Sometimes it is impossible to obtain sour milk for a favorite dish. A mountain mine cook told me his meth od of obtaining sour milk was to di lute condensed milk, which is invaria bly used at the mines, until it was like ordinary skimmed milk. Then be added a little sugar, and kept it in a warm place until it soured, even clab bered.
When using lemons hi a way that does not call for the rind, I pare off the yellow portion carefully, put it through the meat chopper with the finest plate, and spread it out to dry. Then I put into a corked bottle, and it frequently saves grating peel when one is in a hurry, or makes a pleasant flavoring when a fresh lemon is not at hand.
Wash and slice ten stalks of rhu barb, cut and core three medium sized apples, then stew apples and rhubarb together. Hang up in a jelly bag. For every pint of juice take a pint of sugar; boil till it jellies and pour into tumblers.
If you cut cheese in long strips and put in a glass j ar, screwing the lid on tight, it will keep fresb till the last bit is used. It can be kept in the ice box in this way without harming other food.
When I use oranges or lemons, if the rind is fresh and wholesome, I pare it thin, so as to get none of the bitter white inner skin, and put it in a glass jar of granulated sugar. When the sugar has absorbed enough oil of the fruit skin to make it moist, it is ready to use for flavoring cakes, puddings, etc. The bits of rind give a delicious flavor to pudding sauces.
If you WiSh to prevent citron, raisins, or currants from sinking to the bottom of your cake, have them well warmed in the oven before add ing them to the batter.
When spinach and dandelion are expensive, try cooking celery leaves exactly as you would other greens, boiling them in salted water, then chopping slightly and seasoning with butter, pepper, and salt. By saving the leaves from three or four bunches and keeping them bouquet fashion, with their stalks in water, you may soon accumulate enough leaves for a small, savory dish of celery greens.
Here are some uses for salt: To beat eggs quickly add a pinch of salt. This also applies when whipping cream. Place salt in the oven under the baking tins, in order to prevent the scorching of their contents. Put
salt in the water when you wish to cool a dish quickly. Use salt to re move ink stains from carpet, when the ink is fresh. Salt sprinkled on the pantry shelves will drive away ants.
Before cooking mushrooms I al ways distinguish them from poison ous fungi by sprinkling salt on the spongy part, or gills. If they turn yellow, they are poisonous; if black, they are wholesome.
Boil oyster plant, parsnips, and such vegetables, with thin skins on; then peel when cold. The flavor is preserved and your hands are not stained.
For boiling meats I always use a lard can in preference to a kettle. For a smaller piece of meat, or a chicken, there is nothing better than a tin bucket with a tight-fitting cover. It confines the steam and not only cooks more quickly, but the meat is juicier and more tender.
When poaching eggs add a little vinegar t'o the water, besides salt. This sets the eggs and keeps them in good shape.
A pinch of soda, put in green vegetables while they are boiling, acts like magic. It makes string-beans deliciously tender; it keeps the fine color of spring peas, while a more generous pinch performs a miracle for cabbage, causing it to cook in about half the usual time, and keeping it as fresh and green as when it came from the garden.
In making mayonnaise, I find that using vinegar which has be,en poured over pickles, beets, or cucumbers, In stead of fresh vinegar, adds a pleas ant flavor to salads.
If pastry is considered unwhole some, those who are fond of pump kin or squash pies will find a good substitute by baking them as cus tards. I uSe the same recipe as for a filling for a pie, only add a little more milk, then bake it in custard cups set in a pan of water. The re sult is a creamy, delicious dessert.
When steaming a pudding, place the steamer over the saucepan in which you are boiling potatoes. One gas burner will cook both pudding and potatoes.
When beating eggs separately beat the white first, then " steal" a little bit of it to start the yolks. The re sult is _the yolks will not stick to the beater, as is generally the case, and they will get light twice as quickly.