Food and health

If you have no ice on hot, muggy summer days, scald the milk when it is fresh, to keep it from souring. It is better to let the pans or other containers drain dry from the boiling water than to wipe them, even with the cleanest towel. Cool the milk as quickly as you can, and keep it as cool as possible. Mr. and Mrs. Allen believe milk to be so necessary to the health of the family that they have one cow whose milk is for family use. Every one in the country who can have even a small barn and pasture, should try to have a cow. What is the value of skimmed milk f As only the fat has been removed, skimmed milk is useful for many purposes. We know that it is fed to farm animals. United mates Department of Agriculture. Farmers' Bulletin, No. 61 . Fig. 21. — A covered milk pail helps to keep dirt out of the milk. Although we may not care to drink it, skim milk can be used in cooking, when some cheaper fat, like suet or " butterine," takes the place of the fat taken off in the cream. Is there any use for sour milk ? Clean milk, soured, forms a smooth curd, which some people like with sugar, for a dessert. It is very delicious in this way on a hot day, especially if a little fruit juice is taken with it. And what an easy dessert to prepare for dinner or supper ! Another way to use sour milk, is to beat it thoroughly and drink it. Cheese is made from the sour milk. We shall learn later about using sour milk in cooking. Why, then, is it important, to use clean milk freely in our diet ? Suppose you write down the answer, that you may be sure to have all the points. 1. Why does milk take the place of meat or eggs at a meal, rather than of potatoes ? What are the three fuel foods in milk ? 2. Since i quart of milk equals eight eggs in food value, is milk or eggs the more economical food at the time you are studying this ? How can you find out ? 3. Why does cream cost more than milk ? 4. If there is a dairy on your farm, find out how many quarts of milk make a pound of butter. 5. What are the substances left in the skimmed milk ? 6. See if you can decide what is left in buttermilk. Has it any food value ? 7. In what ways can we be sure that milk is kept clean f Lesson 5 bread a staple food Bread is a staple food for the school luncheon and for all meals. If you cannot make it at school, make it at home and have a bread contest at school. How can we plan for this bread contest i One day in fall, when the Pleasant Valley Luncheon Club was eating sandwiches under the trees, one of the girls remarked : "' Isn't it funny that our sandwiches look so different ! I don't mean what is inside, but the bread itself. It is different colors, and the holes are different sizes, and some of the bread is crumbly and some is moist. Isn't it queer that bread isn't just the same always ! " " My mother didn't have luck with her bread this week," Marjorie Allen said. John Alden replied," My father says, ' Don't talk about luck : that's a lazy man's excuse ! ' " " Well," Marjorie ^began, her face flushing, — but Barbara Frietchie said quickly : " It's late for our county fair, but why can't we have a bread contest here ? Everybody says it's an accomplishment to make good bread. Didn't you read about a contest last week in the ' Pleasant Valley News ' .? " '' Yes, indeed," they all said, " we'll ask Miss James !" " A good idea," said the teacher, "' and just the time, for we are beginning percentage, and this is where the boys can help." But John Stark looked very determined. "' If there is going to be a bread contest, I am in it. My brother is a mining engineer, and last time he was at home, he learned how to make yeast bread, Mother's way. He said bread often is pretty poor, where he stays/'