EVERYDAY ECONOMIES

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 75, 20 June 1927, Page 4

EVERYDAY ECONOMIES

THE WITS-END CLUD A new novel may be selected by the winner each week as a prize for the most original household hint or recipe that has been tested and found to save time, labour or money. Many folk might be glad to have the benefit of your experience, so send in your suggestions, addressed to The Homecrafts Editor, Women’s Page, THE SUN. Auckland. Prevention Is Better Than Cure An excellent way to combat colds and the influenza epidemic, to which we are subjected yearly, is to gargle night and morning with kitchen salt and warm water. How to Empty the Copper or Heavy Water- Butts A short length of hose pipe, if filled with water at the tap and one end quickly dropped and kept at the bottom of the receptacle to be emptied, will act as a “draw off” cock. The other end of the pipe can be placed in any convenient bucket or sink until all the water to be emptied has been syphoned off. Revolving Fitment in the Housemaid’s Cupboard A small cupboard for the keeping of brushes, brooms and all cleaning commodities, can be made a useful and tidy affair by fixing a revolving fitment, divided into four sections, and supplied with hooks and shelves as required. Care of Iron Any form of black lead is hand soiling, and it is therefore far more satisfactory to wipe over all ironware with a preparation of beeswax and turpentine. Iron treated in this manner will keep in perfect condition, will not rust and will not soil the hands when touched. Save Your Old Blankets Old half-worn blankets can be turned to excellent account if you make them into pads for stair carpets. Iron and kettle-holders can be made from the smaller pieces; they will require several thicknesses and can be covered with scrape of cretonne, casement cloth or any other similar material. When Cooking Cabbage The smell of boiling cabbage is a most unpleasant one and apt to permeate the house in a very disagreeable manner. A saucer of vinegar placed on the stove will overcome this drawback. Beef Juice For Invalids This can be easily prepared if requisition the lemon squeezer. Take lean rump steak, cut it into thick pieces, place it over a hotgeoal fire for a moment to warm, and then squeeze it in a lemon squeezer which has previously been warmed by dipping in hot water. Empty the juice into a glass and season * with a* little salt. Your Scullery Table It is by no means easy to keep scullery tables in good condition, for they are usually made of cheap soft wood which absorbs grease and is very difficult to keep free from stains. A good remedy is to have the table covered with zinc or tin, for this is easily kept clean, and even saucepans can be stood upon it without damage. Have You a Canary? If you have you will find the work of cleaning his cage greatly simplified if you cut out seven sheets of white paper and fit them into the bottom' of the cage. Once a week give the cage a thorough cleaning and renew the paper; on other days simply remove the top layer and sprinkle the clean sand or gray el on the one below. Care of Hands An excellent preparation can be made at home, which will keep the hands smooth, white and free from chaps, even when one has to contend against chilly bad weathei* and hard water:—Hand lotion: 4oz. red lotion (“Lotio Rubra”), „6oz. glycerine, 2oz. witch liazel, 2 teaspoonfuls of honey, 2oz. lemon juice. Shake all these ingredients well together and keep in a glass-stoppered bottle on the washhand stand, and use half a teaspoonful after washing, and rub well into the skin. Save Breakages on the Draining Board A strip of ribbed rubber, or a rubber mat, as nearly as possible the width of the draining board on which it is to be placed, will save endless breakages Caused by careless placing after removal from the wash-up bowl. Fragile glass and china will not slip or chip, even if put down roughly on ridged rubber. Soft Corns Corns are caused by pressure and friction,-.and the only way to effect a cure is*to remove the cause. Soft corns—the most tiresome of all—usually appear between the toes, and to cure, a little roll of cotton wool should be placed between the toes as far away from the afflicted part as possible. By carefully covering with the stocking the roll of wool will be kept in place during the day, and at night, should the wool slip out, a handkerchief should be loosely, tied round the foot. Great care should always be taken to dry thoroughly between the toes, and a little starch or boracic powder may be dusted on tender feet. AN ECONOMICAL SUGGESTION Few housekeepers know that the white part of orange peel is almost pure pectin—that essential constituent

in fruit necessary to produce jelly. In fact, jelly may be made from this alone; but if it is prepared by the following method and kept for the ensuing fruit season you will be able to make a unique variety of jellies, such as - c^ierr y» rhubarb, peach, pineapple ana strawberry, rich in colour and delicious in flavour. To prepare orange pectin, scrape or grate all yellow from the peel and pass the white portion through a food chopper. Weigh, and for each Jib. allow three cups of cold water and three tablespoons of lemon-juice. Alix thoroughly and allow to stand for four or five hours; then boil for ten minutes and cool. Add another three cups of cold water, bring to a boil and let stand overnight. Next morning boil for five minutes and allow to cool. Place in a flannel jelly-bag and squeeze to remove all the juice, and then filter the juice through a clean jelly-bag without squeezing it. If this pectin is to be kept for future use pour it into sterilised jars while hot. Process, 1 quart jars for 30 minutes at 180 degrees Fah:\; seal and store in a dark place. Equal parts of pectin and non-pectin fruit juices combined, using the same amount of sugar as pectin, will usually be the proper proportion when a flavour and colour of non-pectin fruit is desired in jelly. Incidentally, this prepared pectin is a most desirable addition when making jam, giving that necessary ”body” without undue mashing of the fruit byprolonged boiling. Here is a good recipe for mint jelly: One pint of orange pectin (made as above), one pint of sugar, two drops of oil of peppermint, two drops of green colouring. Heat the pectin to boiling, then add the sugar gradually, and continue boiling rapidly till 'you get the jelly test. Remove from the fire, colour and flavour, and store as with ordinary jellies.