The Mother And Her Child Part 66

One tablespoon of flaxseed, one pint of boiling water; let stand and keep warm for one hour; strain. Add juice of lemon.

3. _Oatmeal Jelly._

Four tablespoons of oatmeal, one pint of water; boil for three hours in double boiler, adding water from time to time; strain.

4. _Toast Water._

One, two, or three slices of bread toasted dark brown, but not burned.

Put in one quart of boiling water, cover, and strain when cold.

5. _Arrowroot Water._

Wet two teaspoons of arrowroot with a little cold water, and rub until smooth; then stir into one pint of boiling water and boil for five minutes, stirring all the while.

6. _Oatmeal Water._

One tablespoon of oatmeal to one pint of boiling water, cover and let simmer for one hour. Add water from time to time as it evaporates; strain.

7. _Rice Water._

One tablespoon of (washed) rice to one pint of water. Boil three hours adding water from time to time.

FRUIT JUICES

Fruit juices are exceedingly beneficial all through life; particularly is this true during early childhood when the little ones are so likely to be constipated. Any of the fruit juices are good, particularly the juices from oranges, raisins, prunes, apples, pears, and cranberries.

All these juices are better cooked than raw with the exception of orange juice. All children should have some fruit juice every day. For the very young baby the juices are strained through a wire strainer and a clean cheesecloth so as to remove every particle of solid matter, and there should be added an equal amount of cold, boiled water for the infant under ten months.

LEMONADE AND EGGNOGS

Lemonade, along with orangeade, grapefruitade and limeade should be used for children above a year. They should be well diluted and not too sweet.

Eggnogs are splendid for children who need to be helped along with their diet. They may be given at the close of the meal, never between meals--unless so prescribed by a physician. The stomach should have ample time to complete the work of digesting one meal before another partial meal is allowed to enter it. Eggnogs consist of a well-beaten egg into which there is placed a small amount of sugar, flavoring with either nutmeg, vanilla, or cinnamon, and the gla.s.s filled up with rich milk.

MILKSHAKE

Milkshake is a delightful drink. The white of an egg with one or two teaspoons of sugar, two tablespoons of chopped ice, flavoring, and one ounce of cream are briskly shaken in a milk-shaker for two minutes. Cold milk is added to fill the gla.s.s.

MEAT AND MEAT JUICES

Beef extracts are regarded by the medical profession as purely stimulants. Beef juice is practically without food value. In the preparation of beef juice the extractives and juices leave the fibre.

The food is in the fibre of the meat. The extractives are purely of a stimulating order. We do not advocate the giving of beef tea and beef juices to children; as a rule, we think that cereal, gruels, strained soups, and milk are preferable.

The only reason for cooking meats is to destroy the parasites such as tapeworm, trichina, etc., which are so often found in the meat. The cooking of meat decreases its digestibility, as raw meat is more easily digested than cooked meat, but we feel it is necessary to advocate the cooking of meat in order to kill the parasites.

CODDLED EGG

A fresh egg, sh.e.l.l on, is placed in boiling water which is immediately after removed from the fire. The egg then cooks slowly in the water, which gradually cools, for seven or eight minutes, when the white should be about the consistency of jelly. For a delicate digestion the white only should be given, with salt; it can be easily separated from the yolk. The above is the best form of egg for the young child. Later on the eggs may be soft boiled or poached, or even soft scrambled.

SOUPS

Two varieties of soups are given children. In the early months of childhood, from six years to eighteen months, the soups are usually strained, but after eighteen months, soups may be thickened with flour and rich milk making a cream soup of it. Most vegetables make good soups. The pulp from such vegetables as asparagus, carrots, beans, peas, tomatoes, and potatoes are made into cream soups by the addition of a little flour, rich milk, b.u.t.ter, and a dash of salt.

BREADS

New breads should never be given to a child. Only bread twenty-four hours old should ever be given to a child under six years; it should be cut into slices and allowed to dry out; and even then is better if slightly toasted. We publish a recipe for bran bread and bran biscuits which are exceedingly good for children and adults.

_Recipe for Bran Bread._ Two eggs, beaten separately; three-fourths of a cup of mola.s.ses, with one round teaspoon soda; one cup of sour cream; one cup of sultana seedless raisins; one cup of wheat flour, with one heaping teaspoon baking powder; two cups of bran; stir well and bake one hour.

_Bran Biscuits._ Mix one pint of bran, one-half pint of flour, and one level teaspoon of baking soda. Mix one-half pint of milk and four tablespoons of mola.s.ses. Add this to the bran mixture and bake in gem pans.