to preserve the color. Weigh the fruit and allow three-fourths as much
sugar. Cook the quinces gently in boiling water until soft, skim out
the fruit, add the sugar to this water, skim well and boil till clear.
Return the quinces to the syrup till heated through, drain and put into
jars. Boil the syrup ten minutes longer, strain it into the jars, fill
to overflowing, and seal as usual.
CANNED VEGETABLES
Some housewives hold that when canned vegetables may be bought for the
low price at which they now stand, it is mistaken economy to attempt
to “put up” such articles at home. But there are two sides to this
question. In the first place there are small country places where it
is next to impossible to buy many kinds of canned vegetables, and the
dwellers in such localities must, of necessity, do their own canning.
A still greater consideration is the fact that vegetables preserved
in tin cans are not as delicate in flavor as those put up in glass.
Imported peas, beans, etc., may be purchased in glass jars, but these
are so expensive as to be beyond the reach of the economical housewife.
Let her then supply herself with a number of wide-mouthed glass jars
with properly fitting rubber rings and tops, and she may snap her
fingers at importers and domestic grocers.
Tomatoes, canned whole (No. 1)
This is a delicate process, but the result amply repays one for her
pains.
Stew small tomatoes tender and squeeze from them every drop of juice.
Strain this juice through a flannel jelly-bag, without squeezing the
bag. Season, and set aside until needed. With a thin-bladed, sharp
knife remove the cores from the center of large, firm, smooth tomatoes.
Lay the tomatoes, side by side, in a deep bake-pan, and pour cold water
around them until it covers them entirely. Set in a moderate oven where
the contents will heat gradually, and cover closely. When the water
begins to boil, the pan may be removed, and the tomatoes carefully
taken up. Put them very gently into large-mouthed quart jars. Bring
the strained juice to a boil, skim well, fill the jars to overflowing
with this, and screw on the tops.
These tomatoes may be stuffed and baked in the winter, and will be
found to be as fine in flavor as the fresh vegetables. Tiny “egg
tomatoes” may be canned in the same way, without removing the cores,
and form a dainty garnish for such dishes as beef _à la jardinière_.
Tomatoes, canned whole (No. 2)
Select firm, ripe tomatoes; immerse in boiling water for a few minutes
and slip off the skins. Have ready a large kettle of boiling water.
Into this put enough tomatoes to fill just one jar. It takes about six
tomatoes to fill a jar. Cover and allow them to remain eight minutes.
Pack into a hot jar, fill up with boiling water and seal at once. They
keep well and taste almost like fresh ones.
Canned stewed tomatoes
Scald the tomatoes and remove the skins, laying the vegetables in a
colander, that the juice may drip away. Put into a porcelain-lined
kettle and bring to a boil. Stew for fifteen minutes, pour off
any superfluous liquor, season with salt, and pour the tomatoes,
boiling-hot, into the cans. Seal immediately.
Canned corn
One of the most difficult vegetables to can is sweet corn, and I
would advise the housewife not to run the risk of throwing time and
labor away upon the attempt to preserve this vegetable. I, myself,
have observed the utmost care in canning corn, only to find, after
the lapse of a few weeks, that the vegetable had begun to ferment and
was uneatable. It may, however, be safely canned with tomatoes, and
thus prepared, makes a delicious scallop and a pleasant addition to
vegetable soups and to stews.
Canned corn and tomatoes
Boil two dozen ears of ripe corn until the kernels are tender. Remove
from the fire and, while still hot, cut the corn from the cob with a
short knife. Peel two dozen ripe tomatoes, and chop into small bits.
Mix the corn and tomatoes together, salt to taste, and put over the
fire in a porcelain-lined kettle. Bring to a hard boil, cook for a
minute and pour at once into quart jars. Seal immediately.
Potted corn
Boil the ears of corn for ten minutes after the boil begins. Remove
from the water and cut all the kernels from the cobs. Put a layer of
the corn in the bottom of a jar, and cover thickly with a layer of
salt. Put in another stratum of corn, then more salt, until the jar is
full—having the top layer of salt. Pour over all melted lard, and when
this is cool, cover closely with paraffin-paper fitted over the top of
the jar. Keep in a cool room until wanted. This corn must be soaked for
six or eight hours before using. It will then be fresh and sweet.
Canned asparagus
Into an asparagus boiler put salted water, and when it boils hard lay
the asparagus in it. Boil until tender, but not broken and soft. Lift
out carefully, stand on end (with the tops up) in fruit-jars, fill
the jars to overflowing with the boiling water, and seal immediately.
Be sure that tops and rubbers are in good condition, and keep this
delicate vegetable in a cool, dark, dry place.
Canned beets (No. 1)
Take early beets that have grown quickly, cook and peel as for
immediate use, slice and pack in fruit jars. Be sure that rubbers
and tops are in excellent order. Boil good cider vinegar that is not
too strong, adding pepper and salt to taste, and a tablespoonful of
sugar. While boiling, pour over the packed beets in the jars, fill to
overflowing, and immediately screw down the tops tight. Wrap in brown
paper and put in a very dark place. They keep well, and are superior to
beets bought later in the season.
Canned beets (No. 2)
Prepare the beets as for immediate use. Leave on two or three inches
of top to prevent bleeding; also be very careful not to cut or break
the skin. Boil, and when done (which should be done in one-half or
three-quarters of an hour) pour off the hot water, and replace with
cold. Let the beets cool in the water, so that you can handle them.
While the beets are cooling, put into an agate or porcelain kettle
enough vinegar for the quantity that you are preparing. Add two cupfuls
of granulated sugar to a quart of the vinegar, with pepper and salt to
taste. Slice the cool beets, put them into the hot vinegar, let them
remain on the fire until heated through, then put into air-tight jars.
Canned string beans
Remove all the strings from both sides of the beans. Cut the beans
into inch lengths and cover with water. Boil until tender, but not
soft. Season with salt and pepper. Take the beans from the pot with a
perforated spoon, and put them in jars standing in a pan of hot water.
Boil up and skim the liquor remaining in the kettle, and fill the jars
to the brims with this. Seal at once.
Canned lima beans
Shell, cook for fifteen minutes in boiling water slightly salted. Then
proceed as with string beans.
“HANDY” HOUSEHOLD HINTS
Southern recipe for whitewash
Boil one pound of rice in five gallons of water until soft and broken.
Strain and rub the rice through a colander back into the water, and
while it is still boiling stir into it one peck of best lime, with a
pound of salt. Boil up once and apply hot.
It makes a glossy and durable covering for wood and walls.
How to clean kid gloves
Lay them upon a folded towel and pull straight. Have ready several
pieces of fine, soft old flannel. Dip one in skim-milk, rub upon
sweet soap—or old castile—and wash the gloves, working toward the
finger-tips. As soon as the flannel becomes soiled, throw it into warm
water and soak, and take a clean bit. Go all over both sides of each
glove in this way until the flannel brings away no more dirt. Wash off
with clean flannel wrung out in the milk with no soap. Lay between the
folds of a clean towel and leave until next day. The gloves will look
unsightly enough, but put them on your hands and they will resume their
original color, and, if the work has been done well, will look almost
like new.
A rose jar (potpourri)
Gather rose petals when the roses are in their richest bloom, but not
when the dew is on them, and pack in a jar in layers two inches deep,
sprinkling about two tablespoonfuls of fine, dry salt upon each layer.
Continue this until the jar is full, adding fresh petals and salt
daily. Keep in a dark, dry cool place. A week after the last relay is
gathered turn out the salted petals upon a broad platter, mix and toss
together until the mass is loosened. Then incorporate thoroughly with
the formula given below; pack in a clean jar, cover lightly and set
away to “ripen.” It will be ready for rose jars, etc., in a fortnight,
and, if kept covered, will be good and fragrant for twenty years.
Formula—Violet powder, one-half ounce; orris root, one ounce; rose
powder, one-half ounce; heliotrope powder, one-half ounce; mace,
one-half teaspoonful; cinnamon, one-quarter teaspoonful; cloves,
one-half teaspoonful; oil of roses, four drops; oil chiris, ten drops;
oil melissne, twenty drops; oil eucalyptus, twenty drops; bergamot, ten
drops; alcohol, two drachms.
A rose pillow
If you wish to fill a pillow with rose leaves alone, spread the petals
in the shade, but on a sunny day, and dry thoroughly before stuffing
the pillow. Then scatter a tablespoonful of powdered orris root among
them, and sprinkle with ten drops of _real_ attar of roses. The
inferior qualities will not hold the fragrance. Make the inner cover
of glazed cambric, the outer of silk or satin, decorated to suit your
fancy.
Heat marks on tables
Hot plates frequently disfigure tables by leaving on them a cloudy,
white stain. This could be avoided if a mat were always placed between
the hot plate and the table. The same with hot water jugs, etc. To
remove the heat stains rub on a few drops of sweet oil, and afterwards
polish with spirits of wine and a soft cloth.
Or hold a hot iron a few inches above the spot until the wood regains
color. Polish with a cloth wrung out in kerosene.
If the spot be small, surround it with a muffin-ring, and let the hot
iron rest on it a moment. It will confine the heat and rest the hand.
Match marks
Marks that have been made on paint with matches can be removed by
rubbing first, with a slice of lemon, then with whiting, and washing
with soap and water.
Library paste
Wet up a cupful of best flour with cold water until you can stir it
easily; have on the fire a generous pint of boiling water and add the
flour paste, spoonful by spoonful, to it, stirring all the time. Should
it thicken too much, add more boiling water. Cook thus for ten minutes.
Take it off and beat in a teaspoonful of carbolic acid. When cold put
it into a wide-mouthed bottle, through the cork of which a paste brush
is thrust. If you dislike the odor of carbolic acid, use salicylic acid
in the same quantity, and add ten drops of oil of cinnamon.
To remove the high-water mark from porcelain wash-bowls and bath-tubs
Wet a flannel cloth with kerosene oil and thoroughly rub the tub; wash
with scalding water, pouring some washing-soda dissolved therein; dry
thoroughly, and the tub will have a beautiful polish.
TO “TENDER” TOUGH MEAT
Beefsteak
Hang it as long as it can be left with safety, washing over with
vinegar every day. Take it down then, wipe with a clean, dry cloth, lay
upon a dish and pour over it four or five spoonfuls of salad oil and
the juice of a large lemon. Set in a cold place for several hours, turn
it over and over, that it may soak up every drop of oil and lemon, and
leave it for some hours longer. If it is for breakfast, do this over
night. If for supper or a late dinner, begin the preparation in the
early morning. Ten or twelve hours are better than four or five.
When you are ready to cook the steak, hold it up for a minute to let
the surplus oil drip from it, but do not wipe it. It will be more juicy
for the oil bath. Broil quickly over clear coals, turning several times.
A tough roasting piece
Hang it in a cool cellar or meat safe up to the last point of prudence,
washing it every day with vinegar. If you suspect a “high” odor, wash
it with soda and water, rubbing every part of it with a clean whisk or
brush; then go all over it with vinegar or lemon juice before setting
it down to roast. Baste frequently.
SOME USEFUL THINGS WE THROW AWAY
Bread dust
Two or three times a week spread the accumulated scraps upon a tin
plate, or in a baking-pan, and set in a moderate oven until perfectly
dry. Soft or “soggy” bits are good for nothing and interfere with the
work. If, by chance or intention, the bread is slightly browned, keep
it apart from that which remains white. A glass jar for each kind is a
good idea.
While the dried bits are still warm, lay upon a kneading-board and
crush to powder with the rolling-pin. Do this thoroughly for the
“dust,” leaving no gritty particles. Keep in a closed jar in a dry
place. It is invaluable for breading croquettes, fried fish, chops,
etc. Roll the article to be breaded, first in beaten egg, then in the
bread dust, to which have been added a little salt and pepper.
Dripping
Save fat odds and ends of cooked meats, and skim every particle of the
congealed grease from the top of gravies, soups and the liquor in which
ham and other large pieces of meat are boiled.
Bring slowly to a gentle simmer over the fire, and strain, without
rubbing, through a fine soup-sieve, or a bit of mosquito-netting. When
firm it is better for frying than any fat you can buy, unless it be
pure cottolene.
Mutton and lamb fat
Must be excluded from the “trying-out” pan. At its purest state it
gives an unpleasant taste to anything cooked in it. Melt it in a
saucepan; when hot, add a little boiling water with a pinch of salt to
cause the dregs to settle; heat five minutes without boiling, strain,
but do not stir or squeeze, into small molds, such as egg-cups. When
hard you will have a better cosmetic than cold cream and an invaluable
salve for chapped hands and lips.
Broken crackers
Spread upon a flat platter and leave in a moderate oven until dried,
but not colored. Let them cool in a dry place; crush fine with the
rolling-pin and keep in a glass jar for breading chops, croquettes,
etc., and for scalloping oysters, meat and other of the many made
dishes that add character and variety to every-day fare.
Bones of cooked meat
Not those left on the plates after meals. They are the lawful
perquisites of fowls and dogs. Bones cleaned by the carver, or the wise
housemother, in the preparation of minces and stews and salads, should
be laid in a spare dish, cracked through, while fresh, and put over the
fire with a quart of cold water for every pound of bones, a carrot, a
turnip, two tomatoes, an onion, a stalk or so of celery, all cut into
dice, and boiled slowly until reduced to half the original quantity
of liquid. Cool in the pot, skim and strain, and you have a tolerable
“stock,” useful for a great number of dishes.
Rice water
Always boil rice in plenty of water. When the grains are soft, but not
broken, drain in a colander over a bowl, and not into the sink. Rice
water contains more nourishment than the cooked cereal itself. Set
aside for some hours and you have a jelly which will add value to your
soup stock, or may be boiled down still further, sweetened slightly and
flavored with rose-water or vanilla; lastly, left in the ice or in cold
place to form in a mold. Eaten with sugar and cream, it is a pleasant
dessert. Beaten into a plain custard it is even better. It can also be
used for thickening white sauces or gravies.
Testing a broom
When buying a broom test it by pressing the edge against the floor. If
the straws bristle out and bend, the broom is a poor one. They should
remain in a solid, firm mass.
To clean brass
Clean it with pulverized pumice-stone, wet with household ammonia,
applying this paste first, and polishing the brass when this has dried,
using for this purpose chamois skin.
Wring out a flannel cloth in kerosene, rub upon Putz-Pomade, clean the
brasses and polish with old linen.
To clean a white fur rag
First, beat out all the dust and hang in the wind for some hours. Then
lay it on the floor of a room you seldom use and fill it with dried
flour. Rub it into the rug as you would suds, rubbing between your
hands, and working with your fingers down to the roots of the fur.
Cover with a clean cloth and leave all night with the flour in it. Next
day take out of doors, shake out the flour, hang on a line and whip on
the wrong side until every particle of flour is dislodged.
Powdered chalk may be used instead of the flour, but if any is left in
the rug the alkali may injure the fur.
A few things kerosene will do
For ants, saturate rags with kerosene, and hang or lay these near their
runs, and they will quickly disappear.
Kerosene is a household necessity at cleaning-time. For cleaning
painted and varnished woodwork, painted walls, varnished floors,
bathtubs and marble washstands it is unsurpassed. For tubs and marble,
apply with a woolen cloth, then wash with soap and water. For woodwork
and walls use clean cloths, changing as soon as soiled. A few drops in
the water when washing windows and mirrors will give them a beautiful
polish.
To clean white silk
If one desires snowy whiteness, silk should never be allowed to become
badly soiled; that is, so that the silk is yellowed. Dust the garment
and wash in rather warm (not scalding hot) water with Ivory soap. Rinse
well, the last water being quite blue. Hang up and allow to get just
dry enough to press nicely with a warm iron. If this is followed out, I
know that white silk will stay white. Care must be taken with the blue
water not to have it too blue, and yet blue enough to help the silk
retain the “new” shade.
Should silk merely need sponging no iron should touch the surface.
If rolled while damp on a broomstick, it will dry in a day or so.
When there are grease spots, apply the time-honored remedy, powdered
magnesia, to the wrong side under a cold pressure; then, after some
hours, rub off, and if not wholly cleansed, apply again.
To clean yellow lace
If you desire to keep the lace yellow, pour enough gasoline into an
earthen crock to cover the lace, shake it about in the liquid, rubbing
soiled spots gently between your hands; immerse it fully in the liquid,
cover the crock and leave the lace in the gasoline for five or six
hours. Squeeze and shake it then, and leave it in the open air. When
quite dry lay it on a clean cloth, spread over a board or table, and
dampen slightly. Pull into shape with your fingers while it is damp. If
the lace be wide, baste it to a thick, dampened cloth, setting a stitch
in every scallop and figure. Cover with a thin, damp cloth, and press
with a warm iron.
To clean Battenberg embroidery
First make a suds of warm water (not hot) with a bland, white soap;
wash the pieces, and if very much soiled, rub a little soap on the
Battenberg on the wrong side, then rinse thoroughly, but do not blue.
Wring out, put between two folds of soft cloth and pat with the hands.
Hang in a shady place for a while to take most of the moisture out.
Spread a sheet on the floor and take your pieces, one at a time. First,
pin the linen from the corners, as you would a curtain, where the
Battenberg joins the linen. When you have the linen perfectly smooth,
begin on lace, and pull out well so as to get the same shape as when
new; put plenty of pins in, so that the edges will be well shaped. This
will take you a little longer than if ironed, but the iron takes all
color out of embroidery, and it never does Battenberg well. When you
have your piece all pinned down, take your fingers and smooth down the
flowers while wet; they will look like new.
To clean black lace
If it be real lace you can treat it at home with reasonable hope of
success.
Boil a black kid glove in a quart of water until you have reduced the
liquid by one-third. Squeeze the glove and throw it away. When you can
bear your hand comfortably in the water dip and shake the lace in it
up and down a dozen times. Shake off the wet and squeeze the lace in a
soft towel. Do not wring it. While wet, begin to pull the lace straight
with the tips of your fingers, getting every mesh and bit of the edge
into the right shape. It must be in order and still damp when laid upon
the ironing-cloth. Spread a piece of old cambric or linen, or, better
still, a piece of clean tissue paper over it, and iron on the right
side; then, and harder, on the wrong, to bring out the pattern.
Hang in the sun or in any hot, dry place to dry quickly. Roll upon a
card or a thin board to preserve the smoothness.
To dry-clean white lace
Wash in flour. Rub the flour in as you would soap; let the lace lie for
some time and then shake it out. If it be not quite clean, repeat the
process, which will make it look like new.
To get rid of bed-bugs
To get rid of “red rovers” (or bed-bugs) simply apply a good, thick
coat of varnish to all lurking places.
OR
Get a clean oil-can, fill it with gasoline and inject into all cracks
and crannies where they can possibly hide. Shut the room up for some
hours to give the gasoline a fair chance to do its work.
To get rid of rats and mice
Smear the entrance of their holes with liquid tar, and spray the holes
as far as a bellows will carry it with powdered, unslaked lime;
OR
After the holes are located, fill them deeply with absorbent cotton;
moisten with formaldehyde; the holes are then quickly cemented with
plaster of paris. Then let the neighbors do the worrying.
For mange in cats
Mix vaseline with a drop of two or diluted carbolic acid, as put up
in the drug stores as an antiseptic and healing salve. A very little
placed on the affected part and a clean linen rag tied around it will
heal the skin and cause a new growth of fur.
To draw thread in linen
To draw thread for hem-stitching make a good lather of soap and water,
and brush this over the linen where threads are to be drawn, using
a shaving or other soft brush. Let it dry, and they will pull quite
easily.
To clean decanters
Never use shot, for there is danger of its causing lead poisoning.
Instead, try the effect of a little soapy water and some fine sand.
Shake the decanter till the glass is clean and then rinse with fresh
water, finally with alcohol.
To clean hardwood furniture
Make a solution of two heaping tablespoonfuls of sal soda to a quart of
warm water, put it on with a tooth-brush well soaped, the place being
immediately rinsed with cold water and dried with a soft cloth.
Afterward the wood should be rubbed with a mixture of two-thirds raw
oil and one-third turpentine with a little salt.
The secret of success lies in cleaning only a small piece at a time and
in doing the work rapidly.
Cement for lining an aquarium
Take white lead, such as you buy in a keg, thicken with as little of
the oil as possible, and mix some dry red lead with it. Put in just
enough burnt umber to make it the color of black walnut, a little Japan
drier and a very little varnish. Paint the edges of the glass and let
it dry, or this will not stick. After cementing the aquarium, let it
stand two weeks to harden before putting water in it.
Washing fluid for removing stains
You can take all the red laundry marks out of a linen by using the
following washing fluid. It will also take rust, ink and mildew out
without leaving a trace:
Five pounds washing-soda, one gallon of cold water, put to a boil.
While boiling add one pound of chloride of lime and stir well; set
aside to settle; strain through a cloth and cork up in a jug. Put your
soiled clothes in ten quarts of water, or enough to cover them, with
two handfuls of chipped soap and one pint of the jugged fluid. Let them
boil, raising them up once in a while with the clothes-stick. If the
marks do not disappear, add a little more of the fluid, but not too
much, or it will eat into the clothes.
To kill an evil odor
Dried orange-peel, allowed to smolder on a piece of red-hot iron, or on
an old shovel, will kill any bad odor in a room and leave a fragrant
one behind.
To clean oil paintings
Cut a raw potato in half, rub quickly over the surface of an oil
painting, after which polish with a silk handkerchief to remove dust or
dirt.
To keep leather from cracking
Add a drop or two of neat’s-foot oil to the shoe-blacking to prevent
the leather from cracking. It is also fine to use on damp boots or
shoes.
How to keep palms
If you want your palms to thrive in an ordinary sitting-room, sponge
the leaves once a week with lukewarm water, to which a little milk has
been added. Then stand the plant for two hours in lukewarm water deep
enough to completely cover the pot. This is the proper way to water
palms.
One way to remove iron rust