Household Hints

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 188, 6 September 1909, Page 3

Household Hints

BEDROOM VL.NTn.A;' N'. -

It goes without say if ; that the bedroom should be well ventilated, especially in of the heavy storing up of oxygen in the tissues which goes on during sleep. All windows should be open from the top, at least one, and better two to three feet, so that a gentle current of air can be felt blowing across toe face. It is just as pure and as wholesome as day air. Night fogs and rain are only injurious in so far as they frighten you into shutting your windows. No air that ever blew outdoors is so dangerous or poisonous as that inside a bedroom with closed windows. The clothing should be as light as is consistent with warmth, the mattress elastic but firm, the pillow as high as the breadth of the shoulder, so that it will keep the neck and head horizontal or stgihtly above, when lying on the side. The good, hard common sense of humanity has solved all these problems, and the modern bair mattress, or its equivalent, single pillow, and blankets, can hardly be much improved upon. Beyond these there is no virtue whatever in bard beds, flat or no pillows, and cold bedrooms. The featherbed, collector of the perspiration and diseases of successive generations, the bolster, the eider down quilt, the hard sailcloth like counterpane, both air tight, and the latter heavy as a board, have gone to the attic or the ash heap, where they belong, along with the fwur poster and its curtains, the night-cap and the warming pan. THE IRISH WAY OF COOKING A POTATO. Half the magic lies, as a matter of fact, in the simplicity of the process. The Irishwoman first throws the potatoes—unpcoled—into a pot half full cold water, then places it over a moderate fire and brings it to the boil. When an English cook would continue boiling until a prod of a fork satisfied ber that they were ready to serve, the peasant woman is of a different mind. Holding a cupful of cold water in one band, she dashes the contents quickly into the pot, so as to throw the water momentarily off the boil. This has the effect of casting all the heat inwards so that the centre of the potatoes continue to cook while the outside has ceased to work for the time being, with the result that no danger is run of overdoing the outer portion at the expense of the kernel, and the potato is served white, mealy and floury throughout. French Steak.—Dissolve 3oz of butter or dripping in the pan, and when quite hot put in some steak about two inches thick; turn it constantly till quite brown. Take the steak out, and put it in a pan with a tight cov*r, adding a few peppercorns and three clove?. Into the frying pan put a little sliced onion and a carrot, also some chopped parsley. When nicely' brown, lay these on the steak and pour round a little stock,adding the peppercorns and cloves. Cover the pan closely, set it in a saucepan of water which reaches half way up the pan, and let the steak cook slowly for two hours. Baste constantly, and serve with a little gravy and chopped capers. Shortcake. —One quart of flour, one teaspoonful of salt, two teaspoonfuls of baking powder, two tablespoonfuls of butter and a pint of»milk. Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder, rub in the butter, which should be cold, stir in the milk and mix to a smooth dough. Divide into half and roll out in two pieces the size of a large dinner plate. Bake in greased pans in a hot stove. Lemon Conserve for Cheese Cakes. — Take a quarter pound of fresh butter, one pound of. powdered white sugar, six eggs, and three large lemons. Put the butter in a stewpan. When dissolved add sugar, the 5 oiks of six eggs, toe white* of four well beaten, and the grated rind and juice of six lemons. Stir the whole mixture over the fire until it is thick as cream. Pot and tie down; this conserve will keep good for months. When used, add a slice of bread soaked in milk; strain off the milk and remove the crust. EsraJlopcd Cauliflower—Boil the cauliflower until perfectly tender, then drain and coop into small pieces. Put into a buttered baking dish with layers of chopped bard-boiled eggs and add the following cream dressing.' Put into a hot saucepan two tabtespooonsful of flour and two of butter, mix and add one half pint of milk. Stir until thick and season to taste. After pouring the sauce over the cauliflour put grated breadcrumbs over the top and bake until brown in a hot oven.