Foods and home making

Cheese, especially cottage cheese, is one of the cheapest foods supplying proteins. Eaten in moderation, cheese is a very wholesome food. Not only is it wholesome, but it has a fine flavor. Because of its pleasing and pronounced flavor, a little cheese greatly improves many dishes. How are some cheese dishes made ? Macaroni with cheese is one of the most popular cheese dishes. Did you ever think why a mixture of cheese, macaroni, and milk makes a good food? First of all it tastes good. Macaroni and milk are mild in flavor. Cheese with its pronounced flavor makes the mild-flavored foods taste good. Second, cheese is lacking in starch or carbo- hydrates and in vitamins. Macaroni supplies the starch and 256 Luncheon or Supper milk to some extent supplies vitamins. However, because the milk is cooked and because there is not a great deal used in Figure 86. Composition of American Cheese Notice the percentage of protein. Cheese is considered a protein-rich food. It also contains a high percentage of fat and ash. Because cheese contains protein and fat, it is said to be a concentrated food. Cheese contains more protein, fat, and ash than milk, but less vitamins, water, and carbohydrates. Vitamins: A~| — f- to -j-H — f-i B*, C*. GH~. making macaroni and cheese, a food such as lettuce, spinach, or fruit should be served with macaroni and cheese. The recipe for this food follows : MACARONI AND CHEESE 2 quarts boiling water 2 teaspoons salt ^ cup macaroni Break the macaroni in pieces about an inch long. Cook in rapidly boiling, salted water until tender when pierced with a fork. The cook- ing usually requires 20 to 25 minutes. When tender, pour the macaroni into a colander. Save the macaroni water. Pour cold water over the macaroni so as to prevent the pieces from sticking together. 2 cups medium white sauce. (See page 246.) f cup strong cheese, grated or cut in pieces 1 cup soft or *■ cup dry buttered bread crumbs The Main Luncheon Dish 257 Make the white sauce. Add the cheese to the sauce. Mix with the cooked macaroni. Pour into a buttered baking dish. Cover with the buttered crumbs. Bake in a hot oven — 450° F. — for 20 minutes or until the crumbs are browned. Serve hot. Yield : 6 servings. Variations. — Since rice and noodles are both starchy foods, they taste good with cheese. Both rice and noodles may be cooked in boil- ing water in the same way as macaroni. Combine the cooked rice or noodles with white sauce, cheese, and bread crumbs as directed for the macaroni dish. Welsh rabbit is a well-known cheese dish. This dish is really a cheese sauce poured over toast or crackers. Here again, cheese is served with a starchy food. WELSH RABBIT \ pound strong cheese, grated or cut into bits \ cup milk (preferably top milk) 2 eggs \ teaspoon mustard 4 teaspoon salt Few grains cayenne 1 tablespoon butter 6 slices toast or crackers Put the cheese and milk in the top part of a double boiler. Heat without stirring over hot water until the cheese melts. Beat the eggs. Add the seasoning. Stir the egg mixture into the cheese mixture. Continue stirring and cooking until the mixture becomes slightly thicker. Add the butter. Stir until the butter is melted. At once pour over the toast or crackers. Serve hot. Yield : 6 servings. Potato volcano is a tasty and novel dish for luncheon or supper. (See Figure 87.) It is made with mashed potatoes and Welsh rabbit.