Miss Parloa's kitchen companion

Always bake a me'ringue in a cool oven. If it be cooked for twenty minutes with the oven door open, it will be firm and fine-grained. Let it cool rather slowly. If a sugary crust be liked, sift powdered sugar over it before it is placed in the oven. Should the me'ringue be not brown enough at the end of twenty minutes, close the oven door for a few minutes. Watch carefully to prevent it from cooking too much. The principal causes of failure are, that the sugar is stirred into the white of the egg, which results in a heavy watery mixture, or that the meringue is baked in a hot oven. Too great heat causes the me'ringuc to rise and then fall, making it tough and thin. How to Grate Bread Crumbs. These crumbs are used in making dressing for poultry, and with all escaloped dishes. The bread should be stale, but not dry. Baker's or home-made bread may be used. A five-cent loaf of baker's bread will make about two quarts of crumbs. Cut the loaf in the middle, lengthwise. Cut these two pieces in halves, thus getting four pieces with one side crust and the other crumb. Hold a coarse grater over a large platter. Grate the bread on this, having the crumb side on the grater. Use very little pressure until nearing the crust, when a good deal of pressure will be required. The brown crust which cannot be grated should be dried, pounded, and sifted. If in grating the crumb side of the loaf much pressure be used, the crumbs will be coarse and heavy. By rubbing lightly on the grater, quite fresh bread may be grated very satisfactorily. Remember that grated crumbs are used for escaloped dishes and dressing, and dried crumbs for breading. How to Dry Bread Crumbs. All the crusts and pieces of yeast bread should be saved. Do not wait for a large quantity to accumulate. The bread-box should be wiped out every morning, and all pieces not intended for the table or other purposes should be spread in a pan, and the pan be placed in a warm oven or on a shelf over the range. When they become so dry that they will crumble between the fingers, put them into a bag made of strong cloth or ticking. With a wooden mallet, pound the bread until it is reduced to fine crumbs. Sift these crumbs, and put them away in boxes or glass jars. They will always be ready for breading purposes. It is only a little work to do this in leisure moments. How to Fry Crumbs. Fried crumbs are used with small and large birds and with some kinds of soup. To prepare them, dry pieces of bread until they will crumble between the fingers. Place the bread on a board, and crush lightly with a rolling-pin. Most of the crumbs should be so coarse that they will not pass through a flour-sieve. Put all in a sieve, and shake the fine ones through (they may be saved for breading or for a bread sauce). Measure the coarse crumbs, and for each cupful put into a frying-pan two level table-spoonfuls of butter. Place the pan on the fire, and when the butter becomes hot, add the crumbs. Stir over the fire constantly until the crumbs are brown and crisp. Baker's bread is the best for these crumbs. About Breading Articles for Frying.