The other articles on the table may vary widely. For every-
day use, where there is no maid, pr only one, set in places convenient
to pass, the salt and pepper, vinegar and sugar, bread plate and
butter plate, and any small dish of condiment or pickle, with pretty
mats for the hot dishes to be set on later, and enough spoons for
'serving. See that the arrangement is symmetrical and convenient.
A table laid in this way has room for little more in the way of
" decoration ** than a slender vase holding a few flowers in the center.
The dishes for dessert can be ready on a side table.
For formal service nothing is placed on the table in addition
to the equipment at each place, but some centerpiece containing
ferns or flowers, with pretty dishes of silver or glass holding relishes,
candies, or dried fruits, a graceful arrangement being to alternate
four of these xwith four candlesticks for meals served late in the
day.
Table decorations. — Here fancy may run riot with color schemes,
and pretty devices for special occasions. A painted place card, a
smaU bonbon box, a single flower with a pin for fastening it on, —
all these have their place at times. Satin ribbon is not an appropriate
table decoration laid across the table in a broad band, even when it
displays a class color. Find some other "vyay to make the color
effective. A color scheme in the food can be carried out to a degree
for some occasion, but do not let the color interfere with a really
satisfactory menu.
Relishes have already been suggested as decoration — radishes
cut in rose shape, olives, candies, and fruit.
The tray for invalid and convalescent. — Figures 72 and 73 suggest
the daintiness possible in setting a tray. It is well worth while to
spend time in the careful arrangement of the tray, for pretty dishes
in orderly array may tempt the appetite of the invalid.
Waiting on the table. — When we wait on ourselves, this
should be done with cheerfulness, and all should take a share.
After the food is on the table, one person can " help " one
thing and one another. It is a good plan for the young people
of the family to take turns as waiter in removing the soiled
dishes and food and putting on the dessert. A quick method
is to place a tray on a small stand near the table, taking the
PREPARATION OF MEALS
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274 FOODS AND HOUSEHOLD MANAGEMENT
dishes from one place at a time, and sorting them on the tray
as you go. The tray can then be carried into the kitchen,
with the dishes partly arranged for washing.
One mother uses a plan for having everybody help at
breakfast time, modeled after the tray system of a cafeteria.
The breakfast is cooked reader to serve, and on the kitchen
table is a small tray for each one of the family of four. All
necessary articles are at hand, and even the boy of seven sets
his own tray and helps himself to food, and takes his place
at the table; and then when the meal is ended each one
carries out his dishes and puts them in neat array for washing.
The waitress at a formal meal has to be alert, rapid yet
gentle in all her motions, with a desire to make other
people comfortable, and a faculty for remembering their
likes and dislikes. A good waitress does not pass a second
time a dish once declined.
Page 184
Presented as published in 1914. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
The other articles on the table may vary widely. For everyday use, where there is no maid, pr only one, set in places convenient to pass, the salt and pepper, vinegar and sugar, bread plate and butter plate, and any small dish of condiment or pickle, with pretty mats for the hot dishes to be set on later, and enough spoons for 'serving. See that the arrangement is symmetrical and convenient. A table laid in this way has room for little more in the way of " decoration ** than a slender vase holding a few flowers in the center. The dishes for dessert can be ready on a side table.
For formal service nothing is placed on the table in addition to the equipment at each place, but some centerpiece containing ferns or flowers, with pretty dishes of silver or glass holding relishes, candies, or dried fruits, a graceful arrangement being to alternate four of these with four candlesticks for meals served late in the day.
Table decorations. — Here fancy may run riot with color schemes, and pretty devices for special occasions. A painted place card, a smaU bonbon box, a single flower with a pin for fastening it on, — all these have their place at times. Satin ribbon is not an appropriate table decoration laid across the table in a broad band, even when it displays a class color. Find some other "vyay to make the color effective. A color scheme in the food can be carried out to a degree for some occasion, but do not let the color interfere with a really satisfactory menu.
Relishes have already been suggested as decoration — radishes cut in rose shape, olives, candies, and fruit.
The tray for invalid and convalescent. — Figures 72 and 73 suggest the daintiness possible in setting a tray. It is well worth while to spend time in the careful arrangement of the tray, for pretty dishes in orderly array may tempt the appetite of the invalid.
Waiting on the table. — When we wait on ourselves, this should be done with cheerfulness, and all should take a share. After the food is on the table, one person can " help " one thing and one another. It is a good plan for the young people of the family to take turns as waiter in removing the soiled dishes and food and putting on the dessert. A quick method is to place a tray on a small stand near the table, taking the
f
>
dishes from one place at a time, and sorting them on the tray as you go. The tray can then be carried into the kitchen, with the dishes partly arranged for washing.
One mother uses a plan for having everybody help at breakfast time, modeled after the tray system of a cafeteria. The breakfast is cooked ready to serve, and on the kitchen table is a small tray for each one of the family of four. All necessary articles are at hand, and even the boy of seven sets his own tray and helps himself to food, and takes his place at the table; and then when the meal is ended each one carries out his dishes and puts them in neat array for washing.
The waitress at a formal meal has to be alert, rapid yet gentle in all her motions, with a desire to make other people comfortable, and a faculty for remembering their likes and dislikes. A good waitress does not pass a second time a dish once declined.