Girl's home manual of cookery, home management, home nursing and laundry

Rules for Preparing Food for Invalids. (1.) All food must be perfectly fresh and of the best quality. (2.) Absolute cleanliness must be observed in cooking the food, as an invalid’s delicate appetite is easily disgusted. (3.) Prepare and serve only small quantities of food at a time. (4.) Use very little sugar or seasoning of any kind. The use of milk sugar, which is less sweet, is recommended for sick cookery. (5.) Avoid savoury, fat, or fried foods. (6.) If possible, never cook in an invalid’s presence. Let each meal be a surprise. (7.) Vary the diet as much as possible. (8.) Serve the meals daintily. Use clean linen, silver and dainty china, with a few fresh flowers if possible. Use an oblong tray for choice, large enough to hold the dishes easily. Serve tea in a teapot, as it keeps hotter. (9.) The waitress should be spotless in appearance and cheerful, All worries must be left outside the invalid’s room. (10.) Never leave unfinished food in an invalid’s room. Unfinished food should be burnt. Much sickness is due to improper feeding, either to food badly prepared and cooked, or to an incorrect proportion of the food nutrients in the diet. A person who has been ill requires extra nourishment to build up the tissues wasted by disease. DISHES FOR INVALIDS Sterilized or Pasteurised Milk. Sterilize a fruit jar and cover. Fill jar nearly full with milk, cover loosely. Place jar on a ring in a deep pan of cold water which should come as high as the milk. Heat until bubbles appear around the top of the milk. Remove pan to the back of the fire and leave for half an hour. Make the jar airtight and cool the milk quickly in the jar. Keep in a cool place. Fresh milk should be prepared each day. Albumenised Milk. 1 white of egg. % cup milk (2 tbsp. lime water may be added to milk). ‘Place the ingredients in a covered jar, shake vigorously until blended. Strain and serve at once. This may be slightly sweetened and flavoured if desired. Albumenised Water. 1 egg white. 1 tsp. lemon juice. 1% cup water. 1 tsp. sugar. Make as above for albumenised milk. Note. The addition of an egg white to any beverage makes it a nourishing * drink, Water for invalids should be boiled and cooled if its purity is doubtful. Rice Milk. 2 tbsp. rice. 1 cup milk. 1-6 tsp. salt, Wash rice, add cold milk and salt to it; cook over boiling water one hour. Strain, serve hot or cold with or without sugar. Milk Tea. Make as ordinary tea, using scalded milk instead of boiling water. After it has stood three minutes pour off the leaves into another hot teapot. Toast Water. Toast a round of bread a delicate brown, cover with two cups of cold water, leave for half an hour. Strain and chill before serving. Lemonade (I.). the strained juice of one lemon. 2 tbsp. sugar. 2 cups cold boiled water. Dissolve sugar in lemon juice, add cold water and chill before serving. Lemonade (II.). 2 lemons. 1 cup boiling water. Y% cup sugar. 4 cups cold water. Shave the yellow rind thinly from one lemon, add to it the sugar, pour over the boiling water and leave until cold. When cold add the juice of the lemons, strain and bottle. Before serving dilute with the cold water. This quantity makes five tumblers. The oil in the yellow rind improves the flavour of the’ lemonade, but is apt to disagree with people having weak digestions. Barley Water. 14-cup'péatl barley.’ “se 24) 4 quart boiling water. juice and rind of % lemon. 2 _ tbsp. sugar. Pour boiling water over. barley, rind, juice and sugar. When cold strain and serve. It is more nutritious if the barley is blanched and then simmered for two. hours. ns Oatmeal Gruel. 1 cup boiling water or milk. 1 tbsp. fine oatmeal. 126: tsp: salt.s?.