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Using Odds and Ends

Every mother, in teaching her little daughter to cook, should impress upon her two essential points—economy and neatness. A cook cannot be too careful to have her materials, her utensils, and herself as clean as possible. So, before beginning work, the child should carefully wash her hands, clean her nails, smooth up any stray locks of hair, and put on the cap, sleeves and apron that are to protect her from spots and flying flour. Then all fruits or vegetables which are to be used should be well washed before being peeled, and the cooking utensils wiped off. Sometimes the pans or the stewing kettle have not been used for days, and there is sure to be a certain amount of dust on these that is almost imperceptible, but nevertheless unwholesome and often dangerous.

Following the instructions regarding cleanliness, and of equal importance, is the lesson in the economical use of materials on hand. Anyone can take a recipe calling for all fresh materials and, with a little care, turn out a successful dish; but it takes a culinary artist to successfully work up the odds and ends found in the ice-box and pantry. In small families these bits can be made into attractive dishes for luncheon, or, in case of an unexpected guest, converted into an additional course. In the line of vegetables, for instance, there may be left a few leaves of lettuce, a couple of tomatoes, the remains of a roast, a small quantity of chicken, and a bottle of sour milk. Not very promising, certainly, in the ice-box, but full of possibilities. The little cook is going to be a magician, and by a wave of her wand (the cook-book,) make a grand transformation.

COTTAGE CHEESE

First the sour milk! Not attractive as sour milk, but most delicious as cream cheese. Set one quart of sour milk on the stove where it will warm slowly, and let stand until the curd and whey separate. Spread a piece of cheese-cloth or an old napkin over a colander, pour in the curds and let drain until quite dry. This may take a couple of hours, and it is a good plan to warm the milk while getting the supper and then let stand all night. Next put the curds in a bowl and rub to a paste with one teaspoonful of butter, a saltspoonful of salt and a tablespoonful of cream. When smooth, mold into little balls if to be served with a salad.

A Table Set for a Valentine Luncheon

NUT CHEESE CRACKERS

Nut cheese crackers are most appetizing, too, made by spreading this cheese on small saltine crackers, and sprinkling chopped nuts over the top. Any child will delight to make these, and while easy and cheap, they are attractive enough to serve any company. Or, the cheese can be served, French fashion, with a little heavy cream and a small quantity of richly preserved currants or cherries, (Bar-le-duc,) for dessert.

Fresh Vegetable Salad

STUFFED PEPPERS

If there is too little of the roast to serve sliced cold, it can be chopped fine, seasoned well with salt and pepper and moistened with the cold gravy. If the quantity is still too small, it can be increased by adding a beaten egg and half a cupful of dried bread-crumbs. This works into a nice dish by taking sweet green peppers, splitting in half, washing and removing the seeds, and then packing with the minced meat. Bake until peppers are tender, about half an hour, then remove from oven, lay on squares of hot toast, and cover with white sauce or warmed-over gravy.

WHITE SAUCE

Good white sauce is needed for so many different kinds of vegetable, fish and meat dishes, that a child should be taught it at the beginning of her work. Have her melt one tablespoon of butter and stir in one tablespoon of flour. When smooth, add slowly one cup of milk, stirring all the time to keep from getting lumpy. If lumps do form, however, before the child has learned the secret of mixing, she can strain after it has cooked five minutes. Season with quarter-teaspoon of salt and a dash of pepper. For brown sauce, simply brown the flour and butter before adding the milk.

CREAMED CHICKEN

A small quantity of chicken is often left from dinner, yet not enough to serve cold. Let the mother show the child how to cut off every bit of meat from the bones—and she will get more than she expects from wings and necks. But all pieces of fat and skin must be discarded. Then for a hot dish, making a white sauce first, she can stir in the minced chicken, let it cook a few moments, and serve on rounds of buttered toast.

CHICKEN CROQUETTES

Still another way, if the quantity is small, is to add to one cupful of chopped chicken one-half cupful of rolled bread-crumbs, a half cupful of hot milk, two well-beaten eggs, a teaspoonful of chopped parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. This is to be shaped into croquettes, dipped in rolled bread-crumbs, beaten egg, crumbs again, and browned in hot fat.

White sauce served on the side will make it doubly attractive; and if the quantity is still small for the number to be served, it will go farther and be made more savory if garnished with curls of crisp bacon.

CHICKEN SALAD

If a cold dish is desired, let her add an equal amount of finely cut celery, season with salt and pepper, moisten with cooked salad dressing, and she will have a delicious chicken salad. To be particularly nice, however, she should use only the white meat.

Our little cook should be taught the first thing how to make a good salad dressing, for into a salad it is almost always possible to turn the left-overs that otherwise might be thrown out. Only one other thing (soup) will use up as many scraps in making nourishing as well as appetizing dishes.

BOILED SALAD DRESSING

As many people do not care for the flavor of oil, a nice easy dressing is made by taking two tablespoonfuls butter, rubbed to a cream, to which is added one teaspoonful salt, one-half teaspoonful mustard, a dash of red pepper, and one cupful hot milk. Stirring well, this should immediately be poured on the beaten yolks of three eggs, and then cooked in a double boiler until thick. Remove from the fire, add one-quarter of a cup of vinegar, and stir until cool. When to be used in fruit salads, add half a cup of thick cream just before serving. But eggs and milk curdle if boiled.

FRENCH DRESSING

Easily made is the French dressing, and often prepared at the table. To one-quarter teaspoonful of finely minced onion, add one-half teaspoonful salt, a little black pepper, a few grains of Cayenne and six teaspoonfuls olive oil. Stir well, add two teaspoonfuls vinegar, and mix thoroughly.

FRESH VEGETABLE SALAD

To make the best of the few vegetables we have found on hand, wash the lettuce carefully (looking out for the tiny green bugs found on some kinds,) and arrange on a plate. Peel and slice the two tomatoes, and lay lightly on the lettuce, with a few bits of celery, several radishes or some thin slices of cucumber if available, and cover with salad dressing.

Heart Salad

For the heart salad illustrated, cut cold boiled beets into heart-shaped sections, and serve on lettuce hearts, with French dressing.

COOKED VEGETABLE SALAD

Small quantities of cooked vegetables, such as beets, string beans, asparagus, peas and boiled potatoes, make a nice salad cut into small pieces, laid on lettuce leaves and covered with French dressing. But they must be thoroughly chilled.

CABBAGE SALAD

Cabbage salad is possible at all seasons of the year, and should be one of the first that the child should learn to make. Insist on getting small, perfect heads, and have the leaves removed one at a time, examined closely and washed as carefully as lettuce, for fear of worms. After chopping finely, the desired quantity is to be seasoned with salt and pepper and served on the small, tender white leaves, with the following dressing:

SOUR CREAM DRESSING

To half a cup of thick sour cream, add half a teaspoonful of salt, a teaspoonful of sugar, a dash of black pepper, and two teaspoonsful of strong vinegar.

FRESH FRUIT SALAD

Almost all kinds of fruit are used in salads. Bananas and oranges, alone or together, are served on lettuce with the cream salad dressing, as are also the skinned and seeded white grapes. Pineapple and grapefruit are delicious with head lettuce, served with the French dressing containing but a few drops of the onion juice. Then again, all may be combined, served with either dressing preferred, and improved by the addition of a few nuts.

WALDORF SALAD

For four people have the little cook take four pretty red apples, cut a slice off the top, and after removing the core, carefully cut out with a teaspoon the inside of each without breaking the skin. Taking half the scooped-out apple, she must add an equal amount of celery (cut in small pieces) and chopped English walnuts, one teaspoonful salt and boiled dressing enough to cover. After tossing up lightly with a fork pack in the apple shells, and when possible serve in nests made of lettuce cut in strings.

GREEN PEPPER SALAD

Take sweet green peppers, cut a slice from the top, remove seeds, and fill with either the mixed vegetables or diced cucumbers, covered with French dressing. Serve on lettuce.