Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-07-18

| atively little nutriment, although they are
| valuable factors of the diet Many of the
| dried fruits. such as figs, dates, pruncs
| and raisinS. not only wholesome but
| contain a great deal of nourishment The
| best way to prepare dried fruits is to soak
| them in cold water for twenty-four hours.
then simmer slowly without boiling two
| or three hours until tender.
! Rasins are specially valuable in cases
| where sustained physical exercise Is nee
| esSary, affording both nour;shment and
stimulus. bunch OF raisins eaten when
| fatigued often serve the same purpose as
| a glass of wine. Figs and dates are both
valuable in certain conditions, but should
! be thoroughly washed and looked over he
| fore eating. Green figs are an excellent
| food.
| Blackberries-One of the best of summer
| fruits from therape standpoint is the
blackberry. which IS just at its best.
The use of black berry vinegar and black
! berry cordial in summer disorders is as old
| as the Olympian hills, peradVenture. as MI
! Ida is said to have been the native home of
| the 'brambe' berry.
Whether the daughters of the gods pre-
| pared them with mead or ambrosia is i'm
material now, but this is a time honorci
way which still holds good.
Blackberry Cordial.-Put sweet. ripe. dry
| blackbcrries in preserving kettle on the
| back of the range. AS they begin to heat
press with a spoon to extract the juice,
| then keep simmerng slowly until they are
| juicy enough to strain. To each pint and
| half of juice add pound of white
| sugar. half ounce each of cloves and
! cinnamon and a quarter ounce of mace tied
in muslin bags. Boil slowly twenty min
| utes, cool add three-quarters of pint of
! brandy and bottle.
! Blackberry Vinegar-Mash the berries to
pulp in stone or eartEen vessel. Add eli
der vinegar to cover well. Stand in the
| sun during the day, stirring occasionally.
| and place in the cellar over night. The
second day strain and add the same amount
! of berries We're used at first. Crush
| these. pour the strained juice over them.
| Set in the sun during the day and at mig hit
| carry again to the cellar. The third morn
| ing strain and to each quart of the juice
| add one pint of water and five pounds of
| white sugar. Heat slowly to boiling. on
| the back of the range. skim and when it
| reaches the boiling point cook ten minutes.
| Strain and bottle, sealing air tight.
Other good. old-fashioned rules for the
service of bla berrieS-recipeS that the
modern cook has never improved upon, are
these:
Blackberry Jam.-For every pound of
fruit allow three-fourths of a pound of
gar Put the fruit in the preserving kettle
stir and crush with a wooden spoon, and
boil thirty minutes. Add the sugar and
boil slowly thirty minutes longer. Put in
! small pots. cover first with branded paper
Blackherries for Winter Pies.-Cook to-
gether fourteen pounds of blackb.rries.
seven pounds of sugar and pint of cider
vinegar until well scalded. Add a half
glass of brandy and can Willie scalding hot
Elderberries may be put up in the same
way.
Fresh Blackberry Pie.-Line pie plate
with crust. Allow three cupfuls of berries
and three-fOurths of a cup of sugar to each
pie. Dredge with light sprinkling of
flour. cover with crust and bind the edges
with clean strip of cotton cloth. wet in
cold water. Bake in rather slow and
steady oven. All berries should be washed
and thoroughly drained before using. The
easiest way to do so without bruising the
berries is to put a few at a time in a
strainer or colander and let cold water run
slowly over them. Shake all the water off
and let them stand few moments before
using.
Favorite blackberry pudding.-Butter a
pudding dish and place a layer of berries
inch and half deep on the bottom
Pour over this batter, composed of two
tablespoonful of butter, one cup of sugar
one egg. one cupful of milk. two cupfulS of
flour. two teaSpoonfulS of baking powder
and dash of nutmeg. Bake. turn from
the dish with the fruit on top. and serve
with sweetened cream or spice sauce.
Blackberry shortcake.-With one quart of
-four mix three four successive Siftings
two teaspoonfuls baking powder one tea
spoonful of salt and three teaspoonfulS of
sugar. Rub in two tableSpoOnfuls of butter
and mix with sweet milk or water to a
dough stiff as can be mixed with a
spoon. but not stiff enough to roll. Line
two rather deep pie tins with buttered
paper, pour in the dough and bake in quick
oven. When done butter both cakes and
on the lower place a thick layer of black
berries. Sprinkle well with sugar cover
and sprinkle powdered sugar on top. Serve
with cream.
Blackberry fritters.-Make batter of one
pint of milk. one egg. one tablespoonful of
sugar, one teaSpoonful OF liking powder
one cup of -four and half teaspoonful Of
salt. Into this batter stir lightly two cups
of sweet black berries. Have ready a ket-
tie of smoking hot fat and drop the batter
in a tablespoonful at time. Serve with
liquid sauce.
Among the timely and delicious good
things to eat made from huckleberres the
following well worth adding to the
housekeeper's ome-made cook book:
New England BURBERRY cake.-This is one
of the old-time New England breakfast