Chapter XXXI: Mary's Marriage (3)

These German Coffee Cakes should be set to rise either early in the morning or the night before being baked. Scald 2 cups sweet milk and set aside to cool. Cream together in a bowl 1 heaped cup of A sugar, 1/2 cup butter and lard and the yolk of egg. Add this to the lukewarm milk alternately with 6-1/2 cups flour and the yeast cake dissolved in 1/3 cup lukewarm water. Beat all together, and, lastly, add the stiffly-beaten white of egg. Cover and set in a warm place to rise over night, or, if set to rise in the morning, stand about 2-1/2 hours until light. Put an extra cup of flour on the bake-board, take out large spoonfuls of the dough, mix in just enough flour to roll out into flat cakes, spread on well-greased pie tins, stand in a warm place until light, about 1-1/4 hours. When the cakes are ready for the oven, brush melted butter over the top, strew thickly with brown sugar, or spread rivels over top, composed of 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup flour and 2 tablespoonfuls of butter, crumbled together. Strew these over the cakes just before placing them in the oven of range.

"STREUSEL KUCHEN"

For these German-raised cakes, take 1/2 cup mashed potatoes and 1/2 cup of potato water, 1/2 cup lard and butter mixed, creamed with 1/2 cup sugar. Mix with these ingredients about 3-1/2 cups of flour and 1 cup of yeast. Set this sponge to rise at night in a warm place, well covered. The next morning add to the light, well-risen sponge, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup sugar and about 1-1/2 cups flour. Let stand in a warm place until light. Then roll out pieces size of a plate, one inch thick; place on well-greased pie tins, let rise, and when light and ready for the oven brush over tops with melted butter and strew over the tops of cakes the following: Mix 1 cup of flour, 1/2 cup of sugar and yolk of 1 egg. Flavor with a few drops of vanilla (or use vanilla sugar, which is made by placing several vanilla beans in a jar of sugar a short time, which flavors sugar). Rub this mixture of flour, sugar and yolk of egg through a coarse sieve and strew over tops of cakes.

Or, this same recipe may be used by taking, instead of 1 cup of yeast, one Fleischman yeast cake, dissolved in 1 cup of lukewarm water. Instead of sponge being set to rise the night before the day on which the cakes are to be baked, the sponge might be set early in the morning of the same day on which they are to be baked--exactly in the same manner as if sponge was set the night before; when light, add eggs, sugar and balance of flour to sponge, and proceed as before.

MUFFINS, BISCUITS, GRIDDLE CAKES AND WAFFLES

Use 1 scant cup of liquid to 1 good cup of flour, usually, for "Griddle Cake" batter. Use baking powder with sweet milk, 1 heaping teaspoonful of Royal baking powder is equivalent to 1 teaspoonful of cream of tartar and 1/2 teaspoonful of salaratus (baking soda) combined. Use either baking powder or salaratus and cream of tartar combined, when using sweet milk. Use 1 teaspoonful of baking soda to 1 pint of sour milk. Allow a larger quantity of baking powder when no eggs are used. Have all materials cold when using baking powder. When milk is only slightly sour, use a lesser quantity of soda and a small quantity of baking powder.

SALLY LUNN (AS AUNT SARAH MADE IT)

As "Aunt Sarah" made this, it required 1 cup of sweet milk, 2 eggs, 1 tablespoonful of butter, 3 tablespoonfuls of sugar, flour to make a stiff batter, about 2-3/4 cups (almost three cups) of flour sifted with 3 scant teaspoonfuls of baking powder. Served immediately when taken from the oven, this is an excellent substitute for bread for lunch.

AUNT SARAH'S RECIPE FOR "JOHNNY CAKE"

One and one half cups of sour milk, 1/3 cup of shortening, a mixture of lard and butter, 1-1/2 tablespoonfuls of sugar, 2 cups of yellow cornmeal, 1 cup of white bread flour, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon of soda, dissolved in a little hot water, a little salt. Mix all together, add the stiffly-beaten white of egg last. Pour batter in an oblong bread tin, bake about 45 minutes in a quick oven. Granulated corn meal was used for this cake.

MARY'S BREAKFAST MUFFINS

3 cups sifted flour. 1 teaspoon salt. 1 teaspoon sugar. 1 tablespoon butter and lard. 1/4 cake Fleischman's yeast. 2 eggs. 2 cups boiled milk.

Place the flour, salt, sugar, butter, lard and yeast cake, dissolved in water, in a bowl and mix well; then add the eggs and milk, which should be lukewarm. Set to rise in a warm place over night. In the morning do not stir at all, but carefully place tablespoonfuls of the light dough into warm, well-greased Gem pans, let stand a short time, until quite light, then bake in a hot oven 15 to 20 minutes and serve hot for breakfast. These should be light and flakey if made according to directions.

RICE MUFFINS

1 cup cold boiled rice. Yolk of egg and white beaten separately. 1 teaspoon sugar. 1/2 teaspoon salt. 1 cup sweet milk. 2 cups flour. 2 teaspoonfuls baking powder.

Put the rice, yolk of egg, sugar and salt in a bowl and beat together; then add 1 teacup sweet milk alternately with the flour, in which has been sifted the baking powder. Add the stiffly-beaten white of egg; bake in muffin pans in hot oven. This makes about fifteen muffins.

INDIAN PONE

Beat together, in the following order, 2 eggs, 1 tablespoonful of white sugar, 1-1/2 cups of sweet milk, 1 teaspoonful of salt; to which add 1 cup of granulated yellow corn meal and 2 cups of white flour, sifted, with 3 scant teaspoonfuls of Royal baking powder. Lastly, add 1 tablespoonful of melted (not hot) butter. Pour batter in bread pan and bake in a hot oven 25 to 30 minutes. Serve hot. Do not cut with a knife when serving, but break in pieces. When the stock of bread is low this quickly-prepared corn bread or "pone" is a very good substitute for bread, and was frequently baked by Mary at the farm. Mary's Aunt taught her to make a very appetizing pudding from the left-over pieces of corn bread, which, when crumbled, filled 1 cup heaping full; over this was poured 2 cups of sweet milk; this was allowed to stand until soft; when add 1 large egg (beaten separately), a generous tablespoonful of sugar, a couple of tablespoonfuls of raisins, a pinch of salt; mix well, pour into a small agate pudding pan, grate nutmeg over the top, and bake in a moderate oven 1 hour or a less time. Serve with sugar and cream.

"PFANNKUCHEN" (PANCAKES)

Four eggs, whites and yolks were beaten separately, 2 tablespoonfuls of milk, were added; 1 teaspoonful of chopped parsley; mix lightly together, add salt to season. Place 2 tablespoonfuls of butter in a fry pan. When butter has melted, pour mixture carefully into pan. When cooked, sprinkle over a small quantity of finely minced parsley. Roll like a "jelly roll." Place on a hot platter and serve at once, cut in slices.

"EXTRA FINE" BAKING POWDER BISCUITS

One quart of flour was measured; after being sifted, was placed in a flour sifter, with 4 heaping teaspoonfuls of Royal baking powder and 1 teaspoonful of salt. Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl, cut through this mixture 1 tablespoonful of butter and lard each, and mix into a soft dough, with about 1 cup of sweet milk. 1 egg should have been added to the milk before mixing it with the flour. Reserve a small quantity of the yolk of egg, and thin with a little milk. Brush this over the top of biscuits before baking.

Turn the biscuit dough onto a floured bake-board. Pat out about one inch thick. Cut into rounds with small tin cake cutter. Place a small bit of butter on each biscuit and fold together. Place a short distance apart on baking tins and bake in a quick oven.

"FLANNEL" CAKES, MADE FROM SOUR MILK

One pint of sour milk, 2 eggs (beaten separately), a little salt, 1 large teaspoon of melted butter, 1 teaspoonful of molasses, 1 good teaspoon of soda, sifted with enough flour to make a smooth batter. Beat hard and then add the 2 yolks and the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. Bake small cakes on a hot, well-greased griddle. Serve with honey or maple syrup.

"FLANNEL" CAKES WITH BAKING POWDER

Sift together in a bowl 1 pint of flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of Royal baking powder, mixed to a smooth batter, with about 1 pint of sweet milk. Add two yolks of eggs, 1 tablespoon of melted butter. Lastly, add the 2 stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. 1 teaspoon of baking molasses added makes them brown quickly. Bake on a hot griddle, well greased.

FRAU SCHMIDT'S RECIPE FOR WAFFLES

One pint of sour milk, 1 quart of sweet milk, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon butter, whites of three eggs and yolks of two and 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and flour to make a rather thin batter. Beat the two yolks of the eggs until light and creamy, then add 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder, little flour, then the sour milk with soda dissolved in it, stirring all the time. Then add 1 tablespoon of melted or softened butter, then the sweet milk; beat well; and lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of the three eggs. Bake in hot waffle iron.

"CRUMB" CORN CAKES

One pint of stale bread crumbs (not fine, dried crumbs), covered with 1 pint of sour milk. Let stand over night. In the morning add 1 tablespoon of butter, yolks of 2 eggs and a little salt, 1/2 teaspoon of salaratus (good measure), 3/4 cup of granulated corn meal, to which add a couple of tablespoons of bread flour, enough to fill up the cup. Stir all well together, add the 2 stiffly-beaten whites of eggs and drop with a tablespoon on a hot, greased griddle. Make the cakes small, as they do not turn quite as easily as do buckwheat cakes. This makes about two dozen cakes. These are good.

"GRANDMOTHER'S" RECIPE FOR BUTTERMILK WAFFLES

Mix to a smooth batter, 4 cups of sour buttermilk, 5 cups of flour, and add 1 tablespoon of melted butter, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon of molasses. Add the well-beaten yolks of 3 eggs, 1-1/2 teaspoonfuls of baking soda, dissolved in a little hot water. Lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of 3 eggs. Place about 3 tablespoonfuls of the batter on hot, well-greased waffle irons. If buttermilk cannot be procured, sour milk may be used with good results, providing the milk is quite sour. From this quantity of batter may be made twelve waffles. Serve with maple syrup or honey.

BREAD GRIDDLE CAKES

To 1 pint of sour milk add about 3 slices of stale bread and allow the bread to soak in this mixture over night. In the morning beat up smoothly with 1 egg yolk, 1 teaspoonful of soda, a pinch of salt and enough cornmeal and white flour, in equal quantities, to make a moderately thin batter. Lastly, add the stiffly-beaten white of egg, bake on a hot griddle. Cakes should be small in size, as when baked cakes are less readily turned than other batter cakes. These cakes are economical and good.

NEVER FAIL "FLANNEL" CAKES

2 cups thick sour milk (quite sour). 2 tablespoonfuls sweet milk. 1 egg. 1/2 teaspoonful salt. 2 cups flour. 1 teaspoonful baking soda (good measure).

Pour the milk in a bowl, add yolk of egg. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt, four times. Beat all well together. Then add the stiffly-beaten white of egg, and bake at once on a hot griddle, using about two tablespoonfuls of the batter for a cake. Serve with butter and maple syrup or a substitute.

This recipe, given Mary by an old, reliable cook, was unfailing as to results, if recipe be closely followed. The cakes should be three-fourths of an inch thick, light as a feather, and inside, fine, like bread, not "doughy," as cakes baked from richer batters frequently are.

From this recipe was made eighteen cakes.

WAFFLES MADE FROM SWEET MILK AND BAKING POWDER

Sift together 1 quart of flour, 2 teaspoonfuls of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoonful of salt. Mix into a batter, a little thicker than for griddle cakes, with sweet milk; add yolks of 3 eggs, 3 tablespoonfuls of melted butter; lastly, stir in lightly the 3 stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. Bake on a hot, well-greased waffle iron and serve with maple syrup.

"BUCKS COUNTY" BUCKWHEAT CAKES

About 12 o'clock noon dissolve 1 cake of yeast (the small, round or square cornmeal cakes) in 1 pint of lukewarm water. Add to this 1 tablespoonful wheat flour, 1 tablespoonful yellow cornmeal, and enough good buckwheat flour to make a thin batter. Set in a warm place near the range to rise. About 6 or 7 o'clock in the evening add this sponge to 1 quart and 1 pint of lukewarm potato water (water drained from boiled potatoes), 1 tablespoonful of mashed potatoes added improves the cakes; add salt. They need considerable. Stir in enough buckwheat flour to make quite a stiff batter, beat hard and set to rise, covered, in a warm place over night. The next morning add 1 teaspoonful salaratus, dissolved in a little hot water; 1 tablespoonful of baking molasses and a little warm milk, to thin the batter; or water will answer. The batter should be thin enough to pour. Let stand a short time, then bake on a hot griddle. Half this quantity will be enough for a small family. Then use only 1/2 teaspoonful salaratus. Bake golden brown on hot griddle. Serve with honey or maple syrup. If this recipe for buckwheat cakes is followed, you should have good cakes, but much of their excellence depends on the flour. Buy a small quantity of flour and try it before investing in a large quantity, as you cannot make good cakes from a poor brand of flour.

DELICIOUS CORN CAKES

One cup of sweet milk heated to boiling point; stir in 2 heaping tablespoonfuls yellow, granulated cornmeal; add a tablespoonful of butter or lard and salt to taste. As soon as the mixture has cooled, stir in 1 tablespoonful of wheat flour. If the batter should be too thick, stir in enough cold, sweet milk to make it run easily from the spoon. Add 1 heaping teaspoonful of Royal baking powder. Drop spoonfuls on hot, greased griddle, and bake. This quantity makes cakes enough to serve three people, about sixteen small cakes. This is an economical recipe, as no eggs are used.

RICE WAFFLES

(AS AUNT SARAH MADE THEM.)

Add 1 tablespoonful of butter and 1 tablespoonful lard to 1 cup of cold, boiled rice; 2 yolks of eggs, the whites beaten separately and added last; 2 cups of flour, 1 teaspoonful salt and 2 teaspoonfuls baking powder, sifted together; 1 teaspoonful of sugar and 1 teaspoonful of molasses, and enough sweet milk to make a thin batter. Bake in hot waffle irons. With these serve either maple syrup or a mixture of sugar and cinnamon.

"GERMAN" EGG-PANCAKES (NOT CHEAP)

These truly delicious pancakes were always baked by "Aunt Sarah" when eggs were most plentiful. For them she used, 1 cup flour, 5 fresh eggs, 1/2 cup milk.

The yolks of 5 eggs were broken into a bowl and lightly beaten. Then milk and flour were added gradually to form a smooth batter. Lastly, the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs were added. Large spoonfuls were dropped on a hot, well-greased griddle, forming small cakes, which were served as soon as baked. These cakes require no baking powder. Their lightness depends entirely on the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs.

"FRAU SCHMIDT'S" GRIDDLE CAKE RECIPE

The Professor's wife gave Mary this cheap and good recipe for griddle cakes: 1 pint of quite sour, thick milk; beat into this thoroughly 1 even teaspoon of baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and sugar and 2 cups of flour, to which had been added 1 tablespoon of granulated cornmeal and 1 rounded teaspoon of baking powder before sifting. No eggs were used by the Professor's wife in these cakes, but Mary always added yolk of 1 egg to the cakes when she baked them.

MARY'S RECIPE FOR "CORN CAKE"

1 cup of white flour. 1/2 cup cornmeal (yellow granulated cornmeal). 1 cup of sweet milk. 2 teaspoonfuls baking powder. 1 tablespoonful sugar. 1/2 teaspoonful salt. 1 tablespoonful butter. 1 tablespoonful lard. 1 egg.

Sift together flour, salt and baking powder, sugar, and add 1/2 cup of granulated, yellow cornmeal. Mix with 1 cup milk, 1 beaten egg, and the 2 tablespoonfuls of butter and lard. Beat thoroughly. Add a tablespoonful more of flour if not as stiff as ordinary cake batter. Pour in well-greased bread tin and bake about 40 minutes in a hot oven.

AUNT SARAH'S DELICIOUS CREAM BISCUITS

Place in a flour sifter 2 cups of flour, 2 teaspoonfuls baking powder, 1/2 teaspoonful of salt and 1/2 teaspoonful of sugar. Sift twice; stir together 1/2 cup of sweet milk and 1/2 cup of thick, sweet cream. Quickly mix all together, cutting through flour with a knife, until a soft dough is formed, mixing and handling as little as possible. Drop spoonfuls into warmed muffin tins and bake at once in a hot oven. Serve hot.

These are easily and quickly made, no shortening other than cream being used, and if directions are closely followed will be flakey biscuits when baked.

Aunt Sarah was always particular to use pastry flour when using baking powder, in preference to higher-priced "Hard Spring Wheat," which she used only for the making of bread or raised cakes, in which yeast was used.

MARY'S MUFFINS

2 cups of flour. 3 even teaspoonfuls of baking powder. 2 tablespoonfuls of sugar. 1 cup of sweet milk. 2 eggs. 1 tablespoonful of butter.

Sift flour and baking powder in a bowl; add 1 tablespoonful of sugar and a pinch of salt; add the 2 yolks of eggs to the 1 cup of milk, and mix with the flour and baking powder; lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. Place large spoonfuls of the batter in small Gem pans. Bake in a hot oven 20 minutes. These muffins are fine.

CORN MUFFINS (AS MADE BY "FRAU SCHMIDT")

2 eggs. 1-1/2 tablespoonfuls of sugar. 1 cup of granulated yellow cornmeal. 1-1/2 cups of sweet milk. 2 cups of white flour. 3 teaspoonfuls of baking powder. 1 tablespoonful melted butter. A pinch of salt

Beat together eggs and sugar, add milk and cornmeal and the white flour, sifted, with baking powder and salt; add the 1 tablespoonful of melted butter. Bake 20 minutes in warmed Gem pans, in a hot oven. Mary's Aunt taught her to utilize any left-over muffins by making a very appetizing pudding from them called "Indian Sponge" Pudding, the recipe for which may be found among pudding recipes.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE (AS FRAU SCHMIDT MADE IT)

1 pint of flour. 3 teaspoonfuls of baking powder. 2-1/2 tablespoonfuls of butter or lard. 1 egg. 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Milk or water.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt, and cut butter or lard through the flour. Add 1 beaten egg to about 1 cup of sweet milk, and add gradually to the flour, cutting through it with a knife until a soft dough is formed, mixing and handling as little as possible. Divide the dough into two portions, roll out one portion quickly and place on a large pie tin; spread the top of cake with softened (not melted) butter, lay the other cake on top and bake in a quick oven. When baked and still hot, the cakes may be easily separated without cutting; when, place between layers, and, if liked, on top of the cake, crushed, sweetened strawberries. "Frau" Schmidt thought a crushed banana added to the strawberries an improvement. Serve the hot shortcake with sweet cream and sugar.

Or, the recipe for baking a plain (not rich) layer cake might be used instead of the above. When baked and cooled, spread between the layers the following:

To the stiffly-beaten white of 1 egg, add 1 cup of sugar; beat well. Then add 1 cup of crushed strawberries. Beat all together until the consistency of thick cream. Serve cold.

PERFECTION WAFFLES

Sift together 4 cups of flour, 2 teaspoonfuls of baking soda and 1 teaspoonful of salt, four times.

Separate 3 fresh eggs. Place the yolks in an earthenware mixing bowl. Beat well with a spoon. Then add 3-1/2 cups of sour milk or sour buttermilk and 1/2 cup of sour cream, and 1 teaspoonful of melted butter. Mix a smooth batter with the sifted flour and soda. Lastly, add the stiffly-beaten whites of 3 eggs. Mix the batter quickly and thoroughly. Bake on a hot, well-greased waffle iron and serve at once.

The waffles may be buttered as soon as baked and sugar sifted over, or a saucer containing a mixture of cinnamon and sugar, or a small jug of maple syrup may be served with them. Twelve waffles were made from this recipe.

RECIPE FOR MAKING "BAKING POWDER"

Sift together three times (through a fine sieve) 8 tablespoonfuls of cream of tartar, 4 tablespoonfuls of baking soda (salaratus), 4 tablespoonfuls of flour. Cornstarch may be substituted for flour. This latter ingredient is used to keep the cream of tartar and soda separate and dry, as soda is made from salt and will absorb moisture. This recipe for making a pure baking powder was given Mary by Fran Schmidt, who had used it for years with good results.

FRITTERS, CROQUETTES, DUMPLINGS AND CRULLERS

When cooking any article to be immersed in fat use about this proportion: 2 pounds of sweet lard to 1 of suet, which had been previously tried out. It is cheaper, also more wholesome, to use part suet than to use all lard. Save all pieces of left-over fat, either raw or cooked, from steaks, roasts, bacon or ham. Cut all up into small pieces and place in a pan in the oven until tried out, or put in a double boiler and stand over boiling water until fat is tried out. Strain and stand aside to be used as drippings. To clarify this fat, pour boiling water over, let cook a short time, strain and stand away in a cool place, when a cake of solid fat will form on top, which may be readily removed and used as drippings, or it may be added to the kettle of fat used for deep frying. Always strain fat carefully after frying croquettes, fritters, etc. Should the frying fat become dark add to the can of soap fat the economical housewife is saving. Return the clear-strained fat to the cook pot, cover carefully, stand aside in a cool place, and the strained fat may be used times without number for frying. The housewife will find it very little trouble to fry fritters, croquettes, etc., in deep fat, if the fat is always strained immediately after using, and returned to the cook pot, kept especially for this purpose. Stand on the hot range when required and the fat will heat in a few minutes, and if the fat is the right temperature, food cooked in it should not be at all greasy. When the housewife is planning to fry fritters or croquettes she should, if possible, crumb the articles to be fried several hours before frying, and stand aside to become perfectly cold. When the fat for frying is so hot a blue smoke arises, drop in the fritters or croquettes, one at a time, in order not to chill the fat or plunge a frying basket, containing only a couple of fritters at a time, in the hot fat, as too many placed in the fat at one time lowers the temperature too quickly and causes the fritters to be greasy and soggy. To test the fat before dropping in the fritters, if a small piece of bread is dropped in the fat and browns in about one minute the fat is the right temperature for frying fritters, and fritters fried at the correct temperature should be a rich brown and not at all greasy. When removing fritters from hot fat place on coarse brown paper to absorb any remaining fat. Fritters composed of vegetables, or oysters, should be served on a platter garnished with parsley, and fritters composed of fruit, should have pulverized sugar sifted over them liberally. Should a small piece of bread brown in the fat while you count twenty, fat is the correct temperature for frying croquettes, but is too hot for frying crullers or any food not previously cooked.

KARTOFFLE BALLA (POTATO BALLS)

Boil until tender, 8 medium-sized (not pared) potatoes; when quite cold remove parings and grate them; fry one finely-chopped onion in a little butter until a yellow-brown; add this, also 1 egg, to the potatoes, season with salt and pepper and add flour enough to mold into balls; use only flour enough to hold the mixture together. The chopped onion may be omitted, and instead, brown small, dice-like pieces of bread in a little butter, shape dumplings into balls the size of walnuts, place a teaspoonful of the browned bread crumbs in the centre of each and add also a little chopped parsley. Drop the dumplings in salted boiling water and cook uncovered from 15 to 20 minutes. When dumplings rise to the top they should be cooked sufficiently, when remove from kettle with a skimmer to a platter; cut dumplings in half and strew over them bread crumbs, browned in butter.

"BOOVA SHENKEL"

For this excellent "Pennsylvania German" dish, which I am positive has never before been published, take 2-1/2 pounds of stewing meat (beef preferred), season with salt and pepper and cook slowly several hours until tender.

For the filling for the circles of dough, take 12 medium-sized white potatoes, pared and thinly sliced, steamed until tender; then add seasoning to taste of salt and pepper, 2 tablespoonfuls of butter, 2 tablespoonfuls of finely-minced parsley and 1 finely-chopped onion (small); lastly, add 3 eggs, lightly beaten together, to the mixture. Allow this to stand while the pastry is being prepared in the following manner:

Pastry--Sift into a bowl 2-1/2 cups of flour, 2 teaspoonfuls of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoonful of salt, 1 generous teaspoonful of lard and 1 of butter. Cut through the flour, mix with water into a dough as for pie crust. Roll thin, cut into about ten circles, and spread some of the mixture on each circle of dough. Press two opposite edges together like small, three-cornered turnover pies; drop these on to the hot meat and broth in the cook pot, closely covered. Cook slowly from 20 to 30 minutes. Before serving the "Boova Shenkel" pour over the following:

Cut slices of stale bread into dice and brown in a pan containing 1 large tablespoonful of butter and a couple tablespoonfuls of fat (which had been skimmed from top of broth before "Boova Shenkel" had been put in cook pot), add about 1/2 cup of milk to diced, browned bread; when hot, pour over the "Boova Shenkel" and serve with the meat on a large platter.

RICE BALLS WITH CHEESE

Place 2 cups of cold, boiled rice, well drained, in a bowl and add 1/2 cup of grated cheese, a little salt, 1/4 cup flour and the stiffly-beaten white of one egg. Mix all together and mold into balls about the size of a small egg, with a little of the flour; then roll them in fine, dried bread crumbs, and stand away until perfectly cold. When preparing for lunch, beat the yolk of the egg with a little milk, dip the rice balls into this, then into fine, dried bread crumbs, drop in deep fat and fry a golden brown. Drain on brown paper and serve, garnished with parsley.

"KARTOFFLE KLOSE"

One quart of cold, boiled, skinned potatoes, grated. (Boil without paring the day before they are to be used, if possible.) Put into a frying pan 1 tablespoonful of butter, 1 finely-minced onion (small onion), and fry until a light brown. Remove from fire and mix with this: 2 heaped tablespoonfuls flour, 1 tablespoonful of finely-cut parsley, 2 eggs (whites beaten separately), and 2 slices of bread, cut fine. Add grated potatoes and bread crumbs, alternately, mixing together lightly with a fork; add the other ingredients, season well with salt and pepper, form into round balls the size of a walnut and drop into a stew-pan of boiling, salted water, containing a teaspoon of butter. Do not cover the stew-pan while they are cooking. As soon as the dumplings rise to the top, skim one out and cut in half to see if it is cooked through. They should take from 15 to 20 minutes to cook. Skim out of the boiling water on a platter. Cut each dumpling in half, pour over them bread crumbs browned in a pan containing a little lard and butter, and serve. The onion may be omitted and only finely-chopped parsley used, if desired, or use both. Or place the halved dumplings in pan containing a little lard and butter and chopped onion (if the latter is liked), and brown on each side, then serve.

RICE CROQUETTES (AND LEMON SAUCE)

Boil 1 cup of well-washed rice in 6 or 8 cups of rapidly-boiling water, until tender. The rice, when cooked and drained, should fill 3 cups. Prepare a cream sauce of 1 pint of milk, 3 heaping tablespoonfuls of flour and 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 egg yolks. Stir in 3 cups of flaky, cooked rice, while rice is still hot. When the mixture has cooled, mold into small cone shapes with the hands, stand aside until perfectly cold. Dip the croquettes into the whites of eggs, then roll them in fine, dried bread crumbs and fry in deep fat. If a cube of bread browns in the fat in a little longer time than a half minute, the fat is the right temperature. Eighteen croquettes were made from this quantity of rice.

Lemon Sauce--To serve with rice croquettes, cream together 1/2 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoonful of butter, 1 egg, 2 cups of boiling water was added and all cooked together until the mixture thickened. When cooled slightly add the juice and grated rind of one lemon. Serve in a separate bowl, and pass with the croquettes.

CORN OYSTERS

Slice off tips of kernels from cobs of corn and scrape down corn-pulp from cobb with a knife. To 1 pint of pulp add 2 eggs, 2 heaping tablespoonfuls of flour, 1/2 teaspoonful of salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper and of black pepper; add the 2 yolks of eggs, then stir in lightly the stiffly-beaten white of eggs and flour. Fry in only enough butter to prevent them sticking to the pan. Drop into pan by spoonfuls size of an ordinary fried oyster, brown on both sides and serve hot.

BANANA FRITTERS

From one banana was made 4 fritters. The banana was halved, cut lengthwise and then cut cross-wise. The batter will do for all fruits, clams, corn or oysters. Make a sauce of the liquor, mixed with same quantity of milk, with a tablespoon of butter added, chopped parsley and flour to thicken. When making oyster or clam fritters use same rule as for fruit fritters, using clam juice and milk instead of all milk.

For the "fritter batter," sift together 1 pint of flour, 2 teaspoonfuls baking powder and a pinch of salt. Stir slowly into it a pint of milk, then the well-beaten yolks of 3 eggs, and, lastly, the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. Beat hard for a few minutes and fry at once in smoking hot fat. Orange sections make delicious fritters, or halves of fresh or canned peaches may be used.

Allow the bananas to stand one-quarter hour in a dish containing a small quantity of lemon juice and sugar before putting them in the batter. Lay the slices of bananas or sections of orange in the batter, then take up a tablespoonful of the batter with one slice of banana for each fritter, drop into hot fat one at a time, and fry a golden brown. Sift pulverized sugar over and serve hot. If a small piece of bread browns in one minute in the fat it is the right temperature to fry any previously uncooked food.

PARSNIP FRITTERS

Scrape and boil 5 or 6 parsnips in salted water until tender and drain. If old parsnips, cut out the centre, as it is tough and woody. Mash parsnips fine, add 1 egg yolk (white beaten separately), and added last a little salt, 1 large tablespoonful flour, 1/4 teaspoonful baking powder, mold into small cakes, dredge with flour, and fry quickly to a golden brown in a tablespoonful of butter and one of drippings. Serve at once.

AUNT SARAH'S "SCHNITZ AND KNOPF"

This is an old-fashioned "Pennsylvania German" favorite. The end of a ham bone, containing a very little meat, was placed in a large kettle with a small quantity of water, with "Schnitz," or sliced, sweet, dried apples, which had been dried without removing the parings. When the apples were cooked tender in the ham broth; dumplings, composed of the following, were lightly dropped on top of the apples and broth and cooked, closely covered, from 15 to 20 minutes. Do not uncover kettle the first ten minutes. When dumplings have cooked place them with the "Schnitz" on a large platter, and serve at once.

A VERY OLD RECIPE FOR DUMPLINGS, OR "KNOPF"

One and one-half quarts of flour was sifted with 2-1/2 tablespoonfuls of Royal baking powder, 1 teaspoonful of butter was cut through the flour in small bits, 1 egg was beaten and enough milk or water added to the egg to mix the flour into quite a soft dough. Sometimes instead of molding the dough into balls large spoonfuls were placed over the apples. Aunt Sarah had used this recipe for many years. This is a very old recipe, and from it was made a larger quantity than ordinary housekeepers usually require. Half the quantity, about 1-1/2 pints of flour to 1-1/4 tablespoonfuls of baking powder, mixed according to the directions given in the first part of recipe, would be about the correct proportions for a family of ordinary size.

Aunt Sarah frequently substituted sour cherries and a teaspoonful of butter was added instead of ham and "Schnitz." Dumplings prepared from this recipe may be dropped on stewed chicken and broth and cooked or steamed, make an excellent pot-pie. Should there be more dough mixed than required for dumplings, place a panful in the oven and bake as biscuits. More baking powder is required when dough is steamed or boiled than when baked in the oven.

"KARTOFFLE KUKLEIN" (POTATO FRITTERS OR BOOFERS)

Place in a bowl 2 cups grated, pared, _raw_ potatoes; drain off any liquid formed, then add 1 small onion, also grated; large egg or 2 small eggs, salt and pepper, 1 tablespoonful chopped parsley, 1/4 teaspoonful baking powder (good measure), and a couple tablespoonfuls of flour to thicken just enough to make the fritters hold together; then drop by spoonfuls in deep, hot fat, and fry a rich brown. The fritters form into odd shapes a trifle larger than a fried oyster, when dropped in the fat.

Should the fritter batter separate when dropped in the fat, add more flour, but if too much flour is added they are not as good as when a lesser quantity is used. Drain the fritters on brown paper and garnish the platter upon which they are served with parsley. Mary's Uncle was very fond of these fritters. He preferred them to fried oysters, and always called them "potato boofers." I would not answer for the wholesomeness of these fritters. In fact, I do not think any fried food particularly wholesome.

ROSETTES, WAFERS AND ROSENKUCHEN (AS MADE BY FRAU SCHMIDT)

Prepare a batter from the following:

1 cup of sweet milk. 2 eggs. Pinch of salt. 1 cup of flour, good measure.

Gradually mix the flour with the milk to form a smooth batter, free from lumps. Add yolks, then the slightly-beaten whites of eggs. Fasten the long handle to a wafer iron, shaped like a cup or saucer, and stand it in hot fat, a mixture of 2/3 lard and 1/3 suet, or oil; when heated, remove at once, and dip quickly into the batter, not allowing the batter to come over top of the wafer iron. Then return it to the hot fat, which should cover the wafer iron, and in about 25 or 30 seconds the wafer should be lightly browned, when the wafer may be easily removed from the iron on to a piece of brown paper to absorb any fat which may remain. This amount of batter should make about forty wafers. On these wafers may be served creamed oysters, vegetables, chicken or fruit. When using the wafers as a foundation on which to serve fruit, whipped cream is a dainty adjunct. One teaspoonful of sugar should then be added to the wafer batter. These wafers may be kept several weeks, when by simply placing them in a hot oven a minute before serving they will be almost as good as when freshly cooked. Or the wafers may be served as a fritter by sifting over them pulverized sugar and cinnamon.

"BAIRISCHE DAMPFNUDELN"

These delicious Bavarian steamed dumplings are made in this manner: 1 cake of Fleischman's compressed yeast was dissolved in a cup of lukewarm milk, sift 1 pint of flour into a bowl, add 1 teaspoonful of sugar and 1 teaspoonful of salt. Mix the flour with another cup of lukewarm milk, 1 egg and the dissolved yeast cake and milk (two cups of milk were used altogether). Work all together thoroughly, adding gradually about 1-1/2 cups of flour to form a soft dough. Do not mix it too stiff. Cover the bowl with a cloth; stand in a warm place until it has doubled the original bulk. Flour the bread board and turn out dough and mold into small biscuits or dumplings. Let these rise for half an hour, butter a pudding pan and place dumplings in it, brushing tops with melted butter. Pour milk in the pan around the dumplings to about two-thirds the depth of the dumplings; set pan on inverted pie tin in oven and bake a light brown. Serve with any desired sauce or stewed fruit. Or, after the shaped dough has raised, drop it in a large pot of slightly-salted boiling water, allowing plenty of room for them to swell and puff up, and boil continuously, closely covered, for 20 minutes. This quantity makes about 30 small dumplings. Should you not wish so many, half the quantity might be molded out, placed in a greased pie tin, and when light, which takes half an hour, bake in a moderately hot oven, and you will have light biscuits for lunch.

The thrifty German Hausfraus make fritters of everything imaginable, and sometimes unimaginable. Mary was told one day by a German neighbor how she prepared a fritter she called:

"HELLER BLUTHER KUKLEIN"

She gathered elderberry blossoms, rinsed off the dust, and when free from moisture dipped the blossoms into fritter batter, holding the stem ends, then dropped them into hot fat, and when golden brown, drained a minute on coarse, brown paper before serving, dusted them with powdered sugar; cinnamon may also be dusted over if liked. Mary pronounced them "fine," after tasteing, and said: "They certainly are a novelty." Perhaps something like this suggested the Rosette Iron, as it is somewhat similar.

APYL KUKLEIN (APPLE FRITTERS)

Pare and core 4 large tart apples. Cut each apple into about 4 round slices and allow the sliced apples to lie a couple of hours in a dish containing 2 tablespoonfuls of brandy, mixed with a half teaspoonful of cinnamon and a half teaspoonful of sugar. Drain the sliced apples, then a few at a time should be dropped in the following batter, composed of: 1 cup of flour sifted with 1/2 teaspoonful of Royal baking powder, 1/4 teaspoonful of salt, add the yolks of 2 eggs and 1 cup of milk to form a smooth batter, then add the stiffly-beaten whites of eggs. Fry light brown, in deep, hot fat, and sift over powdered sugar. "Fried Apples" are an appetizing garnish for pork chops; the apples should be cored, _not pared_, but should be sliced, and when cut the slices should resemble round circles, with holes in the centre. Allow the sliced apples to remain a short time in a mixture of cinnamon and brandy, dry on a napkin, and fry in a pan, containing a couple of tablespoonfuls of sweet drippings and butter.

DUMPLINGS MADE FROM "BREAD SPONGE"

Aunt Sarah's raised dumplings from bread sponge were greatly relished at the farm.

When bread sponge, which had been set to rise early in the morning, and all flour necessary for loaves of bread had been added and loaves were being shaped to place in bread tins, Aunt Sarah reserved an amount of sponge sufficient for one loaf of bread, added a little extra salt, shaped them into small balls, size of a lemon, placed them on a well-floured board some distance apart to raise; when light (at 12 o'clock, if the dinner hour was 12.20), she carefully dropped the light balls of dough into a large pot of rapidly boiling, slightly salted water, covered closely, and boiled about 20 minutes, (Do not have more than one layer of the dumplings in cook pot, and do not place too close together; allow room for them to expand.)

Test by tearing one apart with a fork. Serve at once, and serve with a roast, to be eaten with gravy, with butter, or they may be eaten as a dessert, with jelly or maple syrup.

Aunt Sarah frequently added an equal quantity of fine, dried bread crumbs and flour and a little extra salt to a thin batter of bread sponge (before all the flour required for bread had been added), made about as stiff a dough as for ordinary loaves of bread; molded them into balls. When sufficiently raised, boiled them either in water or meat broth in the same manner as she prepared dumplings; made _only_ of _flour_.

This is a small economy, using _bread crumbs_ in place of _flour_, and these are delicious if prepared according to directions. Remember to have a large quantity of rapidly boiling water in which to cook the dumplings, not to allow water to stop boiling an instant and to keep cook pot closely covered for 20 minutes before removing one, and breaking apart to see if cooked through. These are particularly nice served with stewed apricots.

"LEBER KLOSE" OR LIVER DUMPLINGS

Boil a good-sized soup bone for several hours in plenty of water, to which add salt and pepper to taste and several small pieces of celery and sprigs of parsley to flavor stock. Strain the broth or stock into a good-sized cook pot and set on stove to keep hot.

For the liver dumplings, scrape a half pound of raw beef liver with a knife, until fine and free from all veins, etc. Place the scraped liver in a large bowl, cut three or four good-sized onions into dice, fry a light brown, in a pan containing 1 tablespoonful of lard and butter mixed. Cut into dice 3/4 to a whole loaf of bread (about 2 quarts). Beat 2 eggs together, add 1 cup of sweet milk, season well with salt and pepper, and mix all together with 1 large cup of flour. If not moist enough to form into balls when mixed together, add more milk. Keep the mixture as soft as possible or the dumplings will be heavy. Flour the hands when shaping the balls, which should be the size of a shelled walnut. Stand the pot containing stock on the front of the stove, where it will boil, and when boiling, drop in the dumplings and boil, uncovered, for 15 minutes. When cooked, take the dumplings carefully from the stock on to a large platter, pour the stock over the dumplings and serve.

These are excellent, but a little troublesome to make. One-half this quantity would serve a small family for lunch.

FRAU SCHMIDT'S "OLD RECIPE FOR SCHNITZ AND KNOPF"

Place a cook pot on the range, containing the end piece of a small ham; partly cover with water. This should be done about three hours before serving, changing the water once. Soak sweet, unpared, sliced, dried apples over night in cold water. In the morning cook the dried apples (or schnitz) in a small quantity of the ham broth, in a separate stew-pan, until tender. Remove ham from broth one-half hour before serving. Sweeten the broth with a small quantity of brown sugar, and when the broth commences to boil add raised dumplings of dough, which had been shaped with the hands into round balls about the size of an ordinary biscuit. Cook 25 minutes. Do not uncover the cook-pot after the dumplings have been dropped into the broth until they have cooked the required length of time. When the dumplings have cooked a sufficient time carefully remove to a warm platter containing the cooked apple schnitz. Thicken the broth remaining with a little flour, to the consistency of cream. Pour over the dumplings and serve at once.

Dumplings--At 9.30 in the evening set a sponge consisting of 1 cup of lukewarm milk, 1 tablespoonful sugar, 1 tablespoonful of butter, 1 egg, 3/4 of an yeast cake, add flour enough to form a sponge (as stiff as may be stirred with a mixing spoon). Set to raise in a warm place over night. In the morning add more flour to the risen sponge until nearly as stiff as for bread. Form into round dumplings, place on a well-floured bake-board to rise slowly. Twenty-five minutes before serving drop dumplings into the hot broth in a large cook-pot.

There should be only one layer of dumplings, otherwise they will be heavy.

"BROD KNODEL," OR BREAD DUMPLINGS

3 cups of stale bread (cut like dice). 3/4 cup of flour. 1/2 teaspoonful baking powder. 3/4 cup milk. 2 tablespoonfuls butter. 1 egg. 1 teaspoonful of finely-minced parsley. 1/2 teaspoonful finely-minced onion (if liked). Pinch of salt.

Place two cups of diced bread in a bowl and pour over 3/4 cup of milk. (Reserve 1 cup of diced bread, which brown in 1 tablespoonful of butter, to be added to the mixture later.) Allow milk and bread to stand 10 or 15 minutes; then add 1 tablespoonful of melted butter, 1 egg, flour and baking powder, and salt; fried, diced bread and parsley, and mix all together. With well-floured hands form the mixture into balls size of a walnut, and drop at once into rapidly boiling salted water and cook 15 minutes. Stew pan should be closely covered. When cooked, remove to platter with perforated skimmer, and serve at once, or drop dumplings into a pan containing 1 tablespoonful of melted butter, and brown on all sides before serving.

"GERMAN" POT PIE

To serve a family of six or seven, place 2 pounds of beef and 4 pork chops, cut in small pieces, in a cook-pot. Season with a little chopped onion, pepper and salt. This should be done about three or four hours before dinner. One hour before serving prepare the dough for pot pie. Pare white potatoes, slice and dry on a napkin, sift 2 cups of flour with 1 teaspoonful of baking-powder, pinch of salt, cut through the sifted flour, 1 level tablespoonful of shortening. Moisten dough with 1 egg and enough milk to make dough stiff enough to handle. (Almost 1 cup of milk, including the egg.) Cut off a small piece of dough, size of a small teacup, roll thin and take up plenty of flour on both sides. Take up all flour possible. Cut this dough into four portions or squares. Have the meat more than covered with water, as water cooks away.

Place a layer of potatoes on meat (well seasoned), then the pared potatoes and small pieces of dough alternately, never allowing pieces of dough to lap; place potatoes between. Roll the last layer out in one piece, size of a pie plate, and cover top layer of potatoes with it. Cover closely and cook three-quarters of an hour from the time it commences to boil. Then turn out carefully on a platter and serve at once.

"ZWETCHEN DAMPFNUDELN" (PRUNE DUMPLINGS)

In the evening a sponge was prepared with yeast for bread. All the flour required to stiffen the dough for loaves of bread being added at this time. The bread sponge was stood in a warm place to rise over night. In the morning, when shaping the dough into loaves, stand aside about one pint of the bread dough. Later in the morning form the pint of dough into small balls or dumplings, place on a well-floured bake board and stand in a warm place until doubled in size. Then drop the dumplings into a cook pot containing stewed prunes, a small quantity of water, a little sugar and lemon peel, if liked. The dried prunes had been soaked over night in cold water, and allowed to simmer on the range in the morning. The prune juice should be hot when the dumplings are added. Cook dumplings one-half hour in a closely covered cook-pot and turn out carefully on to a warmed platter, surrounded by prune juice and prunes.

GREEN CORN FRITTERS

Grate pulp from six ears of corn; with a knife scrape down the pulp into a bowl, add 2 eggs, beaten separately, a couple tablespoonfuls of milk, 1 large tablespoonful of flour, 1/4 teaspoonful of baking powder and a pinch of salt. Drop with a spoon on a well-greased griddle. The cakes should be the size of a silver half dollar. Bake brown on either side and serve hot. These should not be fried as quickly as griddle cakes are fried, as the corn might then not be thoroughly cooked.

"MOULDASHA" (PARSLEY PIES)

Mash and season with butter and salt half a dozen boiled white potatoes, add a little grated onion and chopped parsley. Sift together in a bowl 1 cup of flour, 1 teaspoonful baking powder and a little salt. Add a small quantity of milk to one egg if not enough liquid to mix into a soft dough. Roll out like pie crust, handling as little as possible. Cut into small squares, fill with the potato mixture, turn opposite corners over and pinch together all around like small, three-cornered pies. Drop the small triangular pies into boiling, salted water a few minutes, or until they rise to top; then skim out and brown them in a pan containing a tablespoonful each of butter and lard. I have known some Germans who called these "Garden Birds." Stale bread crumbs, browned in butter, may be sprinkled over these pies when served. Serve hot.

These are really pot pie or dumplings with potato filling. Mary's Aunt always called these "Mouldasha." Where she obtained the name or what its meaning is, the writer is unable to say.

INEXPENSIVE DROP CRULLERS

Cream together 1 cup sugar and 1 egg, then add one cup of milk alternately with 2 cups of flour, sifted with 2 teaspoonfuls of baking powder. Add 1/2 teaspoonful of vanilla and enough flour to make a stiff batter.

Take about 1/2 a teaspoonful of the batter at a time and drop into boiling hot fat, and brown on both sides; then drain on coarse, brown paper and, when cool, dust with pulverized sugar. These cakes are cheap and good, and as no shortening is used are not rich. Do not make cakes too large, as they then will not cook through readily.

BATTER BAKED WITH GRAVY

The Professor's wife gave Mary this recipe, given her by an Englishwoman. The recipe was liked by her family, being both economical and good. When serving roast beef for dinner, before thickening the gravy, take out about half a cup of liquid from the pan and stand in a cool place until the day following. Reheat the roast remaining from previous day, pour the half cup of liquid in an iron fry pan, and when hot pour the following batter in the pan with the fat and bake in a moderately hot oven about 25 minutes. Or the batter may be poured in pan about 25 minutes before meat has finished roasting.

The batter was composed of 1 cup of flour, sifted with 1 small teaspoonful of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoonful of salt, mixed smooth with 1 cup of sweet milk. Add 2 well-beaten eggs. When baked cut in small pieces, surround the meat on platter, serve instead of potatoes with roast. The addition of baked dough extends the meat flavor and makes possible the serving of a smaller amount of meat at a meal.

"GERMAN" SOUR CREAM CRULLERS