WHEN YOU GIVE A CHILDREN'S PARTY

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 134, 27 August 1927, Page 20

WHEN YOU GIVE A CHILDREN'S PARTY

Don't spread one of your best table- ' cloths, or you’ll be keeping one eye on teacups all the time for fear of spills. A clean kitchen cloth will be just as effective (or two, if the length of the table makes it necessary), since most of its surface will be hidden, anyhow, by dishes and decorations. Or, better still, by a crepe paper cloth with holly border. Don’t use decorations that tip over easily or get in the way. Trails of artificial holly that lie on the cloth make a brave show, and holly, to the youngsters, stands for all sorts of Christmas good cheer. And do provide heaps of crackers: not the very elaborate ones that look too expensive to pull (and generally are) but those wrapped in very bright paper with fringed ends. Don’t you remember the joy of that crackling gelatine paper in gorgeous reds and blues and greens? And the gay scraps? The Tea Things Use small teacups, and don’t let them be more than three-quarters full. Small-sized teaspoons are also safetyfirst devices against spills. And talking about tea, it is a wise plan to make fresh tea for second cups. Tea is a protracted meal at parties, so that the ‘ brew” made for first cups has had time to get strong ana indigestible by the second-helping stage. And weakening it by adding boiling water doesn’t help matters. Serve buns and fancy cakes in small si&es, and large cakes cut into fingers rather than slices. If a fellow has to eat substantial chunks, it doesn’t give him a chance to sample everything, now does it? Consider the tragedy of i two more delectable kinds of good things unsampled for lack of space! The Food Keep off sticky things as far as possible. And remember that soft chocolate icing may ruin a new party frock. A good layer of it sandwiched in sponge cake will taste just as good, and be less dangerous. Fruit salad is safer when stiffened with gelatine or a jelly packet, and every bit as exciting as the syrupy kind. Provide some plain sponge fingers, rolled thin bread and butter, and perhaps some simple biscuits for those children whose Nannies keep a disciplinary eye out for too many “party eats.” Besides, the shyer among the tinies often prefer the kind of fare they are used to. Just in case of accidents, it’s good to have accessible a sheet of thickwhite blotting paper, a clean sponge, wrung out of cold water so that it is well damped, but not too wet, and a clean, dry cloth of some kind: an old Turkish towel is better than anything else. Prompt attention to a spill may prevent permanent injury to party finery. It is well-known that there’s a peculiar law of gravity pertaining to tarts, causing them always to fall jammy side down!

SWEETS FOR THE CHILDREN Here is a very simple, wholesome home-made sweetmeat for children. Required: Half a pound of ground almonds, six ounces each of castor and icing sugar, one teaspoonful each of vanilla and almond essence (or one dessertspoonful of orange flower water), whites of two eggs. Method: Rub the icing sugar thi'ougli a hair sieve; put it into a mortar or basin with the castor sugar and ground almonds, and pound. Add the flavouring essences and the whites of eggs gradually; pound to a paste, and knead well until perfectly smooth. The amount of egg white required cannot be given exactly. It must be added until the mixture forms a stiff paste. When perfectly smooth, divide the paste into three or four portions and colour each differently. Roll into small egg shapes, and place on wax paper on a tin to dry. These may be dipped in coating syrup, thin glace syrup, or chocolate coating, as desired. Coating Syrup: Required: Half a pound of granulated sugar, half a gill of water, pinch of cream of tartar. Put the sugar and water into a pan and stir over low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add the cream of tartar, bring to boil, eover, and boil for five minu*es. Remove the lid and boil gently to 236 degrees Fahrenheit, or until a little dropped into very' cold water forms a soft ball when rolled between the thumb and finger. Place the pan in a larger pan containing hot water, and dip the "eggs’’ into it one at a time. Lift out with two forks or a wire sweet fork, and place on an oiled tin or paper to dry. The coating syrup need not necessarily be added, hut it improves the appearance of the eggs.