rX 663 .W88 Copy 1 MANUALS OF DOMESTIC WORK, zero. 1. PRACTICAL LESSONS IN COOKERY PREPARED FOR THE Free.*. School . *. of . \ Cookery . \ and . \ Housework, WASHINGTON, D. C. > *" v, » AND FOR USE IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS WASHINGTON : ROBT. S. COOPER, PRINTER. 1889. MANUALS OF DOMESTIC WORK. NO. 1. Lessons in Cookery, PREPARED FOR THE First Mission Mml of Cookery and Housework AND FOR USE -IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. BY Mrs. Anna Lowell Woodbury. ^ WASHINGTON }(e> M ;y ? \ ROBT. S. COOPER, PRINTER. 889 K^ Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1889, by Mrs. Anna Lowell WoovrnpFF/ruji^ In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. PREFACE. There is nothing in these lessons which will be new to any experienced housekeeper ; for I have merely tried to arrange as clearly and concisely as possible some of the more important facts and principles of practical cookery, in such a form as would best impress . them upon the minds of the pupils. If these are fixed in their memories while they are young, they will never be entirely. .forgotten, even if not put immediately into practice. The lessons were planned and partially written about ten years ago, when the school was first established, and were afterwards completed, and carefully arranged for use in the public schools ; where the classes follow each other in rapid succession, and it is important that as much infor- mation as possible should be given in a limited time. They have been in daily use in the mission school for five years, and I have myself closely observed each lesson as it was given to class after class; and have made any little additions or changes which were needed. Families and individuals differ so much in their tastes, and their methods of living, that it would be impossible, in any school of cookery, to please every one ; but a good foundation can be laid, and if the facts and principles of practical cookery are well understood it is very easy to vary the preparation of any particular dish. The first nineteen lessons are intended to teach the various processes of cooking, and such dishes were selected to exemplify them as would be attractive and interesting to the pupils, and useful to them in their homes. For several of the recipes I am indebted to friends, and the others were IV PREFACE. obtained from experienced practical cooks ; they have, how- ever, all been more or less changed, and in most of them very little is left as it was originally given to me. There are many others which are equally good, but these have been thoroughly tested by the young ladies who have had charge of the classes, and by hundreds of girls, and they have proved very satisfactory and well adapted to the pur- pose they are intended to serve. I saw that it was im- possible to have system or method in schools of cookery, without a text-book ; and that no teacher could give her attention to the proper preparation of the dishes, and at the same time remember to tell her pupils the many little facts which it was so important they should know. If the lessons are dictated, each pupil should bring a tablet and pencil to the class, and should copy the lesson again at home neatly in a book, with pen and ink ; and these books ought to be brought in every month to the teacher, to be examined and corrected. If not dictated, they should be studied and re- cited like any other lessons, and the pupils should be fre- quently questioned in such a way as will show whether they have clearly understood, and fixed in their memories what they have been learning. The notes were originally written for the normal pupils ; but as they may be of some use to the teaaher, I have had them printed with the lessons. It may be well to say that the school has never been con- nected with any church or association ; — the word mission is used in a general sense, and the name was given to it be- cause it was established at a time when so little encourage- ment was given to this branch of industrial education, that any work connected with it might properly be called " mis- sion ' ' work. It was the first, or one of the first, free schools of cookery established in this country, and as I was particu- larly interested in the introduction of cookery into the pub- PREFACE. V lie school system, classes of girls were invited after school hours for many years, until the first class was detailed three years ago. They were not only interested themselves, but they took pains to interest others, and have done their share in forwarding the cause of industrial education. As it seems better now that the lessons should be committed to memory, I have decided to have them printed ; leaving them just as they were written, and in the same simple lan- guage in which they were given to the girls. A. L. W. 1205 G Street, Washington, D. C, MANUAL OF COOKERY. In making a fire, first clear the grate, and brush off the stove, taking up all the ashes nicely into an old coal- hod. Then open the main dampers above and below, put in the paper or shavings, and on them lay the pieces of kindling wood lightly across each other so that the air may pass through. Scatter in a little coal, and light the paper with a match. Add more coal slowly, until the fire is well kindled, then close the lower drafts, and half-close the upper one, and you will have a steady fire, and more heat, than you Would if you let it burn up very hot at first. No range or stove should be allowed to get red hot, and the coal should never come above the fire-bricks, as it checks the heat from passing to the oven, and to the top of the stove, and also warps the covers. In winter, always see that the water pipes are not frozen, as it is dangerous to light a fire if there is a boiler connected with them ; and never use coal-oil on or near a fire, or in lighting one. Placing paper on the top as well as at the bottom in kindling a fire, and lighting both, will make it less apt to smoke. Soft pine wood split into small pieces, is best for kindling," and white ash coal is used for stoves, while Lorberry, or red ash coal should be used in ranges. An old dust brush should be kept for use on the range and hearth. The hands should always be nicely washed before beginning to cook, and the MANUAL OF COOKERY. 7 head should be protected by a cap, or covering of some kind. TIP-TOP BISCUIT. Sift one quart of flour. Add two full teaspoonfuls of baking powder, and one teaspoonful of salt, and sift it again. Rub one large tablespoonful of butter through the flour, and then stir in slowly with a spoon, one cup of sweet milk, or enough to make a soft dough. Flour the bread board, and turn the dough onto it with the spoon. Toss it lightly from side to side a few times with a knife, and then roll it out about one-half of an inch thick, and cut into very small round biscuit. Place one-half of these in the pan, and rub the top of each with a little milk ; then place the others on top of them, and bake in a quick oven for twenty minutes. These biscuit should not be larger than a half-dollar, and can be cut with the cover of a small tin box. They can also be made richer with a little more butter, and baked as single biscuit. In this case, make of the usual size. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Show the pupils how to mix and handle dough lightly and quickly ; letting each one in turn have a lesson in roll- ing and cutting. For a class of twelve girls make the whole quantity which is given in the recipe ; and detail one or two girls to watch the biscuit in the oven, while others wash the dishes, and prepare the room for the next class ; showing them how to do everything very nicely. The teacher may think it best to have a preparatory lesson on the first day of school, and in that case, after the names of the pupils have been entered in the class-book, let MANUAL OF COOKERY. them have a short lesson on the various kinds of cooking utensils ; and also make the ginger snaps which are given in the twenty-first lesson, as they are interesting and easily made. Hot ashes should never be put into anything which is made of wood, as it might cause a dangerous fire. When cool, they should be sifted, and the cinders should be picked out carefully, and used after dinner or when there is no baking or ironing to be done. An open door or window opposite a stove will often deaden a fire, or make it smoke when first lighted. The upper main damper should always be left a little open in order to let off the coal-gas. After the breakfast is entirely cooked, put on coal, and keep the stove closed unless you have to bake bread, in which case the oven dampers must be arranged for that. A clear, steady fire is needed for baking, and the simplest way to test an oven is to touch it with your finger, wet in cold water ; if it hisses loudly, it is hot enough for bread. It is important to learn thoroughly how to manage every differ- ent stove or range, either from printed directions or from some one who understands it ; as a damper must be pulled out to heat some ovens, while others are heated by pushing in the damper. The soot should be cleaned out from under and around the oven once a week with the scraper which comes for that purpose ; and the other flues should be cleaned occasionally. Stove polish should be moistened with water in an old MANUAL OF COOKERY. 9 dish, and this with the brushes should be kept together in one fixed place. The polish should be put all over the cold stove with a rag, and brushed in thoroughly while wet. Then polish it with the dry brush, when the stove is a little warm. The early morning is therefore the best time to do it ; but otherwise it is best to black it at night when the stove is a little warm. Stoves are generally blacked every day ; but they can be kept very nice by blacking them two or three times a week, if care is taken to wipe off everything which drops on them. SUGAR COOKIES. One cup of sugar ; half a cup of butter closely packed ; two eggs; one and a half tablespoon fuls of milk ; one- quarter of a teaspoonful of ginger; half a teaspoonful of grated nutmeg ; and three full cups of flbur with two tea- spoonfuls of baking powder in it. Cream the butter in a bowl with a wooden spoon ; and then stir the sugar thor- oughly into it. Break in the eggs one at a time, and beat the mixture well. Then add the milk and spice, and sift in the flour and baking powder gradually. Butter the pans, and roll out the dough about an eighth of an inch thick on a floured board. Cut out the cookies with a hole in the centre, and bake them a light brown in a quick oven. These cookies may be rolled a little thicker, and some cara- way seeds can be mixed with the dough ; or they may be made a little richer and rolled very thin. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Make half the quantity given in the recipe, and let the pupils practice rolling, cutting and baking. Explain to IO MANUAL OF COOKERY. them also the management of an oven, and how to prepare a fire for baking. If in any of the lessons there should be a little unoccupied time, it can be filled by showing the pupils how to black the stove, or polish the tinware, or ar- range the dressers and closets nicely, or by questioning them on the previous lessons. There are two kinds of white flour, the old process flour, which should be used for cake or pastry, and the new pro- cess flour which should be used for bread. The best flour is the cheapest in the end, and should be kept in a dry place. If it should happen to get damp, it must be dried before it is used. If you wish the bread to be moist and tender, make a soft dough, and knead it only five or ten minutes; but fine-grained, dry bread requires a stiff dough, and should be kneaded twenty minutes or more. In knead- ing dough on the bread board, pat it lightly and do not press it down. Let all motion be as elastic as possible, and work it so as as to keep the same smooth side always on the board. Use as little flour as possible on the bread board, as bread, cake and pastry are made tough by flour added in that way ; and for the same reason it is best to cut as many cakes as possible from each rolling of the dough. Bread and rolls should be made with cold water in sum- mer, and put in a cool place to rise. In winter they should be made with lukewarm water, and put in a warm place to MANUAL OF COOKERY. II rise. The bowl or pan should be closely covered with a thick cloth kept for that purpose ; and a wooden or tin cover should be placed on top of this, as it will make it air tight, and prevent a crust from forming on the dough. They should be covered in the same way, when set to rise in the pans in the morning. Bread should stand ior an hour in the pan, and rolls should stand for an hour and a half; but they can be hurried by putting them in a warm place. A hotter oven is required for rolls than for bread. Always watch carefully whatever you are baking in the oven, and turn or move it as is required. All yeast should be fresh and sweet, and half a cup of baker's, or of home-made yeast, will raise two quarts of flour. If part of a cake of Fleischman's yeast is left unused, it can be wrapped tightly in the tin-foil, and will remain good for a day or two if kept in a cool place. PLAIN BREAD. Sift two quarts of flour with one full teaspoonful of salt in it; and then rub into it well one tablespoonful of butter or lard. Dissolve one-third of a cake of Fleischman's yeast, in a cup of lukewarm water, with one even tablespoonful of sugar, and add it to the flour. Then add carefully water enough to make a soft dough, stirring it all the time. When well mixed, flour the bread board, and turn the dough onto it. Knead it five or ten minutes, and then put it back into the bowl, covering it closely. Set it to rise, and in the morning turn the dough as early as possible onto a floured board, and knead it about five minutes. Then put it into well buttered pans, filling carefully all the corners, and evening the top. Cover it closely and set it to rise until it is ready to go into the oven. Bread should always be thoroughly baked, and have a light brown crust. The 12 MANUAL OF COOKERY. loaves should be taken from the pan at once and wrapped in a clean towel. Then stand them on end, resting them against a sieve or pan, as hot bread should never be laid flat on the table. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Before the dictation is given, show the pupils how to shape the different kinds of rolls from dough which has been prepared beforehand either by the teacher or by an- other class, and then put them to rise in a pan in a warm place, so that the girls can bake them before they leave. After the lesson has been dictated, make one-half of the quantity of dough given in the recipe, and leave it to rise in the bowl. If several classes are following each other, one class can sometimes bake the dough which another has mixed. Soup stock should be made in a large, tightly covered kettle. To every pound of meat or bone allow one quart of cold water, one even teaspoonful of salt, and half a tea- spoonful of pepper. Whether cooked or uncooked, the meat should always be cut into small pieces, and the bones should be broken in order to let the marrow come out easily. Let the meat stand in the water until it is slightly colored with the juice, and then let it come slowly to a boil, removing every particle of scum as it rises, or the -soup will MANUAL OF COOKERY. I 3 look and taste unpleasantly. A cup of cold water thrown in will cause the scum to rise more readily. Let it boil gently and steadily, allowing an hour to every pound of meat. The water will boil down to about one-third of the original quantity, and the cover of the kettle can be left a little off during the last half hour, if it does not boil down fast enough. When done, strain it into a bowl or stone jar kept for the purpose. In winter it will become a thick jelly, but even if it remains liquid it can be used. The cake of fat which forms on the top should be left on until you are ready to use the stock. This fat, when melted and strained, can be used instead of lard for many pur- poses, if the stock is made from beef only. The jelly can be melted into a strong, clear soup, or it can be diluted with an equal quantity of water and made into vegetable or other soups, or a little of it can be used in making various gravies. White stock is made from veal and poultry. If a stock-pot is kept at the back of the stove, it should fre- quently be entirely emptied and washed out. BOILED POTATOES. Select potatoes, if possible, which are of the same size ; but if some should happen to be larger than others, they can be cut in halves. They may be boiled either with or without their skins, but in either case they should be nicely washed. The skin of new potatoes can be rubbed off with a coarse towel, but old potatoes should be peeled with a sharp knife, cutting out carefully all the black specks. Let them lie in cold water for several hours, and then put them on the fire, with water enough to cover them well, allowing one teaspoonful of salt to every quart of water. New potatoes should always be put into boiling water, but old ones may be put on either in cold or boiling water. They should be 14 MANUAL OF COOKERY. cooked about half an hour. When they are tender, pour off every drop of water, sprinkle them with a little salt and shake them lightly. Set the saucepan at the back of the stove and cover it with a clean towel or with the cover, which should be left a little off. They should be taken from the saucepan singly with a spoon. DRAWN BUTTER. Melt two ounces (or two full tablespoonfuls) of butter in a saucepan, and stir into it gradually one tablespoon ful of flour until perfectly smooth. Then slowly add half a pint of hot water and a very little salt, and let it cook for a minute or two till it thickens, stirring constantly. For rich drawn butter, take four ounces of butter and the same quantity of flour and of water. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. The soup stock is not made in this lesson. The potatoes should be put in water before the pupils come, so that they may put them on the fire before the dictation is given. Then let them have a lesson in mashing potatoes, and in potato snow ; and make the drawn butter. Explain to them also what a stock-pot is. MANUAL OF COOKERY. *5 Water is boiling when there is active motion, and bubbles rise to the top and throw off steam. As the water boils more or less violently, this motion will be proportionately greater or less. When the bubbles remain underneath the sur- face, the water is simmering ; water enough to last through the whole time of cooking should be put in at first,, and if any is added, it should be actually boiling. Never let any- thing stop boiling even for a minute ; and never let anything boil very fast, as steady, gentle cooking will make meat and vegetables tender, and is better for everything. Meat which is to be used for soup should be put on in cold water ; but meat which is to be boiled for dinner should be put on in boiling water so that the juices may be kept in. Soup should be skimmed before the vegetables are put in. It may be strained clear into the tureen, or thickened by mashing through some of the vegetables, or it may be served without straining at all, merely taking out the bone. White soups are made from white meats, such as veal and chicken, or from oysters, and should be as colorless as possible. Brown soups are made from the dark meats, and may be colored with a little caramel. Toasted bread cut into small square pieces, is often served with clear soup. Vegetables which are to be put into soup should be nicely washed and prepared as each one may require. A little bouquet of dried herbs, with a bay-leaf in it is often boiled in soup, and should be taken out before serving it. l6 MANUAL OF COOKERY. VEGETABLE SOUP. Dilute two quarts of jellied soup stock with one pint of water. Add to it one small parsnip, one small carrot, one small turnip, and two small onions, all chopped fine. Also half a cupful of chopped cabbage, three tomatoes peeled and sliced, or half a pint of canned ones, and half a cupful of chopped celery, or half a teaspoonful of celery salt. Boil gently for one hour, and then add half a teaspoonful of pepper, one saltspoonful of ground cloves, and a little salt. Boil a few minutes longer and serve without straining. The vegetables can be varied or omitted according to taste, and a spoonful of barley or rice can be added if desired. This soup can be made from a roast beef bone or from soup meat, but the meat should be boiled for some time be- fore the vegetables are put in, and should be put on the fire several hours before dinner. BOSTON BROWN BREAD. Six ounces of yellow corn meal ; four ounces of rye meal ; one ounce of white flour ; one even teaspoonful of salt ; one even teaspoonful of soda; half a pint of milk; two large spoonfuls (half a gill) of molasses ; and water enough to make quite a stiff dough. Sift the two kinds of meal together, and then sift in the flour and salt. Add the molasses, the milk, and the soda (dissolved in a little hot water), and lastly add as much water as is required. Fill the tin about three quarters full, and fasten the cover on tight. Put it into a closed kettle with enough boiling water in it to nearly cover the tin and let it steam steadily four hours. This bread can be made without milk, or with sour milk, in which case the soda is put into the milk. If a firm crust is desired, the bread can be MANUAL OF COOKERY. I 7 put into the oven for a short time, after taking it from the steamer. CARAMEL. Melt half a pound of loaf, or brown sugar in a small fry- ing pan, with one teaspoonful of water. Stir steadily over the fire till it becomes a dark brown color. Then add slowly one cup of boiling water, and one teaspoonful of salt. Boil a minute longer. After it has cooled, put it in a bottle, and keep it tightly corked. One tablespoonful will color clear soup ; and a teaspoonful of it is used in some kinds of gravy. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. The stock must be prepared beforehand, and the soup with the vegetables should be put on the fire before the dic- tation is given, so that it may be ready before the class leaves. One-half of the quantity given in the recipe will be sufficient, and a little of the caramel can be used in it. If several classes are following each other rapidly, it will not be possible to make the brown bread, but the pupils might be shown how to roll and sift bread crumbs, or any other simple thing which may occur to the teacher. MANUAL OF COOKERY. Green vegetables should be fresh and firm, and should be nicely washed before they are cooked. If they are to be put into boiling water, let it be freshly boiled for the pur- pose, and allow one teaspoonful of salt to a quart of water. They should be cooked until tender, and this can only be found out by watching and testing them with a fork, as no exact time can be given. For most vegetables, about half an hour is required, but as they grow older they require more cooking than when they are young and tender. They retain their color better if cooked quickly and uncovered. If tomatoes are to be eaten raw, they should be peeled like any other vegetable or fruit, and may be served whole, with salad dressing, or cut into slices and dressed with a little pepper, salt and vinegar. In either case they should be put into the ice chest for a time. If they are to be cooked, pour boiling water on them, and let them stand for a time before peeling them. They may be sliced and fried in a little hot butter, dredging them first with a little salt, pepper, and flour. They can also be broiled, baked, or stewed. Canned tomatoes should never be left in the tin- can after it has been opened. If there is more than will be used at once, pour it out into a bowl, before putting it away. In buying canned goods, great care should be taken to select the best, as the others are often unwholesome, and even dangerous. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 1 9 MOCK BISQUE. One quart of tomatoes ; three pints of milk ; two heap- ing tablespoon fuls of flour; two tablespoonfuls of butter; one full teaspoonful of salt ; one scant teaspoonful of pepper and one scant teaspoonful of soda. Put the tomato on the fire in a saucepan, and when it boils, add the soda and let it boil ten minutes, stirring oc- casionally. Then strain it into a bowl, through a sieve fine enough to keep back the seeds. In the meantime put the milk on in a double boiler,- and cream the butter in a bowl. Then mix the flour well with the butter, and afterwards stir slowly into it one cupful of the hot milk. When the rest of the milk boils, pour this mixture into it very slowly and stir till it thickens, which will be in about five minutes. Add the pepper and salt, and the strained tomato, and serve at once. SAUCES. The foundation of most sauces is w r hat is known as a roux, which is made by melting some butter in a saucepan, and stirring into it a little dry flour, until the mixture is perfectly smooth. Many different sauces can be made by adding to this a little hot water, hot milk, or stock, and other ingredients of various kinds. A cream sauce is made by pouring slow T ly on the roux hot cream or hot milk ; and this, and sauces made from white stock are called white sauces. When the butter and flour are allowed to brown, it is called a brown roux, and brown sauces are made from it by using brown stock, and various seasonings. BOILED RICE. Wash clean one cupful of rice and put it into a saucepan 20 MANUAL OF COOKERY. with one quart of water and a teaspoonful of salt, and boil it until quite tender ; then turn it into a colander to drain without stirring it at all. Let it stand in a warm place to dry for five or ten minutes befor serving. Every kernel of rice should be separate, dry, and look very white. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Let the pupils pick over and wash the rice, and put it on to boil as soon as they come. After the dictation they can make the mock bisque ; and the roux and sauces are not made in this lesson. Explain to them also that this soup is called mock bisque, because it resembles lobster bisque in taste and color. It is very nice and can be quickly made if soup is wanted unexpectedly. Saucepans and kettles should never be filled entirely full, for the water would constantly boil over ; nor should they ever be left on the fire without any water at all in them, as they would soon be burnt through and ruined. A double boiler should be used for milk, custard, oatmeal, and any- thing which burns easily. When milk bubbles a little in a double boiler, it is boiling. When cooked in this way, it will never burn nor boil over. The water in the under boiler should be boiling when the upper one is put in, and should be filled up with boiling water, if it is used for a long time. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 2 1 Potatoes, rice, oatmeal, and many other things can be cooked very nicely in a steamer placed over a kettte of boil- ing water. A tea-kettle should be washed, and filled fresh every morning, or it will soon give an unpleasant taste to the tea or coffee. The water from a range boiler should never be used for cooking ; fresh water for this purpose should be kept in a clean kettle on the stove. CORN STARCH BLANC MANGE Measure out one pint of milk. Dissolve two tablespoon- fuls of corn starch in about half a cupful of it. Put the re- mainder of the milk on the fire in a double boiler, and add to it one stick of cinnamon, two tablespoon fuls of sugar, one-third of a saltspoonful of salt, and heat till nearly boil- ing Then add the mixed corn starch slowly, and let it boil four minutes, stirring all the time. Take out the cinnamon, and pour the cornstarch into a mould, or into small cups, which should first be wet with cold water. When cold and stiff, turn it onto a dish, and serve with sugar and milk ; or with custard, or any kind of jelly or preserved fruit put round it on the dish. This blanc mange can be made with eggs if preferred. POACHED EGGS. Fill a deep frying pan nearly full of hot water with a teaspoonful of salt in it, and let it boil gently. Break each egg into a saucer, and slide it slowly into the water, letting it cook by itself, and pouring a little of the water gently over it with a teaspoon. When done, lift it out with a skimmer, and place it on a slice of hot buttered toast, sprinkling it with a little pepper and salt, and trimming the edges nicely. The toast may be dry, or wet by dipping 2 2 MANUAL OF COOKERY. it quickly into hot water. One or two tablespoon fuls of vinegar are sometimes put into the water in which eggs are poached. YEAST. Wash and pare three small potatoes, and lay them in cold water. Put one tablespoonful of loose hops to steep, in a pint of boiling water. In about half an hour mix together in a large bowl one tablespoonful of flour, two teaspoonfuls of sugar, and one full teaspoon ful of salt. Grate the po- tato into this. Let the hops boil for a minute, and then strain them through a sieve onto the potato and flour, stirr- ing it constantly and quickly. If it does not thicken, put it back on the fire, and let it boil a few moments, still stirr- ing as before. When lukewarm, add half a cup of yeast, or half a cake of Fleischman's yeast dissolved in a little warm sweetened water. Let it rise until it is light, and keep it in a cool place, in a tightly corked jug. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Let the pupils make the blanc mange as soon as they come ; mould it in small baking cups, and set it in a cold place. Then give the lesson, and poach some eggs; and by that time the blanc mange will be stiff enough to be turned out. Serve it with a little jelly. Show them also how to use a pitcher, or a tin pail, set into a pan with hot water in it, if they have no double boiler. It is better to raise the pail on two or three muffin rings if possible. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 2$ Eggs should always be kept in a cool place ; and when they are used, do not forget to save some of the egg shells for clearing coffee. In breaking eggs, it is better to break each one singly over a cup, because one bad egg will oblige you to throw away all which have been previously broken. If an egg is fresh and good, the white will rise up clear and firm from the shell. In separating the whites from the yolks, if a little of the yolk should get in with the whites, it can be taken out with a piece of eggshell, as it will ad- here to the inside ; or it can be taken out with the corner of a clean towel twisted into a point and dampened. In beating eggs with an egg- whisk or fork, keep the upper arm quiet and close to the side, and beat with the wrist. A Dover egg-beater is very good for the yolks, or for whole eggs, but should never be used for the whites of eggs, as it breaks the fibres two much. A Dover egg-beater should be kept in gentle motion round the bowl, and should never be held steadily on the bottom. The handle should be washed as seldom as possible, and the little wheels should be oiled occasionally or they will wear out. In beating sugar and the whites of eggs together, it is better to add the sugar slowly, for as eggs vary in size it is not possible to give the exact quantity of sugar required. The usual proportion for a meringue is three tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar to the whites of five eggs, and they should be beaten until very stiff. A pudding should be cooled a little before the meringue is put on, and should then be browned slightly in 24 MANUAL OF COOKERY, the oven. Cream puffs, ice-cream, and puddings which have eggs, milk, sugar, and lemon or other flavorings in them, should be eaten while fresh, as they become very un- wholesome, and dangerous if kept too long. The juice of fresh fruits is always far better than any extract, and none but the best extracts should be used, as the cheaper ones are not always reliable. BOILED CUSTARD. One quart of milk ; five tablespoonfuls of sugar ; two whole eggs, and the yolks of six more ; one teaspoonful of lemon or vanilla extract, or half a teaspoonful of almond extract. Boil the milk in a double boiler, and take it from the stove. Beat the eggs and sugar together and then pour the milk slowly into them, stirring constantly. Put the mix- ture back on the fire in the double boiler, and stir rapidly till it begins to thicken and coats the spoon, which will be in about five minutes. Take it quickly from the fire, and set it in a pan of cold water for a time, and when cool, add the flavoring extract. Custard will curdle if cooked too long. It should be served cold in glass cups. Very nice custard can be made by using from four to six whole eggs, or by using eight yolks without any whites. Many persons strain custard through a fine sieve, but it is not absolutely necessary. MERINGUE. Beat the whites of the six eggs with two or three table- spoonfuls of powdered sugar, until they are very stiff, and put a little on the top of each custard. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 25 BOILED MACARONI. Macaroni should never be soaked or washed. Break about a quarter of a pound into pieces from three to four inches long, and drop them slowly into a kettle full of well salted boiling water. When quite tender put them into a colander to drain. In the meantime boil one pint of milk with a small piece of butter, and thicken it with a teaspoon - ful of flour made into a paste with cold water. Put in the macaroni and let it simmer a short time before serving it. Allow an hour or more for the first boiling of the macaroni, as it should be thoroughly cooked. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Make the whole quantity of custard, and let the pupils cook it before the lesson is given. The meringue can be made afterwards. Half of the quantity of macaroni can be cooked and should be put on early ; or it can be entirely omitted. Tell them that it is better to use whole eggs for custard, unless it is wanted for some special occasion. When we immerse and cook anything in very hot or as it is commonly called " boiling " fat, we fry it j and when we cook it in a spider or saucepan, with a little melted butter or lard, we sauter it. Cooking on a griddle or slightly greased pan is baking, and griddle cakes are therefore baked and id MANUAL OF COOKERY. not fried. A kettle should be filled about half or two-thirds? full of fat, and when it is very hot a blue smoke will rise from it. If a bit of bread dropped in will brown quickly, the fat is hot enough to cook with. The heat of the fat should be watched and regulated just as carefully as the heat of an oven is, as the lightest dough will be made heavy if the fat is not just right. It should be allowed to heat up oc- casionally, and there should never be more than three or four doughnuts or fish balls in the kettle at a time, for the fat will be chilled and make them heavy, and they will also " soak the fat," as it is called, and be greasy. If they are put in gently with a ladle, the flit will not spatter and burn the hand. A kettle of hot fat should always be placed care- fully where it cannot be upset ; and no cold water, nor any- thing which is wet with water, should ever be put into it as the fat will spatter dangerously. DOUGHNUTS. Cream thoroughly one large tablespoon ful of butter, and work into it one heaping cup of fine brown sugar. Add to this three or four eggs and beat them all together with two teaspoonfuls of ground cinnamon, and one teaspoonful of nutmeg. Then add one cupful of sour milk with one tea- spoonful of soda in it (or enough to sweeten it.) Lastly sift in about two pints and a half of flour. Make a soft dough, and roll it on the bread-board about half an inch thick. Cut into cakes with a hole in the centre, and fry in a kettle of boiling lard. Take them out with a skimmer, and put them in a colander to drain. A little powdered sugar should be sifted over them. They can be made with one cup of sweet milk, and two teaspoonfuls of baking powder sifted in with the flour. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 27 SARATOGA CHIPS. Pare and wash tWo or three potatoes, and cut out the black specks. Then slice them as thin as wafers with a sharp knife and lay them in very cold water over night. In the morning dry them thoroughly with a towel, and drop a few slices at a time into a kettle of boiling lard. Fry them to a light golden brown, and then take them out with a skimmer and lay them on brown paper in a pan. Sprinkle them with a little salt, and set them in the oven a minute to dry. They can be served either hot or cold. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. One large potato should be prepared and put in cold water by the class before the lesson is given. Make one- half the quantity given in the recipe for doughnuts, and fry them before the Saratoga chips are fried. The pupils might be told of the different kinds of fat which can be used for frying, and also how to clarify uncooked fat. ge&&on 10* Lard which has been used for frying should never be left in the kettle ; when it has cooled a little, dip it out with a small tin dipper, and strain it through a fine wire strainer into a tin pail kept for the purpose. If codfish balls or an> article which would give an unpleasant taste to the fat have been fried in it, put the fat when cold with three tablespoon- 28 MANUAL OF COOKERY. fuls of cold water in a kettle on the fire. When it gets hot it will bubble, and after the bubbling, ceases, and a blue smoke rises, put in a raw potato which has been peeled and sliced. When the potato is done it should be taken out, and the fat will be clarified. By treating it in this way, and adding fresh lard, the same fat can be used for a long time, but should occasionally be thrown away entirely. CODFISH BALLS. Boil in salted water eight or nine medium sized potatoes, and mash them lightly. Let them cool, and in the mean- time pick one pound of salt fish into fine strips, being care- ful to take out every bone. Pour on enough boiling water to cover the fish, and let it stand ten minutes. Then drain it through a colander, and squeeze it well in the hands ; put it in a wooden, tray and pound it with a potato masher until all the fibres are separated. Mix it thoroughly with one large quart of the mashed potato, and add one tablespoon- ful of butter, two eggs, half a teaspoon fill of pepper, and a little salt if required. Make it quite soft with milk, and shape with the hands into small round balls. Fry two or three at a time in a kettle of boiling lard. Take them out with a skimmer, and drain them on soft brown paper. One teaspoonful of onion juice, one teaspoon ful of lemon juice, and a quarter of a teaspoonful of celery salt can be added if desired. If the fish is very salt, boiling water should be poured on a second time, and the mixture of fish and potato should always be tasted and seasoned rightly before the balls are shaped. If the potatoes are cool, a larger quantity of milk can be used than when they are warm, and this will make the fish balls more delicate. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 29 NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. One-half the quantity given in the recipe will make enough balls for a large class. They should be made as soft as pos- sible, and yet stiff enough to retain their shape after being moulded, and should be fried an even rich brown color. $e#&0n 11, A frying pan should always be well heated before the butter or lard is put into it. This should not be allowed to melt entirely, and should be put in a moment only before it is to be used, as it will turn brown if allowed to stand. A little lard or butter for greasing pans should be kept in a small dish, and used for nothing else. A soapstone griddle is considered the best, and it should never be greased. A new iron griddle can be cleaned with sapolio, and if it is rough, put it on the stove and rub it well with some dry salt. A griddle should be well heated before it is greased, and should be greased again between each set of cakes with a piece of clean brown paper or a white rag, using no more lard or butter than for baking pans. If there is too much grease, the cakes will be heavy round the edge. Some persons prefer to use butter for everything, and the pans for bread or cake should always be buttered ; but for griddle cakes, and for cooking over cold potatoes or cold mush, lard is generally preferred, as they will be dryer, and of a better color when cooked with it, and are also less apt to burn. Care should be taken also to scrape 30 MANUAL OF COOKERY. off at once any little pieces that may happen to fall on a pan or griddle, for they will burn and smoke whatever is being cooked. The bowl with the batter in it should be held close to the griddle, and just enough of the batter to make one cake should be taken up in the spoon, having first stirred it well from the bottom each time, and scraped in what has collected on the side of the bowl. Clean the bottom of the spoon on the edge of the bowl, and pour the batter from the point of it. Griddle cakes should be small, round, and of uniform size, and should always be served very hot. CORNMEAL SLAPPERS. Mix together one pint of cornmeal, one teaspoonful of butter, one teaspoonful of sugar, and one teaspoonful of salt. Pour onto the mixture enough boiling water to wet the meal. Let it cool, and add two well beaten eggs, and cold milk enough to make a thin batter. Bake in small thin cakes on a griddle. SCRAMBLED EGGS. Break six eggs into a bowl, and beat them a minute or two. Then stir into them about two-thirds of a cupful of milk, with a scant teaspoonful of salt, and half a teaspoon- ful of pepper. Partially melt a tablespoon ful of butter in a well heated frying pan, and pour in the mixture slowly, stirring it lightly with a fork until it has thickened. Then turn it at once into a hot dish. When done, it should have the consistency of a baked custard. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. The whole quantity given in the recipe for cornmeal MANUAL OF COOKERY. 3 I slappers should be made, so that each pupil in turn may bake a few cakes. Show them also how to mix batter quickly and neatly, without letting it collect on the side of the bowl. The recipe for scrambled eggs can be halved, and a smaller frying pan should be used than when the whole quantity is taken. One quart of flour is one pound. One pint of granulated sugar is one pound. Two cups of packed butter are one pound. Ten eggs are one pound. Two cups and a half of powdered sugar are one pound. Four cups of flour are one pound. Three cups of meal are one pound. One heaping tablespoonful of granulated sugar is one ounce. Two full tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar are one ounce. One full tablespoonful of butter is one ounce. Two full tablespoonfuls of flour are one ounce. Two full tablespoonfuls of coffee are one ounce. One pint of chopped meat closely packed is one pound. LIQUID MEASURE. Four saltspoonfuls make one teaspoonful. Four teaspoon fuls make one tablespoonful. Two tablespoonfuls make one ounce. $2 MANUAL OF COOKERY. Four tablespoonfuls make one wineglassful, or half a gill. Eight tablespoonfuls or four ounces make a gill. Four gills make a pint. Two pints make a quart. BREAD FRITTERS— No. i. Take a stale loaf of baker's bread and cut it into half- inch slices. Beat up three eggs, and stir into them a pint of milk and a saltspoonful of salt. Dip the slices into the milk and egg and lay them into a deep dish ; pour over them the rest of the milk and egg, and let them soak till tender. Then sauter them in a little butter, turning them over so that each side may be of a light brown color. Serve hot at break- fast with syrup, or sugar and butter. BREAD FRITTERS— No. 2. Cut a stale loaf of baker's bread into half-inch slices and trim off the hard crusts evenly. Beat up three eggs, and stir into them one pint of milk, a saltspoonful of salt, and a tablespoonful of flour made into a paste with a little cold water. Dip each slice of bread into a little milk to moisten it, and then dip it into the batter, and either sauter them in butter (browning on both sides), or fry them in boiling lard. Serve hot as a dessert with a hot sweet sauce, PLAIN OMELET. Beat the yolks of four eggs with a Dover egg beater (or any good one) and add two tablespoonfuls of milk and one teaspoonful of salt. Beat the whites very light with an egg whisk, and cut the yolks thoroughly into them. Have an omelet pan very hot, and put in a tablespoonful of but- ter, then pour in the beaten egg. Shake the pan vigorously on the hottest part of the stove until the egg begins to MANUAL OF COOKERY. 33 thicken, and then let it stand a minute or two to brown. Run a knife between the two sides of the omelet and the pan ; fold over on itself, and turn into a dish. Serve at once. The eggs can be beaten whole, if preferred, without sep- arating the yolks and whites. A little chopped parsely, or chopped ham, or chopped tomato can be used in an omelet. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Let the pupils make one kind of fritters and an omelet ; and show them how to separate nicely the yolks and whites of the eggs. Explain to them also what is meant by a " cutting " motion, and show them how it differs from mix- ing by stirring. Qz%%&\x 13* Oysters should be entirely fresh, as they become unwhole- some if kept too long. The largest oysters should be selected for frying, for pickling, for broiling, and for serving raw. Raw oysters are improved by being laid on ice for a time. They should be sprinkled with salt and pepper, and may be served in a dish or in small single plates, with slices of lemon. Many persons prefer to eat them with vine- gar ; and cayenne peppei is often used instead of black pepper. In preparing oysters for cooking, take them out singly with the fingers, feeling carefully for every little piece of shell. 34 MANUAL OF COOKERY. Put them in a bowl, and then strain the liquor and keep it separate. Oysters should be simmered and never boiled hard or cooked long as it will make them tough and small. Oyster liquor should be skimmed when it begins to boil. In frying oysters, croquettes or anything delicate, a wire basket should be used. A layer of oysters should be placed in the bottom of it, and it should be hung or held in the fat until they are cooked. Then lift it out, remove the oysters, and put in a fresh layer. If any crumbs in which oysters or croquettes have been rolled are left over, they should be thrown away. Oysters sauted in a little hot but- ter without crumbs or egg are very nice. Invalids should never be allowed to eat the hard part of an oyster ; and raw oysters are generally more wholesome for them than those which have been cooked, as they are more easily digested. FRIED OYSTERS. Drain one quart of oysters thoroughly through a coJander, and then take each one out singly and lay it on a clean towel to dry. Beat one egg with half a teaspoonful of salt and a saltspoonful of pepper. Dip the oysters first in cracker crumbs, or bread crumbs, then in the egg, and then in the crumbs again. Drop them gently into the boiling lard with a skimmer, and fry to a light brown ; then take them out with a skimmer, lay them on brown paper for a moment, and serve on a hot dish. OYSTER SOUP. Put one cup of milk or cream on the fire to boil in a double boiler. Put one quart of oysters in a saucepan with their own strained liquor, and one cup of cold water. The moment they begin to simmer, pour them through a colan- MANUAL OF COOKERY. 35 der into a hot bowl. Melt a tablespoonful of butter in the same saucepan and stir into it with an egg-whisk one table- spoonful of sifted flour. Let this cook one or two minutes, and add the oyster liquor gradually, stirring rapidly as you pour it in. Then add slowly the hot milk, with a few grains of cayenne pepper, a little ground mace and a little salt. Let this all boil up together, then add the oysters, and serve at once. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. The pupils can make the soup and fry the oysters, using either the whole quantity given, or half of it. One pint of oysters will be enough for a small class to fry. Qzz&on 14* When buying fresh meat, select that which has a clear white fat, and firm healthy look. Meat is made more ten. der by being kept for a time, and mutton is especially improved by it. Fresh meat should never be soaked at all ; it can either be washed in cold water, or wiped off with a damp cloth. The best beef is of a clear, red color, and is slightly marbled with white fat. The sirloin and the sixth, seventh and eighth ribs are the best roasting pieces ; the ribs can be removed and used for stock, and the meat can be rolled and skewered, trimming off all the rough bits. The tenderloin cut is the nicest, but is much more expensive than the others. 36 MANUAL OF COOKERY. Mutton also should be of a clear, red color, with white, firm fat ; a leg or a shoulder of mutton may be either roasted or boiled. Veal should have white fat, and the flesh should be slightly pink in color. The fillet, breast, and loin are the best pieces for roasting, and the neck and ribs for stew- ing Pork should have fine, white fat, and the meat should be white and smooth. The spare-rib is considered the most delicate piece for roasting, but the leg, loin, and shoulder are very good. Pork and veal are very nice when cold; they should never be eaten at all in hot weather. The oven should be very hot when meat is first put in, but may be slackened afterwards. For rare meat, allow ten to twelve minutes to the pound ; and allow fifteen to twenty minutes to a pound if the meat is to be well done. Veal, pork and lamb should be thoroughly cooked ; while beef and mutton should be left quite rare. ROAST BEEF. Sprinkle the beef with a little pepper and salt, and dredge it with flour ; put a little water in the baking pan, and place the meat in it on a small rack which fits into the pan, and will keep the meat out of the water. Put it into the oven, and then melt a tablespoonful of butter in a cupful of boilng water. When the flour has browned, baste the meat with this, and continue to do it every fifteen or twenty minutes. Sprinkle it once more with pepper and salt, and dredge it with flour at least twice. When the meat is done, serve it on a hot platter. GRAVY. Take all the fat from the drippings, and scrape into the water whatever may have browned onto the sides and bot- MANUAL OF COOKERY. 37 torn of the pan ; then pour it into a saucepan, or else set the baking pan on the top of the stove, and let the gravy cook gently. If it is not thick enough, mix a teaspoonful of flour into a smooth paste with a little cold water and add it, and then let it all come to a boil, stirring gently. If the gravy is too light colored, thicken it with burnt flour, or add a little caramel. It is sometimes strained through a sieve, but if it is well mixed and smooth this is not neces- sary. A little boiling water can be added to the water in the pan, if needed. COLD BEEF AND CABBAGE. Chop one head of tender cabbage without the stalks, and put it in a saucepan with two tablespoonfuls of butter, one saltspoonful of salt, and half a saltspoonful of pepper, and stir it occasionally until it is quite tender. In the mean- time cut some cold meat into neat slices; put them in a frying pan with a tablespoon ful of butter and brown them. Lay them in the centre of a hot dish, with the cabbage around them. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. A piece of solid beef weighing not much over a pound can ofter be obtained at the butcher's, and used for a lesson in roasting. It should be prepared and put in the oven before the lesson is given. In every school-room there should be charts showing the different parts of the animal, and how they should look when dressed, and ready to serve ; these should be shown and explained to the pupils while they are waiting for the meat to be done, and then they can make the gravy. They should be told also that the most whole- some gravies are made from stock either prepared beforehand, 38 MANUAL OF COOKERY. or made for the purpose, by boiling some meat and bone in water with a little salt in it for several hours, and strain- ins: it before it is thickened and seasoned. ge&&on 15* The porter-house and sirloin beefsteaks are the best, and they should always be broiled. Steaks from the round can be either stewed, sauted, or rolled up with stuffing and baked. The third and fourth cuts of the round are the best for steaks. Mutton and veal chops and pork chops can be broiled, fried, or sauted. Veal cutlets can be broiled, sauted, or rolled up with stuffing and baked. If meat has been washed, it should be well dried with a towel before it is fried or broiled, or it will not brown handsomely. Tender meat should never be pounded ; but if it is tough, it can be made tender by pounding it lightly with the back of a meat knife, or with the edge of a plate ; or by drawing a knife across it in several cross lines on each side, so as to gash it without cutting through. Two bricks can be placed on the top of the stove, and the broiler may be rested on them, if it is necessary to leave it for a minute or two while broiling. The fire should be hot and clear for broiling ; but the time required depends on the size and thickness of the steak. From eight to ten minutes will be sufficient for a rare steak ; and from ten to fifteen if it is to be well done. The inside of a steak should be rare but not raw. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 39 BROILED BEEFSTEAK. A beefsteak should be at least half an inch thick, and . many persons prefer one which is three-quarters of an inch thick. If there is much fat, trim it off a little, or it will drop on the coals and smoke. Grease the broiler with a little of the fat from the steak, and then place the meat in the centre of it ; hold each side over the coals long enough to sear it over, and then cook it until it is properly done, turning it constantly. Have ready a hot platter ; before taking the steak from the broiler, sprinkle one side with salt and pepper ; lay it with that side down on the platter and salt and pepper the other side. Put some pieces of butter on this upper side, and serve without turning it, and before the butter is entirely melted. HASH. . Take cold roast beef, or cold corn beef; remove carefully all the bone, gristle, and skin, and take three parts of lean meat to one of fat meat. Add one-third as much of cold potato as there is of meat, a little onion, pepper, and salt, and chop them all together in a wooden tray until they are very fine and well mixed. Then moisten it with cold gravy, or with water and a little piece of butter. Have ready a hot frying pan, in which a tablespoonful of butter has been melted, and spread the meat smoothly over the bottom of •it. Let it simmer till a brown crust has formed on the under side without stirring it at all, and then fold it like an omelet, and serve on a hot platter. The hash can be served without folding by turning it whole onto the platter with the brown side up. 40 MANUAL OF COOKERY NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. If the pupils broil a steak before the lesson is given, it will be cold enough to be made into hash before they leave. Show them how to broil a steak without putting a fork into it, and tell them that if they prefer to have more gravy, they must put some butter in the bottom of the dish, and turn the hot steak over in it once or twice. It is very important to know how to prepare nice dishes from inexpensive materials, and also from those which have been already cooked. Every clean bone should be put into the stock pot, and all pieces of fat should be nicely tried out and strained, and kept in a jar, to be exchanged for soap, or made into soft soap. Cold meats and vegetables, cold gravies, bread and cake that are a little dry, and cold oatmeal or cornmeal mush can be used in a variety of ways. Many a little clean piece is thrown away which, if properly used, would make some dish richer and more savory ; and a little thought and good management in this way will accomplish and save more than would be supposed. In planning a dinner or any meal, it is a good plan always to consider in what way, the food already in the house, can best be worked in. There is a very 1 mistaken impression that economy is meanness, whereas they are very different. To economise is to make the best possible use of what yoti MANUAL OF COOKERY. 41 have, and to make it go as far as possible for your own and other peoples' advantage. A mean person is one who does not or will not use what she has, or get what she needs, when she can afford it and there is no reason why she should not. To deny one's self, and go without things when it is necessary, is very different, and should never be ridiculed as it too often is. Economy and self-denial are praiseworthy, and lead to success in every way ; and no one need ever be ashamed of practicing them. HOW TO WARM COLD MEAT. Cut the cold meat off in neat slices, and set it away ; then put the bone on in cold water enough to cover it well, and add a sliced onion. Let it cook gently for two hours ; and about half an hour before dinner strain it and put the liquid back on the stove, adding some cold gravy if you have it, a little salt and pepper, and sifted dried herb, or any sea- soning that is preferred ; thicken it with a little flour mixed with cold water, and let it just boil for a minute or so, stir- ring constantly. Then put in the slices of cold meat and let it simmer until the meat is thoroughly warmed through. If there is no cold gravy, a piece of butter should be added in its place. xA tablespoonful of ketchup is very nice in the gravy with cold beef, and a tablespoonful of currant jelly with cold mutton. MUTTON PIE. Cut some cold roast mutton into neat slices ; lay them in a buttered baking dish or nappy ; add the cold gravy and a tablespoonful of currant jelly, and dredge in a little flour ; cover it with paste, or with a crust of cold rice or mashed potato. If there is not enough gravy, add a little water. 42 MANUAL OF COOK£k\ . pepper, salt and a piece of butter. Bake three-quarters of an hour. STEWED BEEFSTEAK WITH CARROTS. Take one and a half pounds of beefsteak from the round, cut them into pieces three or four inches square, and sauter them in a large frying pan with some butter and an onion chopped very fine. Turn the slices of meat occasionally, and when they are well browned on each side, fill the pan with hot water enough to cover the meat well. Add one teaspoonful of salt^ half a teaspoonful of pepper, and an even teaspoonful of ground cloves. Scrape and slice a bunch of small carrots and add them. Cover the pan, and let it all cook gently at the side of the stove until tender, which will require two or three hours. The gravy can be thickened with a scant tablespoon ful of flour mixed first with a little cold water, if desired. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. Buy some slices of cold roast meat at a restaurant and let the pupils cook them according to the first recipe. They can try the others at their own homes. Let them also make some baking powder biscuit by the recipe given in the first lesson. MANUAL OF COOKERY. 43 $e&&cin 18* Potatoes of both kinds are very nice when baked ; they should be well washed, put into a hot oven, and baked about an hour. Sweet potatoes should be boiled with their skin on for about three-quarters of an hour. Cold potatoes can be sliced and fried for breakfast, and cold mashed potato can be made into cakes about three-quarters of an inch thick, which may be baked or fried. Cold potatoes may also be cut into dice and warmed in thickened milk with a little piece of butter and some chopped parsley in it. Green peas should be nicely picked over, and not washed. Put them into salted boiling water, and cook gently about thirty minutes. Drain them through a colander, and add a little butter and salt after they are in the dish. String beans should be washed, and cut into small pieces, after carefully stringing them and cutting off the ends. Put them into salted boiling water, and cook about an hour ; drain through a colander, and dress with butter and salt. After removing the tough skin from the white part of asparagus, tie it in bunches, and stand them on end in salted boiling water which should cover the white part well. Cook about twenty minutes, and serve it on some thin slices of buttered toast which have been dipped in the water in which the asparagus was boiled. Sprinkle a little salt over it and add a few small pieces of butter. Summer squashes or cymlings should be cut up without being peeled, but the seeds should be taken out unless they 44 MANUAL OF COOKERY. are very young. Steam till tender, and then mash through a colander, and add a little pepper, salt, sugar and a small piece of butter. Winter squashes should be cut into pieces, removing all the seeds and fibres. Then pare the pieces and cook them in a steamer for about two hours. When tender, mash fine, and add a heaping tablespoon ful of butter, a teaspoonful of salt, a teaspoonful of sugar, and half a teaspoonful of pepper. If there is any cold squash left, it can be mixed with batter the next day, and fried in cakes or fritters. Turnips should be washed and pared. They may be cut into quarters and cooked for about an hour in salted boiling- water; drain them and let them stand a few minutes ; then mash them, adding a little salt, pepper, sugar, and a small piece of butter. They may also be cooked and served whole with a white sauce, or with a little butter and pepper. They should be served very hot. Cabbage should be very carefully washed and laid in cold water for an hour or more ; then cut it into quarters and cook it in well-salted boiling water until tender. Take it up and drain it, and serve it without cutting it up any more, and with a little pepper, salt and butter. Cabbage is gen- erally boiled with a piece of corned beef, and in that case, dress it with a little pepper when served, as the butter and salt are not needed. Parsnips and salsify (oyster plant) should be washed and scraped, and boiled in salted water until tender. They may be cut into slices and served with a white sauce poured over them, or they may be cut lengthwise, and after they are cool, the slices can be fried in a little butter, or rolled in egg and crumbs and fried. Carrots should be washed, scraped, and boiled in salted water until tender ; then cut them into slices and serve with MANUAL OF COOKERY. 45 white sauce over them, or with a little pepper and butter. Beets should be well washed, but never peeled or even pricked, for they will lose their color. They should be put into salted boiling water, and cooked from two to four hours, according" to their age When they are boiled, lay them into cold water for two or three minutes, and then rub off the skin. They may be served whole or cut into slices; dress them with a little salt, pepper, and butter. If any are left over, they can be sliced and laid in vinegar and used the next day. Winter beets should be soaked over night if they are tough. PARSNIP FRITTERS. Boil three large parsnips in salted water for an hour and a half (or longer if they are not tender) ; and mash them fine, with half a tablespoon ful of butter. Beat two eggs well, and add a third of a cup of milk, half a teaspoonful of salt, one saltspoonful of pepper, and two even table- spoonfuls of flour, mixing them until smooth ; then stir thoroughly into the parsnips, and drop by the spoonful into a little hot butter in a frying pan; browning each fritter well on both sides. Egg plant and oyster plant fritters are made in the same way. FRITTER BATTER. Beat two eggs in a bowl and add one tablespoonful of butter (melted), one saltspoonful of salt, half a pint of milk, and about four tablespoonfuls of flour, or enough to make a drop batter. Beat this with an egg- whisk, until very light and smooth, and use at once. This batter may be used with any kind of fruit, or with oysters and clams either whole or chopped. 46 MANUAL OF COOKERY. APPLE FRITTERS. Peel and core several good sized sour apples, and cut them into slices ; dip each slice into batter, and fry a golden brown in hot fat. The apples can be cut into very small pieces and mixed in with the batter, if preferred. NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. If oyster plants are used instead of parsnips, and are put on to boil as soon as the pupils come, both kinds of fritters can be made. Two bunches of oyster plants and two or three apples will be required. Explain to the class that a drop batter is one which is stiff enough to hold on the sur- face the drops falling onto it from the mixing spoon. Butter and nicely prepared beef suet are always more wholesome than lard for every purpose, but so many persons use lard that it is given in some of the recipes ; it should always be of the best quality. g£#* almost cold before the icing is put on ? If light, delicate cakes were iced while very warm, what effect would it have ? After the icing has been put on, will it harden if the cake is left in a warm place ? Is it possible to give recipes which can always be exactly followed ? Why cannot they be given ? Is flour always the same ? Is it not affected by a damp atmosphere ? Why would a difference in the size of the eggs which are used make a difference in the cake ? Are seasonings and flavorings always of the same strength ? How should you make the dough of the right consistency, if it is too stiff, even if made exactly by the recipe? When the oven is to be used, how should the fire be pre- pared for it ? How long beforehand should it be cleared and have the fresh coal put on ? 114 MANUAL OF COOKERY. Should not coal enough be put on at first to last through the whole time ot baking ? If it is absolutely necessary to add some, how should it be done? Will any oven bake well directly after fresh coal has been put on the fire ? After the baking is finished, what should be done to the fire? Should wood ever be put on top of coal ? What effect will it have ? Cannot a fire and an oven be managed so as to give no trouble ? Why is it well to make gold and silver cake at the same time ? If both are to be used at once, in what kind of pans is it well to bake them ? Should not the batter for the silver cake be made rather stiff? Is it well to beat the whites of the eggs very stiff for silver cake? If eggs are beaten too long or too stiff, will not it cause a little dryness in the consistency of cake? In rolling and cutting ginger-snaps, why must you cut all that you can from each rolling of the dough ? What should their color be when they are baked ? What should bread be kept in, and what should cake be kept in ? Can you shut them up tight in a box while they are warm? If bread and cake are cooled too rapidly, how will it affect them ? What should the pieces of clean bread be kept in ? What can they be used for ? MANUAL OF COOKERY. JI 5 How do you prepare bread crumbs ? What should they be kept in, and what are they used for ? Why should the tin moulds for desserts be kept very bright and clean ? What should be done to a pudding cloth before the pud- ding is put into it? Why should the cloth be left a little loose ? Is the string left loose also ? Why should the string be tied very tight ? Should the water be kept boiling until the pudding is done? Should not puddings be cooked as soon as they are mixed ? Why does it particularly hurt them to stand when there is dried fruit in them ? How should dried currants be prepared ? Should not raisins always be seeded before they are used for cake or desserts ? What do y.ou dredge dried fruits with ? How can you take Blanc Mange, jellies and ice-cream easily from the moulds ? What can be added to a bread pudding if you wish to make it richer than you usually make it ? How do you make cold sauce for puddings ? How do you prepare the butter and sugar for hot sauce ? After beating them together, what do you pour onto them ? What flavorings are generally used in hot sauces? Should not the materials which are used in cooking always be of the best quality ? When you are stirring batter or anything else in a bowl, why is it important to mix in constantly all of it which remains on the side of the bowl ? Il6 MANUAL OF COOKERY. If this is not done, will not the batter be unequally mixed, and often have little lumps in it? If batter is poured from one bowl to another what should you be careful to do ? Should a metal spoon be used for measuring acids? Should it be used for mixing anything which has acid in it? Is it well to leave a spoon standing in anything which you are mixing or cooking ? On vhat should you lay the spoon ? How can you tell whether a dish is properly seasoned or flavored ? In what way can you taste it neatly and nicely ? What is better than a spoon for beating up a thin batter ? Should batter be left standing after it is mixed? Can the yolks or whites of eggs be kept good for a day or two, if there are any left unused ? Will the oven bake well if there is a cover off of the stove ? If the meat for dinner is to be broiled over the fire, what kind of desserts is it best to have? How do you scald cornmeal? What is the difference between custard and custard sauce ? How can you make a nice dessert out of a dry sponge cake? How should rice be prepared for use ? Is it used only as a vegetable ? What desserts or breakfast dishes can be made from it ? If you are cooking over cold rice, how do you soften it ? Would not the puddings or cakes otherwise be full of lumps ? What are sago and tapioca used for, and how must they be prepared ? MANUAL OF COOKERY 117 How many kinds of tapioca are there? When should tapioca be put in soak ? How long should sago be soaked? If tapioca is to be cooked for a late dinner, cannot it be put in soak in the morning? Cannot very nice baked puddings be made from rice, tapioca or sago ? How do you prepare the apples for an apple and tapioca pudding? How should sweet apples be cooked ? ^ Why are sour apples always used for puddings, pies, and sauces? Can you mention the names of the apples which are generally used for cooking? Which do you use for making apple pies? What is paste made of? Is not butter more wholesome than lard ? Which will make the paste tender, and which will make it flaky ? How can you freshen butter which is too salt ? Should not paste be made quickly and in a cold place? Should more flour be added if the dough becomes soft from being worked ? If flour is constantly added, will not the paste be tough and heavy ? How can you make the dough stiff and hard without using flour ? If you are using both butter and lard, which is worked into the flour first ? How do you rub butter or lard into flour ? After the dough is mixed how do you roll it ? Should the dough for the under paste be stretched tightly over the pie plate ? Il8 MANUAL OF COOKERY. Why should it be lifted once or twice in laying it on ? Why should the upper crust always be pricked with a fork ? How can you prevent the juice from running out of a pie ? How does rich- paste differ from plain paste ? Cannot this same paste be used also for meat pies ? ON THE MANAGEMENT AND COOKING OF BREAKFAST DISHES. Should not coffee, tea, cocoa, and chocolate be made just before they are to be served ? If they are boiled or steeped too long, how will it affect them ? Should not the water which is used for making tea and coffee be actually boiling? Should water which has been boiling for an hour or two be used for tea or coffee ? Why is it unfit for use ? Why is it very important that coffee-pots and tea-pots should be kept thoroughly clean ? Should tea be made in a tin tea-pot ? If a silver tea-pot is used, should it ever be put on or near the stove ? What should coffee and tea be kept in ? Why should coffee which is already roasted be bought in small quantities? Can you tell me how to roast coffee in an oven ? How hot should the oven be ? What do you stir it with? MANUAL OF COOKERY. II9 Can you make good coffee from coffee beans which have been unequally roasted ? If they are burnt, how will the coffee taste? Is not it better to use always freshly ground coffee? Can you tell me the names of some of the different kinds of coffee? In what proportion are Java and Mocha coffees sometiires mixed ? Is not the coffee very nice which is made from this mix- ture? How much coffee and how much egg shell is allowed for every cupful of water? After the coffee-pot is scalded, what do you put into it first? How much cold water is put in with the coffee ? What do you add next ? After pouring on the boiling water, how long should the coffee boil? How* do you clear the grounds from the spout of the coffee-pot ? How can you make stronger coffee if it is desired? Can you tell me how drip coffee is made ? After scalding the tea-pot how much tea do you put in ? Do you pour on all the boiling water at once ? How is English breakfast tea made? Is it well to drink very strong tea or coffee, or to drink them too often ? How many kinds of cornmeal are there? Will you tell me some of the dishes which can be made with cornmeal ? When sugar, salt, soda, or any other powders are used in cooking, how do you free them from lumps? 120 MANUAL OF COOKERY. How much cream of tartar is used with one teaspoonful of soda? How much flour is used with this quantity of soda and cream of tartar ? If soda is used with sour milk, how much of it is required, and how do you dissolve it ? If it is not used with sour milk, how do you dissolve it ? Why is it better to dissolve it ? How much baking powder is required for a pint of flour? Why are the salt and the baking powder generally sifted in with the flour ? When soda or baking powder are used, should not the batter be quickly mixed and baked ? Will not batter become heavy if it is not cooked as soon as it is mixed ? In putting ingredients together how should the flour and milk be added ? If they were put in carelessly and quickly, what effect would it have ? If a small quantity of flour is used for thickening sauces or gravies, or anything else, what should it be mixed with before it is put in ? When used for gravies is it better to mix it with water or with melted butter ? If butter is melted over too hot a fire, or is kept too long on the stove, how will it affect it ? How should it be melted ? How can butter be softened a little without melting it ? Can you tell me how oatmeal should be cooked ? How long should steamed oatmeal be boiled ? What should oatmeal be boiled in ? What is graham meal used for ? MANUAL OF COOKERY. 121 Is not it much better to use the various kinds of meal sometimes in our food, instead of using nothing but white flour? Why should tepid water or milk be used always with yeast ? How would hot water or milk affect it ? Can you tell me how eggs should be boiled ? How long a time is required to cook eggs which are to be very soft ? How many minutes will it take to cook them if the whites are to be firmly set ? How long are hard-boiled eggs generally boiled? Will not they be more wholesome if they are cooked half an hour ? Can you tell me some of the breakfast dishes which can be made from bread which has become a little dry ? How do you prepare the bread for making bread griddle cakes ? What are waffles baked in ? Why is it important that the waffle-iro'n should be per- fectly clean ? How do you prepare the waffle-iron for baking waffles ? How much batter should be put in at a time ? After putting in the batter, why is it best to wait until it has had time to stiffen a little, before turning the waffle- iron ? If it were turned while the batter is soft, would not this fall and become heavy ? If waffles and Sally Lunns are to be used at supper, what should they be sprinkled with ? How can the recipe for Sally Lunns be changed and used for making breakfast muffins? 122 MANUAL OF COOKERY. Can you tell me what short cake is made of? How do you roll and bake it when it is to be used for breakfast ? How do you bake it when it is to be used for a strawberry or fruit short cake ? When you are kneading dough on a board, why should the little pieces be constantly gathered in ? Can you tell me how cornmeal mush should be made? If there is any left over how can you cook it for break- fast the next day ? If too much butter and milk are used in cooking, what effect will it have ? If you wish to succeed in cooking, what must you pay attention to? ON THE MANAGEMENT AND COOKING OB' FISH, POULTRY, AND SALT MEATS. Why should fish be selected with great care? How can you tell whether a fish is fresh ? How do you prepare them before they are cooked, and where should they be kept ? Can you tell me some of the different ways in which fish may be cooked ? How are large and medium sized fish generally cooked ? How are small fish generally cooked ? If any cold fish is left over, how can you cook it nicely for breakfast the next day ? Can you tell me how to boil a fish ? Why shoHld it be wrapped in a cloth ? Can you tell me which slice of a salmon is the best piece to boil? MANUAL OF COOKERY. 2 3 What part of a cod is the best piece to boil ? In serving boiled fish what must you be very careful to do? What kind of sauce is generally served with boiled fish ? Can you tell me how to cook a small fish in a frying pan ? How should a large fish be fried ? How do you prepare a fish for broiling ? Which side should be held first to the fire ?. Should not fish which are to be fried or broiled, be thor- oughly dried after they have been washed ? Why do large fish require a more moderate fire than small ones? How should poultry look when they are healthy and good? How should they be killed ? How long a time should they be kept before they are cooked ? If you are buying those which have been killed, how can you tell whether they are tender and fresh ? If a turkey or chicken is to be boned, why should you select one which has not been scalded ? After the feathers are pulled out, how do you remove the pin feathers ? Can you tell me how a turkey or chicken should be cleaned and prepared for cooking ? What should be done with the liver, neck, heart and giz- zard? What are these used for ? After the liver has been boiled how do you prepare it for making the gravy ? How should the gizzard be served ? 124 MANUAL OF COOKERY. Should hams, tongues and corned beef be put on in hot or cold water ? Why should they always be boiled slowly and gently ? What effect would hard boiling have on them ? If corned beef is to be served cold, how do you press it ? Should not a ham be pat in soak overnight? After it has been boiled enough and has partly cooled, what should be done to it ? What can a cold ham bone be used for ? What should be trimmed off of slices of ham which are to be fried or broiled ? How can you prepare a nice dish for luncheon or break- fast from what is left of a cold ham, or from the roots of a tongue ? ON THE PREPARATION OF BEEF-TEA AND A FEW DISHES FOR THE SICK. Why cannot any fixed rules be given in regard to food and diet? What general rule can be given however in regard to the relation between well cooked food and good health ? Is not cooking a distinct art by itself? What kind of food should be given to persons who are sick? How do you prepare beef-essence and how strong is it ? What is the largest quantity of it which should be given at a time? What effect will a half teaspoonful of it given every hour sometimes have on a very sick person ? How is the beef prepared for making beef-tea? What should be used for cutting it up ? MANUAL OF COOKERY. "5 Why should not it be chopped in a tray ? Can you tell me a good rule for giving beef-tea ? Why is it important to give sick persons some nourish- ment in the night ? In making milk porridge how can you add the flour to the milk smoothly and without lumps ? Can you tell ire some of the different kinds of gruel which may be given to those who arc sick ? Are there not many delicate dishes which can be prepared for them and for convalescents? While it is very important that they should be kept well nourished, should we not be careful also not to give them too much ? ON COOKING UTENSILS AND THE CLEANING AND WASHING OF DISHES. What should the motto be for every kitchen and pantry? Should not all dishes and cooking utensils be kept thor- oughly clean and bright ? What should such materials as flour, rice, and sugar be kept in ? Should cornstarch, oatmeal and other materials which come in packages be left in the paper ? What should salt be kept in, and why should it never be kept in anything which is made of tin? Should not every box and jar be properly labelled ? Will not this save time and trouble, and also prevent perhaps some dangerous mistake ? Why should there be a tin match box in every kitchen? Why should a refrigerator be kept clean and well aired ? 126 MANUAL OB" COOKERY. Should anything hot or even warm ever be put into a refrigerator ? How will fruit and vegetables affect butter and milk, if they are kept near each other or shut up together? How should bread and cake boxes be aired? How do acids act on tin, zinc, and some kinds of glazed earthen ware ? Why are copper utensils dangerous unless they are kept perfectly clean ? Are not bowls better than tin pans for mixing purposes? Why is it convenient to have a piece of zinc on the table? What kind of bowls should be kept purposely for milk ? How many different kinds of towels should there be in a kitchen ? What other cloth's are needed beside dish cloths? Can you tell me the names of some of the cooking uten- sils which are required in every kitchen ? How many dredging boxes should there be, and what are they used for ? Should they be of the same color ? Can you tell me some of the different kinds of knives and spoons which are required ? Why should there be one or two coffee cups in a kitchen ? How much does a coffee cup hold ? Can you recite the tables in the twelfth lesson ? If iron kettles or pans have been neglected, what can you clean them with ? What do you use for cleaning tin and wooden ware ? How should wood always be rubbed ? How do you clean a bread board ? Why is it well to put a little tepid water into kettles and MANUAL OF COOKERY. I 27 saucepans as soon as you have taken out what has been cooked in them ? Why is it well to keep an old pan or dish near the sink? Is not it easier to put any little garbage there may be into that, and carry it all out at once than it is to keep running out to the garbage bucket? Should not both of them be kept very clean ? Does not garbage become unwholesome if it is allowed to stand long? Where do you wash the iron and tin kettles and pans? Where should the nicer dishes be washed ? Should not they first be gathered neatly together and scraped ? Can you wash dishes clean in cold or greasy water ? Should not it always be hot and clean ? How many waters do you wash them in ? Why should each dish be stood separately after it is wiped ? Should not the knives and forks and spoons be laid separately also after they are wiped ? Can you wipe dishes nicely with damp towels? If you are washing nice parlor dishes, which should be washed first ? Why should the silver and glass be washed first ? Which dishes should be washed next? Why should the cups and saucers be washed before the plates? If there are glasses which have been used for eggs, why do you put cold water into them, and let them stand for a time before washing them ? If a glass dish or tumbler is dipped into hot water in such a way that both the inside and outside are wet at the same time, will not it prevent the heat from cracking it? 128 MANUAL OF COOKERY, NOTES FOR THE TEACHER. The directions for cleaning and washing dishes were not given in the lessons, because the teacher is expected to show the pupils how to do this, and also to watch them and see that everything is properly washed and dried, and put into its right place after each lesson. One girl should be selected to clear off the table, another one to wash the dishes, and another to wipe them and put them away. The teacher will find that there are only thirty-three lessons instead of thirty-four, as a mistake occured in the numbering of them which was not discovered until it was too late to correct it. The lessons are all in the right order, and if they are dictated, it will be easy to correct it. In the recipe for mock apple pie the quantity of sugar which should be used (two-thirds of a cupful) was unintentionally omitted. As tablespoon ful, teaspooqful, and some other words are generally abbreviated now, it may be well to say that I have preferred to use the whole word, because the abbreviations so nearly resemble each other, that a serious mistake might easily occur, and also because it requires quite an effort of thought to understand the abbreviations, which the child might as well be spared. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 014 485 856 6 |