Evening star., 1945-07-19
Report to the Housewife

Big, luscious Bing cherries, cling
and freestone peaches, watermelons
--all are flooding local markets this
week, which is good news for house
wives because these fruits pinch-hit
so successfully for other desserts
that require precious sugar. Also
recommended along these lines are
sugarloaf pineapples, fresh apricots,
bananas-plentiful just now-and
the melon family, cantaloupes,
honeydews and honeyballs. Rasp-
berries have disappeared in the
rainy weather, but there are some
blueberrieS from New Jersey and a
few dewberries to be found. Thomp-
son seedlesS grapes, nectarines, nice
avocados from Florida, mangoes
and plums are other items availa-
BILE. Citrus fruits are scarce as far
as oranges and grapefruit are con-
cerned, but there seem to be ade-
quate stocks of lemons and lines.
The cool, rainy days help to keep
fresh the green's from nearby areas
already in local markets, but the
heavy showers may prevent picking,
and next week 1t is possible there
will be a scarcity of kale, Swiss
chard, mustard green's, etc. Spinach
is hard to find even now. Home
grown tomatoes are of fair quality;
Chinese cabbage is recommended
and snap beans are very good. Peas
have been a little more plentiful of
late, and there are adequate sup
plies of corn, both white and yell
low; green peppers, celery, cucum-
bers, carrots, cabbage and beets.
Potatoes and onions continue
steady; squash of all kinds are ex-
cellent. For your salad bowl there
is an abundance of watercress, let
tuce, both iceberg and garden; es-
carole, chicory, radishes and spring
onions. In general, the overall quail
ity picture IS disappointing, and very
careful marketing is in order.
Meats show little change from
last week-some beef and veal, a.
little lamb, and very small amount
of pork of any type. Eggs are still
relatively scarce; cheeseS are fairly
plentiful, and poultry a rarity,
as usual. Salad dressings also are
almost impossible to find in many
of the stores, but there seems to be
ample butter on hand for those
who have the points.
Weather has had its effect on fish
from New England; very little will
be coming into Washington from
that area this week, dealers say.
Even Holsters will be few and far
between, and the filleted fish will
also be hard to find. So we shall
have to fall back on the old stand
bys, such as porgies, butterfish,
spots, croakerS, mackerel and trout.
There is some fresh founder around
town, but not much. Very little
sea bass Is expected, and the out
look for shrimp, both raw and
cooked, is distinctly dreary. Crab
meat, however, is in good supply.
AS to the soap and soap powder
setup, which is causing such al
furor in some quarters-it would
appear from a cursory checkup
that matters are not very different
from what they have been for the
last several months. Every woman
knows she has had trouble finding
any kind Of soap or soap powder
4OI HOuocWOIh IOT, 10, GueSc many
moons, and the shortage Is no
news to her. She has had to take
what she could find, when she
could find it-just as she has had
to do in so many other shopping
problems. So there is no reason
she should suddenly panic now any
more than she has done before
and start a run" on soaps and
soap powders. That is the thing
that WOULD make the situation Sc
vere-juSt what she is trying to
avoid!
Here and There: Don't forget
those sessions at the Community
Canning Center that began on Tues
day and will be held daily, except
Saturdays, from 9 am. to pm, in
the foods laboratory of the Adams
School, Nineteenth and California
streets NV. Bring your vegetables,
fruits and jars to the center, and
trained home economists will direct
canning methods, using
the pressure cookers and other es-