Variety in Salads

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 74, Issue 2, 15 February 1947, Page 219

Variety in Salads

By

EVA TOPPING,

Rural Sociologist, Auckland.

TO many people “salad" suggests nothing more than shredded A lettuce with sliced tomatoes and, perhaps, cucumbers, radishes, and spring onions; but the variety of salads is almost endless, and vegetables both cooked and raw can be added to provide interesting and unusual dishes. By using various vegetable combinations the “salad season” can be made to last the whole year round, and as most vegetables contain vitamin C, salads can be used to provide part of the daily supply of this vitamin when fruit is scarce or unprocurable. Minerals, roughage, and bulk are also supplied by fresh vegetables.

A GREEN-LEAF vegetable should form the basis of a salad. Lettuce is the most commonly used, but many more can be included in the list of possibilities, and most of the other greens actually contain far more vitamin C. Raw shredded heart of young cabbage, tender celery leaves, green tops of spring onions, chives, mustard; cress, watercress, parsley, nasturtium leaves, mint, young dandelion leaves, ■and endiveany of these greens can be substituted for the more orthodox lettuce. Turnip leaves are also used, but the “hairiness” of the texture is distasteful to many people. Young, tender root vegetables may be used raw; grated raw carrot is crisp and ■appetising; shredded raw beetroot makes excellent “trimming” and is a change from the more usual mode of serving. Cooked carrot, potato, parsnip, swede, turnip, and beetroot 'make good salads and afford a way of using “left-overs” without reheating. Other ingredients for salads are radishes, tomatoes, peas, beans, celery, tree tomatoes, green peppers or capsicums, cucumber, grapefruit, oranges, dates, nuts, raisins, cauliflower, asparagus, and apples. Variations in flavourings for salads are obtainable by including herbs, parsley, chives, spring onion tops, horseradish, and various dressings. Garnishings or decorations can be made of parsley, onion, celery, radish, tomato, carrot, hard-boiled egg, etc. To make curled celery, cut 3in.

lengths of crisp celery sticks. Slit the pieces down lin. deep into thin strips and cut through the fibre on the outside of the stalks at the base of the slits. Leave standing in cold water until the cut ends curl. For radish roses cut turnip-shaped radishes down at the root end into four or six sections, taking care not to make . the cut right through. Leave in cold water until the sections open out. Carrot sticks are made by cutting pieces of carrot into strips about the thickness and the length of a match. Use round spring onions and cut into thin slices for onion rings, separating the sections under water. Preparation of Ingredients Lettuce and other green stuff are best if used as soon as possible after picking or buying, as the vitamin content continuously decreases after ■ the vegetables have been gathered. For the same reason green vegetables should not be cut up until just before serving. If it is necessary to store the lettuce for a while, put it in a saucepan with a well-fitting lid and stand on a cool floor. To crisp' wilted leaves let them lie in cold water for about one hour, drain and roll up in cloth, and stand in the coldest place available. Wash greenstuff carefully in cold water to remove soil, spray, and insects; shake off water gently and dry in a clean cloth or toss into a wire basket to drain.

Whole lettuce leaves are required for some salads, and it is often difficult to take them from a well-grown lettuce with a firm heart. Take off the outer leaves, cut out the stalk base' and hold the lettuce inverted under running water. The force will make the leaves separate and they can then be detached without tearing. Shred raw green vegetables with a sharp' knife; hearts of cabbage should be cut very fine, but lettuce and tender greens can be cut more coarsely. Wash carrots and scrape them lightly; grate them if they are to be used raw. Turnips and swedes are sometimes found to _ be too strongly flavoured for using raw, but when cooked and then diced or sliced they are acceptable. All cooked vegetables should be drained well and be quite dry and cold before combining with the rest of the salad, and green stuff should be crisp and handled as little as possible. A salad can easily be the most decorative part of the meal table, for wellchosen arrangements of the different ingredients are very colourful. When the main dish is to be salad, eggs, meat, fish, or cheese should be. included to provide proteins. Served with bread or potatoes such a salad will provide a satisfying and nutritious meal. Many people find a meal of this kind more attractive if soup is served first or a hot sweet follows. Serving Salads 4 Salads may be made in a bowl, and served with spoon and fork by one person, or may be handed round the table. Another way is to place the mixed portions of salad on “nests” or “cups” of lettuce leaves and arrange on one flat plate or dish for ease in serving. If desired, some salads can be arranged on individual plates, and this way. of serving is very useful when a salad is to form the main dish at the meal. Small moulds of fish, cooked meat, tomato or beetroot, sex on lettuce with little mounds of various vegetables arranged round, make an attractive and healthful lunch dish. These jellied salads, whether large or small, are particularly suitable for summer meals.

WATEB LILY SALAD:' CBwe large sw»A - < tomatoes, aw for each person, tai reatew slib and stalk Slice rate v.vss. with & sbarp . s «UV towards .‘talk end to make petals. ■ Leave # tomato centres in and ewer with finely-grated' cheese to represent ttaatm. Slice cucumber and arrange on plates, setting * the t®»to'/ hewers” ® these ‘leaves/’ Serve v™ small ‘ plates »xx ''.xr-'’ with ■? --I meat. 4 :

■' Halve hard-bnOed egg?, to malw caps, otttmg a. slice f'-'-t each end » they. will st»«L loraewe tie yolfcs csv blend with v &tle . thick salad dressing, wit, -»uj v ? far. Carry powder, mows joke, w other • .h?< s r« togs czx by added' 'vs desired. " Kell fate small, warbles, patting three, in each Mf«eggto Decorate • lie parsley, and seton a W. <•: finely-shredded L heart of cabbage, chopped I parsley and chives, onion, for shall to, . G-arr : v with F evsfes celery, grated car- ', ret w beetroot

Salad Dressings The dressing is an important part of salad, for it can make or mar the dish. There are several kinds, including French dressing, which is used mostly with crisp greenstuffs, cooked dressing which can be used with any kind of salad, and mayonnaise dressing which also can accompany any kind of salad but is especially used with fish, meat, and eggs. A Spanish proverb says, “A salad dressing requires a spendthrift for oil, a judge for salt, a miser for vinegar, a madman to mix them,” and this is really the recipe for French dressing. French Dressing: 1 cup salad oil, % cup vinegar, about 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Put the ingredients into a bowl and beat very thoroughly with an eggbeater until the globules of oil are as small as possible. Put into a bottle and shake well each time before using. French dressing may be varied to suit the salad or individual taste by adding more vinegar; J teaspoon curry powder; 1 teaspoon Worcester sauce; by substituting celery salt for the plain salt; by adding 1 to 2 teaspoons finelychopped chives and parsley; 1 teaspoon minced onion; 2 tablespoons chopped chutney; or. 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish or chopped mint. Cooked Dressings: Cooked dressings are the most commonly used and a quantity can be made and kept in a screw-stoppered jar. When needed, a portion can be taken out and mixed with fresh top milk (or thin cream, when there are no restrictions on the use of cream!) Here are two good recipes for this general purpose type of dressing:— 1. 2 tablespoons butter, 3 egg yolks, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 cup milk, 1-J tablespoons flour, 1 teaspoon dry mustard, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 cup vinegar. Melt the butter and add the flour gradually, then add the milk and cook until the mixture has thickened, stirring continuously. Mix the egg yolks and seasoning, and pour in the hot vinegar, stirring constantly until it is thick. Blend the two cooked mixtures

and store in a cool place. When required take out half the quantity of dressing needed and thin to full amount with top milk. Use vegetable fat in -place of butter if necessary. 2. This dressing can be made quite successfully with vegetable fat, and so is easy on the butter ration: — 1 tablespoon vegetable fat (or butter), 1 large teaspoon mustard, 2 beaten eggs, 4 tablespoons vinegar, 2 tablespoons sugar, i teaspoon salt. Mix together the sugar, mustard, and salt, add the beaten eggs and the vinegar, and mix until it is smooth. Melt the vegetable fat but do not heat, and add the mixture. Stir continually over very low heat or over boiling water until it is thick but not curdled. Strain through a fine sieve into a glass jar and store covered in a cool place. Break down with milk when required for use. Mayonnaise Dressing: 1 egg yolk, 1 teaspoon salt, i teaspoon dry mustard, 1 cup salad oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar. Put the yolk and seasonings in a bowl and beat well. Add 1 tablespoon vinegar (or lemon juice) and beat again. Beat in the oil gradually a few drops at a time at first and then more quickly. When it is thick, add the

remainder of the vinegar (or juice). If the oil is added too rapidly, the dressing separates. To remedy this a second egg yolk must be beaten and the curdled mixture added little by little, while beating continues. Keep the dressing in a cool place, and use for any kind of salad. Use of Cream When the restrictions on the use of cream are lifted, a cream salad dressing which requires no cooking will be found the quickest and easiest to make. Take half a cup of sweet cream and beat it until it is stiff. Add one teaspoon of dry mustard mixed with three teaspoons of sugar. Then add vinegar or lemon juice to taste, beat again slightly and use. When the cream is too fresh or thin to beat, mix in mustard and sugar, then add vinegar a little at a time and leave to stand. The vinegar will thicken the cream slightly. Condensed Milk Recipe: 1 tin sweetened condensed milk, f of the tin of vinegar, 1 teaspoon salt. 2 teaspoons mustard. Put all the ingredients into a bowl and beat with an egg-beater until thick. Store in a screw-stoppered jar and dilute a quantity with fresh milk when needed. It keeps well. Photographs by Sparrow Industrial Pictures Ltd.

Poultry Problems TO a person like myself, born and bred in London, and whose only acquaintance with fowls, livestock, and green fields was from a railway carriage window, country life in New Zealand was full of pitfalls, especially as I was just 21 and newly married. In fact, so many mishaps occurred during that first year that if it hadn’t been for a sense of humour and a very good-natured husband, I am sure I would have developed a definite inferiority complex. For instance, I remember the time I asked the butcher, for “some beef chops, please,” and the poker-faced butcher enquired how many and would I take them or have them sent, before he broke into roars of laughter. Another day, when expecting my husband’s boss and his wife to. dinner, I cleaned and plucked a fowl for the first time. Alas, I had forgotten its crop, and when the bird appeared on the table its bosom had swollen so alarmingly that my visitors promptly christened it a puffin between their howls of merriment. However, I think the following was the prize mishap of all, and although it happened ten years ago, my neighbours have never allowed me to forget it. We had just moved in to our cottage when the folk next door asked

me to feed their pullets, as they wanted to go to town. “Just mix up some pollard and bran with water,” were the instructions. . I agreed to do this, though I hadn’t the faintest idea what pollard was. I found some brown stuff in a sack and some bran in a bin, and throwing in a couple of handfuls of grain for luck, I mixed the whole lot together with water and spread it carefully on the various plates and dishes in the run. The pullets did not seem particularly enthusiastic, but I concluded that they were shy of me and left them to it.

The. next morning my neighbour practically staggered in, wiping her eyes with her apron, and in her other hand she held two “concrete” plates liberally sprinkled with bran flakes and grain. Yes, the brown stuff was cement! —“Puffin,” Hawke’s Bay.

VJY window is now framed with red A’* geraniums set in glowing green leaves. They gleam even more brightly red in the rain and they love the sun, whereas many other flowers wilt under the burning rays.— “M,” Feilding. ZXNE wet day recently I decided to have a spring clean of useless papers, envelopes, etc., in my husband’s writing desk, which was nearly overflowing. A handful of cartridges I put carefully in one of the pigeon holes. As I cleared out the papers I threw them into the open fireplace. My husband came in as the papers were burning well. “There are some cartridges there. Did you see them?” he asked. I thought it my chance to have a little fun. “I threw them in the fire. They won’t do any harm, will they?” I replied innocently. “Good Lord!” he ejaculated, as he stared fascinated at the blaze. I tiptoed behind him, then jumped hard on the floor, clapped my hands as loudly as I could, and shouted “Bang!” Hubby

jumped, hitting the hanging lamp with his head. “Och.” he muttered and stumped out of the room, but he soon returned and enjoyed the joke with me. Now I refer to that amusing incident as “The Time I Shot My Husband."—“Odey,” French Pass.

T’VE just had a spell at. my rugA making. The rug is the shape of a half-circle for beside my bed and is nearly completed., It is literally “every colour of the rainbow,” for I was given a supply of rug wool already cut to measure, each card of fifty-six pieces being the complete range of colours in that particular brand. What beautiful wool it is to handle—thick, and soft as silk. The shades are like jewels flowers. I use a small patent hook on wide-mesh canvas and I find the work so fascinating that it is hard to put down! When the rug is finished and in use it can be washed if necessary. “London Lass,” Wellington. OAY I join your band of “Good Neighbours”? I have long been a reader of the women’s pages and find them interesting and educational. My home is in the backblocks and when the “Journal” arrives “himself” very often has the first peep at it, and I often notice that it is the women’s section which he reads first! I enjoyed your article in the November —what brave women those three were in going to central Asia to bring Christianity to the people. “Just Me,” Mar I HAVE a child, thin, wiry, and as unpredictable as the weather. She comes home from • basketball matches with black eyes, or crushed fingers, or some other mishap. So many things seem to happen to her that her father, with a dazed look in his eyes, often mutters, “I don’t believe it!” Even as a little mite the difficulties and predicaments she got into were borne only because I slowly and assiduously cultivated a' sense of humour. One day she came home from school looking very smug and obviously hugging herself with delight. Suspecting the worst, I hinted that perhaps something had happened at school. Beaming with pleasure she replied, “Jill is a very naughty girl now. She was talking and Teacher put her in Talkers’ Row.”

Knowing my child to be the fastest and most irrepressible talker in the district I said, “But, Paddy, surely nobody else talks more them you.” Tossing me a look of scorn for my ignorance, she proudly answered, “Of course not, but I’ve been there all the year!”— “Pussy,” Auckland. A HUMOROUS incident is enjoyed ** by most people, but it can sometimes be most embarrassing to the person concerned. One Sunday morning in Brisbane I decided to go to church. It was exceedingly hot, so I donned a very large-brimmed hat. Arriving on the latish side I had to go up to the front of the church, obtaining a seat next to the aisle. A little later, to my horror, my dog trotted calmly up to the altar and started to explore. The minister gave him a startled glance and gently shooed him out, but Spot had more character than that and decided to continue his tour. I was the next victim. As soon as he discovered me he acted like a longlost friend. I lowered my head and in a stage whisper ordered him to go out, but with the sheer cussedness of the male species he did the opposite, and as though to curry favour with me, he sat down upon his haunches, threw back his head, and’ raised his deep baritone in apparent praise, just as he had been taught to do before receiv-

ing his supper. There followed a hasty, undignified exit by myself and “dawg” amid much tittering. Was I thankful for that wide-brimmed hat! “Aussie,” Auckland. T CAME across these words from -*• Ecclesiastes the other day: “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away.” Such interesting pages in our “Journal” these days, and what a lovely number of new members.

“Roundabout,” Hunterville.

T. LOVED hearing about treasured possessions. I am also most interested in the Rural Housing Survey and have posted my questionnaire. It is a lovely evening here as I write. Sometimes I think that farming is not

worth all the worry, but at this time of the year, when the country is so lovely, town does not appeal to me. On Friday I was in town (I had to go in by bus) and when I came home it seemed like heaven after all the hurry and scurry, and the jolting of the stuffy, overcrowded bus as a final unpleasantness.“ Cloudy,” Ashburton. IV/|Y friends laughingly tell me that I have a school-ma’am look—that I have ever had the honour to belong to the profession, nor do they refer to a “schoolgirl complexion.” A short time ago a relative who is a country teacher had to leave because of a sudden illness. It fell to my lot to attend to some private matters for her and on the day I made the journey the relieving teacher was a fellow-

passenger. A number of school children were awaiting the arrival of the train, and while the teacher was met and escorted to her lodgings the children accompanied me along the road. The parents told me the next day that the children had decided I was the new teacher. The laugh was against me!— “C.V.W.,” Waverley. IT has been so mild and dry lately -*• that we have been working' in the garden. My husband has been felling pines, a big row which runs across the farm and spoils two paddocks, so down they came. I hate to hear them crash, but it is good to have plenty of cones as —and one sort of coal which I can’t get!— the only fuel that really suits my stove. It takes my ten-year-old and me quite a time to knock the

cones off and carry them to the shed, but it’s one way we can help. —“Bee,” Timaru.

Home’s just a corner of the world, that’s sent to make us sweet, A place for smoothing out the way for tired hands and feet. A little place for tenderness as well as joy and song, A little place to cheer and bless and help loved folk along; A place for toil, a place for rest, a little place for prayer, . A place where everyone can play his part, however small; But home that is not full of love is hardly home at all. Sent in by “Peggy,” Pleasant Point T HAVE been reading “W. H. Davies,” by Thomas Moult. I think Davies and de la Mare are my favourite poets. Have you ever noticed how Davies delights in butterflies? I was amazed at the number of times he introduced them into his poems. I had a volume of de la Mare given me for my birthday and I do not think I’ve ever had a gift before with so much loveliness in it. Here’s • a fragment to add to your Winter Anthology: Once was miller, and he would say, “I go as white as lambs in May! I go as white as rose cm bush! White as the white convolvulus!” He snapped his fingers, began to sing—- “ White, by my beard, is everything! Meal, and chalk, and frost, and hail; Clouds and surf and ships in sail. There’s nowt on earth that brighter shines Than daisies, pinks, and columbines; But what of ME when full moon doth show And mill and meadows are deep in snow!” (Walter de la Mare)

“Tinkle Tinkle,” Port Chalmers.

“Wild Life”

I AM sorry I have to disappoint so many readers who replied to my offer to loan the magazine “Wild Life.” I have been simply deluged with letters and have sent the magazine to the writer of the first letter I received. I have requested her to send it on to the next on the list if the idea appeals to her. Thank you all for your friendly interest, and may I say that I have recently seen “Wild Life” displayed in a bookshop here, so perhaps copies are reaching New Zealand bookstalls by now. It is published by the United Press, 62-74 Flinders Street, Melbourne. “ Native Flower,” Waipukurau.

The place that doth contain My books, the best companions, is to me A glorious court where hourly I converse With the old sages and philosophers. -Massinger.

POPLAR IN AUTUMN ■Outside my window, through the grime ■Of city smokes that curl and climb, There is a shining reed of light .As graceful as a bird in flight; There is a sudden flash of gold Like fading tints on dead leaf-mould; Or glimpse of green athwart the sky As a gipsy breeze goes gaily by .. . O! shining poplar tree so tall That grows outside my office wall I thank you for the magic way Your beauty charms my cares away. —Mary Kitching