FoodNet

For the comfort of the family

1914

Page 5 · 3 recipe records on this page

Presented as published in 1914. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
Sometimes I have yolks of eggs on hand. Into these I break more eggs, beat them slightly, add a tablespoon of milk for each egg and yolk, season with salt and pepper, and turn the mixture into a frying pan in which a tablespoon of butter is bubbling. When the mixture begins to cook around the edges of the pan, slip a fork from the center under the cooked part, thus allowing the liquid to run in under. This makes a thick, plump, tender omelette. Before folding the omelette I spread it with two tablespoons of tomato chutney, or pour around it a hot cream sauce in which has been heated a few asparagus tips; sometimes I use celery salt for flavor, or grated cheese, or a bit of finely minced ham ; in fact, there is no limit to the variety of delicious omelettes one can make. They are most satisfactory when made in this way, but do not give the family one of those leathery concoctions filled with frothy, tasteless whites of eggs, and ex- pect them to consider themselves fed. Oftentimes the eggs are scrambled and served on toast which has been spread with anchovy paste. If I have creamed chipped RECKONING-DAY DISHES 27 beef left over, it is reheated and, when piping hot, is served on muffins which have been sliced and toasted. A bit of cold fish is transformed into a satis- fying dish by the addition of cream sauce, cubes of cold potatoes and slices of hard-boiled eggs. This is put in a baking dish, covered with but- tered crumbs, and baked till the top is a light brown. Perhaps my depleted cupboard oflTers only bread and cheese and milk ; 'tis then that I con- coct a dish which, because of two of its in- gredients, the family have flippantly dubbed "Love in a Cottage." But they like it, and it is made thus : Melt three level tablespoons of butter ; cook in it one and one-half tablespoons of flour; one-fourth teaspoon each of salt and paprika and a mere suggestion of cayenne. When bubbling, stir in three-quarters cup of milk ; stir until boiling, then set over hot water and stir in three-quarters cup of grated cheeseLove in a Cottage. Continue stirring till cheese is melted and the whole is of a creamy consistency, then pour over toast. If there happens to be a slice of pimiento lurking in a secluded comer of the 28 COMFORT OF THE FAMILY refrigerator, it is chopped fine and used as a garnish on the cheese toast. A touch of color will often prove like the touch of a whip to a flagging appetite. Left-over vegetables, which have been thor- oughly chilled and daintily cut, when mixed with French dressing, make a deUcious salad, and, should there happen to be some cream cheese at hand, it is mixed with a little cream, a few chopped nuts, and rolled into balls which are then lightly sprinkled with paprika. Figs stuffed with this same cheese mixture make a salad accessory which will cause even an as- cetic's eyes to blink. In my garden, wherever it may be, whether it be large or small, there is always a plant of mint. One of my favorite Reckoning-Day salads is made by shredding the coarse, outer leaves of the lettuce with scissors, carefully arranging upon tiiis round slices of juicy, seedless oranges, over which is poured French dressing to which has been added a suspicion of sugar. The whole is then dusted over with finely powdered, fresh mint. All the ingredi- RECKONING-DAY DISHES 29 ents must be fresh and cold, or the result will be a dismal failure. In attractive, screw-top glass jars I keep the following sauces which have proved to be a refuge and a strength in times of emergency : French Dressing