COOKING HINTS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 13, 16 January 1926, Page 26

COOKING HINTS.

TO CORRESPONDENTS. Coconut Ice. A correspondent ("Whangarei") asks for a recipe to make a reliable coconut ice. The following is a professional recipe:— Ingredients: 31b of the best sugar, 91b of freshly grated or desiccated coconut, half a pint of water, vanilla essence, carmine or cochineal for colouring purposes. Method: Line a shallow tin with grease-proof paper. Boil the sugar and water to the small ball degree. To try this, dip the forefinger into a basin of cold water, then dip it into the sugar, and again quickly into the water. When the sugar can be rolled between the thumb and finger into a small ball it I has reached the stage known by that name; then remove the pan from the fire, add the coconut, flavour to taste. Let it cool a little, then pour half into the prepared tin and stand the remainder in hot water to prevent it setting. As soon as the portion in the tin has set, add a few drops of cochineal to the preparation in the stew pan, and pour it over the ice in the tin. When cold cut into squares or bars. FRUIT SOUPS. Strawberry, Grapefruit, and Banana Soup. Soups made from fruit are unusual and also nourishing, for rice and sago are numbered among the ingredients. Add a level dessertspoon of sago to a pint of cold strawberry juice. Brim; gradually to the boil and simmer until clear; add a cupful of grapefruit juice and one of sieved banana pulp with a tablespoon of sugar. Serve as soon as it is thoroughly heated. Cherry and Peach Soup. Wash and stone a pint of black-heart cherries and place in a saucepan with the grated rind and juice of one lemon, half a cup of peach juice (the peaches may be tinned), and half a cUp of water. When the cherries are tender, thicken with a level dessertspoon of cornflour rubbed to a smooth paste with a little water. Season with cinnamon and sugar. Serve bot or cold. Raspberry and Mulberry Soup. Wash and drain one quart of raspberries and one of mulberries, mash them, and add one pound of susar, and let them stand for'an hour. Then put them through a sieve; heat gradually, and when at boiling-point thicken with a heaped- teaspoon of cornflour rubbed smooth with a little cold water. Serve hot or cold, and just .before serving add the juice of a lemon and half a cup OI finely-cut almonds. Peach Trifle. Ingredients: 1 tin of peaches, 6 sponge fingers, a tablespoonful of sherry. 2 eggs, i-pint of milk, 12 drops vanilla, loz castor sugar, 1 tablespoonful •of sifted icing sugar, 2oz sweet almonds, 2oz glace cherries, 1 gill of cream. Turn the peaches out of the tin and cut them into thin slices; line a glass dish with split sponge fingers, add a good layer of sliced peaches, then more sponge cake, and continue until all are used. Mix the sherry with 3 tablespoonfuls of the peach syrup, pour it gently over the sponge cake, and leave to soak. Make a custard with the yolks of two eggs, the white of one, the milk and castor sugar. Leave until almost cold, • then add the vanilla and pour it gently over the soaked sponge. Beat the remaining egg white until it is stiff and dry, fold in the icing sugar and the cream whipped until thick. Pile this on the trifle just before it i 3 required, and garnish with glace cherriest placing a blanched almond upright in each cherry. Coffee Ice Cream. Two cups of milk, half-cup of ground coffee, 1J cups of sugar, 1 tablespoon of flour, 1 egg ,one-eighth teaspoon salt, 1 quart thin cream, 1 tablespoon of vanilla. Scald milk with coffee. Mix sugar, flour, salt add egg slightly beaten, then pour on, gradually, hot mixture. Cook over hot water 20 minutes, stirring constantly at first, occasionally afterwards. Cool, add cream and flavouring, strain through double thickness of cheese cloth and freeze. HOUSEHOLD HINTS. If a material is scorched fairly lightly it should be left out in the sunshine, when most of the marks will disappear. The best way in which to remove iodine stains is to dip the stained material in ordinary ammonia. Rub it gently and waish afterwards.

This is an economical knife-sharpener. Get a small block of wood and tack some emery paper over top. With a few rubs the knives will sharpen.

Pots of jam should never be placed one upon the other, but must be stored with as much space as possible between them. The storing place should be dry and cool, so that the preserves will not ferment.

If a room where there are heavy curtains, upholstered chairs, etc., becomes very disagreeable through cigar smokincr try this. Heat a shovel till nearly red hot. Place it in a coal scuttle in the room and scatter some ground coffee on it.

If you make a large quantity of puff pastry and only want to use a portion of it on that day, it will keep very well for five or six days in a covered vegetable dish; it is even nicer when baked after it has been put away.

"When marking linen take a. rather blunt lead pencil and write the name or initials, and follow over the pencil mark with.ink. The lead prevents that tiresome running of the ink, and the marking will be very exact and neat.

This is a. more economical and easier way to peel apples than using a knife or parer: Pour boiling water over apples in a basin, cover, and leave for about 10 minutes, when the skins will_come off easily. This is for apples to be cooked.

A pretty face pillow for an invalid is made of lavender gingham, filled with lavender free of stalks. It must not be filled too full, or it would be hard. The lavender is said to have a soothing effect, inducing sleep.

Tanned leather is cleaned best with nitrous acid and salts of lemon, diluted with water, and afterwards mixed with skim milk. First clean the surface with a brush and soft water, adding a little sand, then scour repeatedly with a brush dipped in the nitrous mixture. Note that that is poisonous. Afterwards clean the leather with a sponge and water, and leave to dry.

Old puttees make very good mats for bathroom or kitchen. Cut them into strips of equal length. Then cut in half and lay one half of the strips crossways over the other half, at the same time interlacing them, making a draught hoard effect. Finish off edge with brown 'binding. The strips do not need hemming as puttees do not fray.