BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Graham Mush
Tomato Toast
Potato Cakes
Graham Bread
Rye Gems
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Tomato and Macaroni Soup
Potato Snow
Stewed Parsnips
Chopped Turnip
Rolled Rye
Graham Bread
Toasted Wafers
Graham Crusts
Stewed Fruit
Prune Dessert
SIXTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Oats
Gravy Toast
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Toasted Wafers
Hoe Cake
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Mixed Potato Soup
Macaroni with Cream Sauce
Stewed Beans
Scalloped Tomato
Pearl Wheat
Pulled Bread
Corn Cakes
Stewed Fruit
Farina Custard
SABBATH
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Oats
Prune Toast
Fruit Bread
Cream Rolls
Toasted Wafers
Steamed Figs
Cup Custard
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Vegetable Oyster Soup
Macaroni with Kornlet
Canned String Beans
Steamed Rice
Graham Fruit Bread
Cream Rolls
Cranberry Jelly
Fresh Fruit
FIFTIETH WEEK.
FIRST DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Cerealine Flakes
Baked Potato with Cream Gravy
Toasted Wafers
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Hoe Cake
Baked Chestnuts
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Velvet Soup
Broiled Potato
Succotash
Baked Squash
Cracked Wheat
Toasted Rolls
Graham Bread
Crusts
Stewed Fruit
Rice Cream Pudding
SECOND DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Corn Meal Mush
Cream Toast
Cream Rolls
Granola Gems
Graham Bread
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Brown Soup
Baked Potato
Stewed Celery
Mashed Peas with Tomato Sauce
Graham Grits
French Rolls
Rye Bread
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
Apple Snow
THIRD DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Wheat
Grape Toast
Graham Crisps
Rye Bread
Graham Puffs
Lemon Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Cream Pea Soup
Mashed Potato
Mashed Parsnips
Macaroni with Egg
Pearl Wheat with Raisins
Rye Bread
Toasted Wafers
Currant Puffs
Stewed Fruit
California Grapes
FOURTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Oatmeal
Tomato Toast
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Graham Sticks
Corn Cakes
Granola
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Parsnip Soup
Potato Rice
Steamed Squash
Baked Beans
Cracked Wheat
Raised Biscuit
Toasted Wafers
Graham Gems
Stewed Fruit
Farina Blancmange with Cranberry Dressing
FIFTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Graham Apple Mush
Blackberry Toast
Macaroni with Cream Sauce
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Graham Bread
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Baked Bean Soup
Potato Cakes
Scalloped Tomatoes
Stewed Vegetable Oysters
Rice
Graham Bread
Oatmeal Crisps
Beaten Biscuit
Stewed Fruit
Tapioca Jelly
SIXTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Rye
Snowflake Toast
Toasted Wafers
Graham Bread
Corn Puffs
Citron Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Vegetable Oyster Soup
Baked Sweet Potato
Mashed Peas
Boiled Beets with Lemon Dressing
Graham Grits
Pulled Bread
Graham Crusts
Stewed Fruit
SABBATH
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rice with Fig Sauce
Gravy Toast
Fruit Bread
Toasted Wafers
Cream Rolls
Grape Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Kornlet Soup
Mashed Sweet Potato
Pease Cakes
Browned Rice
Buns
Pulled Bread
Cream Rolls
Stewed Fruit
Bananas
FIFTY-FIRST WEEK
FIRST DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Cerealine Flakes
Cream Toast
Graham Puffs
Fruit Bread
Toasted Wafers
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Swiss Lentil Soup
Boiled Potatoes with Cream Sauce
Scalloped Tomato
Stewed Vegetable Oysters
Pearl Barley
Graham Bread
Rye Gems
Toasted Wafers
Lemon Apples
Stewed Fruit
SECOND DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Oatmeal
Vegetable Oyster Toast
Lentil Puree
Toasted Wafers
Corn Puffs
Graham Bread
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Pea and Tomato Soup
Mashed Potato
Mashed Turnip
Parsnip with Egg Sauce
Graham Grits
Raised Corn Cake
Graham Sticks
Stewed Fruit
Ground Rice Pudding
THIRD DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Graham Mush with Raisins
Tomato Toast
Graham Bread
Toasted Wafers
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Parsnip Soup
Baked Potato
Mashed Squash
Stewed Lima Beans
Cracked Wheat
Graham Bread
Cream Crisps
Pop Overs
Stewed Fruit
Bread Custard
FOURTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Plum Porridge
Dry Toast with Hot Cream
Whole-Wheat Bread
Cream Crisps
Hoe Cake
Granola
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Vermicelli Soup
Baked Potato with Pease Gravy
Boiled Beets
Stewed Tomatoes
Graham Grits
Whole-Wheat Bread
Toasted Wafers
Beaten Biscuit
Cranberry Tarts
FIFTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Oats
Gravy Toast
Baked Sweet Potato
Whole-Wheat Bread
Toasted Wafers
Graham Puffs
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Tomato and Macaroni Soup
Baked Potatoes with Brown Sauce
Mashed Peas
Stewed Dried Corn
Rice
Whole-Wheat Bread
Toasted Wafers
Rye Gems
Stewed Fruit
Nuts and Oranges
SIXTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Corn Meal Mush
Apricot Toast
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Toasted Wafers
Breakfast Rolls
Steamed Figs
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Cream Pea Soup
Boiled Potato
Stewed Carrots
Celery
Mashed Chestnuts
Cracked Wheat
Raised Corn Cake
Toasted Wafers
Fruit Bread
Stewed Fruit
Rice Cream Pudding
SABBATH
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Oats
Grape Toast
Beaten Biscuit
Roasted Almonds
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Tomato and Vermicelli Soup
Boiled Macaroni
Canned String Beans
Steamed Rice
Beaten Biscuit
Fruit Bread
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
Fresh Fruit
FIFTY-SECOND WEEK
FIRST DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Plum Porridge
Strawberry Toast
Toasted Wafers
Hoe Cake
Graham Puffs
Baked Chestnuts
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Vegetable Oyster Soup
Baked Potato
Cabbage and Tomato
Hulled Corn or Hominy
Graham Grits
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Graham Sticks
Fruit Bread
Stewed Fruit
Snow Pudding
SECOND DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Corn Meal Mush
Tomato Toast
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Toasted Wafers
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Lentil Soup
Mashed Potato
Boiled Macaroni
Canned Okra and Tomato
Corn Bread
Graham Puffs
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
Fresh Fruit and Nuts
THIRD DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Oats
Dry Toast with Hot Cream
Currant Puffs
Rye Bread
Toasted Wafers
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Lima Bean Soup
Scalloped Potato
Mashed Peas
Baked Squash
Celery
Rice with Raisins
Rye Bread
Graham Crusts
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
Apple Manioca
FOURTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Baked Chestnuts
Rolled Wheat
Gravy Toast
Baked Sweet Potato with Tomato Sauce Cream Rolls
Graham Puffs
Granola
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Cream Pea Soup
Baked Potato
Stewed Tomatoes
Scalloped Vegetable Oysters
Graham Grits
Graham Bread
Toasted Wafers
Buns
Stewed Fruit
Apple Tart
FIFTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Cracked Wheat
Vegetable Oyster Toast
Graham Bread
Crusts
Toasted Wafers
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Potato Soup
Baked Beans
Stewed Parsnips
Pearl Wheat
Graham Bread
Currant Puffs
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
Rice Cream Pudding
SIXTH DAY
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Graham Mush with Dates
Snowflake Toast
Graham Bread
Toasted Wafers
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Baked Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Black Bean Soup
Mashed Potato
Kornlet and Tomato
Macaroni baked with Granola
Farina
Graham Bread
Crescents
Cream Rolls
Stewed Fruit
Cracked Wheat Pudding
SABBATH
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Oats
Blackberry Toast
Pulled Bread
Buns
Beaten Biscuit
Baked Chestnuts
Citron Apples
Stewed Fruit
DINNER
Canned Green Pea Soup
Broiled Potato
Macaroni with Egg Sauce
Steamed Rice with Raisins
Buns
Beaten Biscuit
Toasted Wafers
Stewed Fruit
Farina Pie
COUNTING THE COST.
The expense of the menus given will vary somewhat with the locality and the existing market prices. The following analysis of several similar bills of fare used in widely different localities will serve to show something of the average cost. The first of these were taken at random from the daily menus, during the month of January, of a Michigan family of seventeen persons, grown persons and hearty, growing children, none younger than six years. In the estimates made of the cost of material, wherever fractions occurred, the next higher whole number was taken. No butter was used, a small pitcher of cream for each individual supplying its place. The milk used for cooking was not counted, since in this case most of the cream had been removed, and its cost reckoned at the entire cost of the milk itself, or twenty cents a quart, allowing four quarts of milk at five cents a quart for one quart of cream.
BILLS OF FARE.
BREAKFAST
Fresh Apples
Toasted Whole-Wheat Wafers
Rolled Wheat with Cream
Grape Toast
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Toasted Wafers
Baked Sweet Apples
Stewed Prunes
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
Apples (fresh and baked), one half peck, 10c.; one lb. rolled wheat, 5c.;
one and one half lbs. zwieback for toast, 15c.; one pint of canned grape pulp for toast, 12c.; puffs (for which beside milk, three eggs at 25c. per doz., and one and one half lbs. whole-wheat flour at 5c. per lb. were used), 14c.; two and one half lbs. of California prunes, 37c.; two qts. cream, an amount quite sufficient for moistening the toast and supplying a small cream cup for each individual, 40c.; two lbs. of toasted whole-wheat wafers, 20c.
–making the entire cost of breakfast $1.53, or exactly nine cents per person.
DINNER
Lima Bean Soup
Baked Potato with Cream Sauce
Scalloped Vegetable Oysters
Graham Grits
Whole-Wheat Bread
Whole-Wheat Wafers, Toasted
Canned Cherries
Citron Apples with Whipped Cream
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
One and one fourth lbs. Lima beans, 9c.; one half peck of potatoes, 12c.;
one lb. Graham grits, 5c.;
1 loaf whole-wheat bread, 10c.;
2-1/4 lbs. whole-wheat wafers, 23c.; canned cherries, 25c.;
apples and citron, 10c.;
3 bunches vegetable oysters, 15c.; cream (1 cup for the soup, one for the cream sauce, and one for whipped cream, beside three and one fourth pints for individual use), 50c.; flour and sugar for cooking, 10c.
Total, $1.69–a little less than ten cents each.
BREAKFAST NO. 2
Bananas
Oatmeal
Gravy Toast
Graham Gems
Toasted Wafers
Apple Sauce
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
1 1/2 doz. bananas, 45c.;
toast, 15c.;
cream for gravy, 5c.;
material for gems (Graham flour, milk, and a small portion of cream), 8c.; apple sauce, 10c.;
wafers, 20c.;
cream for individual use, 30c.;
sugar, 5c.
Total, $1.46, or a trifle more than 8 cents apiece.
DINNER NO. 2
Tomato and Macaroni Soup
Boiled Potato with Gravy
Mashed Peas
Pearl Barley with Raisins
Whole-Wheat Bread
Toasted Wafers
Canned Berries
Apple Tapioca with Cream
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
For the soup was required two cans of tomatoes at 10c. each, 2 oz. macaroni at 15c. per lb., and one cup of cream, 27c.; 1/2 peck of potatoes, 12c.;
1 1/2 lbs. peas, 6c.;
1 lb. pearl barley, 5c.;
1/3 lb. raisins, 5c.;
1/2 lb. tapioca, 3c.;
apples, 20c.;
cream, 50c.;
canned fruit, 25c.;
flour and sugar, 4c.
Total, $1.70–ten cents apiece for each member of the household.
The following bills of fare were used by an Iowa family of six persons. The prices given were those current in that locality in the month of March.
BREAKFAST
Apples
Rolled Oats
Tomato Toast
Toasted Wafers
Graham Gems
Patent Flour Bread
Dried Apple Sauce
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
One sixth peck of apples, 3 1/3c.; one third lb. rolled oats, 1 2/3c.;
three fourths lb. whole-wheat wafers, 7 1/2c.; one half can tomatoes, 5c.;
bread for table and for toast, 10c.; material for gems, 3 1/2c.;
dried apples, 6c.;
sugar, 2c.;
cream and milk, 15c.
Average cost for each person, 9 1/2 cents.
DINNER
Canned Corn Soup with Croutons
Scalloped Tomato
Parsnip with Egg Sauce
Graham Mush
Buns
Whole-Wheat Bread
Cup Custard
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
One can of corn, 10c.;
tomatoes (using the half can left over from breakfast), 5c.; bread for the table, for the scalloped tomatoes, and for croutons for the soup, 10c.; parsnips, 5c.;
buns, 5c.;
four eggs, 6 1/2c.;
milk and cream, 15c.;
sugar, 2c.;
Graham flour, 1c.
Average cost, 10 cents apiece.
The material for the bills of fare given on the next page was reckoned at prices current in a city in northern West Virginia, in the autumn, and was for a family of six persons.
BREAKFAST
Browned Rice
Graham Crisps
Whole-Wheat Puffs
Dried Peach Sauce
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
One half doz. bananas, 10c.;
one half lb. rice, 5c.;
puffs, 5c; crisps
2-1/3c.;
one lb. dried peaches, 8c.;
2 qts. milk, 10c.;
sugar, 1-1/2c.
Total, 42 cents, or 7 cents for each individual.
DINNER
Tomato Soup with Croutons
Baked Potatoes
Mashed Peas
Rolled Wheat
Whole-Wheat Bread
Orange Rice
Cream
Hot Milk
_Cost:_
One half peck tomatoes, 7-1/2c.;
one fourth peck potatoes, 5c.;
one half lb. rolled wheat, 2-1/2c.; one fourth loaf of bread to make croutons, 2-1/2c,; whole-wheat bread, 5c.;
one half doz. oranges,12-1/2c.;
one half lb. rice, 5c.;
two qts. milk, 10c.
Total, 60 cents, or exactly 10 cents apiece.
The following four days’ bills of fare,–the first two served by a Michigan lady to her family of four persons, the second used by an Illinois family of eight,–although made up of much less variety, serve to show how one may live substantially even at a very small cost.
BREAKFAST NO. 1
Apples
Graham Mush with Dates
Toasted Wafers
Bread
Dried Apples Stewed with Cherries Milk
Cream
_Cost:_
Apples, 4c.;
Graham mush and dates, 3c.;
toasted wafers, 3c.;
bread, 2c.;
sauce, 3c.;
milk and cream, 5c.
Total, 20 cents, or 5 cents apiece.
DINNER NO. 1
Baked Potatoes with Gravy
Mashed Peas
Oatmeal Blancmange
Whole-Wheat Bread
Stewed Fruit
Milk
Cream
_Cost:_
Mashed peas, 3c.;
baked potato and gravy, 3c.;
whole-wheat bread, 2c.;
milk and cream, 5c.;
Oatmeal Blancmange, 2c.;
Sauce, 5c.
Total cost, 20 cents, or 5 cents apiece.
BREAKFAST NO. 2
Apples
Graham Grits
Zwieback
Cream
Milk
_Cost:_
Apples, 4c.;
Graham grits, 2c.;
Graham gems, 5c.;
Zwieback, 2c.;
cream and milk, 5c.
Total, 20 cents, or 5 cents per person.
DINNER NO. 2
Pea and Tomato Soup
Scalloped Potatoes
Graham Rolls
Rice Custard
Milk
Cream
_Cost:_
Soup, 4c.;
potatoes, 1c.;
rolls 4c.;
milk and cream, 5c.;
rice custard, 6c.
Total, 20 cents, or 5 cents each.
BREAKFAST NO. 3
Baked Apples
Graham Grits with Cream
Cream Toast
Graham Gems
Graham and Whole-Wheat Wafers
Stewed Prunes
BREAKFAST NO. 4
Oatmeal with Cream
Blueberry Toast
Breakfast Rolls
Graham and Whole-Wheat Wafers
Stewed Apples
DINNER NO. 3
Bean Soup with Croutons
Mashed Potatoes
Pearl Wheat
Macaroni with Tomato Sauce
Oatmeal Crackers
Patent Flour Bread
Fresh Apples
DINNER NO. 4
Rice Soup
Baked Potatoes with Cream Gravy
Baked Beans
Graham Crackers
Whole-Wheat Bread
Fresh Apples
Farina with Cream
Material necessary to furnish these four meals for eight persons,– Six lbs. flour, 18c.;
two lbs. crackers, different varieties, 20c.; pearl wheat, oatmeal, graham grits, and farina, one half lb. each, 10c.; one peck apples, 30c.;
prunes, 10c.;
one half lb. rice, 3-1/2c.;
two lbs. beans, 8c.;
one can tomatoes, 10.;
one half peck of potatoes, 13c.;
blueberries, 10c.;
eight qts. milk, 32c.;
macaroni, 5c.;
sugar, 1-1/2c.
Total, $1.71, or cost to each individual, 5-2/3 cents a meal.
TABLE TOPICS.
The food on which the man who would be healthy should live must be selected so as to ensure variety without excess.–_Dr. Richardson._
Hearty foods are those in which there is an abundance of potential energy.–_Prof. Atwater._
AN OLD-FASHIONED RECIPE FOR A LITTLE HOME COMFORT.–Take of thought for self one part, two parts of thought for family; equal parts of common sense and broad intelligence, a large modicum of the sense of fitness of things, a heaping measure of living above what your neighbors think of you, twice the quantity of keeping within your income, a sprinkling of what tends to refinement and aesthetic beauty, stirred thick with the true brand of Christian principle, and set it to rise.–_Sel._
For all things have an equal right to live. ‘T is only just prerogative we have;
But nourish life with vegetable food, and shun the sacrilegious taste of blood.–_Ovid._
A BATCH OF DINNERS
HOLIDAY DINNERS,
A Special dinner for a holiday celebration has so long been a time-honored custom in most families, that the majority of housewives consider it indispensable. While we admire the beautiful custom of gathering one’s friends and neighbors around the hospitable board, and by no means object to a special dinner on holiday occasions, yet we are no wise in sympathy with the indiscriminate feastings so universally indulged in at such dinners, whereby stomachs are overloaded with a decidedly unhealthful quality of food, to be followed by dull brains and aching heads for days to come.
And this is not the extent of the evil. Holiday feasting undoubtedly has much to do with the excessive use of intoxicants noticeable at such times. Tempted to overeat by the rich and highly seasoned viands which make up the bill of fare, the heaviness resulting from a stomach thus overburdened creates a thirst not readily satisfied. A person who has noted how frequently one is called upon to assuage thirst after having eaten too heartily of food on any occasion, will hardly doubt that indigestible holiday dinners are detrimental to the cause of total abstinence.
Then, for the sake of health and the cause of temperance, while an ample repast is provided, let not the bill of fare be so lavish as to tempt to gormandizing; and let the viands be of the most simple and wholesome character practicable, although, of course, inviting. As an aid in this direction, we offer the following bills of fare;–
THANKSGIVING MENUS.
NO. 1
Tomato Soap with Pasta d’Italia
Stuffed Potatoes
Canned Asparagus
Pulp Succotash
Celery
Graham Grits
Fruit Rolls
Graham Puffs
Buns
Canned Peaches
Pumpkin Pie
Baked Chestnuts
Grape Apples
Fresh Fruits
NO. 2
Vegetable Oyster Soup
Potato Puff
Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Parsnip Stewed with Celery
Beet Salad
Boiled Wheat with Raisins
Cream Crisps
Whole-Wheat Bread
Crescents with Peach Jelly
Canned Fruit
Cranberry Tarts
Almonds and Pecans
HOLIDAY MENUS.
NO. 1
Canned Corn Soup
Mashed Sweet Potato
Macaroni with Tomato Sauce
Canned Wax Beans or Cabbage Salad Steamed Rice
Graham Puffs
Fruit Bread
Toasted Wafers
Canned Strawberries
Malaga Grapes
Loaf Cake with Roasted Almonds
Bananas in Syrup
NO. 2
Pea and Tomato Soup
Ornamental Potatoes
Scalloped Vegetable Oysters
Egg and Macaroni
Farina with Fig Sauce
Sally Lunn Gems
Beaten Biscuit
Graham Bread
Apply Jelly
Canned Gooseberries
Prune Pie with Granola Crust
Citron Apples
Pop Corn
[Illustration: A Picnic Dinner]
PICNIC DINNERS
A picnic, to serve its true end, ought to be a season of healthful recreation; but seemingly, in the general acceptation of the term, a picnic means an occasion for a big dinner composed of sweets and dainties, wines, ices, and other delectable delicacies, which tempt to surfeiting and excess. The preparation necessary for such a dinner usually requires a great amount of extra and wearisome labor, while the eating is very apt to leave results which quite overshadow any benefit derived from the recreative features of the occasion. It is generally supposed that a picnic is something greatly conducive to health; but where everything is thus made subservient to appetite, it is one of the most unhygienic things imaginable.
The lunch basket should contain ample provision for fresh-air-sharpened appetites, but let the food be as simple as possible, and of not too great variety. Good whole-wheat or Graham bread in some form, with well sterilized milk and cream, or a soup previously prepared from grains or legumes, which can be readily heated with the aid of a small alcohol or kerosene stove, and plenty of fruit of seasonable variety, will constitute a very good bill of fare. If cake is desirable, let it be of a very simple kind, like the buns or raised cake for which directions are given in another chapter. Beaten biscuits, rolls, and crisps are also serviceable for picnic dinners. Fruit sandwiches–made by spreading slices of light whole-wheat or Graham bread with a little whipped cream and then with fresh fruit jam lightly sweetened, with fig sauce or steamed figs chopped, steamed prunes or sliced bananas–are most relishable. These should be made on the ground, just before serving, from material previously prepared. An egg sandwich may be prepared in the same manner by substituting for the fruit the hard-boiled yolks of eggs chopped with a very little of the whitest and tenderest celery, and seasoned lightly with salt. Two pleasing and palatable picnic breads may be made as follows:–
_RECIPES._
PICNIC BISCUIT.–Prepare a dough as for Raised Biscuit, page 145, and when thoroughly kneaded the last time, divide, and roll both portions to about one fourth of an inch in thickness. Spread one portion with stoned dates, or figs that have been chopped or cut fine with scissors, cover with the second portion, and cut into fancy shapes. Let the biscuits rise until very light, and bake. Wash the tops with milk to glace before baking.
FIG WAFERS.–Rub together equal quantities of Graham meal, and figs that have been chopped very fine. Make into a dough with cold sweet cream. Roll thin, cut in shape, and bake.
If provision can be made for the reheating of foods, a soup, or grain, macaroni with tomato sauce, or with egg or cream sauce, or some similar article which can be cooked at home, transported in sealed fruit cans, and reheated in a few moments on the grounds, is a desirable addition to the picnic bill of fare.
Recipes for suitable beverages for such occasions will be found in the chapter on Beverages.
SCHOOL LUNCHES.
Mothers whose children are obliged to go long distances to school, are often greatly perplexed to know what to put up for the noonday lunch which shall be both appetizing and wholesome. The conventional school lunch of white bread and butter, sandwiches, pickles, mince or other rich pie, with a variety of cake and cookies, is scarcely better than none at all; since on the one hand there is a deficiency of food material which can be used for the upbuilding of brains, muscles, and nerves; while on the other hand it contains an abundance of material calculated to induce dyspepsia, headache, dullness of intellect, and other morbid conditions. Left in an ante-room, during the school session, until, in cold weather, it becomes nearly frozen, and then partaken of hurriedly, that there may be more time for play, is it to be wondered at that the after-dinner session drags so wearily, and that the pupils feel sleepy, dull, and uninterested? Our brains are nourished by blood made from the food we eat; and if it be formed of improper or unwholesome food, the result will be a disordered organ, incapable of first-class work.
Again, the extra work imposed upon the digestive organs and the liver in getting rid of the excess of fats and sugar in rich, unwholesome foods, continually overtaxes these organs.
It can hardly be doubted that a large majority of the cases of so-called overwork from which school children suffer, are caused by violation of hygienic laws regarding food and diet rather than by an excess of brain work; or in other words, had the brain been properly nourished by an abundance of good, wholesome food, the same amount of work could have been easily accomplished with no detriment whatever.
Whenever practicable, children should return to their homes for the midday lunch, since under the oversight of a wise mother there will be fewer violations of hygienic laws, and the walk back to the school room will be far more conducive to good digestion than the violent exercise or the sports so often indulged in directly after eating. When this is impracticable, let the lunch be as simple as possible, and not so ample as to tempt the child to overeat. Good whole-wheat or Graham bread of some kind, rolls, crisps, beaten biscuit, sticks, fruit rolls, and wafers, with a cup of canned fruit or a bottle of rich milk as an accompaniment, with plenty of nice, fresh fruits or almonds or a few stalks of celery, is as tempting a lunch as any child need desire. It would be a good plan to arrange for the heating of a portion of the milk to be sipped as a hot drink. In many school rooms the ordinary heating stove will furnish means for this, or a little alcohol stove or a heating lamp may be used for the purpose, under the supervision of the teacher.
Furnish the children with apples, oranges, bananas, pears, grapes, filberts, and almonds in place of rich pie and cake. They are just as cheap as the material used for making the less wholesome sweets, and far easier of digestion. An occasional plain fruit or grain pudding, cup custard, or molded dessert may be substituted for variety. Fruit sandwiches, or a slice of Stewed Fruit Pudding prepared as directed on page 308 are also suitable for this purpose.
Rice prepared as directed below makes a wholesome and appetizing article for the lunch basket:–
CREAMY RICE.–Put a pint of milk, one quarter of a cup of best Carolina rice, a tablespoonful of sugar, and a handful of raisins into an earthen-ware dish, and place on the top of the range where it will heat very slowly to boiling temperature. Stir frequently, so that the rice will not adhere to the bottom of the dish. When boiling, place in the oven, and bake till the rice is tender, which can be ascertained by dipping a spoon into one side and taking out a few grains. Twenty minutes will generally be sufficient.
Much care should be used in putting up the lunch to have it as neat and dainty as possible. A basket of suitable size covered with a clean white napkin is better for use than the conventional dinner pail, in which air-tight receptacle each food is apt to savor of all the others, making the entire contents unappetizing, if not unwholesome.
SABBATH DINNERS.
One of the most needed reforms in domestic life is a change to more simple meals on the Sabbath. In many households the Sabbath is the only day in the week when all the members of the family can dine together, and with an aim to making it the most enjoyable day of all, the good housewife provides the most elaborate dinner of the week, for the preparation of which she must either spend an unusual amount of time and labor the day previous or must encroach upon the sacred rest day to perform the work.
Real enjoyment ought not to be dependent upon feasting and gustatory pleasures. Plain living and high thinking should be the rule at all times, and especially upon the Sabbath day. Nothing could be more conducive to indigestion and dyspepsia than this general custom of feasting on the Sabbath. The extra dishes and especial luxuries tempt to over-indulgence of appetite; while the lack of customary exercise and the gorged condition of the stomach incident upon such hearty meals, fosters headaches and indigestion and renders brain and mind so inactive that the participants feel too dull for meditation and study, too sleepy to keep awake during service, too languid for anything but dozing and lounging, and the day that should have fostered spiritual growth is worse than thrown away. Nor is this all; the evil effects of the indigestion occasioned are apt to be felt for several succeeding days, making the children irritable and cross, and the older members of the family nervous and impatient,–most certainly an opposite result from that which ought to follow a sacred day of rest.
Physiologically such feasting is wrong. The wear and consequent repair incident upon hard labor, calls for an equivalent in food; but when no labor is performed, a very moderate allowance–is all that is necessary, and it should be of easy digestibility. Let the Sabbath meals be simple, and served with abundant good cheer and intelligent thought as an accompaniment.
Let as much as possible of the food be prepared and the necessary work be done the day previous, so that the cook may have ample opportunity with the other members of the family to enjoy all Sabbath privileges. This need by no means necessitate the use of cold food nor entail a great amount of added work in preparation. To illustrate, take the following–
SABBATH BILL OF FARE.
BREAKFAST
Fresh Fruit
Rolled Wheat with Cream
Prune Toast
Whole-Wheat Bread
Toasted Waters
Buns
Fresh Strawberries
DINNER
Canned Green Corn Soup
Creamed Potato
Green Peas
Tomato and Macaroni
Rice
Toasted Wafers
Beaten Biscuit
Buns
Canned Peaches
Fruit and Nuts
Both the rolled wheat and rice may be prepared the day previous, as may also the prune sauce for the toast, the buns, bread, and nearly all the other foods. The potatoes can be boiled and sliced, the corn for the soup rubbed through the colander and placed in the ice chest, the green peas boiled but not seasoned, and the macaroni cooked and added to the tomato but not seasoned. The berries may be hulled, the nuts cracked, and the canned fruit opened. If the table is laid over night and covered with a spread to keep off dust, a very short time will suffice for getting the Sabbath breakfast. Heat the rolled wheat in the inner dish of a double boiler. Meanwhile moisten the toast; and heat the prune sauce.
To prepare the dinner, all that is necessary is to add to the material for soup the requisite amount of milk and seasoning, and heat to boiling; heat and season the peas and macaroni; make a cream sauce and add the potatoes; reheat the rice, which should have been cooked by steaming after the recipe given on page 99.
All may be done in half an hour, while the table is being laid, and with very little labor.
TABLE TOPICS.
WATER.
To the days of the aged it addeth length; To the might of the strong it addeth strength; It freshens the heart, it brightens the sight; ‘T is like quaffing a goblet of morning light.
–_Sel._
It is said that Worcester sauce was first introduced as a medicine, the original formula having been evolved by a noted physician to disguise the assafetida which it contains, for the benefit of a noble patient whose high living had impaired his digestion.
The turnpike road to people’s hearts I find Lies through their mouth, or I mistake mankind.–_Dr. Wolcott._
A good dinner sharpens wit, while it softens the heart.–_Daran._
Small cheer and great welcome make a merry feast.–_Shakespeare._
INDEX.
Absorption 38
Acetic acid 119
Acetic fermentation 119
Acorn coffee 433
A fourteenth century recipe 219
After mealtime 471
Aladdin cooker 66
Albumen 26, 53, 78, 365, 384
Albumenized milk 425
Alcoholic fermentation 119
Almond cornstarch pudding 321
cream 321
paste, to prepare 298
sauce 352
Almonds 212
blanched 212, 215
Alum, how to detect in flour 115
Ancient recipe for cooking barley 95 Animal food 391
Anti-fermentatives 192
Appetite, education of 449
Apple, the 169
and bread custard 321
beverage 433
cake 344
charlotte 321
compote 188
custard 320, 321
custard pie 338
dessert 299
jelly 206
jelly without sugar 207
meringue dessert 300
pudding, baked 302
rose cream 300
sago pudding 311
Apple sandwich 303
shape 314
snow 300
tapioca 309
tart 317
toast 290
toast water 433
Apples, directions for serving 179 in jelly 314
sour, raw, digestion of 39
stewed whole 187
sweet, raw, digestion of 39
with apricots 189
with raisins 189
Apricots 171
Apricot toast 290
Arrowroot blancmange 437
gruel 421
jelly 437
Artificial butter 373
feeding 446
foods, digestibility of 445
human milk 444
Art of dining, the 456
Asparagus 254
and peas 255
on toast 255
points 255
preparation and cooking of 254
recipes for cooking 255
soup 276, 415
stewed 256
toast 290
with cream sauce 255
with egg sauce 256
Assama 135
Avena 91
Avenola 429
Baccate fruits or berries 168
Bacteria in gelatine 313
Bad cookery, evils of 46
Bad cooking the ally of intemperance 46 Bain marie 232, 464
Baked apples 186, 189
apple loaf 319
apple pudding 302
apple sauce 187
apples with cream 300
bananas 301
barley 97
bean soup 276
beets 247
cabbage 250
corn 265
egg plant 262
fish 410
milk 433
parsnips 244
peaches 190
pears 189
potatoes 235
quinces 187
sweet apple dessert 300
sweet potatoes 239
turnips 242
vegetables 231
Baking 49
powders 150
Banana custard 322
dessert 310
dessert with gelatine 315
pie 338
shortcake 318
toast 290
Bananas 177
directions for serving 179
in syrup 301
Barley 95
and fruit drink 434
antiquity of 95
bread 110
description of 95
digestibility of 96
digestion of 39
fig pudding 302
fruit pudding 302
general suggestions for cooking 96 grain, structure of 96
gruel 422
lemonade 433
meal in the time of Charles I 96 milk 434
milk for infants 443
nutritive value of 96
patent 96
pearl 96
pot 96
recipes for cooking 97
Scotch milled 96
soup 415
used for bread making 96
Batter for bread, test for lightness of 129 pudding 332
Beans 222
boiled in a bag 223
green, description of 264
green, recipes for cooking 267
Lima 267
pod, digestion of 39
preparation and cooking of 222
recipes for cooking 223
shelled 267
string 267
time required for cooking 223
time required for digestion 222
Bean and corn soup 276
and hominy soup 276
and potato soup 276
and tomato soup 277
Bean gems 160
Beaten biscuit 161
Beating 55
Beaumont’s experiments 29
Beef, broiled 399
broth and oatmeal
comparative food value of 392
digestion of 39
economy and adaptability in selection of 398 jerked 394
juice 427
liver of 392
recipes for cooking 399
selection of 393
smothered 400
soups 411
stewed 400
tea 43, 426, 427
tea and egg 427
tea in bottles 427
tea, nutritive value of 426
Beet coffee 360
greens 247
hash 247
salad or chopped beets 248
sugar 26
Beets 246
baked 247
preparation and cooking of 246
recipes for cooking 247
stewed 248
with potatoes 247
Berries 189
Berry shortcake 318
toast 291
Beverages 357
cold, recipes for 361
for the sick, recipes for 433
from fruit juices for the sick 432 recipes for 360
Bile 36
Bills of fare for 52 weeks 487-538 Bills of fare 440
Birds baked in sweet potatoes 406 Black bean soup 277
Blackberry, the 176
beverage 361
cornstarch pudding 303
mush 293
syrup 210
tapioca 310
Blackberries, directions for serving 181 Boiled apples with syrup 188
Boiled beans 223
beets 248
cabbage 250
carrots 246
cauliflower 251
custard 322
custard bread pudding 322
leg of mutton 401
macaroni 106
parsnips 244
potatoes in jackets 235
potatoes without skins 235
potato yeast 141
rice 99
rice, digestion of 98
sweet potatoes 239
turnips 241
wheat 87
Boiling 51, 395
of vegetables 231
violent, result of 51
Bottled beef tea 427
Bran stock 277
Brass utensils 58
Bray 109
Brazil nuts 213
Bread and apricot pudding 323
and fig pudding 323
and fruit custard 332
articles from which prepared 110 care after baking 136
corn 146
corn, digestion of 39
custard, steamed 333
custard pudding 332
dryness of 133
early forms of 109
entire wheat 112, 138
for the sick 436
Graham 138
heavy, cause of 155
how to knead 132
keeping of 137
perfectly risen 130
to detect alum in 116
to detect whiting in 116
in desserts 297
fermented 118
flour, amount of required 126
made light with air 152
making, chemistry of 116
materials, how to combine 125
milk 142
moldy 297
necessary qualities of 111
of mulberries 110
overfermentation of 120
pans 134
pie 338
pulled 143
rye 144
sour 130, 297
stale 138
stale, use of 453
steamed 140
test of 140
the rising of 129
unfermented, general directions for making 152 unfermented, time required for baking 155 unleavened 117
Vienna 142
water 142
white, injurious effects of 111
whole-wheat 138, 143
whole-wheat, proportion of phosphates in 112 Breads, fermented 142
Breadstuffs and bread-making 109
Breakfast dishes 287
miscellaneous 293
Breakfast, grains for 84
rolls 160
Breakfasts and dinners, a year’s 481 the ideal 288
use of fruits for 288
Breaking bread 110
Brewis 293
Broccoli 251
recipes 251
Broiled beef 399
Broiled birds 406
fish 410
mutton chop 401
potato 238
steak 430
Broiling 49, 397
Brose 93
Broth panada 428
vegetable 428
Brown Betty 305
bread 146
sauce 351
soup 277
Browned cauliflower 252
flour in soups 274
mush 103
parsnips 244
rice 100
sweet potatoes 240
Budrum 93
Buns, plain 343
Butter 364, 370
absorbent properties of 376
artificial 373
digestion of 39
emulsified 378
French 378
good, test for 372
in ancient times 373
in bread 127
keeping qualities of 375
making 374
Butterine 373
Buttermilk, composition of 370
Butternut 214
Butter-oil 373
Cabbage, description of 248
baked 250
boiled 250
digestion of 39
hash 250
preparation and cooking of 249
recipes for cooking 250
salad 250
with celery 250
with tomatoes 250
Cake, general directions for making 343 heat required for baking 344
icing for 346
made light with yeast 344
recipes for making 344
Calves’ brains 392
Candies 449
Cane sugar 26
Canned corn soup 278
green pea soup 278
Canning fruit 193
utensils 197
Caramel coffee 360
custard 323
for coloring soup brown 415
sauce 352
Carrots 245
digestibility of 245
pie 338
pudding 323
recipes for cooking 246
soup 278
Carrots boiled 246
preparation and cooking 245
stewed 246
with egg sauce 246
Casein 26, 78, 365, 372
Cauliflower 251
and broccoli, preparation and cooking 251 recipes for cooking 251
with egg sauce 252
with tomato sauce 252
Celery 253
and potato hash 254
recipes for cooking 253
sauce 352
soup 278
to keep fresh 253
with tomato sauce 254
Cellar 70
floor 70
need of frequent whitewashing 70 ventilation of 70
walls 70
Cereals 78
Charcoal 47
Cheese 376
cottage 377
Chinese 218
Cherry, the 171
jelly 207
tart 318
toast 291
Cherries 189
direction for serving 179
to can 202
Chicken 430
broth 427
jelly 430
panada 428
China closet 67, 457
the care of 477
Chinese soup strainer 273
Chestnut, the 214
bread 110
soup 278
Chestnuts, boiled 215
mashed 215
Chocolate 359
Chopped beets 248
cabbage 250
turnips 242
Cinders, use of 49
Citric acid 165
Citron 173
apples 186
Clams 409
Clear dessert 315
Clearing the table 471
Clear jelly, to make 205
Clotted cream 377
Coal 47
Coarse hominy 104
Cobnut 214
Cocoa 359
Cocoanut, the 213
and cornstarch blancmange 303
cornstarch pudding 323
custard 323
custard cake 345
flavor 298
pie 338
sauce 352
rice custard 324
Coffee 359
Coke 47
Colander, use of in the preparation of soups 273 Combination soup 275, 279
Compartment sink 68, 69
Compote of apples 188
Compound stock 414
Compressed yeast 122
Condiments 29
in cookery 46
Condensed milk 369
Cooked fruit 185
Cookery 45
Cooking of grains 81
utensils 56
Copper utensils 58
Cornaro, experiences of 441
Corn 101
and chicken 406
and tomatoes canned 269
bread, digestion of 39
cake 147
cakes 265
canned 268
digestibility of 101
dodgers 158, 159
dried 266
keeping qualities of 102
lob 102
mush rolls 160
pudding 265
puffs 158
roasted green 265
stewed green 266
Corn meal 102
and fig pudding 324
crust 337
cubes 103
mush 103
mush with fruit 103
pudding 324
recipes for cooking 103
suggestions for cooking 102
Cornstarch blancmange 303
fruit mold 303, 304
meringue 324
pudding, plain 328
with raisins 303
with apples 303
Cottage cheese 377
Cows’ milk, analysis of 364
milk, prepared for infants 443
Crab apples, to can 203
Crab apple jelly 207
Cracked potatoes 236
wheat 86, 87
wheat pudding 304, 324
Cranberry, the 175
drink 434
jelly 207
pie 339
Cranberries, to keep 184
and sweet apples 190
with raisins 190
Cream 364, 370
barley soup 279
cake 345
composition of 370
corn cakes 159
crisps 161
digestibility of 370
filling 337
for shortcake 319
Graham rolls 160
or white sauce 351
pea soup 279
pie 339
sauce 352
temperature for raising 368
toast 291
toast with poached eggs 291
use of in soups 274
wholesomeness of 371
Creamed parsnips 244
potatoes 237
turnips 242
Creamery 371
Creamy rice 548
Crescents 145
Crust coffee 434
Crusts 157
Croutons 453
Cucumber, description of 263
the serving of 263
Cupboards 62
Cupboard ventilation 62
Cup custard 320, 325
Currantade 434
Currant jelly 437
puffs 157
Custard, boiled 322
in cups 320
plain 328
puddings 319
pudding, importance of slow cooking of 319 puddings, recipes for cooking 320
sauce 353
snowball 331
steamed 330
tapioca 331
Cut-glass ware 476
Cymling 258
description of 258
preparation and cooking of 258
Date, the 172
bread 146
pudding 333
Decaying vegetables in cellar 70
Delicate cup cake 345
Description of Indian corn 101
Desserts 296
fruits, recipes for 299
for the sick 437
general directions for preparation of 297 made of fruit, grains, bread, etc., recipes for 302 made with, gelatine, recipes for 314
molded 293
objections to 296
with crusts, recipes for 317
with manioca 312
with sago 311, 312
with tapioca, recipes for 309
with tapioca 309
Devonshire cream 377
Dextrine 78
Diabetic biscuit 436
Diastase86
Diet of the pyramid builders 218
for older children 447
for the young 442
simplicity in 41
Digestion deferred by the use of fried foods 54 hygiene of 40
in stomach 37
intestinal 38
liver 39
Salivary 37
time required for 39
Digestive apparatus 35
fluids, uses of 38
Dining, the art of 456
Dining room, the 456
furnishing of 456
temperature of 469
ventilation of 457
Dinners, a batch of 543
holiday 543
Dinner parties, invitations for 467 suggestions concerning 466
Diseased animal food 390