 
 Six pounds of cut-up citron, six pounds of 
 granulated sugar, one pint of water, alum size 
 of a pea for each quart of citron, two ounces 
 ginger root, two lemons, half a cupful of water, 
 one half an ounce of stick cinnamon, one tea- 
 spoonful whole cloves, one half-teaspoonful all- 
 spice, one orange. 
 
 CRAB-APPIvE JELI.Y. 
 
 Cover the apples with cold water and cook 
 slowly until they are as soft as mush, then drain 
 through a cloth laid over a sieve ; do not press 
 the fruit in the least. 
 
Catering for q:wo. 255 
 
 Put the juice on the fire and cook a few 
 minutes ; then add an equal amount of sugar ; 
 boil and skim and put away in tumblers. 
 
 As apples yield a different quality of juice at 
 different seasons, it is better to make up only a 
 quart at first, and this will serve as a guide for 
 the rest of the jelly, how long to boil, and how 
 much water and sugar will be needed. 
 
 GRAPE JELLY. 
 
 Use Concord grapes ; stem them, and keep 
 them at the boiling-point in an agate saucepan 
 (uncovered) on the back of the stove for four 
 hours (stirring occasionally), to evaporate and 
 get soft. 
 
 Mash with a wooden potato-masher, and stir 
 with a wooden spoon. 
 
 Boil gently for another hour, or until the 
 seeds drop out, careful not to let them burn. 
 Stir often. 
 
 When cool enough, strain, a cupful at a time, 
 through a piece of new canton-flannel wrung 
 out of cold water. Measure the juice with ex- 
 actness, and put an equal amount of granulated 
 sugar on pans or platters in the oven, to get 
 very hot, but not to melt, stirring occasionally. 
 
 While the sugar is heating, cook the juice 
 in a clean agate saucepan, uncovered, half an 
 hour. 
 
 Do not stir, but skim at the end of each fif- 
 
256 Catering for ^wo, 
 
 teen minutes. Now add the hot sugar, and stir 
 with a wooden spoon until it is all dissolved ; 
 then boil gently five minutes without stirring ; 
 skim ; boil again for five minutes; skim again, 
 and it is ready to put in glasses. 
 
 Put a silver teaspoon in each glass, and fill 
 to the top ; remove the spoon at once, as metal 
 of any kind will discolor the jelly. 
 
 Put the jelly away, uncovered, for a day in a 
 dry place, or in the sunshine ; then cover with 
 rounds of writing-paper dipped in brandy or al- 
 cohol, and tie over this rounds of paper. 
 
 Allow no water to touch the grapes ; do not 
 wash them, and see that all utensils are per- 
 fectly dry and clean. 
 
 If the foregoing directions are followed ex- 
 actly, the jelly will be clear and rich in color, 
 and of a perfect consistency. Keep in a dry, 
 cool closet. 
 
 CURRANT JEI/LY. 
 
 Put the currants, unstemmed and unwashed, 
 in an agate kettle. Heat, and mash with a 
 wooden pestle, or spoon, and cook gently for 
 fifteen minutes after boiling begins. 
 
 When cool enough not to bum the hand, 
 strain, a cupful at a time, through a piece of stout 
 cloth wrung very dry from hot water ; press out 
 every bit of juice. 
 
 Measure, and put an equal amount of granu- 
 
Catering tor Zvoo» 257 
 
 lated sugar in the oven to get very hot. Boil 
 the juice for fifteen minutes slowly ; skim ; 
 then stir in the hot sugar ; boil ten or twelve 
 minutes, and put into tumblers. One quart of 
 currants will make two tumblers of jelly. Let 
 no water touch the fruit during the process. 
 
 SYRUP FROM BERRIES. 
 
 Put very ripe perfect berries in an earthen- 
 ware pot ; mash, and let them stand over night 
 in a warm room. Next daj- heat, but do not 
 boil ; strain through a cloth ; measure ; add an 
 equal amount of granulated sugar ; set on the 
 stove, and stir until the sugar is dissolved, but 
 do not cook ; then seal hot in small, air-tight 
 glass jars. 
 
 This syrup maybe used for flavoring jellies 
 or punches, or for making sherbets. 
 
 UNFERMENTED GRAPE-JUICE. 
 
 Ten cupfuls Concord grapes, six cupfuls 
 water, two cupfuls sugar. Mash the grapes, 
 and cook in three cupfuls of the water ; strain ; 
 add to the skins and seeds three more cupfuls 
 of water ; cook again ; strain ; add to the 
 strained juice the two cupfuls of sugar, and 
 boil five minutes. 
 
 Skim, and bottle, hot, in air-tight jars. 
 
 In serving, add sugar and a little lemon-juice 
 (or thin slices of lemon) ; fill glasses half full 
 
258 Catering for Zwo, 
 
 of cracked ice ; pour in the grape juice, and a 
 simple but delicious drink is the result. 
 
 LEMONADE. 
 
 Ten tablespoon fuls lemon-juice ; ten heaping 
 tablespoonfuls granulated sugar ; one orange, 
 sliced very thin ; two even quarts of ice-water. 
 
 IvEMON EXTRACT. 
 
 Cut the yellow rind from six fine large lemons, 
 as thinly as possible, and cover with three fourths 
 of a pint of best alcohol. Put in a wide-mouthed 
 bottle and cork tightly. It will be ready for 
 use in a few days. 
 
 EXTRACT OF VANILLA. 
 
 Break one vanilla-bean into inch pieces ; 
 cover with cold water and let it stand in a 
 tightly corked bottle four days. 
 
 Then add half a pint of the best alcohol : it 
 will be ready for use in a week. 
 
 Turn this off into another bottle, and add to 
 the vanilla-bean a little more than half a cupful 
 of alcohol : this will be ready by the time the 
 first extract is all used. 
 
 The bottles should have glass stoppers. 
 
 Vanilla-beans are long, thin pods which sell 
 for twenty cents each and can only be found at 
 the large stores dealing in fine groceries. It is 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 259 
 
 a great advantage to make one's extract, as 
 most of that which is sold is not made from 
 vanilla-beans at all. 
 
 GREEN TOMATO PICKLE. 
 
 Four quarts of green tomatoes sliced in nearly 
 inch-thick slices. 
 
 One quart of white onions, and six green 
 peppers sliced thinly. 
 
 Put them with salt in layers in an earthen 
 vessel to stand over night. Use a rounded half- 
 cupful of fine table salt. 
 
 In the morning drain for an hour ; then pour 
 over them three scant pints of genuine cider 
 vinegar ; add half a cupful of granulated sugar, 
 a tablespoonful of whole cloves, half an ounce 
 of stick cinnamon and a few allspice tied in a 
 bag. 
 
 Cook gently for half an hour after boiling 
 begins, keeping the cover partly off. Just be- 
 fore removing from the fire add an ounce of 
 mustard seed ; stir lightly, so as not to break 
 the pieces, with a wooden spoon, and put away 
 in an earthen jar for a month in a cool place. 
 At the end of this time put it again on the stove 
 and boil up with a half-cupful of sugar (more or 
 less according to taste), and seal hot in jars. 
 
 Remove the bag of spices before sealing, and 
 add a red pepper pod if not peppery enough. 
 Before filling a jar, place in it a spoon long 
 
26o Catering for XLwo, 
 
 enough to extend above the edge of it. This 
 •will prevent breaking if the jar is a perfect 
 one. 
 
 PICKIvBD STRING-BEANS AND 
 CUCUMBERS. 
 
 Put one quart of young fresh string-beans 
 into a brine which will float an egg. 
 
 At the end of three days take them out and 
 put into the brine two dozen very small white 
 onions. Wash the beans in ice-water and pour 
 over them one pint of boiling cider vinegar in 
 which is dissolved a lump of alum the size of a 
 large pea. 
 
 In three days drain ; steam the beans for 
 twelve minutes in a steamer ; then put them 
 into a stone jar ; add the onions, one small red 
 pepper pod, one ounce of mixed whole spices 
 tied in a bag, and pour over one pint of cider 
 vinegar, boiling hot. Place a weight on the 
 pickles to keep them submerged. 
 
 Throw away the brine and alum vinegar. 
 
 Keep pickles always in a cool place. 
 
 Small cucumbers called gherkins are pickled 
 in the same way except that steaming is not 
 necessary. Omit the onions and add to the 
 last vinegar a tablespoonful of sugar. 
 
 The bag of spices may be removed when the 
 pickles are flavored sufficiently. 
 
Catering tor ^wo» 261 
 
 TARRAGON VINBGAR FOR SALADS. 
 
 Put a bunch of tarragon leaves in one quart 
 of fine cider vinegar in an earthen vessel set 
 within another containing cold water. Set on 
 the fire and let the vinegar boil up. 
 
 When cool, bottle and cork. 
 
 Only a small quantity of the tarragon should 
 be used, as its flavor is very pronounced. 
 
 BAKED RHUBARB. 
 
 Put three cupfuls of skinned and cut-up rhu- 
 barb (or pie-plant) into an earthen dish ; add 
 one cupful of sugar ; dredge with a teaspoonful 
 of flour and bake (covered) about half an hour. 
 
 To be eaten with meats, or put into tart shells 
 for dessert. Have covers for the tart shells. 
 
HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS. 
 
 Salt toughens meat if added before it is done. 
 
 Wash lettuce carefully so as not to bruise, cut- 
 ting each leaf from the stalk, and put it, drip- 
 ping, into a closely covered pot. Set in a cool 
 place. Ivcttuce thus prepared will keep for 
 several days and be crisp and fresh. 
 
 Celery should be treated in the same way. 
 
 Each day look it over, rinse in fresh cold 
 water and return to the pot. 
 
 Do not soak in water to freshen, but when 
 slightly wilted, wash and put in an earthen pot 
 instead. 
 
 Turnips, cabbage, and parsley are always im- 
 proved by this treatment, but it is not necessary 
 to pull the cabbage apart. 
 
 Greens, (spinach and sprouts) should be 
 soaked for several hours in cold water. 
 
 Set asparagus bunches in a few inches of cold 
 water to keep them fresh ; the water should not 
 come more than half way up the stalks. When 
 ready to cook, wash in several waters to get out 
 the sand. 
 
 262 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 263 
 
 Confectioner's sugar may be found at almost 
 all shops where groceries are found, but when 
 not procurable, powdered sugar will answer al- 
 most as well if it is rolled very fine on the 
 moulding-board. 
 
 Make Coffee Bavarian Cream frequently, at 
 least twice in a month. It is something one 
 rarely tires of. When used as a dinner dessert, 
 oranges served after it will be found very ac- 
 ceptable. 
 
 Candied fruits for pies or puddings may be 
 softened by steaming in a steamer ; set the fruit 
 on a dish. 
 
 When wishing to keep a steak or chops over 
 night in hot weather, if there is danger of spoil- 
 ing, broil or fry over a hot fire just enough to 
 sear the outside, and to heat through but not to 
 cook. Set on ice. 
 
 If not cooked too much they will be as nice 
 when broiled next morning as if they had not 
 had the preliminary broil. 
 
 When cheese becomes too hard for the table, 
 grate it and put away in bottles ; it is useful for 
 macaroni, soups, or sandwiches. 
 
 Empty all canned things, as soon as they are 
 opened, into an earthen bowl, and if not used 
 for a day or two, scald them. In this way 
 tomatoes may be kept a week in a cool place. 
 
264 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 Before putting crackers on the table set them 
 in a hot oven a few minutes to crisp them. 
 
 Before toasting bread, dry it a little in the 
 oven : it should be heated through before toast- 
 ing. Serve dipped and buttered toast (on a 
 separate dish) with fried salt pork or ham, at 
 breakfast. 
 
 A little curry powder added to soups or stews 
 gives a new dish. 
 
 When a quick fire is needed and the range 
 burns slowly, rake out as thoroughly as possi- 
 ble ; add a bundle of kindling-wood, and open 
 the draughts. One bundle of wood is usually 
 enough to bake a pan of biscuits or muffins. If 
 the fire is to be used for broiling, burn the wood 
 to a red bed of coals. 
 
 When broiling, if the fire is too hot, sprinkle 
 over it a thin layer of fine ashes, or a handful 
 of salt, or lay a folded sheet of newspaper on 
 the coals ; put on the lid, and when the paper 
 has burned out, its ashes will smother the fire 
 enough. 
 
 On the other hand, if the fire should not be 
 hot enough, add a few scraps of fat meat. 
 
 Grape preserves may be put between layer- 
 cake just before serving. For a small family, 
 cut one layer crosswise (not to split) and double 
 one half over the other. Served with cream, 
 this makes a delicious dessert. 
 
Catering for tlwo. 265 
 
 To brown flour for soups and gravies, put a 
 few spoonfuls evenly on the bottom of a baking- 
 pan and stir until it has become a fine amber- 
 brown over a moderate fire. Bottle and keep 
 for use. 
 
 Some different varieties of cheese are — Stilton, 
 Camembert, Roquefort, New Roquefort, Brie, 
 Gorgonzola, Club-House, Edam, Sweet Clover, 
 Meadow Brook, Philadelphia Cream, Neufcha- 
 tel, Parmesan, Old English, Limburger, Che- 
 shire, Gruyere, and Pineapple. 
 
 An agreeable blend of tea is made of half a 
 pound of the finest Oolong mixed with an 
 ounce, or even less, of uncolored Japan tea. It 
 (Japan) is of a pale greenish hue, and is not to 
 be mistaken for the green tea of China. 
 
 Until one has become acquainted with the 
 different grades and qualities of grocer's wares, 
 it is much safer to buy only from houses whose 
 judgment in such things can be depended on. 
 
 Dry egg-shells, break into bits, and put them 
 away in a preserving jar to use in clearing coffee ; 
 two tablespoon fuls will clear one pint of coffee. 
 
 When dried chipped beef is in danger of be- 
 coming musty, take it from the box, spread on 
 a platter and dry it in a hot oven ; it may then 
 be put away and will keep for months. When 
 immersed in cream sauce, beef treated in this 
 
266 Catering tor G^wo. 
 
 way will swell to its natural size and be as nice 
 as at first. 
 
 Dried or smoked beef is considered by some 
 physicians to be unsafe for food until cooked. 
 
 The chopping-bowl must be scraped and 
 scoured after each using, and well scalded, 
 otherwise it will become unhygienic. Turn 
 upside-down when not in use. 
 
 Butter should be kept covered in a stone jar 
 in a cool place ; some housekeepers put it into 
 a brine, and this certainly keeps it sweet, and 
 sometimes improves the quality. The brine 
 should be strong enough to bear up a potato. 
 
 Put a potato in the jar ; add water, and then 
 stir in salt until the potato floats. 
 
 Get only the best and sweetest butter, and 
 never use an inferior grade for cooking. 
 Rancid butter is unhealthful. 
 
 As soon as possible after it comes from the 
 butcher's hands, remove meat from the paper, 
 put it on an earthen dish and set in a cool place. 
 
 Spread out in a thin layer berries of every 
 sort, and keep them in a cool, dry, and dark 
 place. If they seem soft and not likely to keep, 
 stew them in a sugar syrup. 
 
 Agate-ware pots with close-fitting covers 
 make excellent cake-boxes. 
 
Catering tor Zvifo, 267 
 
 Lettuce may be pulled apart, rinsed, and put 
 directly on the ice in very hot weather, and be 
 all the better for this treatment. 
 
 If meat is put on the ice, place between 
 the- ice and plate a thickness of flannel ; this 
 will keep the ice from melting too fast. 
 
 Cover the meat with a plate. 
 
 The refrigerator should be washed out thor- 
 oughly once a week with water in which a tea- 
 spoonful of sal-soda has been dissolved. 
 
 By keeping dishes containing food closely 
 covered as much as possible, the refrigerator 
 may be kept free from odors. 
 
 Baked onions are almost as delicious as those 
 roasted in the ashes, or before the logs in the 
 open fireplace. 
 
 Do not peel them, but set them in a hot oven 
 to bake until tender. Take off" the skins care- 
 fully and serve with butter, salt, and pepper. 
 
 " China eggs " are a pretty garnish to a dish 
 of hashed meat or picked-up fish ; boil them 
 just hard enough to make them shell easily, 
 and serve whole and hot. 
 
 Let cake cool a little before taking it from 
 the pans. 
 
 When testing cake to see if it is baked 
 enough, use a slender broom-straw, thrusting 
 it gently into the edge first, and then into the 
 
268 Catering tor Zvoo, 
 
 middle ; if put into the middle part suddenly, 
 or too soon, the cake may fall. 
 
 Before scraps of bread have a chance to be- 
 come musty, dry them thoroughly in the oven ; 
 put away in a covered jar, and when enough 
 has accumulated, roll to powder on the mould- 
 ing board, and put into jars or tin boxes for 
 breading, etc. 
 
 Scraps of Neufchatel or cream cheese may 
 be made to serve again by mixing them with 
 butter and cream, or milk, and spreading them 
 on banquet crackers. Make into sandwiches 
 and serve with salad. 
 
 FLAVORINGS. 
 
 Vanilla, almond, rose, coflfee, caramel, ma- 
 raschino, chopped almonds, grated cocoanut, 
 pounded macaroons, fruit juices, rum, pis- 
 tachio, orange, lemon, kirsch, sherry, brandy, 
 madeira, curacoa, chocolate, orange -flower 
 water, cordials, and liqueurs form most of the 
 flavorings in general use. 
 
 Mrs. Sherwood gives the following rules for 
 the service of wine at a dinner party : 
 
 White wine with the fish, sherry with the 
 soup, and claret and champagne with the 
 roast; champagne is either " dry " or sweet, 
 and must not be decanted, but must be kept in 
 ice-pails and opened when needed. 
 
Catering for ^wo. 269 
 
 Madeira and port wines accompany the game ; 
 these are decanted, and should not be cold, but 
 of the temperature of the room. 
 
 A delicious claret-punch for luncheons or 
 suppers is made from claret, vichy, lemons, 
 sugar, and cracked ice, in proportions to suit 
 the taste. 
 
 Sherbets and sorbets are served in glasses 
 after the game. 
 
 Roman-punch is a lemon sherbet to which 
 Jamaica rum has been added in the proportion 
 of one cupful of rum to one quart of sherbet. 
 
 For a lemon sherbet, boil together for twenty 
 minutes, one pint of sugar, and one scant quart 
 of water, and when cool, add a cupful of lemon- 
 juice and the grated rind of two lemons ; mix 
 together and freeze until firm. 
 
 Strawberry and orange sherbets are made in 
 the same way, adding a little lemon-juice. A 
 mixture of fruit juices makes delicious sherbets 
 or sorbets ; the latter are sherbets only half 
 frozen . 
 
 A portion of the dinner-roll dough may have 
 stoned dates worked into it ; this is called date 
 bread and is delicious for luncheon. Put the 
 dates in close together, and let it raise the same 
 as any bread dough. To be eaten cold. 
 
 Potatoes should be thinly pared, as the best 
 part lies next the skin. 
 
 The sweetness of fruit also lies next the skin. 
 
270 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 Never throw away milk or cream because it 
 has soured : allow it to become loppered, or 
 thick, and use it for corn-bread or griddle- 
 cakes. When thick and ice cold, it may be 
 whipped with the egg-beater and it makes then 
 a refreshing drink in hot weather. Whip it 
 about five minutes. Sour milk and molasses 
 both contain lactic acid, an element found in 
 gastric juice. Lactic acid is a digestive fer- 
 ment. 
 
 Soured (unsweetened) condensed milk may 
 have two parts or a little more of water added 
 to it, when it may be used in cooking the same 
 as other sour milk. 
 
 Eggs must be cold and very fresh to whip 
 well. 
 
 When the white of an egg after being frothed 
 begins to separate, a few drops of lemon-juice 
 added will remedy the trouble. 
 
 Always use earthen -ware for whisking eggs 
 in. 
 
 Nasturtiums make a pretty as well as an appe- 
 tizing garnish for meats and salads ; to be at 
 their best they must be freshly picked. The 
 stems as well as the blossoms are edible. 
 
 Florists now sell them in pots so that they 
 are easily obtainable for use on the table. 
 
 In serving fresh peaches peel, stone, and 
 
 J 
 
Catering for ZTwo. 271 
 
 halve. Do not slice, but serve in halves, with 
 a lump of ice in each, with sugar to taste. 
 
 After peeling, cover with a wet cloth ; set on 
 ice until well chilled, and add ice and sugar at 
 serving-time. 
 
 In canning fruits, turn the filled jars upside- 
 down for a week, examining them each morn- 
 ing. 
 
 If any juice exudes, the jar is not air-tight, 
 and the contents are likely to spoil : such must 
 be cooked over again, or be used very soon. 
 
 To blanch is to scald with boiling water so 
 that skins of fruits, nuts, or sweetbreads, etc., 
 may be removed with greater ease. 
 
 A nice filling for sandwiches may be made 
 by mincing or pounding meat very fine, mixing 
 it to a paste with cream or melted butter, and 
 seasoning to taste. 
 
 THINGS TO KBBP ON HAND. 
 
 Canned tomatoes, corn, milk, sardines, sal- 
 mon, potted ham, salt pork, flour, soda, baking- 
 powder, salt, sugar, eggs, macaroni, butter, 
 cheese, molasses, spices, vinegar, crackers, tea, 
 coflFee, cocoa, chocolate, smoked-beef, lemons, 
 pepper, mustard, Indian-meal, hominy, corn- 
 starch, oat-meal, potatoes, apples, cabbage or 
 celery, onions, olives, capers, extract of beef, 
 salt codfish, rice, tapioca, lima-beans, fruit cake, 
 
272 Catering; for ^wo. 
 
 maple-sugar, and honey : also soap, starch, 
 blueing, borax, and sapolio. 
 
 Serve souffles in separate courses ; omelettes 
 also. Small sandwiches, or bread and cheese, 
 may be passed with them. 
 
 A fish souffle will take the place of a fish 
 course. 
 
 The sweet Spanish peppers should be eaten 
 with salt the same as radishes. 
 
 A continual change in the bill of fare is de- 
 sirable : one tires of the same dessert if seen too 
 often, no matter how delicious it is, unless pos- 
 sibly ice-cream may be an exception. 
 
 If part of a dish be left over, wait a day or 
 two before serving it again, and let weeks 
 elapse before preparing it again. In this way 
 the table will always present a pleasant sur- 
 prise. 
 
 Three tablespoonfuls of rice may be substi- 
 tuted for tapioca in the ' ' tapioca meringue 
 pudding." 
 
 Soak the rice over night in cold water, and 
 add milk, eggs, etc., in the morning. 
 
 The little salt bags (ten-cent size) make roomy 
 mittens for sweeping ; they will also be found 
 of service about the stove, especially when re- 
 moving dishes from hot ovens, as they protect 
 both wrists and hands which a holder often fails 
 to do. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 273 
 
 Straitiing-cloths, dish-cloths, etc., should be 
 thoroughly cleaned by boiling in washing soda 
 or pearline ; one teaspoonful to a quart of cold 
 water. 
 
 In hot weather this should be done daily. 
 
 Rubber gloves protect the hands from veget- 
 able and fruit stains ; they are especially 
 needed in making grape jelly. 
 
 Get them several sizes too large or the hand 
 will not have room for free action. 
 
 Grease will melt them. 
 
 When a dish seems rather tasteless a dash of 
 salt will often improve it. This also applies to 
 pudding and other sweet dishes. 
 
 Jellies give zest to meats and vegetables, as do 
 pickles also. 
 
 Olives, celery, and salted nuts are passed 
 between the courses to prepare the palate for 
 the dishes which are to follow. 
 
 In cooking vegetables, those of one size 
 should be selected, if possible, otherwise the 
 larger ones should be cut into pieces to equal 
 the smaller. 
 
 Onions may be cut nearly through, leaving 
 just enough uncut to hold the pieces together. 
 In this way all will be cooked at the same 
 time. 
 
 The earthen pipkin is a valuable cooking 
 
 18 
 
274 Catering toe XLvoo. 
 
 utensil, as it may be easily kept sweet and 
 clean, and things cook evenly and keep hot 
 in it. 
 
 A " cupful " in all cases is half a pint. 
 
 Any preserved citron which is left over at 
 'springtime may be drained from the syrup, 
 dried a little in the oven and packed away in 
 glass to be used in cakes and puddings at any 
 time : thus prepared it will keep for years. 
 
 Pork tenderloins may be cut in three-quarter- 
 inch slices (across instead of lengthwise) breaded 
 •with cracker crumbs and fried the same as 
 directed for veal cutlets ; serve with lemon 
 marmalade, or apple jelly and pickled tomatoes, 
 or they may be broiled. 
 
 Left-over stewed potatoes may be mashed 
 fine with a fork, minced parsley added, formed 
 into cakes, dipped into cracker crumbs and 
 fried delicately in a little butter ; they are 
 delicious prepared in this way. 
 
 Ivcft-over mashed potatoes are excellent 
 breaded with cracker crumbs, fried in butter 
 and used as a border around hashed meats ; lay 
 a sprig of parsley or watercress on each cake. 
 
 Keep a bottle of linseed-oil and lime-water 
 (mixed in equal parts) in readiness to use for 
 burns or scalds. Shake well, spread upon old 
 table-linen, and bind on the injured place. 
 
Catering tor XTwo. 275 
 
 TO DRAW POULTRY. 
 
 Make an incision in the breast end of the 
 turkey, take out the crop, loosen the windpipe 
 and the other long stringy tube, cutting them 
 out as low down as possible, which will make 
 the drawing of the lower entrails easier. 
 
 Cut a slit across the lower end of the fowl 
 between leg and tail large enough to admit the 
 hand. Slip in the hand straight, pressing the 
 back of the hand close to the side of the body 
 and between body and entrails ; push up as far 
 as possible ; now curve the fingers, catch the en- 
 trails at the upper end, and draw out the entire 
 mass, slowly, so as not to break the gall, which 
 is a little green sac lying against the liver, 
 and which if crushed will give a bitter taste to 
 everything it touches. 
 
 Take out the liver and heart ; cut oflf any 
 green portion on the liver where the gall has 
 rested ; wash quickly and put away. 
 
 Cut the gizzard open ; tear out the lining; 
 wash and scrape it thoroughly and put it away. 
 
 Cut out all pieces of nice fat found among the 
 entrails, and after washing lay it over the turkey 
 to keep it moist when roasting. 
 
 Cut out the oil-sac on the tail. 
 
 Always buy fat poultry : there is no economy 
 in thin, scrawny meat of any kind, especially 
 poultry. 
 
276 Catering tot (Two. 
 
 COOKING UTENSILS. 
 
 Wire spoon, cooking spoons, knives and 
 forks, can-opener, apple-corer, iron dish-cloth, 
 flour-sifter, sugar-scoops, quart, pint, half-pint 
 and gill measures, one iron spider, two small 
 sheet-iron frying-pans, one large sheet-iron 
 frying-pan, half a dozen saucepans of assorted 
 sizes, earthenware pudding-dishes, bread and 
 cake tins, one large pot over which a steamer 
 will fit, two dripping-pans for roasting, one 
 to fit over the other, wire broiler, graters, 
 coflFee-grinder, close-fitting covers for all pots, 
 pans, etc., chopping-bowl and -knife, potato- 
 masher, wooden pestle, flour-dredge, moulding- 
 board, rolling-pin, teakettle, canisters for tea, 
 coffee, and spices. Universal pot, pipkins — 
 several sizes, bread pot, small knife for paring 
 vegetables, whetstone, muffin rings, gem or 
 muffin pans, pie plates, biscuit tins, meat-racks, 
 tea-stands, coffee-strainer, sieves, meat-grinder, 
 long clinch-nails for skewers, skimmer, cake- 
 turner, wooden spoons, colanders, saw bread- 
 knife, yellow earthen bowls, meat-block, two 
 funnels ; one small for bottles, a large one for 
 jugs. 
 
 TO LAY THE DINNER-TABLE. 
 
 The table should first be covered with a cloth 
 of thick cotton flannel which comes for this 
 
Catering tor XTwo. 277 
 
 purpose, securely fastened on by pinning the 
 corners together underneath. 
 
 Over this spread the damask cloth. 
 
 A circular mirror or a piece of embroidered 
 linen may fill the centre of the table for the 
 flowers to stand on. At the right of each place 
 put a dessert-spoon, teaspoon, a knife for the 
 salad course, a larger knife for the meat course, 
 soup-spoon and oyster-fork, if oysters are served. 
 
 At the left, place two forks : if a fish course 
 forms part of the meal add also a small fish- 
 knife and -fork. 
 
 As each knife and fork is used it is removed 
 with the plate, and the confusion and extra 
 work of bringing in fresh knives and forks is 
 avoided. 
 
 As the meal progresses, the table is gradually 
 cleared, until, when the time for dessert arrives, 
 nothing is left but the glasses, flowers, and the 
 spoons for dessert. The space between the 
 knives and forks should be wide enough for 
 the dinner-plate, before which stands the salt- 
 cellar, pepper-box, butter-plate, and glasses for 
 water, Apollinaris, and wine. 
 
 Use tumblers for the ice-water, small tall 
 glasses for Apollinaris, and appropriate glasses 
 for the wine. 
 
 The napkin may hold the dinner-roll, or piece 
 of bread, or the roll may be laid upon the but- 
 ter-plate, which may also contain a pat of but- 
 
278 Catering tor ^wo. 
 
 ter. All these arrangements make the serving 
 of a dinner easier. 
 
 The bread, butter, and water should be put 
 upon the table just before the meal is an- 
 nounced. The first course should be upon the 
 table on sitting down, and the meat and vege- 
 tables in hot covered dishes be within easy reach 
 on a side table. The salad may also be on the side 
 table to replace the meat course as soon as it is 
 removed. 
 
 Before serving the dessert, brush off all 
 crumbs, then bring on coffee and fruit and the 
 finger-bowls on the plates intended for fruit or 
 bon-bons. 
 
 Olives, celery, salted nuts, pickles, or jellies 
 should be on the table from the beginning of 
 the meal : the first three are eaten between the 
 courses ; the pickles and jellies with the meat. 
 
 When there is no maid to wait at table, the 
 side table is indispensable to the housewife who 
 would save herself unnecessary steps, and have 
 the dinner pass off without confusion. 
 
 The most convenient side tables are those in 
 the form of an open closet, having a set of 
 shelves, with large castors which render them 
 easy to push about. 
 
 A table of this sort should contain all the ex- 
 tra knives, forks, and spoons, and other things 
 needed for the meal, and, when possible, the 
 food for the succeeding courses. 
 
Catering tor ^wo. 279 
 
 The lamp or gas-stove for hot water may also 
 find a place here, and the dishes as they are re- 
 moved from the dinner-table. 
 
 Griddle-cakes may be served from the side 
 table, baked on the gas or oil stove ; if the table 
 is too high to permit of turning the cakes easily, 
 put the stove on a waiter and set this on a chair. 
 
 Use a soapstone griddle, or wash thoroughly 
 an old iron griddle, rub it with salt, and do not 
 grease ; the butter in the batter will be suflfi- 
 cient to keep cakes from sticking. 
 
 Ivct the table-linen be as fine and good as the 
 purse will allow, and whenever possible have a 
 few flowers on the table as a centrepiece. 
 
 A growing plant is in good taste, and the pot 
 may be covered with green cr^pe paper. 
 
 If the napery is not very fine, have it ironed 
 very wet, with a heavy, hot iron until perfectly 
 dry. 
 
 Water starch (that is extremely thin starch) 
 may be used for the cloth but not for the nap- 
 kins : thus treated, table linen will have a rich 
 gloss and look well even if the quality is not 
 the best and finest. 
 
 Colored cloths are out of place on the dinner 
 table. 
 
 Colored napkins are used when the fruit comes 
 on. 
 
 Doilies of drawn work at each place save the 
 cloth, and serve to make the table attractive. 
 
28o Catering for ^wo. 
 
 With linen perfectly laundered and spotless, 
 glass sparkling, and the silver shining, a table 
 may be elegant no matter how inexpensive the 
 furnishings. 
 
 However informal the breakfast and luncheon, 
 it is always well to make the dinner a meal of 
 some ceremony. 
 
 Even if the viands are of the simplest, and 
 the table appointments the plainest, a dinner 
 served with regularity yields enjoyment and 
 comfort to those partaking of it, and will be 
 found to be less trouble than if served hap- 
 hazard. 
 
 The style of putting all the dishes on the table 
 at once is steadily growing out of favor in most 
 families ; it is found to be more conducive to the 
 healthful enjoyment of food to serve but a few 
 things at a time, making separate courses of the 
 dishes whenever practicable. This plan tempts 
 the appetite when too bountiful a supply of food 
 would discourage it. 
 
 If only a very simple meal is desired (of 
 two courses) add an extra vegetable, or increase 
 the quantity of those mentioned, and select a 
 somewhat rich dessert. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 SOUPS. 
 
 Asparagus, cream of 
 Beans, pur^e of . 
 Beef-tea 
 
 Bouillon (or consomm 
 Celery soup 
 Chicken broth 
 Clam soup . 
 Corn soup . 
 Julienne consomm^ 
 Lamb broth, spiced 
 
 with lemon 
 Macaroni soup . 
 Mutton broth 
 Ox-tail soup 
 Oyster stew . 
 Peas, consommd with 
 
 purde of green 
 Potato pur^e 
 Rice, consomm6 with 
 Soup with egg . 
 Soup-stock (clear) 
 Split-pea soup 
 Tomato, bisque . 
 
 cream puree 
 Vegetable soup . 
 
 ^) 
 
 green 
 
 io8 
 136 
 212 
 
 41 
 
 76 
 
 7 
 
 143 
 
 163 
 
 98 
 
 130 
 48 
 56 
 14 
 87 
 120 
 156 
 62 
 
 35 
 
 I 
 27 
 28 
 70 
 20 
 
 83 
 114 
 
 281 
 
28a ITnDej. 
 
 FISH, 
 
 Clam, chowder 140 
 
 fritters 221 
 
 Codfish, balls 204 
 
 picked-up 202 
 
 Fresh fish, boiled with HoUandaise sauce . 93 
 
 broiled 209 
 
 fried 203 
 
 spiced 221 
 
 stuffed and baked 98 
 
 Oyster, cocktails 184 
 
 croustade 189 
 
 patties 194 
 
 pie 2 
 
 Oysters, escalloped 38 
 
 fried 106 
 
 on the half-shell 190 
 
 Salmop with HoUandaise sauce . . 195 
 
 Smelts, fried 190 
 
 Souffle 195 
 
 MEATS. 
 
 Beef, a la mode 94 
 
 corned ....... 23 
 
 frizzled 196 
 
 roast, porter-house 21 
 
 roast, sirloin 8 
 
 soup-meat 42 
 
 steak, Hamburg 195 
 
 steak, porter-house 169 
 
 steak pudding 115 
 
 steak, round 6 
 
 steak with onions 144 
 
 stew (cold roast) 23 
 
 stew with sweet potatoes . . .13 
 
 tongue 192 
 
 various ways of using the coarse ends . 171 
 
ftiDcj. 
 
 283 
 
 Birds .... 
 Chicken, blanquetteof 
 broiled 
 
 browned in butter . 
 croquettes (of birds) 
 fricassee . 
 fried 
 patties 
 roast 
 
 smothered 
 souffle 
 Duck, roast 
 Hash .... 
 
 baked 
 
 Lamb, browned in spiced sauce 
 chops, breaded (French) 
 
 broiled .... 
 cutlets and stew from roast 
 roast 
 
 stuffed . 
 stew 
 Iviver and bacon 
 Meat pie, baked . 
 Mutton, boiled, caper sauce 
 Pork. 
 
 bacon and eggs 
 ham, baked (smoked) 
 
 fried, cream gravy (smoked) 
 omelette 
 on toast 
 roast, savory stuffing (fresh) 
 pork and beans 
 
 chops, fried, cream gravy 
 roast rib and loin 
 tenderloin, fried and boiled 
 sausage, fried and baked 
 meat .... 
 souse (pickled pigs' feet) 
 
 222 
 
 190 
 168 
 
 57 
 222 
 
 44 
 
 57 
 
 194 
 
 43 
 201 
 194 
 152 
 
 23 
 213 
 129 
 
 185 
 77 
 50 
 29 
 
 49 
 
 30 
 
 208 
 
 67, 72 
 15 
 
 208 
 157 
 
 36 
 207 
 210 
 148 
 121 
 
 84 
 125 
 84, 274 
 204 
 225 
 224 
 
284 
 
 •ffnDej. 
 
 Pot-roast, mutton 
 
 • • • 39 
 
 stew with lamb kidneys . 
 
 . 165 
 
 top-sirloin 
 
 .71 
 
 under-round or cross-rib 
 
 . 164 
 
 Potted meats 
 
 . 220 
 
 Remnants, of cold oven roasts or broils, 126, 197 
 
 poultry, veal, or lamb 
 
 ■ 197 
 
 Turkey, roast 
 
 • 175 
 
 Veal, cutlets 
 
 . 109 
 
 loaf 
 
 . 210 
 
 pot-pie (raised crust) 
 
 63 
 
 roast (stuffed) . 
 
 88 
 
 VEGETABlwES 
 
 Asparagus on toast 
 Beans, butter 
 
 lima 
 
 string 
 Beets .... 
 Cabbage, fried 
 
 hot slaw . 
 Cape May omelette . 
 Cauliflower, fritters . 
 
 with Hollandaise sauce 
 Corn, on the cob 
 
 fritters 
 
 stewed 
 Cucumbers . 
 
 with cream 
 Greens (beet-tops, dandelions, and spinach 
 Hominy, boiled . 
 
 fried 
 Macaroni with cheese 
 Onions, baked in milk 
 
 boiled 
 
 browned in butter . 
 
 roasted in the oven 
 
 91 
 
 lOI 
 
 59 
 
 lOI 
 
 137 
 158 
 100 
 
 52 
 
 64 
 166 
 
 66 
 234 
 
 36 
 
 loi 
 
 221 
 
 ) III 
 
 126 
 
 36 
 
 9 
 
 138 
 
 90 
 
 131 
 267 
 
•ffnDei. 
 
 285 
 
 Parsnip, buttered 
 
 . 45 
 
 patties .... 
 
 . 37 
 
 with cream sauce . 
 
 .' 16 
 
 Peas, green (stewed) . 
 
 . 52 
 
 Potatoes, baked . 
 
 • 79 
 
 balls (baked) . 
 
 • 153 
 
 boiled (new) . 
 
 . 212 
 
 with cream sauce 
 
 . 51 
 
 breaded .... 
 
 . 213 
 
 broiled .... 
 
 . 165 
 
 browned in milk 
 
 . no 
 
 in the oven . . . . 
 
 . 117 
 
 cakes 
 
 99, 274 
 
 croquettes 
 
 . 137 
 
 escalloped 
 
 • • 31 
 
 fried .... 
 
 . 165 
 
 French .... 
 
 • 95 
 
 hashed, or stewed, with crearc 
 
 I gravy . 158 
 
 with parsley 
 
 • 59 
 
 lyonnaise 
 
 9 
 
 mashed .... 
 
 • 73 
 
 Saratoga chips 
 
 . 130 
 
 sweet, baked or broiled . 
 
 . 150 
 
 browned in the oven . 
 
 85, 150 
 
 Rice, boiled 
 
 . . 16 
 
 croquettes 
 
 . . 89 
 
 fried .... 
 
 . 44 
 
 Spaghetti with tomato sauce 
 
 . 227 
 
 Spinach with egg sauce 
 
 . Ill 
 
 Squash, baked . 
 
 . 145 
 
 mashed .... 
 
 . 90 
 
 Succotash .... 
 
 • 95 
 
 Tomatoes, baked 
 
 . . 65 
 
 escalloped 
 
 . 45 
 
 fritters .... 
 
 . 225 
 
 on toast .... 
 
 . 74 
 
 stewed .... 
 
 . 11,7 
 
 in butter 
 
 . 37 
 
286 UnDej, 
 
 Turnips and potatoes mashed together 24, 145 
 
 breaded 149 
 
 browned in butter 86 
 
 with cream sauce 31 
 
 SALADS. 
 
 Salad, apple 95 
 
 asparagus 139 
 
 cabbage 53 
 
 celery 24 
 
 chicken 102 
 
 chicory, with French dressing . . 32 
 
 cold meat 141 
 
 cold slaw ...... 38 
 
 egg, with greens 112 
 
 lettuce, with French dressing . . 60 
 
 onion 117 
 
 oyster 45 
 
 potato, with greens . . . .131 
 
 for tea or luncheon .... 200 
 
 sardine 214 
 
 string-bean 160 
 
 sweetbread 200 
 
 tomato 9, 112 
 
 and celery 191 
 
 DESSERTS. 
 
 Apples, baked, with cream . . . 161 
 
 with meringue 155 
 
 Cake. 
 
 cake, chocolate 113 
 
 cream 113 
 
 fruit 236 
 
 gold and silver 236 
 
 lemon . . . . . . 10, 11 
 
 loaf 53 
 
Cake — f Con tin ued) 
 
 molasses .... 
 
 pound 
 
 sponge 
 
 whipped-cream . 
 
 chocolate custard for layer cake 
 
 frosting for cakes and puddings 
 
 gingersnaps .... 
 
 hot ginger bread and wafers , 
 
 soft gingerbread 
 
 vanilla wafers ... 
 
 Charlotte russe .... 
 Custard, boiled .... 
 Dumplings, steamed, caramel sauce 
 Floating island .... 
 French toast .... 
 Fruit dumplings, baked 
 
 fritters 
 
 Gelatine jelly, caramel 
 
 caramel sea-foam mouss^ 
 
 chocolate, with custard . 
 
 coffee, Bavarian cream . 
 
 orange, with whipped cream . 
 
 pineapple, with whipped cream 
 
 princess, with sea-foam cream 
 
 strawberry 
 whip 
 
 wine 
 Ice-cream . 
 
 Muskmelon with ice-cream 
 Pie, apple . 
 
 cherry 
 
 huckleberry 
 
 lemon meringue 
 
 mince 
 
 peach 
 
 rhubarb . 
 
 squash 
 
 and fruit 
 
 237 
 
 237 
 
 226 
 
 10 
 
 223 
 
 I, 232 
 
 238 
 
 239 
 240 
 119 
 173 
 154 
 17 
 118 
 
 235 
 81 
 
 234 
 
 5 
 
 230 
 
 154 
 
 229 
 
 178 
 
 60 
 
 151 
 
 68 
 
 229 
 
 91 
 
 185 
 
 234 
 
 104 
 
 105 
 
 167 
 
 39 
 
 181 
 
 104 
 
 104 
 
 166 
 
2S8 
 
 •ffnOej, 
 
 Pineapple, jardiniere . 
 with floating island 
 Pudding, banana meringue 
 blackberry 
 
 cherry .... 
 chocolate 
 
 jelly, with sea-foam cream 
 corn-starch, with candied fruit 
 
 lemon meringue (baked) 
 cottage 
 farina 
 Indian 
 
 lemon meringue 
 orange tapioca, with whipped 
 plum 
 prune 
 queen's . 
 rice, baked 
 
 boiled, whipped-egg sauce 
 
 meringue 
 roly-poly, with whipped-egg 
 steamed, with oranges . 
 suet 
 sultana 
 tapioca, baked 
 
 cream . 
 
 meringue 
 Strawberry shortcake 
 
 SAUCES. 
 
 MKAT AND VEGETABI<E SAUCES. 
 
 Cream gravy, for bacon, etc. 
 
 for fresh pork 
 Onion butter 
 Sauce, bread 
 
 caper 
 
 •curry 
 
flliDcj. 289 
 
 Sauce — ( Con tin ued) 
 
 drawu butter (or white) . . . 16, 90 
 Espagnole (or brown), for stews, etc. . 198 
 
 Hollandaise 94 
 
 mint 51 
 
 parsley 51 
 
 tartare 190 
 
 wine . . . . . . -51 
 
 PUDDING SAUCES. 
 
 Caramel (burnt sugar) . . . .18 
 
 Maple-sugar syrup 202 
 
 Sauce, caramel 18 
 
 caramel cream 189 
 
 custard 47 
 
 egg, whipped 4 
 
 hard 82, 180 
 
 liquid 107, 180 
 
 strawberry-shortcake .... 233 
 
 tutti-frutti 233 
 
 wine 180 
 
 Sea-foam cream 232 
 
 Substitute for whipped cream ... 34 
 
 Sugar syrup 234 
 
 Whipped cream 33 
 
 SAI^AD DRESSINGS. 
 
 French dressing . . . . 24, 32 
 Mayonnaise . . . .46, 103, 141 
 Tarragon vinegar 261 
 
 TABI^E-SAUCES. 
 
 Apples, fried 158 
 
 Apple-sauce, baked 127 
 
 hot 85 
 
390 
 
 •ffiiDej. 
 
 Cranberry-sauce, strained . 
 
 
 
 177 
 
 whole .... 
 
 
 
 178 
 
 Peaches, stewed and baked 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 Prunes, stewed . 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 Rhubarb, baked 
 
 
 
 . 261 
 
 stewed .... 
 
 
 
 88 
 
 Strawberries, raspberries, and 
 
 blackber 
 
 
 ries, stewed 
 
 • 
 
 II 
 
 PICKI^KS AND REWSHBS. 
 
 
 Chili sauce 
 
 
 150 
 
 Marmplade, lemon 
 
 
 
 79 
 
 tomato .... 
 
 
 
 1^8 
 
 Pickled, cabbage 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 cucumbers 
 
 
 
 260 
 
 green tomatoes 
 
 
 
 259 
 
 string-beans 
 
 
 
 260 
 
 Spiced tomato sauce, cold 
 
 
 
 172 
 
 hot 
 
 
 
 122 
 
 JEI.I.IES. 
 
 Jelly, crab-apple . . . . . 254 
 
 currant . 256 
 
 grape . .... . .255 
 
 quince 250 
 
 PRESERVES. 
 
 Canned, cherries 251 
 
 peaches 247 
 
 plums 251 
 
 strawberries, raspberries, and blackber- 
 ries II 
 
 Preserved, citron . . . . . 253 
 
 grapes 252 
 
 orange-peel (candied) .... 247 
 
IFnDej. 
 
 2QI 
 
 Preserved, peaches 
 
 
 
 248 
 
 spiced 
 
 
 
 249 
 
 pineapple 
 
 
 
 250 
 
 candied 
 
 
 
 105 
 
 quinces .... 
 
 
 
 250 
 
 Syrup from berries 
 
 
 
 257 
 
 BREAD 
 
 
 
 Biscuits (baking-powder) . 
 
 
 159 
 
 or dinner rolls (yeast) . 
 
 
 
 J32 
 
 Bread (yeast) 
 
 
 
 
 date (yeast) 
 
 
 
 269 
 
 gluten (yeast) . 
 
 
 
 218 
 
 milk (yeast) . 
 
 
 
 215 
 
 Cornbread .... 
 
 
 123 
 
 , 226 
 
 Muffins (baking-powder) . 
 
 
 
 206 
 
 Graham .... 
 
 
 
 213 
 
 Indian meal 
 
 
 
 224 
 
 yeast (prune pudding batter) 
 
 
 
 97 
 
 MISCBLIvANBOUS. 
 
 
 
 Bread-crumbs for breading and pudd 
 
 ings . 
 
 212 
 
 Cheese, on toast 
 
 
 203 
 
 some varieties 
 
 
 . 
 
 265 
 
 Chocolate .... 
 
 
 . 
 
 162 
 
 Coffee .... 
 
 
 147 
 
 , 245 
 
 Cooking utensils 
 
 
 
 276 
 
 Crust, for oyster-patties 
 for pot-pies and stew-pies 
 
 
 
 193 
 
 
 . 
 
 159 
 
 Eggs, au gratin . 
 
 
 . 
 
 
 beauregarde . 
 
 
 . 
 
 t88 
 
 poached 
 
 
 
 206 
 
 scrambled .... 
 
 
 
 207 
 
 Flavorings .... 
 
 
 . 
 
 268 
 
 Fondant, or foundation, for cream ca 
 
 indies 
 
 241 
 
 Frosting for cakes and puddings 
 
 . 
 
 II 
 
 232 
 
•ffnDej. 
 
 Grape-fruit . 
 Griddle-cakCvS, bread 
 
 buckwheat 
 
 wheat and Indian 
 Helpful suggestions 
 Home-made yeast 
 Indian-meal mush 
 Lemonade . 
 Lemon extract . 
 Milk toast . 
 Mince-meat 
 Oatmeal 
 Oranges 
 Pie-crust (flaky) 
 Pot-cheese with watercresses 
 Punch 
 
 Salted almonds 
 Sandwiches 
 
 cheese 
 
 sardine 
 Sherbets and sorbets . 
 Stuffing, bread and butter 
 
 onion 
 Sugar-plums, chocolate 
 
 nut candies 
 Tea .... 
 Things to keep on hand 
 To draw poultry 
 To lay the dinner-table 
 Un fermented grape-juice 
 Vanilla extract . 
 
 -bar, 
 
 . i88 
 
 . 211 
 . 214 
 
 211 
 . 262 
 . 219 
 . 205 
 . 258 
 . 258 
 
 202 
 
 181, 246 
 
 . 205 
 
 . 103 
 
 . 81 
 
 . 269 
 
 . 80 
 
 . 271 
 
 32, 268 
 
 . 214 
 
 . 269 
 
 49, 126 
 . 152 
 and 
 . 242 
 . 26 
 . 271 
 
 . 275 
 
 . 276 
 
 • 257 
 
 . 258 
 
BOOKS FOR THE HOUSEHOLD 
 
 household Economics. A Course of Lectures in the 
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PRACTICAL COOK BOOKS 
 
 Good-Living A Practical Cookery Book for Tow 
 and Country. By Sara Van Buren Brugi^re. 8vc 
 
 cloth $2 
 
 This book contains over 1,300 recipes drawn from highest authoriti« 
 and many countries ; from France, Belgium, England, Holland, Denmarl 
 Spain, Italy, Austria, Russia, as well as nearer home, to suit the varie 
 tastes of our cosmopolitan community. All the plainer dishes whic 
 every family requires, and which are generally slighted because they ar 
 plain and simple, have received careful study ; roasting, bread- an 
 butter-making, etc., having had great attention. Besides these there i 
 an endless variety of entries or side-dishes to suit the palate of th 
 gourmet, all simple and easy to make, giving a large scope to the house 
 keeper to furnish a varied table with a comparatively limited variety c 
 material. Another aim, almost if not quite equal, is economy, ever 
 receipt given being within the reach of any family of moderate, eve 
 modest, means, in either city or country. 
 
 The Franco-American Cookery Book ; or, How t< 
 Live Well and Wisely Every Day in the Year 
 
 Containing over 2,000 Recipes. By Felix J. Deliee 
 Caterer of the New York Club ; Ex-Chef of the Unioi 
 and Manhattan Clubs. Large octavo, half leather 
 illustrated $3 5( 
 
 A new Treatise, containing 365 different Bills of Fare, giving concis 
 instructions how to properly prepare and serve all kinds of domestic am 
 foreign culinary provisions in every way for each succeeding season, an( 
 mostly convenient for private families, clubs, restaurants, hotels, etc., etc 
 
 " In form, print, and value to economical taste it is, without doubt, th 
 best book of cookery ever issued from the American press." — Globt 
 Boston. 
 
 " The most extensive work on cookery printed in this country."— /V?^/ 
 Pittsburg. 
 
 Quick Cooking. A Book of Culinary Heresies for th< 
 Busy Wives and Mothers of the Land. By One 01 
 THE Heretics. i6mo, cloth . . . . 75 cts 
 
 " A delightful addition to the serious Jiterature of cooking." — Bostoi 
 Post. 
 
 " A treasure for busy wives, mothers, and housekeepers." — Chaiau 
 fuan. 
 
 G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS, New York & Londoi