Domestic

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LII, Issue 7, 25 February 1925, Page 59

Domestic

By’Maureen

| , Whipped Cream, f ’ . The majority of housewives who indulge ’lt in cream not infrequently complain that | the cream will not whip properly, and this | may be due to several causes. Important f factors in the successful whipping of cream 2 are the age and richness of the cream and its temperature. As a rule, cream which v contains 25 per cent, of butter-fat will whip more easily than that which is poor. In order to secure satisfactory results, cream should also be 24 hours old, as for ' this purpose cream improves up to the ■ point when acidity develops, but it must not become acid or over-ripe. In addition, cream should bear as low a temperature as possible, and it is on this account that cream will often whip better when exposed to a current of cold air. Care should also be taken to see that the vessel intended for the cream should be thoroughly cooled, otherwise this will often cause considerable delay. Scotch Cake. Soften 11b of butter; stir into it lib of sugar, and beat together until very light. Add one tablespoonful each of ground cinnamon and allspice, mix well with the butter and sugar, and let stand for fifteen minutes, or while preparing and measuring the other ingredients. Separate the yolks from the whites of five eggs, beat the yolks, and mix '"with 4oz each of candied citron, candied orange peel, candied lemon rind, and candied cherries or apricots. All of these should be shaved into very thin, transparent strips. Mix this gradually with the butter and sugar, beat the whites of the eggs until stiff, but not dry, and beat these into the mixture of other ingredients. Add Jib of chopped sweet almonds, and lastly, add 20oz of sifted flour, and £ cupful of any very rich fruit syrup. On a large baking sheet place twelve thicknesses of thin paper ' on these set one of the baking rings or hoop? used by confectioners; line this with oilec paper, put in the cake mixture, cover tin top with two thicknesses of paper, and sei in a moderate oven. Remove the pape] from the top at the end of two hours, ant bake for another hour or until firm in tin centre. Or the recipe may be halved, ant baked in a tube pan set on six thicknesses of paper. Fasting. Fasting is abstaining from food and ma; be either voluntary or involuntary. , Volun tary fasting is often beneficial and can b prolonged for a considerable period ; involun tary fasting, on the other hand, is almos always harmful if long continued. But h ... ■ < than mere deprivation of food are present such as anger, fear, anxiety, and in th case of shipwrecked persons exposure an lack of water to drink. That man can exis without food for several weeks is an nr doubted fact that hasten proved by pr< > fessional fasters, by hunger strikers, an jS • -

by those who have abstained for the purpose of treating disease. In order to endure a protracted fast, however, a person must have water in sufficient quantity, for without* water death will almost certainly occur in a few days. Moreover, lack of food can be endured much longer if the body is kept warm and the faster abstains from exercising, for maintaining body heat and producing energy are among the chief uses of food. Fasting is often of extreme value in treating and in preventing disease. Most of us eat more than we need; the result is that the vital functions are overtaxed in getting rid of the surplus, and often the surplus accumulates and, fermenting and decomposing, becomes a source of auto-intoxication that causes much ill-health. An occasional fast of a day or two is therefore often beneficial, for it gives the system time to catch up with its task of disposing of refuse. Better than fasting, of course, would be greater moderation in eating, for that would make fasting unnecessary. The thirty-day fasts that some sensational writers have described and recommended are not only undesirable but dangerous. One serious effect of prolonged fasting is a condition of acidosis that may increase to such a degree as to cause death in coma even before the nutritive reserves in the body are consumed. A day or two or even a longer period of absolute fasting many physicians regard as most useful at the beginning of any of ’the infectious fevers; the loss of appetite at such times is an expression of Nature’s approval of such treatment, A prolonged fast leaves the digestive organs weak, and food should therefore be given cautiously to a person who is on the verge of starvation; it should begin with warm soup, diluted milk, and other liquid foods in small quantities at short intervals of time. No solid foods should be given for the first few days.