Susanna Shanklin Browne

“ Break the egg into a mixing-bowl, beat it, and remove half of it (about 2 tablespoons) , stirring the milk with what remains in the bowl. Measure the flour, baking-powder, and salt into the sifter, and sift into the milk and egg, stirring well. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add it to the batter, and beat thoroughly. Set the griddle or frying-pan over the fire, and when it is very hot rub it with the salt pork. Pour the batter on the griddle or frying-pan by the tablespoonful, letting each spoonful spread as much as it will before adding another, and keeping them well separated. ”

“ When nothing is left in the shell but the yolk, this should then be put into another bowl. If the white is beaten first, it will not be necessary to wash the beater before beating the yolk.
When frying anything in "deep fat," from two to three pounds of fat should be used, and the kettle containing the fat should be set over a slow fire at least ten minutes before the frying process begins. The fat must be carefully watched and handled, as a serious accident can easily be caused by its spilling or catching fire. It should never be smoking hot for cooking ”

“ Beef, mutton, and lamb should roast in a moderate oven fifteen minutes for every pound of meat in the roast. Veal and pork should roast in a slow oven thirty minutes for each pound.
If a self-basting pan is used for roasting, the cover should be fitted tightly over the lower part of the pan after the cold water has been poured over the roast, and then need not be removed during the cooking.
Peeled potatoes, boiled for ten minutes, may be put in the pan with the roast during the last three-quarters of an hour that it is in the oven, and then served on the same platter with the roast. ”

“ In preparing and arranging each recipe, I have tried to keep continually in mind the person who has never before cooked anything, and who is as entirely dependent upon not only what I tell, but how I tell it, as one would be in attempting to concoct a chemical formula upon one's first visit to a laboratory. ”

“ A jar or bowl in which to pour all fat and drippings left from cooking meat, especially bacon and other forms of pork, should be kept conveniently at hand. This fat may be used for frying eggs, potatoes, etc., and may also be used instead of butter in making muffins and in greasing muffin-pans.
Bits of stale bread and crackers should always be saved, and from time to time rolled out on a bread-board into crumbs. ”

“ Place slices of salt pork on the bottom of a baking-pan, and lay the fish on these slices. Sprinkle the fish with salt, pepper, flour, and bread crumbs, and lay two slices of salt pork on the top of the fish. Pour one cup of hot water in the pan around the fish, and place the pan in a moderately hot oven. Cook fifteen minutes to each pound of fish, basting often. ”

“ A glance through these pages will show that they are confined to the simpler every-day dishes that make up the staple menu of the average American family. In cookery, as in other things, one should begin at the beginning and serve one's apprenticeship before passing on to the more complex mysteries of the craft. ”

“ Run the pancake-turner beneath each cake once or twice while it is cooking; and when it has slightly browned on the bottom, turn it over and allow the other side to brown. Grease the griddle or frying-pan often between the various relays of cakes. ”

“ Then set out the various utensils called for in the recipe to be followed, and see that you have conveniently at hand all the materials that will be required. In turning to the shelves or cupboard for small amounts of staple materials—sugar, flour, salt, etc.—place the receptacles back immediately where they came from after the material needed for the recipe has been taken out. Do not confuse and hinder your operations by having the work-table strewn with cans and jars and dishes that properly belong upon the shelves. Have a place for everything, and keep everything in its place. ”

“ Pour over this from 1⁄2 to a full cup of sugar, into which one tablespoon of flour has been mixed. The amount of sugar will depend upon the relative sweetness of the fruit used. In the case of apple pie, the flour should be omitted, but the pie should be flavored with 1⁄2 teaspoon of spice or 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Any fruit or berry pie may be made richer by putting a few bits of butter on top of the filling before the top crust is placed over it. ”

“ It only remains to add in this place that, as the beginner in cookery is usually the feminine half of a recently arranged matrimonial partnership, the recipes in this book are in nearly all cases designed to serve two persons only. If a larger family must be provided for, the amount of materials called for in any recipe should, of course, be increased in direct proportion to the additional number of persons in the family. ”

“ Measure everything in these utensils, and in these only.
Level measurements are called for in all the recipes in this book. Every reference to a "cup" of material means a level cupful; every reference to a "spoon" means a level spoonful. Fill the cup or spoon with the material to be measured, then with a palette or other straight-edged knife scrape off all the material that is not actually contained in the cup or in the bowl of the spoon. ”

“ Use 2 tablespoons of finely ground coffee to each cup of water. If an ordinary coffee-pot is used instead of a percolator, mix a little beaten egg with the ground coffee before it is put into the pot. ”

“ Combinations of fruits are often served, and occasionally fruit and uncooked vegetables are combined. Apples, celery, and nuts are frequently served together; and oranges and celery are sometimes combined. A bed of lettuce leaves is nearly always used for fruit salads.
MEAT AND FISH SALADS
Cold cooked fowl of any kind, and cold roast veal, pork, or ham, when used for salads, should be cut or chopped into small pieces or cubes. Chopped celery should be added to the meat in the proportion of one part celery to two parts meat ”

“ Drain through a colander, and either mash the pieces or serve them as they are.
SEASONING VEGETABLES
In general, any cooked vegetable may be properly seasoned by adding 1 tablespoon of butter, 1⁄2 teaspoon of salt, and 1⁄8 teaspoon of pepper for each cup of vegetable.
CREAMING VEGETABLES
Boiled onions, carrots, cauliflower, peas, beans, potatoes, etc., may be creamed by adding White Sauce No. 2 (page 150) , in the proportion of 1⁄2 cup of White Sauce to 1 cup of vegetable. After mixing the vegetable and the White Sauce, they should be heated slowly to the boiling-point before serving. ”