The Daily Alaska empire., 1938-12-08
By MRS. ALEXANDER GEORGE
 AP Feature Service Writer

If you're a good cook you've got an answer to a lot of your Christmas gift problems right in your skillet. You can give packages of food you have made yourself.
 It may mean extra work, but that kind of a present often is most ac- ceptable. That's especially true if you have a reputation among your
 friends for making some one thing especially well-a tangy salad dres- sing, fruit cookies or. perhaps, cand- jed fruit peel. Those are some sug- gestions. A pudding put up in a glass CT pottery container and ready to pop into the oven and heat is a fine gift Or send it in a muffin tin or ring mold
 For \ Bachelor Girl
 If you have a bachelor girl friend you might send her the makings. or }part of the makings. of Christmas meal in case she wants to do some entertaining herself. (Of course, if you planned that, you should let her know in advance so she won't stock up)
 You can send over on Christmas morning a roasted chicken or half a baked ham, fruit cocktail or soup, some freshly cooked vegetables, cranberry jelly. And top it off with big mince pie, ready for reheat- ing.
 And don't forget those jellies. jams and pickles you put up last summer especially with Christmas in mind. They just need to be wrap ped in holiday fashion
 A Christmas surprise package
 makes a fine family gift. Get a large box and line it with waxad paper. Cover with cookies, tightly packed and spread with waxed pap CT. Add a layer of candied fruits. stuffed dates and fruit strings. Cov-
 er these with more waxed paper and on top place delicious homee made candies Fill in the chinks with salted or glazed nutmeats and candied orange peel.
 For a business girl a large sized box of Christmas goodies will help solve her problem for evening snacks when friends drop in. Select jars with tightly fitting lids to hold the confections to keep them fresh. How About Cookies? The full cooky jar as a present is hard to beat Fill a fancy or plain jar with several varieties of home made cookies kinds that keep we'll Tie a fancy paper over the top Of the jar and add some pine cones or holiday greens.
 And don't forget the bachelor friend who likes to cook. A box of assorted sandwich spreads, some sal ad dressing, a bottle of chutney. chili sauce and some spiced beach, es will make present for him. If your bachelor is not a housekeeper. send large box of chocolate fudge pcnoche, peanut brittle and stuffed dates.
 Here is recipe for a fruit cake en casserole:
 2 lbs. seedleSs raisins, 1 ID. seeded raisins, l4 ID. candied orange peel 4 ID. candiod cherries, E ID. citron
 
 < lb. dates, E ID. figs, F ID. blanch- d almonds, E lb. flour, E 10. butter
 E ID. granulated sugar, 6 eggs. well beaten, l cup sour milk, IF cups currant jelly, tablespoon vanilla extract, 112 teaspoons salt, 2 tea spoons nutmeg, teaspoons cinna- mon, l teaspoon allspice, r teaspoon cloves, x teaspoon soda, l teaspoon baking powder.
 Chop fruits and nuts coarselv Dredge with half cup of flour. In another bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Add we'll beaten eggs, sour milk, jelly and va nilla Mix thoroughly. Sift together rest of Hour, the salt, nutmeg, cin- namcn, allspice cloves, soda and baking powder. Add flour mixture. Beat until smooth. Stir in dredged fruits and nuts. Pour into we'll greased heat-resistant glass casser- cles. tUse three one quart casseroles
 or two one and one-half quart casseroles) Put covers on dishes and bake in PTS F. oven for two and
 one-half hours. Remove from oven.
 Cool without removing covers. If | desired, seal edges, where cover
 joins dish, with paraffin. | .This makes about five pounds of