Colcannon. Boil potatoes and greens or spin ach separately; mash the potatoes; squeeze the greens dry; chop them quite fine, and mix alto gether in a basin, with a little butter, pepper, and salt; put the whole into a mould, previously well buttered with a brush. Let it stand in a hot oven for ten minutes and then turn out., Let the vegetables be firm and the mould properly buttered, or the colcannon breaks on turning out.
Green Peas. Tie into a small bunch a small head of lettuce and one or two onions, and throw them with the peas into plenty of boiling water, with some salt, and a little pounded loaf sugar. When cooked strain off all the water and remove the bunch. Mix with about an ounce of butter a small quantity of finely minced mint, previously blanched, put this in a dish and turn the peas over it. The peas should be young, quickly boiled, and not shelled before wanted. String Beans, Plain. Take fresh beans, remove the strings and stalks, and, if they are old, split them. Turn them into a saucepan with • plenty of boiling water and a teapoonful of sugar and salt to each quart, boil them till they are tender, which can be ascertained by trying them. When this vegetable is too old, no cooking will ever make it good. In boiling green vegetables the color can only be retained by quick boiling in plenty of water in an uncovered saucepan.
Diet for the Sick Room. In no branch of do mestic economy is it more desirable or important to know how to prepare tempting dishes than in that pertaining to such light, nourishing foods as are commonly allotted to the sick. To this end rules, for the proper preparation of articles of diet for the sick, are given below. The capri cious appetites, often the attendant of sickness, will tax the ingenuity and resources alike of nurses and cooks; hence the necessity for plain, simple modes of serving dainty dishes for the sick room.
Arrow Root Custard. Dry Bermuda arrow root, two drachms or two teaspoonfuls; sugar, one drachm or one teaspoonful. Mix by rubbing or careful stirring with a little cold milk until all lumps are broken, and it forms tiperfect mixture a little thicker than heavy cream. Boil half a pint of milk or water, and as soon as it comes to a boil pour it over the paste, stirring until it thickens. If any flavor is desired add it just be fore pouring on the boiling milk.
Oat Meal Gruel. Oat meal, of medium fine ness, four drachms or a tablespoonful; salt to season to the taste. Mix with enough milk to form a paste and stir well,then add half a pint of milk and heat to a boil, maintaining this temperature five or six minutes while constantly stirring. Remove from the fire and add an even teaspoon ful of sugar and a piece of butter as large as a cherry. Mix thoroughly.
Restorative Jelly. Russian isinglass, one ounce; gum arable, two drachms; sugar, two ounces; cassia buds, broken, ten ounces; lemon juice,one drachm; pure port wine, half a pint. Mix alto gether and let them stand in a glass or porcelain vessel about two hours, then place the dish in a vessel of warm water, heat gently and stir until the isinglass and gum are dissolved, and finally bring the water to a boil a few minutes; then re move and strain the jelly into shallow moulds.
A small slice of this jelly placed in the mouth of an unconscious or helpless invalid will gradually dissolve and pass into the stomach without effort of the patient.
Beef Tea, quickly made. Put any desired quan tity of thoroughly lean beef, cut across the grain and into small pieces, in a dry saucepan and allow it to rest over a slow fire for a few min utes, stirring to keep it from sticking to the pan; when of a whitish color pour on its own weight (pint for pound) of cold water and bring it to the boil, let it gently simmerten minutes and strain under ordinary pressure into a shallow dish; if any fat appears on the surface remove it with white filter or blotting paper. This makes a strong and excellent beef tea.
Toast Water. Take one slice stale bread, half inch thick and four by four inches and breadth, thoroughly toasted without scorching, put while hot into half pint boiling water, cover tightly and allow to cool, and then strain. This is quite refreshing to invalids unable to use stronger food.
Panada. Take two slices stale bread one-half inch thick, toast well without scorching, cut into small squares, put into a bowl, sprinkle a little salt over them and pour on a pint of boiling water, and grate in a little nutmeg.
Sago Jelly. Sago, four tablespoonfuls; juice or rind of onl lemon; sugar, to suit the taste, perhaps two ounces; water, one quart. Mix and let them stand an hour, then boil, stirring fre quently, until all is dissolved, and add one ounce of port wine. Mix, and allow to cool.
Uastillon's Powder. Powdered tragacanth,pow dered sago, powdered salep, and sugar; each one ounce ; prepared carbonate lime, two drachms. Mix thoroughly and make into powders contain ing one drachm; for use, put one powder in four tablespoonfuls of cold milk, put into a- pan and stir well, and add slowly one pint of boiling milk, and boil for fifteen minutes and add sugar to the taste.
Fluid Extract of Coffee. A good article may be prepared on a small scale as follows: Light brown coffee, roasted, five ounces; dark brown, five ounces; alcohol, three ounces; cold water, twelve ounces; hot water, sufficient. Grind the two kinds of coffee together, and macerate them for two days in a closed percolator with the alco hol and the cold water. Then add enough hot water to obtain fifteen ounces of percolate. Set this aside, and continue the percolation till ten ounces more have passed through. Evaporate this down to five ounces, filter, and add to the reserved liquor. Dose, two or three teaspoons ful to a cup of hot water.
Dried Meat for Medicinal Purposes is prepared by cutting fresh meat finely, spreading upon Muslin, drying rapidly in a current of air, and rubbing into a brown powder, which is almost inodorous, and has a slightly saline taste. It is readily token by patients, spread upon bread or a teaspoonful of it mixed with a cupful of broth or soup, or by children if baked into biscuits.
Ice Cream and Beef Juice. The following is an excellent dietary article: Cream, 120 grams; sugar, thirty grams; extract of vanilla, 8 grams; beef juice, eight grams. Any confectioner can make it, or it may readily be prepared at home with a freezer.