Elements of the theory and practice of cookery

Drain and rinse the oysters, strain the liquor, and heat the oysters in it till their edges curl,i remove the scum, and turn oysters and liquid into the hot milk. Add butter and seasoning. Serve with oyster crackers. Scalloped Oysters Oysters, 1 quart, solid. Melted butter, >^ cupful. Stale bread crumbs, 2 cupfuls. Salt, about 1 teaspoonful. Pepper, i^^ teaspoonful or more. Oyster liquor, or oyster liquor and milk, 5 or 6 tablespoonfuls. Mix the crumbs with the salt, pepper, and butter ; spread one-third of them on the bottom of a buttered baking-dish ; put in half of the oysters, drained and rinsed, another layer of crumbs and the rest of the oys- ters, covering the top with the remaining crumbs. Pour over these the liquid. Bake about twenty minutes in an oven hot enough to brown the crumbs in that time. A grating of nutmeg or a slight sprinkli7ig of mace may follow each layer, if you choose. 341. Lobsters, crabs, and shrimps are crustaceans^ that is, animals consisting of jointed sections, each of which 1 If cooked longer, they will be leathery. THE FLESH OF ANIMALS 211 is covered with a hard shelL Their flesh is similar in composition to that of other fish, but tough and hard to digest. It is liked because of its unique and delicate flavor. A series of good articles about fish begins on p. 120 of Foods and Beverages. After examining an oyster, read about the fresh- water mussel in Cha^Dter VI of Boys and Girls in Biology. CHAPTER yil FUEL FOODS: FAT FROM ANIMALS AND OIL FROM PLANTS A man too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools. Section 1. Fats and Oils : "What they are and "What they are Good For 342. What foods have we found to contain fat? What uses have we made of fat in cooking ? What are the uses of fat in the body ? Distinction between fats and oils. — We know that fats and oils are alike greasy, and that fat, by heating it, may be changed to oil. Some fats are soft and oily, others firm and hard. An oil is a fat that is liquid at ordinary temperatures. 343. Most fats contain stearin and palmitin, solid fatty substances, and olein, a liquid. Fat having a large propor- tion of stearin is hard ; the less stearin it has the softer it is. Oils consist chiefly of olein, in which some palmitin and stearin are dissolved. The softer a fat is the less heat it takes to melt it. The fat of some plants is in the form of oil. SouKCES OF Fats and Oils commonly used IN Cooking 344. Olive oil. — This oil is obtained from the fruit of the olive tree. Olives, as we know from seeing unripe 212 FAT FROM ANIMALS AND OIL FROM PLANTS 213 ones pickled, are about the size of plums. Some varieties, when ripe, are purple, some green, others yellow. The best oil is obtained from the first pressing of fresh, care- fully picked fruit ; a poorer grade, from a second press- ing ; and after treating the mass of pulp with hot water, a third grade, used for soap-making. Cottonseed oil. — The best grade of cottonseed oil is excellent for table use. Much is exported to Spain, France, and Italy to be bottled, and resold in this country as "pure olive oil," at many times its original value. Cottonseed oil mixed with suet is sold as " cottolene," " cotosuet," etc.