Evening star., 1953-12-21

fruit. Many Of the local food
chains will be featuring pecans.
figs, dates and plum puddings.
For stuf1ng the holiday bird
you'll find ample supplies Of
chestnuts and good quality
oysters.
Jonuory Plentifuls
There1l be q general return
to thrifty meals once the holi-
day season is over a shop
ping for the economical, plenti-
full foods to balance the budget.
Topping the list of plentifuls for
January as reported by the
USDA are grapefruit, onions and
winter pears. For main dishes
the possibilities include broiler-
fryer chickens, eggs, beef and
frozen fish. especially ocean
perch, whiting and scallops.
Shoppers should know that now
adays hens increase their egg
laying earlier in the season.
Thus, in January you're able to
get high-quality eggs at reason
able prices before commercial
professors start buying.
AS for vegetables, potatoes will
continue to be plentiful and rea-
sonable, cabbage will be in heavy
supply and thereIl be lots Of
large dry limas around to use
as a hearty vegetable or in soups.
PecanS. peanuts, raisins are
good choices for the lunch pail.
All dairy products will be fea-
tured and finally. good supplies
Of fats and oils for cooking, salad
and table use will continue.
Festive Notes
Something new and dramatic
for the buffet table: Use your
Christmas SNOWFALL candle as a
holder for hors d'oeuvres. This
is particularly effective if the
candle is the kind that glows
through the snowy white sur
face. Impale bite-size tidbitS on
cocktail picks and carefully stick
them into the outer wax coating
of the candle. Then light the
candle, Of course.
Make hard sauce SnowmeD
and Christmas trees to sit atop
each serving Of plum pudding.
For the snow men shape the
hard sauce into 3z-inch balls
and H-inch balls. Place a small
ball on top Of a large one to
form a head and body just
like you would a real snowman.
Use cloves for eyes, nose and
buttons. A ng-stemmed Glove
makes q good pipe, too. For a
hat use q colored candy. Chill
overnight.
For the Christmas trees, make
small cone shaped molds from
paper. Using a pastry tube, fill
with soft. freshly made hard
sauce. Chill until firm. To serve,
remove paper, trim with colored
sugar.
And now-our best wishes to
you all for a very merry Christ
mas.
Here and There
It's good meal planning and
time saving for nom, especially
during the hustle and hustle Of
the holidays, to make dessert
the whole family can enjoy. For
instance, make q recipe Of quick
cooking tapioca pudding by
package directions: tiny tots en-
joy it served with applesauce;
the others in the family with q
chocolate sauce and nut top
ping For a delicious taste
treat sprinkle your favorite sugar
cookies with instant sweet cocoa
mix before baking. You'll find
these cookies disappear like
magic. so be sure to have some
"extras" on hand. If Santa
sends an over-abundance OF
peppermint candy canes to your
house, crush some with a rolling
pin. Then serve as a festive top
ping on ice cream and pudding
desserts. There's no safer
place than a good cold refriger-
ator to thaw your holiday turkey,
say food specialists from USDA.
Take of the freezer wrappings
and cover turkey loosely with
waxed paper. Then allow two or
three days in the refrigerator to
thaw a large bird or one day for
q small one. They caution
against thawing at room tenn
perature or in warm water, and
never let the bird stand in water
-. warm or cold. Here are some
other important rules: Don't
cook turkey partially one day
and finish the next, even If it's a
big turkey and even If you have
to rise early to get it in the oven.
Don't stuff turkey until you are
ready to cook it. Make the stuff
ing the day before and keep it
in the refrigerator. If you wish,
but put the stuffing in the bird
iuSt before roasting.