Maria Parloa

“ But, on the other hand, the city housekeeper has her advantages, such as the house fitted with all modern conveniences; stores and markets close at hand; and, if extra or heavy work is to be done, easy means of getting men and women to do it. The changing scenes in the city take woman out of herself and the narrowing cares of home life, and keep her interested and in touch with the world, thus making her duties less irksome than they might be in a regular and monotonous life. ”

“ In the matter of the duties of a servant each housekeeper must make her own laws, but the more servants there are, the more clearly must each one’s responsibility be defined, and the mistress will save herself an immense amount of annoyance if she will take pains to divide the work of the household with good judgment and with justice, not allowing any dictation in the matter. ”

“ If a housekeeper looks into her larder each morning, and avails herself of the opportunities she finds to make little dishes of the bits of food which she sees before her, the work of caring for the odds and ends may become a pleasure rather than a burden ”

“ Nothing else in the furnishing of the home has blended with it so many tender, loving thoughts, and to the woman of sentiment it is more sacred than almost any other household possession. Once acquired, this love for fine household linen will cling to a woman all her life. ”

“ WHEN a housekeeper understands just what to do, and can spend the time to go to the market herself, she will find that she can have a better table, with greater variety and at less expense, than when she orders from the provision man who comes to the house each day. It is true that there are a great many housekeepers who have neither time nor strength for daily or even weekly visits to the markets, but the average housekeeper has the time, and she will find that in the end it will add to her mental and physical health, as well as to the attractiveness of her table. ”

“ The young housekeeper should bear in mind that, while it is essential that the home should be clean and orderly, and the food well cooked and regularly served, this does not make the home. One can get all these comforts in a well conducted hotel or boarding-house, but the man or woman is to be pitied who has no higher ideal of a home than what is furnished by a hotel or boarding-house, no matter how sumptuous. A selfish woman can make a good housekeeper, so far as the keeping of the house in perfect running order is concerned, but it is difficult for a selfish or lazy woman to make a home. ”

“ The woman of limited means who does her own work could not serve her meals the same as one who keeps one or more servants. As far as possible she will so arrange her meals that it shall not be necessary to rise from the table more than once or twice. Indeed, it is possible to have everything on the table for breakfast, tea, or luncheon, but at dinner time the meat, vegetables, and soiled plates should be removed before the dessert is put on. No woman, no matter how simply she lives, should get into a slipshod way of serving her meals. ”

“ Sugar helps to preserve the fruit, but it is not absolutely essential to its preservation. Sugar, however, preserves the fine flavor and color of the fruit. Some fruits are not good when canned, unless a great deal of sugar be used, whereas just the contrary is true of other kinds. Tastes differ as to the amount of sugar to be employed; each housekeeper must study her own tastes and those of her family. Blueberries need no sugar, but are richer if a little be used. Blackberries and raspberries are better for some sugar,—say a pound of sugar to four or six pounds of fruit. ”

“ It does, however, often happen that a woman with a limited purse, and a thousand calls upon it, makes the mistake of buying table linen of too inferior a grade. It is not economy to purchase a mixture of cotton and linen. Better a coarse all-linen table cloth than a fine one with part cotton, which may look attractive in the store, but cannot be laundered well, whereas the pure linen will improve with age and wear. In purchasing table linen the questions that the housekeeper should ask herself are: Will it be subject to hard wear, and be laundered by inexperienced hands? ”

“ In buying meats, if the family be small, it is wiser to get only the parts actually wanted than to buy large pieces, simply because they are cheaper by the pound. When planning to cook a large piece of meat or fish, its adaptability to being made over into various little dishes should be considered. Pork is the least desirable of the fresh meats for such purposes. For warming over in various ways the following-named meats are the most valuable: poultry, veal, lamb, mutton, and beef. ”

“ If there be a waitress, she passes the plates when they are ready; also the bread, butter, and coffee. The hostess usually puts the sugar and cream in the coffee, first asking each one if he will have these additions. After all have been served, it is quite common to dismiss the waitress, ringing for her if her services be again required. When there is but one servant, the family help each other after the breakfast has been placed upon the table. Fresh water is good for most people, and each person should be served with a tumblerful on taking a seat at the table. ”

“ We know that, when the germs are killed and the air is excluded, sugar is not necessary for the preservation of the fruit. But there are few kinds of fruit that are not improved by some sugar, because it fixes the color and flavor, and gives much finer results. Some kinds of fruit require but little sugar for this purpose, while others are poor indeed without a generous amount. One has only to contrast the flavor and quality of the canned peaches that are put up with and without sugar to realize the great superiority of those with which saccharine matter has been used. ”

“ When one buys flour in small quantities there will always be an uncertainty as to how it will work until after the first time it is used. Even in small families it is better to get flour by the barrel, as it improves with age. Another thing for the housekeeper to remember is that the whitest flour is not the most nutritious. What is called first-quality flour does not contain nearly so large a quantity of the best elements of the wheat as the second quality, which is much darker, but gives a sweeter and more nutritious loaf. ”

“ ONE of the first things a young housekeeper must master is the science of managing fires. Now, a coal fire is like some people: it will stand a certain amount of nagging, pressure, and neglect, but it will make you suffer in some way for all your abuse. On the other hand, with uniformly fair treatment, it will repay a hundred-fold in comfort.
The demands upon the kitchen fire are varied. Sometimes we want a very hot oven or surface, and again we must have only a moderate amount of heat. ”

“ Breakfast being the plainest meal of the day, the arrangement of the table should always be simple. The cloth should be spotless. At each person’s seat place a knife, fork, teaspoon or dessert spoon, tumbler, and napkin, and if fresh fruit is to be served, a finger bowl, if there be no servant. If you have a waitress, she will place the finger bowls on as you finish with the fruit. If fresh fruit be served, there must also be placed at each seat a fruit knife and plate. Have the dish of fruit in the centre of the table. ”

“ Fresh fish should always be put on to cook in salted boiling water. A little lemon juice or vinegar in the water makes the flesh of the fish firmer and improves the flavor. For some tastes the flavor is improved still more by putting in the water, tied in a piece of cheese-cloth, a few spoonfuls of minced onion, carrot, and celery, two bay leaves, a sprig each of thyme, parsley, and summer savory, a small bit of cinnamon, and two whole cloves. There should be only water enough to cover the fish. If there be a fish-kettle with a tray, lay the fish in the tray and do not wrap it in a cloth. ”

“ Going to market has not been all prose to that poor woman, although she had to calculate very 70closely in her purchases for her table; for has she not had the sight and odor of the plants and green vegetables, and did not their beauty and freshness fill her mind with visions of a beautiful and fragrant country? What a pity there are not such markets in all our cities! ”

“ Any kind of meat can be used to make a meat-and-potato hash; but, of course, nothing is so good as corned beef. Cold roast, boiled, or broiled beef, mutton, lamb, veal, or tongue can be freed from skin, fat, and bones, seasoned highly with salt and pepper, and cooked like corned beef hash. Even two or three kinds of meat can be used. If it happens that you have a bit of steak, a part of a chop, and perhaps a slice of tongue, use them all. ”

“ Many people prefer to dip the slice of fish in olive oil rather than butter. If the oil be used it must not be heated, and it is well to apply it to the fish an hour or more before the cooking.
Various sauces are often served with broiled fish, but there is nothing better than sweet butter, salt, pepper, a little lemon juice, and perhaps a little chopped parsley; or, the lemon juice may be omitted and a fresh lemon be cut into six parts as a garnish for the dish. Each person can then use as much of the acid as pleases him. ”

“ There are essentials which every one recognizes, but there are many things which one housekeeper considers of the greatest importance, whereas another may think the same things of minor consequence or of no consequence whatever. It is a sad fact that some good housekeepers are not good home-makers. ”

“ They will find that it is not necessary to have an immense income in order to live well. Strict adherence to careful instructions will, with a little good sense thrown in, enable a young housekeeper to accomplish wonders. She can practise economy and at the same time have a table that is attractively and wholesomely spread,—something for which most housekeepers strive without knowing the best way to reach the goal. ”

“ The women of these nationalities have stalls where they sell eggs, butter, cheese, poultry, fruit, vegetables, and flowers,—the product of their own and neighbors’ farms. Nothing can be brighter or more picturesque than are such markets in the spring, summer, and fall, when flowers and vegetables are in abundance. Even the poor laborer’s wife takes home her little growing plant, or a bunch of fresh flowers. ”

“ Peas, asparagus, potatoes, and all delicately flavored vegetables should be only covered with water, but those with a strong flavor, like carrots, turnips, cabbage, onions, and dandelions, should be cooked in a generous quantity of boiling water. All green vegetables should be cooked with the cover partially off the stewpan. It gives them a better color and a more delicate flavor.
The average housekeeper is careless as to the time of cooking vegetables, yet a vegetable is as much injured by too much or too little cooking as is a loaf of bread or cake. ”

“ Steaks and chops which, before cooking, are dredged lightly with salt, pepper, and flour, will be much richer than those cooked without any seasoning. Both steaks and chops should be served the minute they come from the fire. Season them with salt and butter. Never put them in the oven for the purpose of melting the butter. It spoils the dish. If a steak or chop must wait a little time before it is served, keep it warm, but do not add the butter until serving time.
To Broil in a Frying-pan. It sometimes happens that one has no means of broiling over coals or under heat. ”

“ All the food prepared for the sick should be of the best quality, and cooked in the simplest and most careful manner. The service should be the daintiest the house affords. Let the tray be covered with a clean, well-ironed napkin, and the china, glass, and silver be clean and bright. Tea, coffee, or chocolate should be taken to the sick-room in a small pot and poured in the presence of the patient. Have the cream and sugar in a small pitcher and bowl. Serve broth or soup in a dainty bouillon cup or a pretty little bowl. ”

“ The meat should cook in all one hour if wanted rather rare. When the beef is done, take it up and place it on a warm dish. Pour all the fat from the dripping-pan, and, after setting the pan on the range, pour into it half a pint of boiling water. Scrape all the brown sediment from the sides and bottom of the pan. Mix one teaspoonful of flour with three tablespoonfuls of cold water, and gradually pour this mixture into the dripping-pan, stirring all the while. It may not take all the mixture of flour and water to thicken the gravy. Stop when the gravy is about as thick as cream. ”

“ They may be kept in brine for a week or two and then boiled, the same as beef tongue; or they may be boiled while fresh. They make an attractive dish when served in jelly, or they may be braised, and served with vegetables à la jardinière, making an elegant as well as an economical dish. Sheep and lambs’ kidneys are delicious when broiled, stewed, or sautéd. They are always cheap. Perhaps you may see a piece of honeycomb tripe which would make a pleasing dish for breakfast. The liver of nearly all animals is used, but beef, calves, and pigs’ livers are the most common. ”

“ All kinds of cooked food, particularly the animal foods, spoil quickly when covered closely while still warm. All soups, meat, fish, bread, etc., that are to be kept for many days or hours, should be cooled thoroughly and quickly in a current of cold air. In hot weather it is a good plan, when cooling soups, milk, or any liquid mass, to place the vessel containing the food in another of cold water,—with ice, if convenient,—and set it in a cool draught. ”

“ A young woman who would create an ideal home must possess some judgment, and a heart in which charity and sympathy have a large place.
2My idea of good housekeeping is where a woman keeps her home sweet and orderly; provides simple, well cooked food; makes her home so restful and cheerful that all who come into it shall be better for breathing the atmosphere of kindness and cheerfulness that pervades the place ”

“ One of the principal recommendations which each manufacturer claims for his product is that it can be cooked in a short time. Many good articles that are prepared for the table by the printed directions on the package, calling for about ten minutes’ cooking, are discarded because of unsatisfactory results, whereas if the cooking were continued for half an hour or more the dish would be delicious. It must be remembered that all cereals require thorough cooking, because of the starch in them. No matter what the cereal product may be, it should be cooked not less than half an hour. ”