HINTS FOR THE HOUSEWIFE

Dominion, Volume 19, Issue 89, 9 January 1926, Page 15

HINTS FOR THE HOUSEWIFE

HOME COOK A COFFEE CAKE. Half a pound of Hour, including two tablespoonfuls of wholemeal flour; for.. Denierara sugar; Joz. butter of jiutter; ti dates—washed and cut into small pieces; 1 tablcspoonfnl washed sultanas; 1 teaspoonful baking powder; .1 wellbeaten egg, ami milk enough to mix all to a stiff batter; 1 dessertspoonful of coffee essence. Rub the butter into the flour, then | add all the dry ingredients. Mix the I coffee essence with the beaten egg and 1 milk, pour it into the dry mixture, and ' beat lightly till well mixed; pour into 1 a greased and papered tin, and bake slowly for 35 to 15 minutes. The cake is better if made about tw.o inches thick. SWEET CHUTNEY. 11b. ripe tomatoes (skinned) ; lib. Denierara sugar; 41b. onions, 1 clove of garlic, chopped or minced very finely; 341 b. apples (cut up, but not peeled) ; a little mace, and allspice, a few chillies (tied in a muslin bag), and 1 tablespoonful of powdered ginger; 1 quart vinegar; 4-pint water. Put the apples in a big double saucepan with the water. Cook till they arc quite soft, then press through a colander. Put pulp into preserving pan, with vinegar and bring to the boil, j add other ingredients and cook slowly till all arc soft. Then bottle, and when cold. seal-. PICCALILLI. Ingredients: 21b. vegetable marrow, I average-sized cauliflower, 21b. pickling onions, 11b. green tomatoes, 1 cucumber, 3 pints vinegar, l-joz. mustard, ■yoz. turmeric, -joz. curry powder, 2oz. flour, loz. mixed spice, salt, lib. brown sugar. Method: Cut the marrow into cubes after preparing it. Break tip the cauliflower into small pieces. Peel the onions and cut the tomatoes in halves. Place these in bowl and sprinkle with salt. Leave overnight. Drain away the 1 liquid, and place the vegetables in preserving pan, with the ■ vinegar, sugar and spice (tied up in muslin). Boil until the onions are tender (about one hour). Have ready a paste made with all the dry ingredients and water, with which thicken the pickle. Last of all, add the cucumber, peeled and cubed. Store in bottles or jars in the usual way.

BEEF FILLETS WITH BANANAS. Take Ijlb. fillet beef, Ifoz. butter, 3 bananas, 1 egg, brown sauce, 1 small onion, I gill cream, grated horse radish, 1 taiilespoon flour, pepper, salt and breadcrumbs. Cut fillet into neat rounds. Heat butter and boil meat about seven minutes Lift out and keep hot. Fry an onion and add cream and 'horse radish; stir till hot. Add volk of egg. and stir t’Tl cooked. Strain sauce and keep it hot. Cut bananas in four. Dip pieces in flour, 'icnpcr and salt, and then eggs, and fry. Drain on paper. I’oi'r s-nwe •iver meat and garnish with the bananas and chopped parsley.

DOMESTIC JOTTINGS

REMOVING INK STAINS. Ink stains can be. removed by first washing the fabric, with vinegar, and afterwards with a solution of one tablcspoonfnl of oxalic acid in five tablespoonfuls of water. Coffee stains and grass stains can be removed by lirst of all rubbing with cold water, and, when dry, rubbing gently with jatclle water, which is obtainable from the chemist. Fruit stains can be. Heated successfully in the same manner. Medicine stains, unless tne. medicine contains alcohol itself, can be removed with alcohol, but this should not be used for very fine silk fabrics. For delicate silks, chloroform will be found the best remedy, rubbing a little on with a fine white cloth. This ■ iocs not leave rings, as other temedics are apt to do.

TO LIGHTEN OAK FLOORS AND WOODWORK.

Woodwork and floors which, though originally light, have become dark and discoloured from age and use, can be lightened again in this way. Go over them with wool alcohol and a brush, in order to soften the surface. 'Then apply a coat of what is called “ground paint,” bought from a paint store. Let it dry, then cover it with light oak slain and varnish. Put this on in a thin coat, and if necessary apply a second coat after the first has dried. This makes a very good-looking finish, approximating genuine light oak. FOR SCORCHED LINEN. How often is it that hankies and other dainty little things get scorched in the ironing! If the scorch is only very slight it generally disappears ill subsequent washings, but the marks of some of our treasured things never seem to fade away. Here is a curious little hint for hastening the removal of unsightly scorches which proves satisfactory in most cases where the actual thread has not been destroved.

Take a large., raw Spanish onion, chop it up and beat it to a pulp, and extract the juice by squeezing through a piece of old muslin. Add an ounce

of powdered Fuller’s earth, half an ounce of scraped vcllow soap, and a quarter of a pint of strong vinegar, stir well, and boil up the mixture until it has thickened. Four the resulting paste into a small glass jar provided with an airtight lid, and keep it by you for future use. Which way do von use it? Oh, just spread it thickly over the scorch marks, let it remain there for about 21 hours, and then wash off in clean water. With light scorches one application will suffice, but if the scorch is a deep one the operation should be repeated. Traces of the marks still remaining will disappear in the next wash.