[Cowgirl]

1925 Missouri Farm Womens Cookbook .. Household Hints “Waste not, want not.”

COOKING HINTS

If potatoes are put in hot water for about fifteen minute sbefore pitting in oven, it will hasten the baking.

When preparing white potatoes or sweet potatoes for the oven, rub them with lard; thiey will taste better and skin comes off easily.

When cooking old potatoes, add sweet milk to the water in which they are boiled.

When cooking green vegetables, a little soda added to the boling water before putting in the vegetables will keep them in fresh color.

Boiled ham will be juicier if started with boiling water instead of cold water.

Tough meat will be made tender if placed in vinegar water for a few minutes.

If you will first let the water in double boiler come to a boil, then add oatmeal slowly, stirring only a very little, when first added, that delicious nutty flavor will be retained.

When frying eggs, dust a very little flour in your skillet. This will prevent fat from popping out on your floor or stove.

A pinch of salt will make egg whites beat more quickly.

Run pumpkin through food chopper before cooking for pies. Will save time and fuel.

Dry salt rubbed onto hot griddle before frying pancakes will prevent sticking.

If about one-third teaspoon of vinegar is added to doughnuts they will keep fresh longer.

A tablespoon of vinegar in the lard in which doughnuts are fried will prevent their being greasy.

If your boiled salad dressing curdles in making, a few turns of the egg beater will set it right.

To remove burned surface of bread or cake a grater is much more satisfactory than a knife.

Rose geranium leaves make nice flavoring for cake and jellies.

When making cake a tablespoon of hot water beaten in the last thing will make it light and fluffy.

Cakes that are to be eaten hot require only a small amount of fat.

A few drops of lemon juice make cake frosting very white.

To have custard pie of an even, nice brown when baked, sprinkle a little sugar over the top just before putting in the oven.

When cooking an article that requires sugar and also flour for thickening, mix flour and sugar together and add to the mixture and the flour will not get lumpy.

A pinch of salt added to the flour used for thickening gravy, before mixing it will water, helps to keep it from becoming lumpy.

To keep lemons fresh a long time, invert over them a glass or earthenware dish that fits closely.

When putting up fruit, pour some melted paraffin in the lid to make it air tight.

If in cooking you have accidentally put too much salt in anything, a small amount of brown sugar will counteract it.

In place of flour use one teaspoon of ground tapioca for thickening in fruit pies.

KITCHEN HINTS

Tea stains can be removed from china with salt and vinegar.

Black can be easily removed from cooking vessels if soap is rubbed on the bottom of the vessles before putting them next to the fire.

Put salt on anything burning on the stove, to kill smoke and smell.

When making fruit pies, place a funnel of white paper in the center of each to prevent their boiling over.

When cooing a big dinner it will be found a great help to keep a dishpan of water handy in which to wash dishes and utensils as you are through with them.

When using a recipe which calls for whites of eggs only and you are not ready to use the yolks just then, put same in cup, pour cold water over them and set in a cool place until ready to use them; then pour off water and yolks will be nice and moist. Otherwise they dry on top and cannot be mixed nicely.

Boiling liquids, jellies or fruits may be turned into glass without breaking vessel if the bowl of a silver spoon be pressed on the bottom while filling.

To keep hand from slipping when tightening hot fruit jars use a piece of sand paper to grasp lid.

To keep lard from getting rancid, put a thin layer of salt in the bottom of jar in which the lard is poured.

Lard will be whiter if a teaspoon of baking soda is added after lard is started to render.

To keep cake moist, put a good sound apple in cake box.

A pan of lime kept in the cupboard with jams and preserves will prevent moulding.

Red ants can be kept out of the pantry if a small quantity of green sage is placed on shelves.

Singe chickens with brown paper and they will never be smoked.

A paper pocket neat the stove and cabinet to hold old papers to use for various things is a time and step saver. Tissue paper from oranges of from shoe boxes may be used in various way.

Stick toothpicks in top of one-crust or soft pie when it is to be wrapped to take social picnic. They keep the covering from getting into the frosting.

When measuring less than a cupful of solid fats, try this: For one-third cup of butter or lard, fill measuring cup two-thirds full of water, then press in fat until water reaches the cupful mark; drain off water and there will be exact measurement.

The presence in the kitchen of a box of growing parsley will add a touch of flavor to the palate when minced and sprinkled on vegetables, salads or soups. This should not be done too lavishly or too often, but its finish sometimes make all the difference in the world in appetite and digestion.

HINTS ON LAUNDERING

Mix bluing in small amount of hot water, then and to rinsing water and clothes will not be streaked even in hard water.



A teaspoon of borax in the last water in which clothes are rinsed will whiten them surprisingly. Pound the borax so it will dissolve easily. This is especially good to remove the yellow that time gives to white garments that have been laid aside for two or three years.

Silk hose will wear longer if washed in cold water.

Hang sheets and table limens by both hems. Hems will not fray out and articles will iron more easily.

Rub flat irons on cedar twigs and starch will not stick to them.

To remove tar of engine grease from cloth, rub the spots well with lard before washing.

To set the color of pink, blue and lavender, use one ounce of sugar of lead in a bucket of water. Soak over night.

Washing fluid: Dissolve a small can of lye in five quarts of soft water, then stir in two ounces of liquid ammonia and two ounces of salts of tartar; mix well and bottle tightly corked. Not only is this a great labor saver, it also brings good results with absolutely no injury to the most delicate fabrics. Fill boiler two-thirds full of water; first wash bad stains from white clothes and “(with the exception of sheets, pillow cases, etc., which may be put in dry) soap well before putting in boiler. A half bar of laundry soap, shaved, and one-half cup of the fluid are then added. Boil twenty minutes, punching the clothes down frequently. Take from boiler and put in tub of cold water. Just a slight rubbing is necessary to free the clothes from the soap; then rinse in blued water. They come from the line spotlessly clean, without any of the hard rubbing that makes washing a drudgery.

To bleach woolen garments: Soap over night in solution made of one part peroxide to ten parts water, to which is added borax in proportion of one tablespoon to a gallon of water.

To shrink gingham or cotton goods: Dissolve small handful of salt in a pint of boiling water in large dishpan. Lay goods in folded and pour boiling water over. Work about until every thread is wet. Hang on line lengthwise without wringing. When dry, dampen and iron with hot iron.

In shrinking material, a teaspoon of powdered alum with a handful of salt in a gallon of boiling water poured over the goods will keep the color from fading, especially red. Pour off the solution and pour on fresh boiling water, let dry and iron.

Kerosene will remove stains of almost any kind from clothing. Apply to spots before putting in the boiler.

To remove trade marks from flour sacks: Soak sack in kerosene for about thirty minutes. Wash in hot suds, boil about fifteen minutes.

To color yellow that will not fade, get fifteen cents’ worth of Bichromate of Potash and ten cents’ worth of sugar of lead. Dissolve the potash in about three gallons of luke warm water; also dissolve the sugar of lead the same way. Dip the material (which has been wring out of water) in the potash, hold up and air and dip again; hold up and air and wring out and dip in sugar of lead the same way you do the potash; then wring and dip the second time in the potash and sugar of lead. Then wring out and dry.



REMOVING STAINS

Blood Stains: Wash in cold water until stain turns brown, then rub with naphtha soap and soak in warm water.

Brass Stains: Rub either lard of olive oil on stain, then wash in warm water and soap.

Fruit Stains: Fresh fruit stains may be removed from linen by pouring boiling water through the stained portion while it is dry.

Coffee Stain: Same as for fruit stains.

Glue: Apple vinegar with a cloth.

Grease: Place a blotter over the stain and iron with a very hot iron.

Grass Stains: Wash with naphtha soap and water; or if colors are not delicate apply ammonia and water at once. If in cotton, wash in alcohol.

Ink Stain: Soak in sweet or sour milk or wet stain in oxalic acid.

Iodine: Dampin spots with spirits of camphor until they disappear.

Rust: Soak spot with lemon juice, then cover with salt, let stay in sun for several hours or until stain disappears. Rinse thoroughly. Use on white goods only.

Iron Rust: Boil a cup of rice in two quarts of water thirty minutes, let stand over night, then strain thrgouh cheese cloth. Soak spots in rice water four or five hours, then rinse in clear water.

Milk: Wash out while fresh in cold water.

Mildew: Wet stain with peroxide, pour boiling water over, repeat until stain disappears.

Pour boiling water on two ounces of chloride of lime, then add three quarts of cold water. Steep linen twelve hours, when every spot will be extracted.

Tea and Coffee: Wet spot with cold water, cover with glycerine, let stand two or three hours, then wash with cold water and soap. Repeat if necessary.

To remove chewing gum from woolen clothing, rub with gasoline.



HINTS ON MENDING

Darning is an important part of sewing. Table linen, napkins, towels, sheets, pillow cases, handkerchiefs, laces and small fractures in clothing should be neatly darned. This kind of mending looks well and lasts long.

Patching is another important art. A patch should run the way of the cloth mended; it should be laid even. When on white muslin, have the patch of a thinner quality than the original material or it may tear out.

Each week all clothing from the wash should be carefully examined and repaired; a rent should be mended at once, before the edges stretch or ravel. Sheets with small breaks can be darned; a patch sometimes avails for a long time; a sheet can be made to double is existence by sewing the selvedge edges together, tearing down the center of the sheet and hemming it all around.

Worn-out table cloths, which have prolonged their existence by virtue of neat darns, can become napkins or make, the edges being fringed, very soft towels for invalids; and hemmed, are valuable for covering meats and cakes.

MISCELLANEOUS HINTS

To make a stove polish shine more easily, add a little turpentine.

To renovate a stove that has become rusty, before attempting to polish go over surface with vinegar. It is often advisable to apply a second coat after first has dried, then polish.

To clean mica in stoves, wash with vinegar.

When polishing a stove, a paint brush will save the hands.

For cleaning windows, wring a chamois skin out of warm water and wipe off windows. No drying is required.





When washing windows, add a little kerosene to the water and flies will stay off.

Window shades can be cleaned with a rough flannel cloth dipped in flour.

When wiping up the linoleum, add two tablespoons of a kerosene to a gallon of water to brighten it.

Cold water and soda will help remove grease spots from floor.

For cleaning hard oiled or varnished woodwork use equal parts turpentine, linseed oil and strong vinegar. Keep well shaken and apply with a soft cloth. An old stocking is good.

For water-stained varnish, dampen cloth in spirits of camphor and rub on spots; they will disappear as if by magic.

To Clean Silver: Place silver in an aluminum pan, sprinkle with soda and cover with water; heat to boiling point. Wash and dry. All stains and tarnish will have disappeared. Either solid or plated silver may be treated in this way.

Place in an aluminum pan, cover with buttermilk and let stand over night; wash and dry.

Place silver in a pan, add a teaspoon of salt and one of soda to each quart of boiling water; place an aluminum spoon with silver, and boil in this water about five minutes. Wash and dry.

A little milk added to the water in which silver is washed will help to keep it bright.

To Clean Copper: Rub with salt and vinegar mixed together.

Cracks in walls may be filled with plaster of paris mixed with vinegar. Vinegar is better than water, as it doesn’t set so quickly, but forms a putty-like paste that can be easily manipulated and finally becomes very hard.

Orange juice will be found a good polish for patent leather.

Lard rubbed thoroughly into new oilcloth will prevent its sticking to dishes and peeling off.

A little soap applied with the point of a lead pencil will remedy a squeaking hinge.

When a water pitcher has become brown inside from hard water, let milk stay in the pitcher until it becomes sour, when your pitcher will wash as bright and clear as new.

Hold a new pen point in the flame of a match for a second, to burn off the oily finish that prevents the free flow of ink to the point.

A little salt added to the water in which cut flowers are placed will keep them nice and fresh looking for a long time.

Whitewash the inside of your wooden flower boxes before putting in the soil and plants. This will preserve the box and prevent insects.

Library Paste: Handy in home, office and school room. Dissolve one and one-half teaspoons powdered alum in a pint of cold water and set to boil; rub a heaping tablespoon of flour smooth in a little water and stir into alum water. Let boil up, add a few drops of oil of cloves or whole cloves. Alum prevents souring; cloves prevent moulding.

To clean crust off skillets that gathers from long usage, put in oven and let burn off. Take out once a day, scrape and wash, continue till skillets are nice and smooth.

Soak lamp wicks in vinegar and let them dry before using. The light will be more brilliant and will not be so apt to smoke.

If your curtain rods are a little hard to get through the hems of your curtains try using a thimble over the end of the rod.



A blunted sewing machine needle may be sharpened by sticking through a piece of sandpaper.

To make ferns healthy and grow fast, put a piece of fresh meat in the pot every few weeks; must not be salty.

To make geraniums bloom, use bloody chicken water.

The soft leaves of catalogues torn into bits, moistened well and scattered over matting floor covering aids wonderfully in removing lint and dust when sweeping.

For the Hair: As a hair wash and tonic lemon juice has no equal. Dip the hair in a basin of warm water. Take half a lemon; rub the juice well into the scalp, dipping the head into the water and rubbing. Then take a basin of fresh warm water and rinse thoroughly. Dry the hair by rubbing with a soft towel. No soap used. The lemon juice removes all grease and dirt, leaving the hair soft and glossy. It is a tonic to the scalp, delays the hair from turning gray, prevents falling out and induces new growth.

FARM AND GARDEN HINTS

To Kill Gooseberry Worms: Dissolve two tablespoons of Hellebore in three gallons of water and spray bushes as soon as worms appear. Repeat of the first dose is not sufficient.

To Keep off Mosquitoes: Rub exposed parts with kerosene.

Spray for Flies: Heat two pints of lard or old butter, add a pint of pine tar, stirring well; remove from fire and add a gallon of kerosene, stirring again until well mixed. Use in the usual way with a sprayer.

To Destroy Mites: Paint roosts with house paint.

Rats do not like sulphur; sprinkle it plentifully where they run.

Write the date on eggs to be set under a hen for hatching with indelible pencil; the writing will not wear off or become dim.



HERBS FOR WINTER USE

While the earth is filled with the warmth and flow of the midsummer sun, and vegetation is in its prime, the housekeeper should make provision against the time when frost shall have blighted all delicate green things.

Much of the comfort and happiness of our daily lives comes from little things; the flavors and perfumes used in the household exemplifying this. Strong flavors and perfumes are offensive to most people, and the housekeeper should guard against their use. On the other hand, a judicious use of aromatic and fragrant herbs improves the flavor and adds to the healthfulness of many kinds of food, while household linen retains its sweetness and freshness if the right kind of herbs have been mingled with it.

The garden and the country fields and roadsides supply nearly all the herbs that are required in the ordinary household.



When to Gather and How to Use Herbs

Select the afternoon of a warm, sunny day for collecting the herbs. They will then be free from external moisture, an important condition. Have plenty of large paper bags and twine. Tie the herbs in small bunches and put them in the bags, having the stem end of the bunch come to the tops of the bags. Draw the paper around the ends and tie, leaving a loop of the twine by which to hang the bag. Label each package and hang in a current of air in the shade. If this method is followed the herbs will be dried free from any dust and in their receptacles; they will retain more flavor than when dried uncovered.



The best time for collecting and drying most herbs is when they are beginning to blossom; however, some fragrant herbs—lavender, for example—should not be gathered until in full bloom, as the flowers are more fragrant than the leaves.

Some of the flavoring herbs should be kept in two forms: in the whole leaves and powdered.

Some of the Fresh Herbs should be employed for flavoring the vinegar which is used in making sauces and salads. Sage, savory, marjoram, thyme and parsley are in constant demand for soups, sauces and dressings. When it is possible to add chervil and tarragon and bay leaves to these the perfection of herb flavor can be obtained, a combination of all these herbs in soups and sauces giving better results than when only one herb is employed. Naturally only an infinitesimal quantity of each should be used. The perfection of such seasoning is attained when no one flavor predominates. For this reason the herbs should be combined in proportion to their strength. Sage is the strongest and very little of it should be used, except in pork, in any form, of when making potato or onion stuffing for a goose. In these cases the sage flavor should predominate.

Powdered herbs should never be used in soups of sauces. With the whole leaves combined in a bouquet garni it is possible to get the suggestion of each herb, and in no other way can this be attained.

A bouquet garni is made in this manner: Spread a small branch of parsley out flat; on this put one leaf of sage, one bay leaf, one sprig each of thyme, summer savory and sweet marjoram. If you have chervil and tarragon add a small sprig of each. Roll all together and tie with a bit of white thread. This bouquet will flavor a gallon of soup if it is allowed to infuse in it for one hour. It should infuse in a quart of sauce for half and hour.

Summer Savory, Sweet Marjoram, thyme, parsley and sage are herbs that should be found in every kitchen pantry. As sage is very strong-flavored, it must be used in very minute quantities in soups, sauces, meats and stuffings. But it is a valuable herb in case of sickness, and for that reason a generous quantity should be preserved.

Celery Leaves. Spread the bleached celery leaves on a plate and let them dry in a warm oven. Keep them in glass jar and use for flavoring soups and sauces when the fresh celery is not available.

Celery vinegar is made in the same way as tarragon vinegar.

Sweet Clover Grows Wild in nearly every section of the Northern and Western parts of the United States. In localities where it does not grow wild it is frequently cultivated for use in the linen-closet. It is a shrub, growing from three to five feet high, bearing loose racemes of white flowers. It gives to household linen a delightfully fresh perfume. While the sun is shining on the plants cut the branches of the flowers and leaves. Put in cheesecloth bags and place among the linen in boxes, and in drawers and on shelves.

Lavender is a native of the Southern part of Europe. It is cultivated in many gardens. Every part of the plant contains the fragrant oil, but it is more abundant in the flowers than in the leaves. Cut the flowers from the plants while the sun is shining. Put in cheese-cloth bags and place at once among the household linen.

To Make Mint Vinegar. Gather the green leaves, put them in fruit jars and pour over them good vinegar, allowing about three ounces of the mint to a quart of vinegar. Cover closely and put away for two weeks; shake the jars occasionally during the time, then strain through cheese-cloth and bottle. This vinegar may be used for sauce for lamb of mutton. To three tablespoons of mint vinegar add three tablespoons of plain vinegar, a teaspoon of sugar and one of minced parsley.

SIMPLE PRINCIPLES OF DIET

Men are ready to study the food in question, in order to fatten their cattle and have their horses in the best possible condition. Is it too difficult for women, when health, happiness and prosperity of the human race depends so largely on proper food?

All foods, normally developed, handled under sanitary conditions and wholesomely prepared, possess nutritive value. Each woman must learn which are best adapted to the particular needs of her family. The body is different from other machines in that growth, work and repair all go on at the same time. Food supplies these needs for growth and repair, and the fuel.

All foods, from whatever source, fall within five groups:

“In Group I are the foods rich in protein:

Lean meats Cheese

Poultry Eggs

Fish Dried Beans and Peas

Oysters Lentils

Milk Nuts

“These are the foods that make for growth and repair. The body has capacity to use only a given amount of this foodstuff. Amounts taken in excess are not only wasted, but are positively harmful.

“In Group II are foods rich in starch:

Bread Potatoes

Crackers Hominy

Macaroni Tapioca

Spaghetti All cereals and breakfast

Noodles foods, meals and flours

Rice

“These furnish heat and must be converted into sugar before they are used by the body.

“In the Group III are foods rich in sugar:

Cane and beet sugar Preserves

Syrups Dried fruits

Honey Cake and cookies

Candy Sweet puddings and sauces

Jellies

“In Group IV are foods characterized by fats:

Butter Salt pork

Cream Bacon

Lard and other cooking fats Salad oils

“Groups II, III and IV are economical sources of heat and energy. The body uses what it needs and tends to store up excess as fatty tissue. In Group V are foods depended upon for mineral matter, vegetable acids and body regulating substances:

Apples Beans

Pears, etc. Greens of all kinds

Berries Tomatoes

Oranges Squash

Lemons Beets

Bananas Carrots

Melons Onions

Green vegetables Turnips

Salads Cabbage

Lettuce Potatoes

Celery Other fruits and vegetables,

Cress raw and cooked fresh, and

Green peas dried.

To have a well balanced ration each group should be represented in the day’s dietary, preferably in each meal. Duplicates in various classes should be avoided.