The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1900-07-18
NURSERY COOKERY.
THE SMALL CHILD'S SUMMER
DIET.
BY Christine Terhune Herrick.

BY Christine Terhune Herrck.
CONTINUED from last week)
A word about cherry stones. Children
should be waGned never to swallow them.
This caution may seem unnecessary, but
l have heard of one woman who always
encouraged her children to swallow the
pits. telling Mortified friend, who pro-
tested against such a course that the
prussc acid in the stones assisted di-
gestionl she did not mention how the
acid was to get out of the stones in order
to have this effect
If have touched upon cherries first,
it Is because the cherry tree is always
with us, so to speak. and the fruit seems
perennially tempting to the young Of tho
human species. But even before tho
cherries make their appearance, except
at high prices. Strawberries are in the
market. and with the cherries come
berries Of other kinds. AS a general
thing they can all be safely eaten by any
except very young children, but IL must
be without cream. The acid of the fruit
has tendency to curdle uncooked milk
or cream, and even the stomach of an
adult takes chances In eating cream
with fresh berries.
Another danger-and this is less easily
avolded--is that of thu seeds. Those OF
the raspberry, black or red. and of the
blackberry are especially dangerous.
Always. when a child is permitted to ca,
berries freely, great care should be TAX
that his bowels are kept open, and that
there Is no chance OF the seed filled little
fruits accommodating in the intestines.
If this precaution is neglected, intense
pain, and in some cases, serious danger
TO life may be the result. Cooking sof-
tens the seeds of the berries to a degree,
and 1t is often safe for a child TO eat
cooked small fruits when he would have
trouble were he to take them in their
natural state. Simple fruit puddings
that the child can eat may be made for
the nursery table. and although boiled
buildings and those raised with yeast
should be avoided, others may be made
that will be more wholesome and no less
appeuzing.
BAKED STRAWBERRY PUDDING.
Soak one scant cup of white bread
crumbs for half an hour in one pint of
milk. Cream together half a cup of
sugar and a scant tablespoonful of but
and mix with the butter and sugar. Stir
into this the bread crumbs and milk,
beating hard until all are light together
Flavor with the juice of half a lemon.
Turn into a pudding dish, which should
have been buttered lightly. and bake
until the pudding is firm. Draw 1t then
to the door Of the oven and spread thick
ly over the top ripe hulled Strawberries
of medium size. Sprinkle them with
powdered sugar and heap over them
meringue made of the whites Of the eggs,
whipped stiff with two tablespoonfuls
of powdered sugar. Close the oven door
and leave the pudding in just long enough
to brown the meringue slightly. Eat
cold, with sugar and cream. This is a
nice dessert and will be relished by
adults as much as by children
OLD FASH1ONED STRAWBERRY
SHORTCAKE.
Make a biscuit dough by working a
tablespoonful of good, sweet shortening
butter and lard make good mixture
Into pint Of flour. to which has been
added two teaspoonfuls Of baking
powder. Make this into u soft dough with
milk-rich milk, If you can get IT, and
have ii as soft as II can be handled
Form II into a round cake with the hands
and bake II In a shallow tin. either round
or square. When done split It, spread
It lightly with butter, and put the straw
berries between the two layers The
berries should have been crushed lightly
with the back Of spoon and sprinkIed
plentifully with sugar Let the cake
stand few minutes before going to the
tabl5 II may be eaten with or without
cream by the grown ups and without
cream always by the children. This
dish Is an altogether different thing from
the preparation commonly made and
sold as strawberry shortcake Rasp-
berries may be used in place of straw
berries after the season for those is past.
HOT BREAKFAST SHORTCAKE
Make a dough as directed in the pre-
ceding recipe Roll part of it into
sheet about a quarter Of an inch thick
and spread II In the bottom of a creased
baking pan. Strew it thickly with Der
ries of almost any kind. raspberries,
blackberries, blueberries. sprinkle thick
ly with sugar and spread the rest of the
dough, also rolled into a sheet about
twice as thick as the under portion, over
berries and sugar, Bake In a steady
oven until done Cut In squares, pile on
a dish and send to table hot. Split open
on each plate and eat with butter and
sugar.
have called this breakfast cake, but
II is also excellent for a simple dessert.
After berry time. sliced peaches may be
used In place Of the berries and are no
less good
Continued next week.