Household Recipes.

Patea Mail, 26 May 1882, Page 1 (Supplement)

Household Recipes.

Veal Loaf.— Chop very fine three pounds of raw veal, and half a pound of nice salt pork. If more convenient, get the butcher to chop it for you, removing all stringy parts; add to this three well-beaten eggs, three teaspoonfuls of salt, two of black pepper, a small pinch of cayenne, a handful of parsley and sweet herbs chopped fine, and one cup of fine cracker crumbs. Put this compactly in a good shaped tin or earthen baking dish, that will just hold it; spread over cracker crumbs and a little butter. Bake one and a half hours. Baste while baking, by laying over it, now and then, butter cut in thin slices. When done, set aside to cool, and then cut in thin slices as if a loaf of bread. It is a fine relish for lunch or tea.

Scrubbing Paint. —It is a great mistake to use much soap in cleaning paint. What is used should be dissolved in the water. Never put it on the cloth. Many housekeepers will only use cold water and a scrubbing-brush. This is very hard work, but, if the paint is cleaned by it, it gives a fresh new look to it, and saves soap and fire. Still we cannot think it well for a good strong woman to use a scrubbingbrush too freely on paint—it wears it off rapidly. We like to have paint washed in pretty warm water, not hot, with a piece of flannel rather than a scrub-brush. Use very little soap, if any, as it yellows the light paints; but, instead, we put half a tablespoonful of ammonia into two-thirds of a bucket of warm water. Wash faithfully with the flannel and water thus prepared, while, if two are at work together, the second follows with clean cold water to rinse thoroughly - and wipe dry. If only one, she must rinse and wipe as she goes along. This cleanses paint easily, removes all spots, and leaves it looking sweet and new. If done with any judgment, it is perfectly safe and will not injure the paint, and if followed with the rinsing water and dry cloths, two women, if they attend to their work without chattering all the time, will clean a room in one-third the time usually required. Windows washed first in water in which there is a little ammonia, and faithfully rinsed, can be polished quickly and make to look brilliant with little trouble.

Cream Toast. —Put a pint of rich, sweet cream over the fire in a farina kettle, and while that is getting hot toast as many slices of stale bread as will be needed. Toast quickly, taking care that it does not scorch, but is evenly and delicately browned. When done, put on a plate to keep hot; wet two tablespoonfuls of flour in cold milk, stir it perfectly smooth, add half a teaspoonful of salt, and as soon as the cream is just ready to boil, put in the flour and stir all the time till it thickens. Then remove the kettle from the fire. Have a dish of hot salt water ready, just dip each piece of toasted bread in it, but only for an instant, remove it quickly to the toast-dish, and dip over it a plentiful supply of the thickened cream, and continue to dip the bread in the salt and water, and put in the dish, covering each piece with the cream till all the bread is used. Let the cream be the last and plenty of it. This makes toast enough for two or three. If a larger supply is needed, increase the cream in the same proportion. If cream is not to be had take sweet milk, boil and thicken as above directed, but add two tablespoonfuls of butter, and when all ready add a well-beaten egg the last thing, stir for a few minutes till well united with the boiling milk, and use on the toasted bread as above-directed.

Olib Oakes. —Stir into three pounds of flour one penny-worth of bakers’ yeast, or what would be equal to that of any kind of yeast that has been tried and found successful. Beat together three-quarters of a pound of butter and one pound of white sugar until it is a light cream. Beat five eggs very light, put to the sugar and butter, and beat all together thoroughly. Stir one and a half pints of milk to the flour and yeast 'till free from lumps, then add the mixture ,of butter, eggs, and sugar. Still all together and knead well, using as little flour as possible, and keeping the dough as thin and soft as it can be kneaded. Set it to rise. As fast as it rises knead it down—certainly as often as three or four times a day —keeping it, after once risen,, in a very cool place —the ice-chest if there is room. Reep this dough three days , kneading it as often as it rises up, but use only flour enough to keep it from sticking to the hands. Not necessary to take it from the bowl to the kneading-board each time, but, as often as you go by the placed where it is, just dip clean [hands in flour and knead it down gently. Then, when ready to cook, break off small bits of the dough, flatten them in the hand, and lay a raisin or bit of citron on the surface —then roll into a ball and fry in boiling lard, like dough-nuts. Roll in sugar after frying. This is an old Dutch receipt, and excellent when properly made. Now we have never fried the dough made from this receipt, but in cold weather prepare a large bowl-full, as above directed, keep it on ice, kneading it down often if it does not freeze, and about an hour and a half before baking take off a piece of dough, roll out, cut into biscuits, let it stand till they have risen up light, and then bake. Never was biscuit so light and delicate as when made in this way.

When the Australian explorer is calling his sleepy companions up in the morning what part of a saddle does he name P Stirrup (stir-up), Among the gifts to a newly-married pair was a broom, sent to the lady, accompanied with the following sentiment: " This trifling gift accept from me; Its use 1 would commend j In sunshine use the brushy part. In storms the other end.”

Canine Intelligence and Gentleness. — E. Till, Hill House, Huddersfield, tells the following story:—" A friend of mine had a pet canary, while her brother was the owner of a retiiever that was also much petted. One day the canary escaped from the house, and was flying about the grounds for a few days, and when it perched was generally on high elm trees. At last it vanished from view, and this dear little pet was mourned for as lost or dead. But after the interval of another day or so, the retriever came in with the canary in his mouth, carrying it most delicately, and went up to the owner of the bird, delivering it into her hands without even the feathers being injured. Surely nothing could illustrate more beautifully faithful love and gentleness in a dog than this,”