Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1873-08-14
Preserving Summer Butter.

PROMISED, when telling you how. my
wife kept her eggs good all winter, to
tell you how she used to keep butter
sweet and good from summer to the next
spring 1t is short story, and a true
one When butter was plenty and good
in summer time we had more than we
could use, but we did not sell it to the
country storekeeper at the lowest prices
of the year, prices that were ruled by the
miserable quality of most of the stuff we
bought for butter-nor did we buy rancid
roll or firkin butter at twice that price the
next winter She made a brine that
would bear an egg-that is, a brine with
salt enough in it to make its specific gray
ity about the same as an eggs. The egg
should just float at the surface OF the
brine and not above it. This brine was
boiled and skinned to cleanse it of any
impurities in the salt: and about one tea
spoonful of saltpeter Qevel measure) was
put to two gallons of brine. The brine,
being put into the vessel to be used, was
now ready to receive the butter
OF course the butter must be good in
all respects, or no method will preserve
it even as good as it is; but this method
has the great merit of not allowing
bad lot of one week to spoil good lot
Of another week.
Roll the butter into Jumps of from one
to five pounds, and carefully wrap it up
in rag or cloth, which should be
secured by string. Then drop it into
the brine, and keepit under with board
and light weight upon it. Next week
do the same way, and so on just as long
as you please Be sure that it is kept
under the .brlne-my wife insists on
that point as common failure; so l re-
peat it.
BY this method, which am sure is not
new, one lot of butter is not disturbed by
the putting in or taking out of another
and that the butter can be kept about as
good as it went in can testify. We do
not use the method now, because we can
always, here in Delaware Co., N. Y, get
good butter in the market all the year
round, and we do not now make our own
butter, and perhaps do not feel quite the
same necessity for economy as we did
twenty eight years ago; but in any local
ity where there are not dairymen of skill,
who produce fine article of butter at
any season, the method is truly valuable.
Cor. Of Country Gentleman.
THE Scientific american is of the opinion
/
that we require variety in our TODD. 1t
says experience has proved that, for some
reason unknown to science, variety is es-
sential to health after reaching the age
when we are free to choose our food.
The perpetual recurrence of the same
edibles, even though their number be
considerable, becomes in all periods of
life except infancy, not only wearisome,
but positively injurious. Salt pork, salt
fish and potatoes, with pies, poor bread
and Japan tea, are the staples of families
during our long winters. 1t should be
understood how needful a change of diet
is from time TO time. Fresh vegetables,
particularly in the country, are readily
obtained and preserved, and should be
unsparingly used. The edible roots, as
turnips, carrots, onions and beets, and
cabbages are as well worth preserving as
the omnipresent potato. All these vege-
tables need thorough boiling, and more
than they generally get.