The Healthy Life Cook Book Part 12

1 lb. lump sugar, 3 lemons (the rinds of 2 grated), yolks of 6 eggs, 1/4 lb. b.u.t.ter.

Put the b.u.t.ter into a clean saucepan; melt, but do not let it boil. Add the sugar, and stir until it is dissolved. Then add the beaten yolks, and, lastly, the grated lemon rind and juice. Stir over a slow fire until the mixture looks like honey and becomes thick. Put into jars, cover, and tie down as for jam.

4. MARMALADE.

To 1 large Seville orange (if small, count 3 as 2) allow 3/4 lb. cane sugar and 3/4 pint water. Wash and brush oranges, remove pips, cut peel into fine shreds (better still, put through a mincer). Put all to soak in the water for 24 hours. Boil until rinds are soft. Stand another 24 hours.

Add the sugar, and boil until marmalade jellies. If preferred, half sweet and half Seville oranges may be used.

5. VEGETABLE MARROW JAM.

Peel the marrow, remove seeds, and cut into dice. To each pound of marrow allow 1 lb. cane sugar; to every 3 lbs. of marrow allow the juice and grated yellow part of rind of 1 lemon and 1/2 a level teaspoon ground ginger. Put the marrow into the preserving pan, sprinkle well with some of the sugar, and stand for 12 hours. Add the rest of the sugar, and boil slowly for 2 hours. Add the lemon juice, rind, and ginger at the end of 1-1/2 hours.

XII.--SALADS, BEVERAGES, &c.

1. SALAD.

Lettuce, tomatoes, mustard and cress, cuc.u.mber, olive or walnut oil, lemon juice.

Wash the green stuff and finely shred it. Peel the cuc.u.mber, skin the tomatoes (if ripe, the skins will come away easily) and cut into thin slices. Place in the bowl in alternate layers. Let the top layer be lettuce with a few slices of tomato for garnishing. Slices of hard-boiled egg may be added if desired.

For the salad dressing, to every tablespoonful of oil allow 1 of lemon juice. Drip the oil slowly into the lemon juice, beating with a fork all the time. Pour over the salad.

2. SALAD.

Beetroot, mustard and cress, olive or walnut oil, lemon juice, cold vegetables.

Chop the cold vegetables. French beans and potatoes make the nicest salad.

To every 2 cups of vegetables allow 1 cup of chopped beetroot. Mix well together, and pour over salad dressing as for No. 1. A level teaspoonful of pepper is added to a gill of the dressing by those who do not object to its use.

3. FRUIT SALAD.

Take sweet, ripe oranges, apples, bananas, and grapes. Peel the oranges, quarter them, and remove skin and pips. Peel and core the apples and cut into thin slices. Wash and dry the grapes, and remove from stalks. Skin and slice the bananas.

Put the prepared fruit into a gla.s.s dish in alternate layers. Squeeze the juice from 2 sweet oranges and pour over the salad.

Any other fresh fruit in season may be used for this salad. Castor sugar may be sprinkled over if desired, and cream used in place of the juice.

Grated nuts are also a welcome addition.

4. LEMON CORDIAL.

12 lemons, 1 lb. lump sugar.

Put the sugar into a clean saucepan. Grate off the yellow part of the rinds of 6 lemons and sprinkle over the sugar. Now moisten the sugar with as much water as it will absorb. Boil gently to a clear syrup. Add the juice from the lemons, stir well, and pour into clean, hot, dry bottles.

Cork tightly and cover with sealing-wax or a little plaster-of-Paris mixed with water and laid on quickly. Add any quant.i.ty preferred to cold or hot water to prepare beverage, or use neat as sauce for puddings.

5. LIME CORDIAL. The same as for Lemon, but use 13 limes.

6. ORANGE CORDIAL.

The same as for Lemon, but use 3/4 lb. sugar.

A detailed list of Fruit and Herb Teas will be found in the companion volume to this, "Food Remedies."

7. WALLACE CHEESE.

1 qt. milk, 6 tablespoons lemon juice.

Strain the lemon juice and pour it into the boiling milk. Lay a piece of fine, well-scalded muslin over a colander. Pour the curdled milk into this. When it has drained draw the edges of the muslin together and squeeze and press the cheese. Leave it in the muslin in the colander, with a weight on it for 12 hours. It will then be ready to serve.

This cheese is almost tasteless, and many people prefer it so. But if the flavour of lemon is liked, use more lemon juice. The whey squeezed from the cheese is a wholesome drink when quite fresh.

XIII.--EXTRA RECIPES.

1. BARLEY WATER.

1 dessert spoon Robinson's "Patent" Barley, 1/2 a lemon, 3 lumps cane sugar.

Rub the lumps of sugar on the lemon until they are bright yellow in colour and quite wet. (It is the fragrant juice contained in the yellow surface of the lemon rind that gives the delicious lemon flavour without acidity.) Mix the barley to a thin paste with a little cold water. This is poured into a pint of boiling water, well stirred until it comes to the boil again and then left to boil for five minutes, after which it is done. Add the sugar and lemon juice.

2. BOILED HOMINY.

Take one part of Hominy and 2-1/2 parts of water. Have the water boiling; add the hominy and boil for fifteen minutes; keep stirring to keep from burning.

3. BROWN GRAVY.

1 dessert-spoon b.u.t.ter, 1 dessert-spoon white flour, hot water.

Melt the b.u.t.ter in a small iron saucepan or frying pan and sprinkle into it the flour. Keep stirring gently with a wooden spoon until the flour is a rich dark brown, but not burnt, or the flavour will be spoilt. Then add very gently, stirring well all the time, rather less than half-a-pint of hot water. Stir until the mixture boils, when it should be a smooth brown gravy to which any flavouring may be added. Strained tomato pulp is a nice addition, but a teaspoonful of lemon juice will suffice.

4. b.u.t.tERED RICE AND PEAS.