Evening star., 1944-05-17
(ThGnkS to Mrs. V. G.. D..
CheUU Chase

AeSqoSooC0 Ny 3M1o .. ~. w. M, d
menu for eight, a dinner easy to
prepare that will be delicious, en-
joyed, appreciated and easily served.
read your request and after being
in tearoom and restaurant work
for years, but now running my
own home, I suggest this menu and
ways to serve it:
Chilled tomato juice with sliced
lemon and saltines, country fried
chicken with cream gravy, new peas,
fluffy mashed potatoes, lettuce and
tomato salad, Russian dressing,
Parker House or small hot rolls,
hot coffee. For dessert, ice cream
and cookies, Or thick slices of pound
cake topped with sweetened crushed
strawberries.
You could serve tomato juice in
living room on tray passed around
by your husband, or put everything
on the table hot and serve the juice.
Have everything on the table except
hot plates and pick up tomato juice
glasses and put down the hot plates.
| suggest passing food to guests
to help themselves to meat, vege-
tables, gravy and rolls. Serve food
to left side of guests. Clear table
and serve dessert and coffee.
The glasses of juice with sliced
lemon, salad with dressing in a
bowl, cut up chicken, dessert, all this
can be kept in refrigerator. You
may get all this the day before.
Pick up. rolls and dessert the day
you prepare dinner Set table first.
Have salad and everything prepared
in icebox. Put chicken on to fry
as it should cook slowly, then put
potatoes on, and peas. You could
mash potatoes before chicken gets
done and keep them hot, or mash
them just before making chicken
gravy.
Quantities: chickens, 8 pounds
each would serve eight people gen.
erously. -Four pounds peas, Is large
potatoes, or 18 to mash. About
2 or 3 cups of gravy, dozen small
rolls, pints of ice cream, or 1-pound
pound cake, with l quart crushed
sweetened strawberries to top. Make
enough coffee.
(Thanks to Mrs. C. D. s., Arlington. J
In reply to Mrs. C. w. M. and
her dinner for eight. Here is a sug-
gested menu:
Chilled pineapple Cor other) Juice
baked ham, candied sweet potatoes,
frozen lima beans and corn Zone
Of eachO, simple salad C1a peach or
pear, Or sliced tomatoes on lettuce)
strawberry shortcake, coffee.
The ham can be scored and
rubbed with brown sugar and cloves
or jelly the night before. I often
use canned sweet potatoes, but
either way they can be fixed ahead,
too. Put layer of cooked potatoes
in baking dish, dot with butter
and brown sugar and repeat until
dish is full. Add a little water off
canned ones, or plain water and
bake about one hour.
The lettuce can be washed the
night before and all the dry in
gradients for the shortcake mixed.
I make a regular biscuit dough,
using 2 cups flour, teaspoons bak-
| ing powder, teaspoon salt, table
spoons shortening part butter), and
l. 2 tablespoons sugar. When ready
to bake, add enough milk to make
very soft dough. If you want to
use sour milk, or buttermilk, use
only 3 teaspoons baking powder and
| p teaspoon soda. I use a water glass
to cut these and while hot, split
and butter, then cover with straw
berries and top with whipped cream
I use the top off the milk bottle
for whipped cream. Just pour gently
from a bottle which has stood over
night until it "gurgles" Three bot
ties give enough for a nice bowl
of whipped cream and there is still
some left on the milk.
The ham can be glazed and heat
ing through while the potatoes are
candying. If you don't like the
limas and corn there are so many
other frozen vegetables and they
are all delicious. Add some nice
hot rolls (can also be purchased
day before) and a good cup of coffee
and your husband ought to be
pleased.
If I'm not taking too much space
here Is recipe which can be fixed
ahead and which is delicious. Cut
up stewing chicken and drop into
boiling salted water and cook until
the meat drops from bones. Make
cream sauce using part of the
broth and milk and add u table
spoon American cheese. Put layer
of cooked elbow macaroni and one
of chicken, repeating until casserole
is almost full. Then pour on the
cream sauce and top with buttered
crumbs and brown in oven. This
can all be made the night before
and goes long way.