Jasper County Democrat, Volume 12, Number 93, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 March 1910 — Home Course In Domestic Science [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Home Course In Domestic Science

Vll.—Substitutes For Meat.

By EDITH G. CHARLTON.

b> Charge of Domestic Economy, lowa State College. Copyright, 1910, by American Preaa ' Association. IT has been previously hinted in these articles that meat need not form a part of every meal—in fact, the majority of people will have better health if they abstain from flesh eating oftener than once a day. The suggestion has also been made that meat substitutes, such As dishes in which eggs, beans, cheese or nuts form tthe chief ingredient, be served at least two meals a day. The variety of ways in which the materials may be used is numerous, all that is needed being a little ingepuity in combining them with other ingredients in order to obtain satisfactory results. Some people who are fond of hearty foods and meat flavors are loath to see the meat platter depart from the table only to reappear once a day. For such persons it will be necessary to practice the virtue of patience, make the other dishes substantial and appetizing and occasionally take a few lessons on food values. Beans, nuts and cheese all contain a larger per cent of protein than meat and. combined as they often are with other protein food, are really more nutritious than meat. Cheese is a food rich in nutriment It contains more than twice as much tissue ~uildlng material than meat and a large per cent of fat But because it Is a concentrated food It gives the digestive organs considerable work. One reason for this is because the curd of the milk has been hardened by heat in the process of making, besides being closely pressed. Grated or finely broken cheese is more readily digested than that served in larger pieces. Cooking also Increases the indigestibility of cheese, and for this reason in

IFlg. 1 illustrates composition of an egg; Fig. 2, tests for freshness of an egg; Fig. 3, that nine eggs, one-half pound beans, fourteen ounces beef, one-half : pound bread and one-half pound cheese equals one quart of milk in food value.] all dishes requiring cooking the cheese should be subjected to as little heat as possible. There is a large amount of fat In cheese, and cooking fat changes its character, breaking it up into glycerin and fatty acid. For this reason all fat used for cooking purposes should not be heated longer or to a higher degree than necessary. A very delicious supper or luncheon dish in which cheese 'ls used in combination with cooked macaroni, eggs and milk Is known as macaroni loaf and is made as follows: Macaroni Loaf. 1 Three-quarters of a cup of macaroni, one cup of cream, one cup soft breadcrumbs, one-quarter of a cup of butter, one tablespoonful of red or green pepper, one-hal£ v cup of grated cheese, one tablespoonful onion juice, one tablespoonful of chopped parsley, three eggs and one tablespoonful of salt. Cook the macaroni in boiling salted water until tender. Drain and rinse in cold water. Scald the cream, add breadcrumbs, butter, pepper, salt, grated cheese, parsley, onion juice, then beaten eggs and macaroni. Line a quart baking dish with buttered paper, turn in mixture, set the pan on Imany folds of paper in a dish of water and bake in a moderate oven from onehalf to three-quarters of an hour. Serve with tomato sauce. Tomato Bauco. ! Two tablespoonfuls of butter, two tablespoonfuls of flour, one-half teaspoonful salt, one-eighth teaspoonful of pepper, one cup of stewed and strained tomatoes, slice of onion and half a teaspoonful of capers. Brown flour and butter separate, then combine and add salt and pepper. Cook tomatoes with slice of onion for a few minutes, then remove onion and add juice gradually to butter and flour. Cook thoroughly, then add capers. > The macaroni should be broken tn inch pieces and cooked tn a quart of boiling water to which a tablespoonful

of salt has been added. Keep boiling rapidly until the .macaroni can be crushed between the thumb and finger; drain and pour over it a quantity of cold water Io keep the pieces from sticking together. •> How to Cook Eggs. The white of egg is almost entirely pure albumen, a substance which is quickly coagalated by heat and toughened by prolonged cooking. Albumen Is the proteid part of animal foods and when hardened by cooking is rendered much less easy of digestion. It is probable that eggs and meat cooked as carefully as may be are less readily acted upon by the gastric juices than either would be in the uncooked state. Albumen coagulates at a very moderate temperature,' only a little higher than 100 degrees, and at less than simmering point. 180 degrees, it is hard. Boiling makes it tough and indigestible; hence it can readily be seen that eggs should' never be boiled If their digestibility is to be retained in even a moderate degtee. The term "soft boiled” or “hard boiled” should never be applied to eggs; rather, “soft cooked” and "hard cooked” would better be used. The custom of boiling eggs three minutes is an unwise one to follow. This is the scientific method cooking eggs in the shells, and when It is followed even the hard egg, cooked until its yolk can be grated, will be found perfectly digestible: Soft Cooked Egg. Allow one pint of water for two eggs. Heat in double boiler until water in the outside part of utensil is boiling. Temperature of water in inner vessel will be 180 degrees. Put in eggs with a spoon, cover and let stand over fire for six to eight minutes If liked soft cooked, thirty minutes for hard cooked. The same result may be obtained by having water boiling in saucepan. Slip in eggs and remove saucepan to back of range where water will not boil again. Eggs perfectly cooked should be placed and kept in water at a temperature of 175 degrees. Nothing is more tempting for breakfast than a light, fluffy omelet, so tender that it almost vanishes at a touch. The secret of a good omelet is to beat much air into the eggs and then apply a moderate temperature in cooking that the albumen may not be toughened. The air in the eggs will expand by the heat and be retained by the albumen as It is hardened. My favorite recipe for an omelet, which may be served with tomato, cheese or oyster .sauce, is as follows: Plain Omelet.

Four eggs, half teaspoonful of salt, a few grains of pepper, four tablespoonfuls of water and one tablespoonful of butter. Separate yolks from whites. Beat yolks in a bowl with a Dover beater until thick; add salt, pepper and water. Beat whites until stiff, cutting and folding the yolks into them until the mixture is blended. Melt butter in omelet pan, and when moderately hot turn in mixture, spread evenly, place on range where it will cook slowly—about twelve minutes. Keep the temperature low until the last minute, when it may be raised to brown the bottom. When well puffed put pan in a moderate oven to cook the top—that is, until omelet is firm to the touch. Grease, cross the top and fold. Serve at once. Cheese Custard. Half cup of cheese, three eggs, two cups of milk, salt and pepper and slices of buttered bread. Beat eggs, adding salt, pepper, milk and grated cheese. Then pour over slices of buttered bread and bake in moderate oven, following method of baking custard. What a simple dessert is a baked custard! It is a favorite with almost every person when baked until firm, with no indications of wateriness. And yet, possibly because It is so simple, it very often appears more like curds and whey than the article which the name implies. The secret of success is in the method of cooking. The oven should be moderate, only hot enough to brown a piece of white paper in twenty minutes. and the dish containing the custard should be set in a pan of hot water on several folds of paper to equalize the temperature and prevent the custard boiling. Baked Custard. Four cups of scalded milk, five eggs, one-half cup of sugar, one-quarter teaspoonful of salt and a little grated nutmeg. Beat eggs, add sugar and salt and pour on slowly the scalded milk. Pour into buttered baking dish or into individual buttered baking cups, sprinkle with nutmeg, set in a pan of hot water and bake in a slow oven until custard is firm. Remove from pan containing hot water and set in cold. Stews and Soups. A few pounds of the clod or-forearm are excellent for a stew. Cut the meat into small pieces for serving. Plunge into rapidly boiling water, set the kettle over the simmering burner or a very low Are where it will not boil again and cook slowly until meat is tender. Salt and pepper may be added after the meat has been seared, and as the water boils away more should be added. Meat 1 i thus cpoked in a small quantity of water, and some of the juice and flavor are in the liquid. Meat is boiled in a large quantity of water by plunging the piece into the boiling water and allowing it to boil three or four minutes. This closes the cut muscles, hardens the outside and keeps the juices in the meat In making soup the method is exactly opposite. The meat is cut into small pieces—a shank or shin is best for soupmaking—put into cold water and salt added at once. This will draw out the juices of the meat into the liquid. The water should not be allowed to boll throughout the entire time of cooking. If vegetables are/ used, they should not be added until the last hour