FoodNet

History and present status of instruction in cooking in the public schools of New York city

1899

Page 54

Presented as published in 1899. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
F. S. speaks of the parts of an egg as follows: ••Parts of the egg: Shell, mem- brane, white, yolk. Tests for fresh eggs : Light, water, shake. How to keep ega:s fresh : Packed in closed boxes, sawdust, place in brine, limewater, cover with fat or Tarnish.-' Albumen (Albus- white). [Heat. I Citric (lemon). Effect on albumen ot <Ucid J Acetic (vinegar). [Muriatic or hydrochloric. Lllcohol. C. L. says: " Food is that which is taken into the body to build up new material, to repair worn-out tissue, and to yield heat and energy. There are two classes of food — flesh formers, or nitrogenous, and heat givers, or carbonaceous. There are three classes of carbonaceous foods — fat, starch, sugar. Water is found in all foods. Mineral matter is found in all foods; helps to build up the bones " A. K. says: "Cellulose is the woody fiber of the potato. * * * Cellulose forms the walls of the cells which holds the starch grains. * * * Cold water has no effect on starch. Hot water breaks the starch cells and renders them fit for food. Potatoes contain water, starch, cellulose, albumen, and potash salts." S. T. gives the chemical composition of the potato as follows: Water, 75; starch, 18; fat, 0.3; mineral matter, 1; nitrogenous matter, 1; cellulose, 1; acid, 1; sugar, 2. She notes further: "How do we show that potatoes contain starch? By putting iodin in it; if it becomes blue, it contains starch. What other part did the experi- ment show us ? It showed us the water and acid." K. McG. says : " Skim-milk is as valuable as pure milk, only it differs in what it is composed of; it does not contain fat, but is nutritious if it does lack fat; it contains nitrogenous matter." J. McW. says, in a note on starch: " After any food has commenced to boil reduce the temperature and allow it to simmer; we do this to avoid wasting fuel and pre- vent breaking of vegetable and also to prevent a hardening of albumen which many foods contain.'' Among M. O.'s notes, it is stated that : "Food is that which is taken into the body to build up new tissue, to repair worn-out tissue, and to yield heat and energy." In E. W.'s notes was found the following: "Kice contains more starch than any of the other grains; * * * it is the most easily digested: * * * four-fifths of rice being starch, it should be eaten with some nitrogenous food, such as milk or eggs." A. Q. says : -'Is there starch in flour? We can find that there is starch in flour by putting a little into a glass with a little water, put in a drop of iodin, stir it. and when it turns blue we know it contains starch." The above record with notes gives indubitable evidence of the fact that it is not simply cooking that the children are learning in these classes in the New York City public schools.