Household Hints.

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 107, 12 November 1908, Page 3

Household Hints.

Fruit Stains. —These may be successfully treated in the following way: — Hold the portion of the article stained over a tub, or a pan, and pour boiling water over it. For stainis of long standing rub the part or each side of the material with yellow soap; on this put a thick layer of cold water starch. Rub it well and leave out in the sun till the stain comes out. You may have to repeat the process more than once. To Dry Wet Boots.--These should not be dried at the fire, or they will become hard, and liable to crack. It is an excellent plan to fill them with paper, which dries the inside, and tie them together and hang them out in the air, or from a high nail on the kitchen wail. When dry they may be cleaned, and will be soft and flexible. Flowerpot Stains On Window Sills. - There are still to be found in some houses the broad window sill which is so convenient, either as a window seat, or on which to display the flowering plants of which the housewife is justly proud. The stains which the pots usually leave are the only drawback to the floral arrangement, and these may easily be removed by rubbing them with fine wood ashes, and afterwards rinsing them with clear, cold water, drying, and finishing with a little furniture polish. Stair carpets where there is much use soon show signs of wear. They should of course, be long enough to allow of their being shifted so as to change the wear. Beyond this it is well to put several thicknesses of brown paper over the edge of each stair. These can be held in position by a few tacks. Every day the scullery should be overlooked by the housewife. No damp corners should be allowed to exist. A good scouring with hot water and carbolic soap will remedy anything like damp on the scullery if bathbrick or hearthstone is rubbed over with coarse cloth. Puff Paste. -The secret of good puff paste is allowing it to lay the given time between each rolling out, and in remembering the different ways of rolling. A nice quantity is half a pound of butter, ten oz. of flour, one egg, the juice of a lemon, and as much baking powder as will lie on a shilling. Put eight oz. of flour (dry into a quart basin, make a hole in the flour and throw in the baking powder and egg, well beaten, a Ipinch of salt and the lemon juice, then make this into a dough cake, keeping the smooth part towards the basin. Knead with the tips of your fingers until it becomes a nice smooth paste, then roil it out from you. Have the butter washed, dried, and pressed into half the size of the dough, then wrap the paste over and press down the edges, r >ll out, fold three times, and lay aside for a quartar of an hour. Roll out again from you, fold three times and lay aside. You must do this three times; the last roll sprinkle with a squeeze of lemon, fold and roll out. It must be rolled no thicker than a five-shillnig piece, and should rise quite half an inch when baked, which it will do if properly made. The oven should be very hot at first, and when it has risen the heat must be lessened or lowered, otherwise the paste will burn. This paste requires only to be baked to a golden colour. Stewed Lentils with Rice.-- Wash half a pint of lentils, cover with cold water, and soak over night. Next morning drain, cover with fresh boiling water, and cook slowly for one hour. Drain, return them to the pot, add a tablespoonful of butter, a teaspoonful of salt, and a saltspoonful of pepper. While the lentils are cooking, boil, drain, and dry half a pint of rice; put a tablespoonful of butter in a saucepan: add four tablespoonsful of chopped onion. Cook carefully without browning the butter until the onion is soft. Add the lentils, drained; shake the saucepan over the fire until they are thoroughly hot; add the rice, toss the whole well together, and add a level teaspoonful of salt, a saltspoonful of pepper, and serve at once. Spinach and Eggs.—Spinach should be boiled in very little water, only just enough to keep it from burning. It shrinks very much, so care must be taken to have sufficient. Drain it well and either put it through a seive or chop it finely. Put it in a stewpan with some butter, pepper and salt. When it is well stirred and very hot, and place it on some toast in a vegetable dsh. Have ready some hard boiled eggs, the yokes of which have been put through a seive, and sprinkle this over the spinach, The whites may be cut into various shapes and used at> a garnish. Pile up your spinach as high as possible, and always make your dishes present as dainty an appearance as possible. Marmalade Pudding. —Quarter-pound of suet, quarter pound sugar, quarterpound bread-crumbs, 2oz ground rice, two eggs, 2oz marmalade. Steam three hours. This has been a very successful recipe. To Make Hair Curl, or to Keep it in Waves. —Melt a piece of pure white bees-wax, about the size of a filbert, in one oz. of olive oil, then stir in two or three drops of otto of roses. Before putting the hair into pins or paper, dip the thumb or finger into the moisture and lightly touch the hair with the fingers, but be careful not to use too much.