Hilda's diary of a Cape housekeeper

Fruit. — Strawberries come into season, but not plentifully. Loquats, oranges, naartjes, etc., are to be had much the same as in September. October 3. — Nut Cake (Miss Le Sueur’s). — i|- breakfast-cupfuls of sugar. 2 tablespoonfuls of butter. 2 eggs. 1 tea-cupful of milk. 2 teaspoonfuls of baking-powder. 2 tea-cupfuls of fine flour. I cupful of walnuts, crushed with a rolling-pin or chopped. Mix the sugar and butter to a cream, then add the eggs, well beaten, then the milk. Mix the baking-powder with the flour and stir in gently, lastly the walnuts. Stir all well and put into a well- buttered mould and bake in a moderate oven for an hour. Walnuts, hickory-nuts, and butter-nuts are best, but other nuts will do. Oct. LEMON CURDS. TEA FOR FERNS Lemon Curds (Mrs. Fellows’).— I 'I lbs. sugar. 6 ozs, butter, fresh. 8 eggs. The rind and juice of 4 lemons. Tut sugar, butter, eggs, the grated rind and the juice of the lemons, carefully strained, into a bright saucepan, stir all over the fire till it looks like honey and just boiling, put into small jars and keep in a cool place. This is most delicious in layer cakes, or what we call Victoria sandwiches, and also lemon cheese-cake, Tea to Water Ferns. — Ferns much appreciate an occasional watering with weak tea ! (I am told roses like it too.) Save up the remains of the day, it is most excellent for maidenhair-fern. I have them in the mother-of-pearl shells in very little soil standing on saucers in our drawing-room, where they thrive splendidly on weak tea ! Sunflower Seeds. — Here is a London newspaper cutting which suggests a new industry for the colony, and quite a picturesque one ! How nice a sunflower farm sounds ! a real Zonnebloem. “ Sunflowers breed almost as fast as rabbits ; one healthy plant will seed a whole Clapham back-garden in a very short time. The suburban resident has, therefore, a very promising mine of wealth at his command ; for it appears from the report of our Consul-General at Odessa that there is now a tremendous demand for sunflower seeds in Russia. Not only do they produce oil, but they are the chestnuts or hokey-pokey of the Russian streets, bought off hawkers and consumed with relish by the populace as are the other delicacies in England. The demand has become so great that Russia no longer exports sunflower FISH SCALLOP. A SUPPER DISH Oct. seeds, but is demanding them from other countries. Hence the suburban Londoner’s chance. Besides, the Consul-General says that they should he grown plentifully in British East Africa and other colonies^ — Pall Mall Gazette., October 8, 1900. I have heard that the seeds are also useful to feed chickens, and for oilcake. October 5. — An Impromptu Supper.— Unexpected guests stayed to supper last night, and not having had notice enough to get anything on purpose, I had to think what I could make of the cold meat in the house, and the remains of some boiled fish. The latter I scalloped from this recipe (Mrs. Honey’s).