Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1873-11-26
The jfOuSkeeDeer.

they are attentive, that butter and eggs and
sugar are very expensive items in the family.
They are all good in their place, but they
are often used so freely as to interfere great
ly with the comfort and prosperity Of the
family. Lucy Maria y observes that
" housekeepers add grease and sweetning at
the approach of company" 1t does seem
that some people imagine that good cooking
consists in using great proportion of short
ening. sweetening and tightening in the way
of butter, lard, and eggs. They pile these
into things that would be quite good enough
and far more digestble without them.
JoHNNY-CAKE WITHOUT EGGs.-l found
out for myself long ago. that delicious corn
cakes could be made of sweet new meal with
out eggs; and | didn't know but every body
else kne" the same. l used to scald the
meal mixed with little salt with just as lit
tie boiling water as would wet all Of the
meal. This mixture | thinned little with
milk or cold water, sometimes adding halt a
teacup or more of wheat flour. Then [
baked it in gem pans in hot oven. These
corn gems are good, too when the meal is
fresh and sweet. Lately have been trying
to use up some fine white eornmeal that
seemed triie bitter. There was little
sweetness in it to bring out by scalding, and
| wanted to disguise the slight bitterness.
SO | went to the receipt books. They all
dictated eggs and butter or lard. 1t was i'm
possible for me to get fresh eggs q threw
away four of the last half dozen, and have
lived for six weeks using only three eggs
obtained from a ighbor, and q" shortening
is one of the things | steer as clear OF as pos
slble. So this is the way we made good
johnny-cake under the circumstances describ-
or al SalI H1h u Of ,tfvht
with boiling water. In the morning thin it
with milk, add a teaspoonful OF salt (only
level fully big tablespoonful of sugar, and,
lastly, teacupful of slted white -four well
mixed with teaspoontul of baking power
The batter should be rather thicker than for
grlddle cakes, as the meal has swelled some
during the night. and no allowance need be
made fer that. [ Can not see where the ne
cessIfy for shortening comes in, as these John
ny-c tkes are certainly tender. A little cream
spread over the crust improves it. The above
recipe makes two thin cakes if baked IN COM
mon square tins When the milk is sour.
soda Gin proportion of a small teas poonful of
soda TO laI ge pint of milk is used instead
OF baking powder.
Popcorn AT DESSERT i think [ need not
tell how to pop corn, need |? 1t is the bsst
watch the progress of the corn and vary the
degree of heat as seems necessary. Many
imagine that the popcorn is more tender or
brittle if taken from the hot fire and shaken
about IN the cold air as quickly as possible.
Children are apt to stuff themselves with
popcorn when they are not in the least need
OF meal. Popcorn is food, and such a
crowded condition of the stomach produces
discomfort, and SO popcorn is supposed TO be
unwholesome. 1t is quite the contrary if
eaten as food with the regular meal and
properly chewed. Try it with milk and ap-
ple-sauce or with any fruit-sauce.
MISTAKES IN WASHING. The directions
for washing with the machines almost always
advise very hot or boiling suds But remem-
Der never to put dirty clothes iuto clear hot
water. 1t 9 sets the dirt and you must
work very hard to get the clothes clean after
such mistake. Some fruit stains are re-
moved by pouring boiling water through the
| spot, but some other stains are hopeessy
i" set " by such means. 1t seems t. me the
safest way either to have the water in which
clothes are washed no hotter than the
hands can bear or to have the soiled clothes
wet IN either cold or warm water before put
| tlng them into hot suds Sat least to see that
table linen and garments are not put into
hot suds with dry stains upon them Fine
clothes are sometimes spoiled by boiling in
hard water. Housekeepers may be obliged
to wash with hard water, but it should be
first be made soft by alkali. The most com
mon way is to add little I've (white I've usu-
ally made by boiling ashes in water) to
each bolierful of water, skimming it as it
bOls. Washing soda is used for the same
purpose. In any case skim the water, and
boil the clothes in bag. Clothes once made
gray and spotted by boiling in hard water
can never be made to look we'll again.
Another mistake is to boil the clothes too
long. Fifteen minutes of good boiling will
do. Half an hour is the very longest time
that should be allowed. Too long boiling
makes the clothes yellow and tender. Too
strong boiling suds may have the same
effect
| WASHING PAINT AFTER FLY-T1ME.-No
great amount of labor is requisite for clean
ing the traces of flies from paint or wood
work. No soap is necessary. | wet the
door or windowframe all over with cloth
that will not drip. Then | go back to the
place where l began and wash the whole
over very quickly and easily, then use clean
dry cloth. | should not think of mentioning
this, but the other day saw hired girl OF
considerable experience rubbing hard and
long upon door, and signing because dy-
specks were so hard to wash off-simplv be-
cause she did not think to put the work
6 a-soak.' Not long before saw man un-
dertake to clean, and greatly injure, paint
ed piece OF furniture covered with the marks
OF last years By-time, by rubbing coat of
soap all over it and then washing off soap
and paint and dirt together. Cold water
alone would have cleaned 1t better. Soau
always Injuries paint more or less. A little
applied under the door-knobs and innaed,aieIo
washed away is sometimes admissible. Whit
ing on flannel cloth is recommended as still
better. Soap-suds yellows white paint and
dulls the luster of all paint and varnish.
Clear water, either cold or rather warm. is
all that vanished graining needs.