Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-03-03
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

I delicacies had better let the method
alone
The truth is that such natural born
cooks" more often have precise recipes
than they will admit; they ike 70
make a sort of mystery out OF tneiI
profession, so their humble credlt VIII
be all the larger.
| 1t is a harmless sort of deluSion ano
hurts no one, unless, perhaps, the anna
teur cook who takes it all too seriously
| In fudge making there are various
articles which are used to insure tne
proper hardening Of the candy. so tnat
| 1t may be eaten hot. OF this, more
later.
| One Is to use q proportion OF corn
starch. Another is to cook longer tnan
usual Another is to make sure thal
the proportion OF butter is lessehed.
! Cutting down on the butter content
in the mixture Is one Of the best ways:
The temptation is to put in more ana
more butter, in order to make the
| fudge rich"
Richness Is one of the greatest de-
| lusions of cookery. The striving Tor
an artificial and undesirable richness
has ruined more good cooks than any
thing else. Most foods are good enough
II one has sense enough to let them
alone. Smothering steaks in onions Is
bad on steaks.
The peak point of properly prepared
chocolate fudge Is when it Is hot.
Those who have not eaten hot fudge
have missed something.
It Is the only way to get the best
flavor from this type of candy.
With every second of cooling, some
thing of sweetness and favor goes out
of it.
Like corn of the stalk, so much sugar
content is lost with the passage OF time.
He who eats fudge cold never knows
what it really tastes like
Now. there is something gourmandlz-
ing about all this. 1t must be admitted.
There is about the peak point in the
flavor of all good dishes.
Hot biscuits, hot fried mush. hot pop
overs, hot bread even hot cake-who is
there who does not know that they taste
best?
The interest the children take in hot
breads and cake is proof enough. Doc
tors and parents combined, for many
years, to lessen the interest sof the
little ones in food hot out of the oven
Maybe they succeeded, and maybe
they didn't. 1t is perhaps true that
such hot foods are not as bad for one
as they were represented.
~ ~
Certainly fudge is best when hot.
One Of the good points about eating
it while warm is that it cools of
rapidly. and If one prefers it 50 his
intake will necessarily be limited.
This will be a good thing, because
fudge, for all its virtues, has one very
poor feature. 1t is, in the opinion OF
some. sure breeder of common colds
Just what connection chocolate fudge
has with a cold" it is impossible tn
state. From one standpoint it would
seem that the desire for it is a sure
sign that the human system Is in a
condition which renders it susceptible
to colds
If this is true one should never ear
fudge, but rather resist the temptation
knowing that the desire for it Is an
indication that one is in a state OF
health making a cold inevitable unless
one refrains from eating altogether.
Those who like this delicacy, however
will continue to feel that If a cold
is to be the result of a plate of hot
fudge, eaten while reading ones IA
vorite author. then one must put up
with cold once In awhile for old
times sake.