PREFACE One of the beneficial results of the Great War has been the teaching of thrift to the American housewife. For patriotic reasons and for reasons of economy, more attention has been bestowed upon the preparing and cooking of food that is to be at once palatable, nourishing and economical. In the Italian cuisine we find in the highest degree these three qualities. That it is palatable, all those... more...

ENGLISH HOUSEWIFRY. 1. To make VERMICELLY SOOP. Take a neck of beef, or any other piece; cut off some slices, and fry them with butter 'till they are very brown; wash your pan out every time with a little of the gravy; you may broil a few slices of the beef upon a grid-iron: put all together into a pot, with a large onion, a little salt, and a little whole pepper; let it stew 'till the meat... more...

Preface Montaigne in one of his essays* mentions the high excellence Italian cookery had attained in his day. "I have entered into this Discourse upon the Occasion of an Italian I lately receiv'd into my Service, and who was Clerk of the Kitchen to the late Cardinal Caraffa till his Death. I put this Fellow upon an Account of his office: Where he fell to Discourse of this Palate-Science, with... more...

PREFACE. Kind Reader, In attempting the life of my late brother, who, after struggling for years at the bar in almost obscurity, had, on a sudden, his brilliancy noticed and his great talents acknowledged, and no sooner had he reached that eminence in his profession, when all was made easy before him, than unpitying Clolho stept up, and cut his thread of life; I must ask your indulgence, for the... more...

THE Queen-like CLOSET, OR Rich Cabinet. 1. To make Aqua Mirabilis a very delicate way. Take three Pints of Sack, three Pints of White Wine, one quart of the Spirit of Wine, one quart of the juice of Celandine leaves, of Melilot-flowers, Cardamum-seeds, Cubebs, Galingale, Nutmegs, Cloves, Mace, Ginger, two Drams of each; bruise them, and mix them with the Wine and Spirits, let it stand all night in the... more...

THE BUGBEAR OF AMERICAN COOKERY—MONOTONY It is as strange as it is true that with the supplies that have lately proved sufficient to feed a world to draw upon the chief trouble with American cookery is its monotony. The American cook has a wider variety of foods at his command than any other in the world, yet in the average home how rarely is it that the palate is surprised with a flavor that... more...

PREFACE. Among the multitudes of causes which concur to impair health and produce disease, the most general is the improper quality of our food: this most frequently arises from the injudicious manner in which it is prepared: yet strange, “passing strange,” this is the only one for which a remedy has not been sought; few persons bestow half so much attention on the preservation of their own health,... more...

Grace before Meat"Let me cook the dinners of a nation, and I shall not care who makes its laws." Women, if they did but know it, might well thus paraphrase a famous saying. Proper dinners mean so much—good blood, good health, good judgment, good conduct. The fact makes tragic a truth too little regarded; namely, that while bad cooking can ruin the very best of raw foodstuffs, all the arts of... more...

COOKED FISH Canapés Cold boiled fish makes excellent canapés. To each half pint of fish allow six squares of toasted bread. If you have any cold boiled potatoes left over, add milk to them, make them hot and put them into a pastry bag. Decorate the edge of the toast with these mashed potatoes, using a small star tube; put them back in the oven until light brown. Make the fish into a creamed fish. Rub... more...

MARKETING. Upon the amount of practical knowledge of marketing that the housekeeper has, the comfort and expense of the family are in a great measure dependent; therefore, every head of a household should acquire as much of this knowledge as is practicable, and the best way is to go into the market. Then such information as is gained by reading becomes of real value. Many think the market not a... more...