Mix sugar, unbeaten egg white, vanilla and cold water into a stiff paste. Shape into little b.a.l.l.s, press between halved walnut or other nut meats.
Stoned dates and large seeded raisins may be filled with this cream, or it may be mixed with chopped nuts, shaped into bars and cut into squares.
CANDIED POPCORN
1-1/2 cups sugar or maple syrup 1 tablespoon b.u.t.ter 3 tablespoons water 3 quarts popped corn
Boil sugar or syrup with b.u.t.ter and water until it spins a long thread; pour this on popcorn and if desired shape into b.a.l.l.s. Candied nuts may be prepared in the same way.
PULLED MOLa.s.sES CANDY
1 cup mola.s.ses 2 cups brown sugar 1 cup water 3 tablespoons vinegar 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar 3 tablespoons b.u.t.ter 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
Put mola.s.ses, sugar, water and vinegar into saucepan and stir; when boiling add cream of tartar and boil until very brittle when tested in cold water; add b.u.t.ter and soda and pour on b.u.t.tered platter. When cool enough to handle, b.u.t.ter hands and pull until light brown. Cut with scissors into small pieces.
FUDGE
3 cups sugar 1 cup milk or cream 1 tablespoon b.u.t.ter 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate or 6 tablespoons cocoa 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Put sugar, milk and cocoa or chocolate into saucepan; stir and boil until it makes soft ball when tested in cold water; take from fire, add b.u.t.ter and vanilla, cool and stir until creamy. Pour on b.u.t.tered plates and cut into squares.
PENUCHE
2 cups light brown sugar 1/3 cup milk or cream 1 tablespoon b.u.t.ter 3/4 cup chopped nuts 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Put sugar, milk, and b.u.t.ter into saucepan. Boil with as little stirring as possible until it makes a soft ball when tested in cold water. Take from fire; add nuts and vanilla; stir until creamy and pour into greased tins.
COCOA CREAM CANDY
4 tablespoons confectioners" sugar 2 tablespoons boiling water 4 tablespoons cocoa 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix sugar and boiling water until smooth; add cocoa and vanilla; mix until creamy. Dust hands with sugar; take up 1/2 teaspoon of mixture and roll. Dust a plate with sugar, and roll b.a.l.l.s in finely chopped nuts and allow to dry for about 2 hours.
COCOANUT CREAM CANDY
1 tablespoon b.u.t.ter 3/4 cup milk 2 cups sugar 1/2 cup grated fresh cocoanut 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Melt b.u.t.ter in saucepan; add milk and sugar; stir until sugar is dissolved, heating slowly; boil 12 to 15 minutes; remove from fire and add cocoanut and vanilla, beating until creamy. Pour into b.u.t.tered tins and cool.
For Chocolate Cocoanut Cream Candy add 1-1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate or 4 tablespoons cocoa before boiling.
HICKORY NUT CANDY
2 cups sugar 1/2 cup water 1 teaspoon lemon or vanilla extract 1 cup hickory nut meats
Boil sugar and water without stirring until thick enough to spin a thread; place saucepan in cold water; add flavoring and stir quickly until white; stir in nuts; turn into flat b.u.t.tered tin; when cold cut into squares.
SALTED ALMONDS
Blanch almonds by putting into boiling water for a few minutes. Remove skins, dry well and brown in heated oil or b.u.t.ter on top of stove or in oven. Take from fire when very light brown, as they continue to color after removing from fire. Drain well on brown paper and sprinkle with salt.
STUFFED PRUNES OR DATES
Wash, dry and stone fruit; fill with a half marshmallow or blanched almond or chopped nuts and raisins and roll in sugar.
FIRELESS COOKERY
The Fireless Cooker has become an important factor in the home. The principle employed is the preservation of heat by the use of non-conducting materials. The device ordinarily used is a rectangular box lined on all sides with some substance which will prevent escape of heat, with s.p.a.ces or wells for stone or metal discs or radiators, and vessels containing food to be cooked.
The advantages of this method are: the improvement in flavor occasioned by the slower cooking with little opportunity for evaporation, the improved appearance of food that is subject to shrinkage when cooked by ordinary methods; the saving in labor and time, as the cooking practically takes care of itself. Dinner may be prepared in the morning, placed in the cooker, and without further attention be ready to serve after 3 or 4 hours. While the time required for cooking is somewhat longer than in the usual methods, the actual time consumed in preparation of a meal is considerably reduced.
General Directions
Prepare food for cooking as usual. Place in special vessel, designed to fit into wells of Fireless Cooker, and heat on range or over gas flame until ordinary cooking temperature is reached. Put into cooker with one or more radiators which have been heated for 10 or 15 minutes over hot fire. For roasting, radiator should be hot enough to brown a pinch of flour immediately. Close cover, fasten lightly so that the steam may escape and allow cooking to proceed for time specified in recipes.
For baking cake, apples, etc., proceed as for roasting. The time required for baking is slightly longer than that specified for regular ovens. For cake ordinarily baked in a moderate oven, heat radiators hot enough to brown a pinch of flour in half a minute.
CEREALS
Prepare cereal for cooking in double boiler as usual. Boil over fire for 5 minutes; place in larger vessel of boiling water in cooker, and allow it to remain 4 or 5 hours or longer. If placed in cooker at night it should remain warm enough to serve for breakfast.
STEAMING
For recipes see "Boston Brown Bread," "Poor Man"s Pudding," "Christmas Plum Pudding," etc. Prepare and mix ingredients as directed. Put into greased molds and place in shallow pan of boiling water over very hot radiator in cooker. Fasten cover tight and cook for 5 to 6 hours.
SOUPS
For ingredients and preparation of soups see pages 29 and 30.