Fannie Farmer

“ The chief office of the carbohydrates is to furnish energy and maintain heat. They contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, and include foods containing starch and sugar. Examples: vegetables, fruits, cereals, sugars, and gums.
The chief office of fats and oils is to furnish energy and heat. Examples: butter, cream, fat of meat, fish, cereals, nuts, and the berry of the olive-tree. Fats and carbohydrates are stored as the adipose tissues of the body.
The chief office of mineral matter is to furnish the necessary salts which are found in all animal and vegetable foods. ”

“ Allow one-half cup sugar and one-fourth teaspoon cinnamon or nutmeg to eight apples. If nutmeg is used, a few drops lemon juice and few gratings from rind of lemon to each apple is an improvement. Cover bottom of dish with boiling water, and bake in a hot oven until soft, basting often with syrup in dish. Serve hot or cold with cream. Many prefer to pare apples before baking. When this is done, core before paring, that fruit may keep in shape. In the fall, when apples are at their best, do not add spices to apples, as their flavor cannot be improved ”

“ DRYING is one of the simplest and cheapest ways of preserving fruits and vegetables for future use. Food may be dried by the sun or by artificial heat. If dried in the sun, protection from dust must be given, and food must be put under cover in the evening before the dew falls. Spread the prepared fruit or vegetable on frames covered with coarse wire netting or cheese-cloth and put in the sun for successive days until the product is sufficiently dried. Artificial drying is quicker and cleaner than sun drying, especially in moderate and cold climates. ”

“ Although tea is not a substitute for food, it appears so for a considerable period of time, as its stimulating effect is immediate. It is certain that less food is required where much tea is taken, for by its use there is less wear of the tissues, consequently need of repair. When taken to excess, it so acts on the nervous system as to produce sleeplessness or insomnia, and finally makes a complete wreck of its victim. Taken in moderation, it acts as a mild stimulant, and ingests a considerable amount of water into the system; it heats the body in winter, and cools the body in summer. ”

“ They are now made in an endless variety of ways, and are composed of meat, fish, vegetables (alone or in combination) or fruits, with the addition of a dressing. The salad plants, lettuce, watercress, chiccory, cucumbers, etc., contain but little nutriment, but are cooling, refreshing, and assist in stimulating the appetite. They are valuable for the water and potash salts they contain. The olive oil, which usually forms the largest part of the dressing, furnishes nutriment, and is of much value to the system.
Salads made of greens should always be served crisp and cold. ”

“ Bread is made from flour of wheat, or other cereals, by addition of water, salt, and a ferment. Wheat flour is best adapted for bread making, as it contains gluten in the right proportion to make the spongy loaf. But for its slight deficiency in fat, wheat bread is a perfect food; hence arose the custom of spreading it with butter. It should be remembered, in speaking of wheat bread as perfect food, that it must be made of flour rich in gluten. Next to wheat flour ranks rye in importance for bread making ”

“ When coal is not used, or a fire is not in condition for broiling, a plan for pan broiling has been adopted. This is done by placing food to be cooked in a hissing hot frying-pan, turning often as in broiling.
Roasting is cooking before a clear fire, with a reflector to concentrate the heat. Heat is applied in the same way as for broiling, the difference being that the meat for roasting is placed on a spit and allowed to revolve, thicker pieces alway being employed. Tin-kitchens are now but seldom used. Meats cooked in a range oven, though really baked, are said to be roasted. ”

“ Cooking utensils commonly used permit the escape of watery vapor and steam; thereby much heat is lost if food is cooked in rapidly boiling water.
Water is boiled for two purposes: first, cooking of itself to destroy organic impurities; second, for cooking foods. Boiling water toughens and hardens albumen in eggs; toughens fibrin and dissolves tissues in meat; bursts starch-grains and softens cellulose in cereals and vegetables. Milk should never be allowed to boil. At boiling temperature (214° F.) the casein is slightly hardened, and the fat is rendered more difficult of digestion. ”

“ When baking cake arrange to have nothing else in the oven, and place loaf or loaves as near the centre of oven as possible. If placed close to fire box, one side of loaf is apt to become burned before sufficiently risen to turn. If cake is put in too slow an oven, it often rises over sides of pan and is of very coarse texture; if put in too hot an oven, it browns on top before sufficiently risen, and in its attempt to rise breaks through the crust, thus making an unsightly loaf. Cake will also crack on top if too much flour has been used. ”

“ Pork contains the largest percentage of fat of any meat. When eaten fresh it is the most difficult of digestion, and although found in market through the entire year, it should be but seldom served, and then only during the winter months. By curing, salting, and smoking, pork is rendered more wholesome. Bacon, next to butter and cream, is the most easily assimilated of all fatty foods.
Pork Chops Wipe chops, sprinkle with salt and pepper, place in a hot frying-pan, and cook slowly until tender, and well browned on each side. ”

“ Milk should constitute the principal protein food of children. It is rich in calcium (which is necessary for the building of bones) and vitamines (growth-promoting substances) . Adults as well as children should be furnished a liberal milk supply. A quart for each child and a pint for each adult, daily, is a desirable allowance. Hot milk is often given to produce sleep.
When milk is allowed to stand for a few hours, the globules of fat, which have been held in suspension throughout the liquid, rise to the top in the form of cream ”

“ Fermentation is the process by which, under influence of air, warmth, moisture, and some ferment, sugar (or dextrose, starch converted into sugar) is changed into alcohol (C2H5HO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) . The product of all fermentation is the same. Three kinds are considered,—alcoholic, acetic, and lactic. Where bread dough is allowed to ferment by addition of yeast, the fermentation is alcoholic; where alcoholic fermentation continues too long, acetic fermentation sets in, which is a continuation of alcoholic. Lactic fermentation is fermentation which takes place when milk sours. ”

“ It is well worth remembering that a sauce of average thickness is made by allowing two tablespoons each of butter and flour to one cup liquid, whether it be milk, stock, or tomato. For Brown Sauce a slightly larger quantity of flour is necessary, as by browning flour its thickening property is lessened, its starch being changed to dextrine. When sauces are set away, put a few bits of butter on top to prevent crust from forming. ”

“ From this it may be seen that eggs, at even twenty-five cents per dozen, should not be freely used by the strict economist. Eggs being rich in proteid serve as a valuable substitute for meat. In most families, their use in the making of cake, custard, puddings, etc., renders them almost indispensable. It is surprising how many intelligent women, who look well to the affairs of the kitchen, are satisfied to use what are termed “cooking eggs”; this shows poor judgment from an economical standpoint. Strictly fresh eggs should always be used if obtainable. ”

“ These seasonings, with the addition of salt, pepper, and parsley, are the essential flavorings for stock soups. Flour, cornstarch, arrowroot, fine tapioca, sago, pearl barley, rice, bread, or eggs are added to give consistency and nourishment.
In small families, where there are few left-overs, fresh meat must be bought for the making of soup stock, as a good soup cannot be made from a small amount of poor material. On the other hand, large families need seldom buy fresh meat, provided all left-overs are properly cared for. ”

“ Four hundred and fifty pounds is good market weight for a side of beef.
The most expensive cuts come from that part of the creature where muscles are but little used, which makes the meat finer-grained and consequently more tender, taking less time for cooking. Many of the cheapest cuts, though equally nutritious, need long, slow cooking to render them tender enough to digest easily. Tough meat which has long and coarse fibres is often found to be very juicy, on account of the greater motion of that part of the creature, which causes the juices to flow freely. ”

“ Pectose exists in the fleshy pulp of unripe fruit; during the process of ripening it changes to pectin; by cooking, pectin is changed to pectosic acid, and by longer cooking to pectic acid. Pectosic acid is jelly-like when cold; pectic acid is jelly-like when hot or cold. Cellulose constitutes the cell-walls of vegetable life; in very young vegetables it is possible that it can be acted upon by the digestive ferments; in older vegetables it becomes woody and completely indigestible. ”

“ If allowed to remain, when straining, a large part will pass through strainer. Vegetables, spices, and salt should be added the last hour of cooking. Strain and cool quickly; by so doing, stock is less apt to ferment. A knuckle of veal is often used for making white soup stock. Fowl should be used for stock in preference to chicken, as it is cheaper, and contains a larger amount of nutriment. A cake of fat forms on stock when cold, which excludes air, and should not be removed until stock is used. To remove fat, run a knife around edge of bowl and carefully remove the same. ”

“ Put fat, bone, and remaining lean meat in soup kettle; cover with cold water, allowing one pint to each pound of meat, bone, and fat. Let stand one hour, that cold water may draw out juices from meat. Add browned meat, taking water from soup kettle to rinse out frying-pan, that none of the coloring may be lost. Heat gradually to boiling-point, and cook six or seven hours at low temperature. A scum will rise on the top, which contains coagulated albuminous juices; these give to soup its chief nutritive value; many, however, prefer a clear soup, and have them removed. ”

“ Birds in Aspic Clean, bone, stuff, and truss a bird, then steam over body bones or roast. If roasted, do not dredge with flour. Put a pan in ice-water, cover bottom with aspic jelly mixture, and when firm garnish with truffles and egg custard thinly sliced and cut in fancy shapes. The smaller the shapes the more elaborate may be the designs. When garnishing the small shapes, pieces are so difficult to handle that they should be taken on the pointed end of a larding-needle, and placed as desired on jelly. Add aspic mixture by spoonfuls, that designs may not be disturbed. ”

“ Wipe meat with clean cheesecloth wrung out of cold water. Cut lean meat in one-inch cubes; by so doing, a large amount of surface is exposed to the water, and juices are more easily drawn out. Heat frying-pan hissing hot; remove marrow from marrow-bone, and use enough to brown one-third of the lean meat, stirring constantly, that all parts of surface may be seared, thus preventing escape of juices,—sacrificing a certain amount of goodness in the stock to give additional color and flavor, which is obtained by caramelization. ”

“ Kiln-dried sweet potatoes are the best, as they do not so quickly spoil.
Baked Potatoes Select smooth, medium-sized potatoes. Wash, using a vegetable brush, and place in dripping-pan. Bake in hot oven forty minutes or until soft, remove from oven, and serve at once. If allowed to stand, unless the skin is ruptured for escape of steam, they become soggy. Properly baked potatoes are more easily digested than potatoes cooked in any other way, as some of the starch is changed to dextrin by the intense heat. They are better cooked in boiling water than baked in a slow oven. ”

“ Many people who abstain from the use of tea and coffee find cocoa indispensable. Not only is it valuable for its own nutriment, but for the large amount of milk added to it. Cocoa may be well placed in the dietary of a child after his third year, while chocolate should be avoided as a beverage, but may be given as a confection. Invalids and those of weak digestion can take cocoa where chocolate would prove too rich. ”