THE HOME.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15234, 22 February 1913, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE HOME.

SOME SALADS SEOIPES. Chicken Salad.—When thoroughly cold, pick all the meat from a fine boiled or baked chicken well seasoned. Cut into dice the white meat, only reserving the dark meat for croquettes and the bones for cream soup if you desire it extra nice. Add to your cut chicken the white part of four or five roots of crisp . celery, or two-thirds as much celery as you have chicken and one sour cucumber pickle chopped fine. Set it away in a cool place while you make the following dressing. Mash smooth with a wooden spoon or fork the yolks of six hard-boiled eggs, one teaspoonful of Qry mustard, two teaspoonsM of sugar, salt and pepper to taste. Rub this to a paste and then add to it .one quarter-cup of best olive oil in a ' slow stream, stirring all the time, and one quarter-cup of grease skimmed from the water the chicken was boiled in. Beat this until well creamed and finish with half a cup of good vinegar and juice of one lemon. Pour this over the celery and. chicken. Toss it together lightly with> silver fork and garnish with lettuce and hard-boiled \ eggs, red beets, capers, or stoned olives,, If the chicken is baked me half a cup of olive oil. In summer, p.: when you cannot get celery, use crisp white cabbage chopped fine and a few celery seeds. It is pretty served in nests of shaved lettuce. Potato SaladWe prefer to mix on. j potato salad wqilo the potatoes are hot. as they are less soggy. • A spoonfu' '.v- j chopped green peppers cooked is a*> i'm ', provement if you have them on u; ' Boil one pint of potatoes until soft. W'aen I don* peel and slice them into a bowl tha* | has been rubbed with garlic or a cut onion. Season with pepper and salt, one-quarter j cup of chopped celery or a few celery seeds, one tablespoonful of chopped parsley, y<' l 'i one hard-boiled egg rubbed •fine,, win; one minced cucumber picklo. Pouv over it a dressing of two tablespooasfial oi oil, one tablespoonful of mustard, «on*. tablespoonful of sugar and half a cup of vinegar. Toss all together without | breaking the potatoes. Line a dish with some nice crisp lettuo leaves and put in the salad. Garnish 'ttiM some sprigs; of parsley and the chopped white of a hardboiled egg. Tomato Salad.—Take ?ix fine, firm red tomatoes ; plunge them into boilinj water for one minute ; drain on a cloth and remove the skins ; now with a very sharppointed knife begin at the centre of each •tomato and cut down to the stem end and texu clown each section, just exactly as you would an orange; this will leave a b.AI of seedr, in the centre and your tomato will loci a rod lily. Place them on ice till ready to starve. - ; . Huahroom Catsup. the mushroomsbreak them into bits and strew salt over jvUsili. Let them stand one night only; rx.'erm them and strain boil the liquor five minutes, skimming well. Add to each qimii of the pulp and liquor one half-, our/ie of ginger, one half-ounce of black pepper, one haJf-ounce of allspice, one blade of iti*:.■■■> and six ounces of cloves. Let the whaie boil well. Bottle when cold. Fish Pie.— a quarter of a pound of ; broken macaroni until tender- Brain off } the water, and put it into a bowl with a ! large capful of any kind of white fish, free from skin and bone, minced finely. Add a teaspoonful c! minced capers, and the same quantity oi minced parsley, a little pepper and bait, and sufficient milk or white sauce to moisten it. Mix Will, and put it into a buttered piedish, with a thick layer of breadcrumbs, finely minced, ■on the top. Put' a few small da'hs of butter on the surface- to pre* ""a* tho macaroni getting dry, and bake i .1 ii quick oven for half an hour. Banana Custard.—-This delicious sweet dish is made in this way: —Slice three or •four bananas into inch piece.*-'., and lay them in a crystal or pretty china dish. Boil a pint of milk, keeping a little to mix with two ounces cl cornflour, or rice flour, and [ a fcerspoonM of sugar. Stir' this into fcivs-S boflinp r VK«es lor a few minutes, remove the puii from the fee, and whon quite on* Vie <Joii vdd ifet yojjks ai two weU-beaten eggs stir for sacthsr minute or Invo, and wW* cold jpoor it on. to the fruit. Alow »• *;.> get. quite cold, and just before seiving pile up tho well-whisked whites lightly on the top.. Any kind cf fruit may be used, but. iha juice must be strained„otf first. Prairie Pancakes.—Children ar» always fond of any addition to the tea-table in the shape of cakes, or similar. •The following cakes are very ine. v-ensivo and very delicious. Mix in s b;,'»«i three tabiespoonsful of flour, . ?3.'(i«*' uiu l . of baki powder, and a pint.:- of •>;*■■.'. Add enough milk to form a sinootw. hitter, melt in you.' pan a Quarter of a pound of lcrei, an..; ivhen smoking hof c'top in the batter, * spoonful at i* .i-a-.i, into the laid, where it will form small cakes. Turn them once, and > Lon donewhich will be in a minute or —place them on a hot dish in the oven, while the remainder are cooking. The quantities given will make about a dozen cakes, and a little powdered sugar and cinnamon can be sprinkled over each before serving. i ; Lobster Curry This is a very satisfac- | tory way _ of preparing lobster ~ for a I luncheon Drain th': liquor from the : tinned fish, and cut into luiiul pieces. Now I mix together a desserts poonf lil of flour, i two tabiespoonsful of curry powder, a ,'iced -cm- '.on, and a p'ach of salt. .Melt three cui,.- -s of butt:, in your stewpan, stir in the dour, curry, etc., and :ook until the onion is tender; add the juice of a lemon, stir in the lobster, and cock slowly for ten minutes. A SWEET TOOTS. Most of —men, women, and, last, but not least, the children— possess what is whimsically termed a "sweet tooth." A few recipes for certain of these muchfavoured delectabies are always acceptable : —■ Cocoanut Candyßequired : One pound of loaf sugar, half a gill of milk, three ounces of cocoanut, and a little vanilla osence. Dissolve the sugar in the milk, let it boil for ten minutes, then add the grated cocoanut, or use desiccated cocoanut which lias been soaked in milk for an hour: add also a few drops of vanilla. Boil these ingredients for 15 minutes. Stir constantly while boiling, and continue the stirring till the mixture cools a little; then pour it into a tin which has been rinsed with cold water. Butterscotch —Required : Half a pound of white sugar, three ounces of butter, two teaspoonsful of lemon juice, and a pinch of carbonate of soda. Dissolve the butter in a stew-pan, add the sugar and the carbonate of soda. Boil until it breaks quickly if a little is poured into a cup of cold water; add the lemon juice, and pour the whole into a greased tin or dish. When i it is nearly cold mark into squares with a i knife, and when quite cold break each one across. French Almond Rock —Required: One pound of loaf sugar, four ounces of sweet almonds, a quarter of a teaspoonful of cream of tartar, and half a pint of hot water. Boil the almonds for a few seconds in a small pan, and remove tho .skins while hot. Boil the sugar and water with scarcely a quarter of a small teaspoonful of cream of tartar very fast and without stirring for 20 or 30 minutes till it becomes a golden colour and sets when dropped into cold water. Split tho almonds, aid them, shake in the sugar without stirring, flavour with lemon, and pour quickly on to a greased tin. Milk Scones.—Mix a dessertspoonful of baking powder with a pound of flour, then rub in three ounces of butter. Roll on a board till well mixed, then make into a smooth paste with half a pint of milk. Roll into a sheet half an inch thick, cut it into triangular pieces four inches long, place it on a floured tin, and bake for 30 or 40 minutes. When done rub over with milk. The quantity given will make eight scones. ,

• Peppermint Creams.—lngredients: Half a pound of icing sugar, white of egg, peppermint essence. Method : ' Rub the icing sugar through a sieve, slightly whip the white of egg, and adcl enough of it to the sugar, with half a teaspoonful of water, to make* a stiff paste ; flavour it with peppermint essence, according to taste. _ _ Roll out on a board (sprinkled with icing sugar) to the thicknesa of a quarter of an inch, and, with a tin cutter, stamp into rounds the MSie of a halfpenny, or less if preferred. Place, the creams on greased paper to cry in a very cool oven. Do not allow them to «ko' i colour. It should be understood that ' icing sugar is not castor sugar; it is not infrequently sold for icing sugs'.r, and proves disappointing as a substitute. i Scotch Oat Oake.—Required: A pound of oatmeal, two ounces of '" after, a teaspoonful of carbonate of sodu. a gill of hot water, and a pinch of w--t, Put oatmeal and salt in a basin, m,: the butter and , add it; dissolve the soda in water, and ] mix it quickly with the meal. Sprinkle a- pasteboard with oatmeal, spread the 'fixture out evenly with the hands, sprinkle more meal over, cut the paste into : ■ squares, arid bake it on a girdle or in a moderate oven. May be eaten hot or cold and buttered or not, as preferred The work should be done expeditiously to be j entirely successful. ' Yorkshire Pikelets.Mix two pounds of' flour with a quarter of a pound of butter melted in a pint of milk, two eggs well I beaten, and three tabiespoonsful of good, j fresh yeast. Leave the mixture sufficient- , '••-.lie to rise. Knead and r~ake the dougJ ' , cakes four or five inches in diameter, ■ J' ;'if?fl them on greased tins, and Int. them j "':■'., nd a short time in ths o: ' "., They are I i-.. & ./ cut in two, and buttered directly thi-y j come out of the oven. I I HOUSEHOLD HELPS. j When choosing beef press it with the ! thumb, and if it rises quickly it is 0; good quality . 1 Wrap boile. or roasted meat that is to he used cokl in a perfectly clean moist l -do,,!', - and 'it will make it more teudev. j T< • whiten p. doorstep mix. a- little quick- : hnA vith half a pint of skim milk. _ Hav- j .\mr first washed the doorstep, punt it over j with this mixture, and the rain cii not., wash it off. I When making a ground-rice pudding agreat improvement to it is to add. two teaspoonfuls of cornflour to the mixture. This makes it very creamy, end adch greatly to' tho flavour. When not required for immediate -u?.e put the yolks'of eggs in a basin and h *,t .cover them with, cold water; place a plate on the basin to exclude the air and t.tand in a dark, cool placo .until wanted. .Instead of lining the -dvawerr?- in the j bedroom with nowspapev, give them a coat •of good white paint. This is much-nicer than paper, and whon cleaning is neeessary all that i.-i required is to wipe them out with a damp cloth. To relievo asthma, soak some blottragv per in a strong solution of saltpetre; "diy it. : To use, take a piece of 2in square, lay on a plate in the bedroom om ntiring, and light it. However badly afflicted, gi:ea.t relief is experienced. Put- garments that are stained with peri spira.ti.on to soal: for a few minutes in ' lukewarm v.'ater to which a little carbonate of soda has been added before putting them into the suds. If put straight into suds the seep will set tho stain. By applying a, little carriage varnish carefully with a camel's-hair brush to the edge of broken china, the parts being neatly joined together, the fracture -will, when thoroughly dry, bo hardly perceptible, and the china will stand fee and water. For scrubbing floors cold water is preferable to hot; it does not soak into the wood so readily, and consequently dries sooner. The Bcrubbing-brash must always be moved up ana down the boards according to the g-ain of the wood, and not across it. It frequently happen? that painters [■ splash the glas.4 window?, when they arepainting the sills. Wh'./i this is the c*?e, < melt some soda in very hot water awd was! , the glass with it, using a soft flannel. It will entirely remove the paint. Roasting in a gas-cocbv causes the meat to dry, A very simple ay to prevent this is to place a common, "jam-pet half full of water in a corner at the bottom of the cvi&n, and when the water heats up the steam will keep the air inside quite moist, and you will find when the meat is done it will be quite ju,icy. The following is an admirable way of cleaning white far or children''* white j woollen tam-o'-shanters— fact, anything j that cannot be washed. Get lib of white powdered iW;rch, put it into a deep vessel, 1 then "ub v»'ie article < ■",• be cleaned hi 'ih- 1 - p»>w.io;r. Sliftke th • 6:srtsh off the ■: ticJt- , \ and it will be fount '.o be as clean us when ic was first bought. To render your galvanized-iron dustbin perfectly sanitary, burn a couple of newspapers or two or three handfuls of straw in it every time it is emptied. Let the fire flame well, and it will remove every trace of grease or damp from '.ho iron, a>i'i render the dustbin as healthy as a now <-Hi> and quite free from any unpleasant' urieli in a few seconds with practically m> trouble or expense. To bleach ivory ornaments or pianoh'.iys the following method works well. The ornaments are first washed or "soaked" if possible in ,i b%*k of xikUiakerl ! lime, which has in it- a few ounces ci bran I and water. This should make a'pasty solution if properly mixed, and will blta-cn tho ivory which is discoloured or dtained. It should be rubbed off with a cloth' .and the ivory dried in magnesia powder. After a few minutes a few strokes with a cloth gives the ivory a brilliant polish. A RICH WEDDING CAKE. Unless made with great care this cake will not be satisfactory. Put the following ingredients into a largo basin, and in the order given : — Three-quarters of a pound of fresh butter beaten to a cream, half a pound of the best moist sugar, three-quarters of a pound of currants, first washed, and then well dried ; three-quarters of a pound of raisins, carefully stoned; six ounces of mixed candied peel, finely chopped; six bitter almonds and one ounce of sweet almonds, blanched and pounded; the grated rind of a lemon and the strained juice, a grain of powdered cloves, two grains of powdered cinnamon, the sixth part of a nutmeg grated, 14 ounces-of sifted Hour, half a gill of new milk, the yolks of six eggs beaten with a wineglassful of brandy. Work the whole thoroughly together until well mixed, then add the whites of the eggs beaten to a stiff froth, continue to beat rapidly for quite twenty minutes. Turn the mixture into a cake mould lined well with buttered paper (two layers), and bake in a moderate oven for two and a-half hours or longer. Turn the cake carefully out on to an inverted sieve, and when cold ice it. Tho Icing: Blanch and pound to a fine paste twelve bitter almonds and seven ounces of sweet almonds, add ten ounces of loaf sugar, a tablespoonful of orange- J flower water, and.the whites of eight eggs, j beaten to a stiff froth; .stir the mixture till i it becomes a soft, smooth paste, then ! spread it over the cake about the sixth of j an inch thick ; let it sfeand in a dry, airy I place while the icing is being prepared, j Pound to the finest possible powder a pound of loaf sugar, take the whites of five ' fresh eggs and the strained juice of half '' a lemon, stir until the whole becomes a i thick, smooth substance, and when the ' almond paste is dry spread the icing over ' it about a quarter of an inch thick, and ' let the cake remain till set. For a larger ' cake double the quantity of the ingredients named, and bake it much longer. The top may be decorated with coloured sugar ; if "desired, ornaments suitable for a wedding cake may be hired, from a confectioner. An ivory paper-knife is one -of the best agerets for smoothing the icing. It \ may be dipped into .water occasionally to ''• facilitate the business. j