DOMESTIC

New Zealand Tablet, 11 August 1921, Page 41

DOMESTIC

(By Maureen.)

Cheese Omelette.

Take two fresh eggs, divide the yolks from the whites, stir the yolks for five minutes in a basin with a little pepper and salt; whip the whites very stiff with a pinch of salt; mix lightly with the yolks, and put into a hot buttered omelette pan and cook in the oven for five or six minutes, fold some finely grated cheese inside, and serve at once.

Fig Tartlets.

Soak £lb of figs in cold water to cover until soft, chop them finely, add half a cup of sugar, a cup of the water in which they were soaked, and cook until the figs are tender and cool; add-the grated rind and juice of a lemon, and use to fill small tartlet pans which have been lined with piecrust. Cut strips of piecrust and place them, lattice fashion, over the fig filling, and bake 10 to 15 minutes in a moderately hot oven. Serve hot or cold, plain or with whipped cream.

Marmalade Rice Pudding.

One cupful of cooked rice, 1 cupful of milk, 1 egg-yolk, 1 egg-w -4 cupful of orange marmalade, and a few grains of salt. Mix the rice and milk and cook over hot water until scalded. Add the slightly beaten egg-yolk, add salt to taste, and cook, stirring constantly, for two minutes. Add the orange marmalade, and pour into a baking-dish. Beat the egg-white until stiff; beat in one tablespoonful of orange marmalade; pile lightly on the rice and bake in a slow oven until delicately brown, the time required being about eight minutes. Serve hot or cold.

How to Make Short Pastry. Materials: Two cups flour, two-thirds teaspoonful salt, one teaspoonful baking powder, two-thirds cup lard, ice-cold water to mix. Way of preparing; Have all materials as cold as possible. Pass the flour, salt, and baking powder through a sieve. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Roll out Jin thick, keeping the paste oblong and square at the corners. Place the lard on the lower half of the cake of paste, and fold the other half over. Press down the edges firmly. Fold the right side of the paste over the enclosed lard and the left side under it. Turn the paste half-way around and let it stand for two minutes. Roll out, having the paste oblong. Fold from the ends towards the centre" making three layers. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes! Repeat this three times, turning the paste each time. Home-made Soap. .In reply -to “Enquirer” I recommend the following recipe for making household soap : —Dissolve 11b lye (caimtic soda) in U pints of cold water. The liquid will imme-

diately become quite hot; let it cool down till it is just warm. Heat /lb clean fat (lard or tallow) over a fire until liquid. Let it cool, but while still liquid pour in the caustic soda, slowly stirring with a spoon until well mixed and the solution is like honey. Do not stir for more than two minutes. Let the mixture stand in a warm place for 24 hours, then cut up and store to dry. An ordinary petrol tin is quite a suitable vessel to use in the process of soapmaking.

To Cure Hare Skins.

In answer to the same correspondent, treat your skins as follows;, Fasten to a smooth board (skin side uppermost) n ith tin-tacks, then wash over first with a solution of salt, afterwards dissolve of alum in one pint warm water, and moisten the surface of the skin all over with a sponge dipped in this solution. Repeat this process every now and then for three days. When the skin is quite dry, take out the tacks and roll the skin loosely, the long way, hair inside. To soften, draw' it quickly, in this position, backwards and forwards through a large, smooth ring. When soft, roll in the contrary way of the skin, and repeat the operation.

To Remove Grease.

Grease is responsible for much kitchen work. Soap frequently fails to fight it. Soda and strong powders are often harmful. Nothing keeps grease in check quite like borax. Crockery washed with it is absolutely grease-free, drains easily, retains its pattern, and, when' wiped, possesses the gloss, of new china. Soda is impossible because it removes the pattern. So also are powders which contain harmful substances. Borax is a harmless, straightforward water softener, which will effectively clean everything that needs washing.