Miss Parloa's kitchen companion

Another way to beat is to use a circular motion. In this case the side of the spoon is kept close to the side of the bowl. The spoon is moved rapidly in a circle, carrying with it a portion of the ingredients. This kind of beating can be applied only to a rather thick mixture. It is the best method for beating butter and sugar to a cream. How to Cream Butter. If the butter be firm, the inside of the bowl in which it is to be creamed must be warmed. Measure the butter. Pour hot water into the bowl, and let it stand for about one minute ; then pour it out, and wipe the bowl. Put in the butter, and cut it into small pieces. Work it on the bottom of the bowl until it becomes soft ; then beat it until it is light and smooth by rapidly moving the spoon in a circle. In about two minutes it will be a light, creamy mass, and be ready for the addition of any other ingredient, as sugar or flour. If sugar is to be added, beat in only a little at a time. The work can be done more quickly and with less outlay of strength than if all the sugar were added at once. Caution. — Do not let the hot water stand long enough in the bowl for the outside to get heated. The object is to heat it only enough to soften the butter so that the latter can be beaten to a cream. It should never be so hot as to melt the butter. If the work be properly done, the bowl will be cool by the time the butter is soft. Butter should be prepared in this manner for cake and pudding sauces. How to Wash Butter for Greasing Pans. Rinse a bowl in boiling water, and then in cold water. Put a piece of butter into the bowl, and after covering it with cold water, work it with a spoon or with the hands until all the salt has been washed out. Pour off the water, and press out any particles that may remain in the butter. Use this butter for buttering cake and bread pans. How to Use Butter-hands. Butter-hands are small grooved wooden paddles. The grooves may be coarse or fine ; the fine ones make the prettiest forms. An illustration is given on page 53. Let the hands stand in boiling water for five minutes. Next put them in cold water for five minutes or longer ; they must be perfectly cold when used. Have a large bowl half full of cold water; in hot weather have a little ice in the water. Cut some firm butter into pieces about the size of a hickory nut. Koll these pieces between the butter-hands into any shape you please. They may be Method of Using Butter-hands. made into grooved balls, little pineapples, scrolls, etc. Dip the hands frequently into the ice- water. Lay the pats on a large dish, and when all are done put them in the refrigerator. These little pieces of butter may be arranged on a flat dish, and garnished with a few sprigs of parsley. In hot weather they may be served on a bed of broken ice. How to Make Vegetable Balls. Much of the beauty of a dish served a la jardiniere depends upon the manner in which the vegetables are cut. They may be cut into dice, and a good effect be produced if the cutting be regular. Little vegetablescoops and fluted knives make it possible to produce very attractive forms and combinations. The scoops