SCIENCE IN THE KITCHEN.

A Scientific Treatise on Food Substances and Their Dietetic Properties, together with a Practical Explanation of the Principles of Healthful Cookery, and a Large Number of Original, Palatable, and Wholesome Recipes.

by

MRS. E. E. KELLOGG, A.M.

Superintendent of the Sanitarium School of Cookery and of the Bay View Assembly School of Cookery, and Chairman of the World's Fair Committee on Food Supplies, for Michigan

1893



PREFACE.

The interest in scientific cookery, particularly in cookery as related to health, has manifestly increased in this country within the last decade as is evidenced by the success which has attended every intelligent effort for the establishment of schools for instruction in cookery in various parts of the United States. While those in charge of these schools have presented to their pupils excellent opportunities for the acquirement of dexterity in the preparation of toothsome and tempting viands, but little attention has been paid to the science of dietetics, or what might be termed the hygiene of cookery.

A little less than ten years ago the Sanitarium at Battle Creek Mich., established an experimental kitchen and a school of cookery under the supervision of Mrs. Dr. Kellogg, since which time, researches in the various lines of cookery and dietetics have been in constant progress in the experimental kitchen, and regular sessions of the school of cookery have been held. The school has gradually gained in popularity, and the demand for instruction has become so great that classes are in session during almost the entire year.

During this time, Mrs. Kellogg has had constant oversight of the cuisine of both the Sanitarium and the Sanitarium Hospital, preparing bills of fare for the general and diet tables, and supplying constantly new methods and original recipes to meet the changing and growing demands of an institution numbering always from 500 to 700 inmates.

These large opportunities for observation, research, and experience, have gradually developed a system of cookery, the leading features of which are so entirely novel and so much in advance of the methods heretofore in use, that it may be justly styled, A New System of Cookery. It is a singular and lamentable fact, the evil consequences of which are wide-spread, that the preparation of food, although involving both chemical and physical processes, has been less advanced by the results of modern researches and discoveries in chemistry and physics, than any other department of human industry. Iron mining, glass-making, even the homely art of brick-making, and many of the operations of the farm and the dairy, have been advantageously modified by the results of the fruitful labors of modern scientific investigators. But the art of cookery is at least a century behind in the march of scientific progress. The mistress of the kitchen is still groping her way amid the uncertainties of mediaeval methods, and daily bemoaning the sad results of the "rule of thumb." The chemistry of cookery is as little known to the average housewife as were the results of modern chemistry to the old alchemists; and the attempt to make wholesome, palatable, and nourishing food by the methods commonly employed, is rarely more successful than that of those misguided alchemists in transmuting lead and copper into silver and gold.

The new cookery brings order from out the confusion of mixtures and messes, often incongruence and incompatible, which surrounds the average cook, by the elucidation of the principles which govern the operations of the kitchen, with the same certainty with which the law of gravity rules the planets.

Those who have made themselves familiar with Mrs. Kellogg's system of cookery, invariably express themselves as trebly astonished: first, at the simplicity of the methods employed; secondly, at the marvelous results both as regards palatableness, wholesomeness, and attractiveness; thirdly, that it had never occurred to them "to do this way before."

This system does not consist simply of a rehash of what is found in every cook book, but of new methods, which are the result of the application of the scientific principles of chemistry and physics to the preparation of food in such a manner as to make it the most nourishing, the most digestible, and the most inviting to the eye and to the palate.

Those who have tested the results of Mrs. Kellogg's system of cookery at the Sanitarium tables, or in their own homes through the instruction of her pupils, have been most enthusiastic in their expressions of satisfaction and commendation. Hundreds of original recipes which have appeared in her department in Good Health, "Science in the Household", have been copied into other journals, and are also quite largely represented in the pages of several cook books which have appeared within the last few years.

The great success which attended the cooking school in connection with the Bay View Assembly (the Michigan Chautauqua), as well as the uniform success which has met the efforts of many of the graduates of the Sanitarium school of cookery who have undertaken to introduce the new system through the means of cooking classes in various parts of the United States, has created a demand for a fuller knowledge of the system.

This volume is the outgrowth of the practical and experimental work, and the popular demand above referred to. Its preparation has occupied the entire leisure time of the author during the last five or six years. No pains or expense has been spared to render the work authoritative on all questions upon which it treats, and in presenting it to the public, the publishers feel the utmost confidence that the work will meet the highest expectations of those who have waited impatiently for its appearance during the months which have elapsed since its preparation was first announced. PUBLISHERS.



TABLE OF CONTENTS.

FOODS Properties of food Food elements Uses of food elements Proper combinations of food Proper proportion of food elements Condiments Relation of condiments to intemperance Variety in food Table topics.

THE DIGESTION OF FOODS The digestive organs The digestion of a mouthful of bread Salivary digestion Stomach digestion Intestinal digestion Other uses of the digestive fluids Absorption Liver digestion Time required for digestion Dr. Beaumont's table made from experiments on Alexis St. Martin Hygiene of digestion Hasty eating Drinking freely at meals Eating between meals Simplicity in diet Eating when tired Eating too much How much food is enough Excess of certain food elements Deficiency of certain food elements Food combinations Table topics.

COOKERY Evils of bad cookery The principles of scientific cookery Fuels Making fires Care of fires Methods of cooking Roasting Broiling or grilling Baking The oven thermometer Boiling The boiling point of water How to raise the boiling point of water Action of hot and cold water upon foods Steaming Stewing Frying Evaporation Adding foods to boiling liquids Measuring Comparative table of weights and measures Mixing the material Stirring Beating Kneading Temperature Cooking utensils Porcelain ware Granite ware Galvanized iron ware Tests for lead Adulterated tin Table topics.

THE HOUSEHOLD WORKSHOP Description of a convenient kitchen The kitchen furniture Cupboards A convenient kitchen table The kitchen sink Drainpipes Stoves and ranges Oil and gas stoves The "Aladdin Cooker" Kitchen utensils The tin closet The dish closet The pantry The storeroom The refrigerator The water supply Test for pure water Filters Cellars Kitchen conveniences The steam cooker The vegetable press-The lemon drill The handy waiter The wall cabinet The percolater holder Kneading table Dish-towel rack Kitchen brushes Vegetable brush Table topics.

THE GRAINS, OR CEREALS, AND THEIR PREPARATION General properties of grains Cooking of grains The double boiler Table showing amount of liquid, and time required for cooking different grains Grains for breakfast-Grains an economical food Wheat Description of a grain of wheat Preparation and cooking Recipes: Pearl wheat Cracked wheat Rolled wheat Boiled wheat Wheat with raisins Wheat with fresh fruit Molded wheat Finer mill products of wheat Recipes: Farina Farina with fig sauce Farina with fresh fruit Molded farina Graham grits Graham mush Graham mush No. 2 Graham mush No. 3 Graham mush with dates Plum porridge Graham apple mush Granola mush Granola fruit mush Granola peach mush Bran jelly The oat, description of Oatmeal Brose Budrum Flummery Preparation and cooking of oats Recipes: Oatmeal mush Oatmeal fruit mush Oatmeal blancmange Oatmeal Blancmange No. 2 Jellied oatmeal Mixed mush Rolled oats Oatmeal with apple Oatmeal porridge Barley, description of Gofio Scotch milled or pot barley Pearl barley Suggestions for cooking barley Recipes: Baked barley Pearl barley with raisins Pearl barley with lemon sauce Rice, description of Rice paddy Preparation and cooking of rice Recipes: Steamed rice Boiled rice Rice with fig sauce Orange rice Rice with raisins Rice with peaches Browned rice Rye, description of Rye meal Rye flour Recipes: Rolled rye Rye mush Maize, or Indian corn, description of Suggestions for cooking corn Recipes: Corn meal mush Corn meal mush with fruit Corn meal cubes Browned mush Samp Cerealine flakes Hulled corn Coarse hominy Fine hominy or grits Popped corn Macaroni, description of Semolina Spaghetti Vermicelli To select macaroni To prepare and cook macaroni Recipes: Homemade macaroni Boiled macaroni Macaroni with cream sauce Macaroni with tomato sauce Macaroni baked with granola Eggs and macaroni Table topics.

BREADSTUFFS AND BREAD-MAKING The origin of bread Chestnut bread Peanut bread Breadstuffs Qualities necessary for good bread Superiority of bread over meat Graham flour Wheat meal Whole-wheat or entire wheat flour How to select flour To keep flour Deleterious adulterations of flour Tests for adulterated flour Chemistry of bread-making Bread made light by fermentation The process of fermentation Fermentative agents Yeast Homemade yeasts How to keep yeast Bitter yeast Tests for yeast Starting the bread Proportion of materials needed Utensils When to set the sponge Temperature for bread-making How to set the sponge Lightness of the bread Kneading the dough How to manipulate the dough in kneading How many times shall bread be kneaded Dryness of the surface Size of loaves Proper temperature of the oven How to test the heat of an oven Care of bread after baking Best method of keeping bread Test of good fermented bread Whole-wheat and Graham breads Toast Steamed bread Liquid yeast Recipes: Raw potato yeast Raw potato yeast No. 2 Hop yeast Boiled potato yeast Boiled potato yeast No. 2 Fermented breads Recipes: Milk bread with white flour Vienna bread Water bread Fruit roll Fruit loaf Potato bread Pulled bread Whole-wheat bread Whole-wheat bread No. 2 Miss B's one-rising bread Potato bread with whole-wheat flour Rye bread Graham bread Graham bread No. 2 Graham bread No. 3 Raised biscuit Rolls Imperial rolls French rolls Crescents Parker House rolls Braids Brown bread Date bread Fruit loaf with Graham and whole-wheat flour Raised corn bread Corn cake Oatmeal bread Milk yeast bread Graham salt rising bread Unfermented breads Passover cakes Tortillas Evils of chemical bread raising Rochelle salts in baking powders General directions Gem irons Perforated sheet-iron pan for rolls Unfermented batter breads Unfermented dough breads Recipes: Whole-wheat puffs Whole-wheat puffs No. 2 Whole-wheat puffs No. 3 Graham puffs Graham puffs No. 2 Currant puffs Graham gems Crusts Rye puffs Rye puffs No. 2 Rye gems Blueberry gems Hominy gems Sally Lunn gems Corn puffs Corn puffs No. 2 Corn puffs No 3 Corn puffs No. 4 Corn dodgers Corn dodgers No. 2 Cream corn cakes Hoe cakes Oatmeal gems Snow gems Pop overs Granola gems Bean gems Breakfast rolls Sticks Cream Graham rolls Corn mush rolls Fruit rolls Cream mush rolls Beaten biscuit Cream crisps Cream crisps No. 2 Graham crisps Oatmeal crisps Graham crackers Fruit crackers Table topics.

FRUITS: Chemical constituents of Value as nutrients Structure of fruits The jelly-producing principle Digestibility of fruits Unripe fruits Table of fruit analysis Ripe fruit and digestive disorders Over-ripe and decayed fruits Dangerous bacteria on unwashed fruit Free use of fruit lessens desire for alcoholic stimulants Beneficial use of fruits in disease Apples The pear The quince The peach The plum The prune The apricot The cherry The olive; its cultivation and preservation The date, description and uses of The orange The lemon The sweet lemon or bergamot The citron The lime The grape-fruit The pomegranate, its antiquity The grape Zante currants The gooseberry The currant The whortleberry The blueberry The cranberry The strawberry The raspberry The blackberry The mulberry The melon The fig, its antiquity and cultivation The banana Banana meal The pineapple Fresh fruit for the table Selection of fruit for the table Directions for serving fruits Apples Bananas Cherries Currants Goosberries Grapes Melons Oranges Peaches and pears Peaches and cream Pineapples Plums Pressed Figs Raspberries, Blackberries, Dewberries, Blueberries and Whortlberries Frosted fruit Keeping fresh fruit Directions for packing, handling, and keeping fruits Recipes: To keep grapes To keep lemons and oranges To keep cranberries Cooked fruit General suggestions for cooking fruit Recipes: Baked apples Citron apples Lemon apples Baked pears Baked quince Pippins and quince Baked apple sauce Baked apple sauce No. 2 Apples stewed whole Steamed apples Compote of apples Apple compote No. 2 Stewed pears Stewed apple sauce Boiled apples with syrup Stewed apples Stewed crab apples Sweet apple sauce with condensed apple juice Apples with raisins Apples with apricots Peaches, pears, cherries, berries, and other small fruits Baked apples Baked pears Baked peaches Cranberries Cranberries with raisins Cranberries with sweet apples Oranges and apples Stewed raisins Dried apples Dried apples with other dried fruit Dried apricots and peaches Evaporated peach sauce Dried pears Small fruits Prunes Prune marmalade Canning fruit Selection of cans How to test and sterilize cans Selection of fruit Directions for preparing fruit Cooking fruit for canning Storing of canned fruit Mold on canned fruit Opening of canned fruit Rules for selecting canned fruit Recipes: To can strawberries To can raspberries, blackberries and other small fruit To can gooseberries To can peaches To can pears To can plums To can cherries To can mixed fruit Quinces and apples Plums with sweet apples To can grapes To can crab apples To can apples To can pineapples Fruit jellies Recipes: Apple jelly Apple jelly without sugar Berry and currant jellies Cherry jelly Crab apple jelly Cranberry jelly Grape jelly Orange jelly Peach Jelly Quince jelly Plum jelly Fruit in jelly Fruit juices, value of How to prepare fruit juices Recipes: Grape juice or unfermented wine Grape juice No. 2 Another method Fruit syrup Currant syrup Orange syrup Lemon syrup Lemon syrup No 2 Blackberry syrup Fruit ices Nuts Composition and nutritive value of The almond Almond bread The Brazil nut The cocoanut, its uses in tropical countries The chestnut Chestnut flour The acorn The hazel nut The filbert The cobnut The walnut The butternut The hickory nut The pecan The peanut or ground nut Recipes: To blanch almonds Boiled chestnuts Mashed chestnuts Baked chestnuts To keep nuts fresh Table topics.

THE LEGUMES Composition and nutritive value Legumes as a substitute for animal food Legumin, or vegetable casein Chinese cheese Legumes the "pulse" of Scripture Diet of the pyramid builders Digestibility of legumes A fourteenth century recipe The green legumes Suggestions for cooking Slow cooking preferable Soaking the dry seeds Effects of hard water upon the legumes Temperature of water for cooking Amount of water required Addition of salt to legumes Peas, description of Buying votes with peas A commemorative dinner Peas bainocks Peas sausages Peas pudding Time required for cooking Recipes: Stewed split peas Peas puree Mashed peas Peas cakes Dried green peas Beans, description of Mention of beans in Scripture Beans in mythology Time required for digestion Method of cooking Experiment of an English cook Parboiling beans Time required to cook Recipes: Baked beans Boiled beans Beans boiled in a bag Scalloped beans Stewed beans Mashed beans Stewed Lima beans Succotash Pulp succotash Lentils, description of Use of lentils by the ancients Lentil meal Preparation for cooking Recipes: Lentil puree Lentils mashed with beans Lentil gravy with rice Table topics.

VEGETABLES Composition and nutritive value of vegetables Exclusive diet of vegetables not desirable To select vegetables Poison in potato sprouts Stale vegetables a cause of illness Keeping vegetables To freshen withered vegetables Storing winter vegetables Preparation and cooking To clean vegetables for cooking Methods of cooking Time required for cooking various vegetables Irish potato, description of The chemistry of cooking Digestibility of the potato New potatoes Preparation and cooking Recipes: Potatoes boiled in "jackets" Boiled potatoes without skins Steamed potatoes Roasted potatoes Baked potatoes Stuffed potatoes Stuffed potatoes No. 2 Mashed potatoes New potatoes Cracked potatoes Creamed potatoes Scalloped potatoes Stewed potatoes Potatoes stewed with celery Potato snow balls Potato cakes Potato cakes with egg Potato puffs Browned potatoes Ornamental potatoes Broiled potatoes Warmed-over potatoes Vegetable hash The sweet potato, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Baked sweet potatoes Baked sweet potatoes No 2 Boiled sweet potatoes Steamed sweet potatoes Browned sweet potatoes Mashed sweet potatoes Potato hash Roasted sweet potatoes Turnips, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Boiled turnips Baked turnips Creamed turnips Chopped turnips Mashed turnips Scalloped turnips Steamed turnips Stewed turnips Turnips in juice Turnips with cream sauce Parsnips, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Baked parsnips Baked parsnips No. 2 Boiled parsnips Browned parsnips Creamed parsnips Mashed parsnips Parsnips with cream sauce Parsnips with egg sauce Parsnips with potatoes Stewed parsnips Stewed parsnips with celery Carrots, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Boiled carrots Carrots with egg sauce Stewed carrots Beets, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Baked beets Baked beets No. 2 Beets and potatoes Beet hash Beet greens Beet salad or chopped beets Beet salad No 2 Boiled beets Stewed beets Cabbage, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Baked cabbage Boiled cabbage Cabbage and tomatoes Cabbage and celery Cabbage hash Chopped cabbage or cabbage salad Mashed cabbage Stewed cabbage Cauliflower and Broccoli, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Boiled cauliflower Browned cauliflower Cauliflower with egg sauce With tomato sauce Stewed cauliflower Scalloped cauliflower Spinach, description of Preparation and cooking Celery To keep celery fresh Recipes: Celery salad Stewed celery Stewed celery No. 2 Celery with tomato sauce Celery and potato hash Asparagus, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Asparagus and peas Asparagus Points Asparagus on toast Asparagus with cream sauce Asparagus with egg sauce Stewed asparagus Sea-kale, description of Lettuce and radish, description of Recipes: Lettuce Radishes Cymling Description Preparation and cooking Recipes: Mashed squash Squash with egg sauce Stewed squash Winter squash Preparation and cooking Time required for cooking Recipes: Baked squash Steamed squash The pumpkin, description of Recipes: Baked pumpkin Stewed pumpkin Dried pumpkin Tomato, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Baked tomatoes Baked tomatoes No. 2 Scalloped tomatoes Stewed corn and tomatoes Tomato gravy Tomato salad Tomato salad No. 2 Broiled tomatoes Tomato pudding Stewed tomatoes Tomato with okra Egg plant, description of Nutritive value Recipes: Scalloped egg plant Baked egg plant Cucumber, description of Digestibility Preparation and cooking Salsify or vegetable oyster, description of Preparation and cooking Recipes: Scalloped vegetable oysters Stewed vegetable oysters Green corn, peas, and beans, description of General suggestions for selecting and cooking Recipes for corn: Baked corn Baked corn No. 2 Boiled green corn Stewed corn pulp Corn cakes Corn pudding Roasted green corn Stewed green corn Summer succotash Dried corn Recipe for peas: Stewed peas Recipes for beans: Lima beans Shelled beans String beans Canning vegetables Recipes: Canned corn Canned corn and tomatoes Canned peas Canned tomatoes Canned tomatoes No. 2 String beans Canned pumpkin and squash Table topics.

SOUPS Value of soup as an article of diet Superiority of soups made from grain and legumes Economical value of such soups Digestibility of soups Cooking of material for soups Use of a colander in preparing soups Quantity of salt required Flavoring soups Seasoning of soup Chinese soup strainer Whole grains, macaroni, shredded vegetables, etc., for soups Milk in the preparation of soups Consistency of soups Preparation of soups from left-over fragments Croutons Recipes: Asparagus soup Baked bean soup Bean and corn soup Bean and hominy soup Bean and potato soup Bean and tomato soup Black bean soup Black bean soup No. 2 Bran stock Brown soup Canned green pea soup Canned corn soup Carrot soup Celery soup Chestnut soup Combination soup Combination soup No. 2 Another Another Cream pea soup Cream barley soup Green corn soup Green pea soup Green bean soup Kornlet soup Kornlet and tomato soup Lentil soup Lentil and parsnip soup Lima bean soup Macaroni soup Oatmeal soup Parsnip soup Parsnip soup No. 2 Pea and tomato soup Plain rice soup Potato and rice soup Potato soup Potato and vermicelli soup Sago and potato soup Scotch broth Split pea soup Sweet potato soup Swiss potato soup Swiss lentil soup Tomato and macaroni soup Tomato cream soup Tomato and okra soup Tomato soup with vermicelli Vegetable oyster soup Vegetable soup Vegetable soup No. 2 Vegetable soup No. 3 Vegetable soup No. 4 Velvet Soup Vermicelli soup No. 2 White celery soup Table topics.

BREAKFAST DISHES Importance of a good breakfast Requirements for a good breakfast Pernicious custom of using fried and indigestible foods for breakfast Use of salted foods an auxiliary to the drink habit The ideal breakfast Use of fruit for breakfast Grains for breakfast An appetizing dish Preparation of zwieback Preparation of toast Recipes: Apple toast Apricot toast Asparagus toast Banana toast Berry toast Berry toast No. 2 Celery toast Cream toast Cream toast with poached egg Cherry toast Gravy toast Dry toast with hot cream Grape toast Lentil toast Prune toast Peach toast Snowflake toast Tomato toast Vegetable oyster toast Miscellaneous breakfast dishes: Brewis Blackberry mush Dry granola Frumenty Macaroni with raisins Macaroni with kornlet Peach mush Rice with lemon Table topics.

DESSERTS

Appropriate and healthful desserts Objections to the use of desserts The simplest dessert General suggestions Importance of good material Preparation of dried fruit for dessert Molded desserts Suggestions for flavoring: To prepare almond paste Cocoanut flavor Orange and lemon flavor To color sugar Fruit desserts Recipes: Apple dessert Apple meringue dessert. Apple rose cream Apple snow Baked apples with cream Baked sweet apple dessert Bananas in syrup Baked bananas Fresh fruit compote Grape apples Peach cream Prune dessert Desserts made of fruit with grains, bread, etc. Recipes: Apple sandwich Apple sandwich No. 2 Baked apple pudding Barley fruit pudding Barley fig pudding Blackberry cornstarch pudding Cocoanut and cornstarch blancmange Cornstarch blancmange cornstarch with raisins Cornstarch with apples Cornstarch fruit mold Cornstarch fruit mold No. 2 Cracked wheat pudding Cracked wheat pudding No. 2 Farina blancmange Farina fruit mold Fruit pudding Jam pudding Plain fruit pudding or Brown Betty Prune pudding Rice meringue Rice snowball Rice fruit dessert Rice dumpling Rice cream pudding Rice pudding with raisins Red rice mold Rice and fruit dessert Rice and tapioca pudding Rice flour mold Rice and stewed apple dessert Rice and strawberry dessert Stewed fruit pudding Strawberry minute pudding Sweet apple pudding Whortleberry pudding Desserts with tapioca, sago, manioca, and sea moss Recipes: Apple tapioca Apple tapioca No. 2 Banana dessert Blackberry tapioca Cherry pudding Fruit tapioca Molded tapioca with fruit Pineapple tapioca Prune and tapioca pudding Tapioca and fig pudding Peach tapioca Tapioca jelly Apple sago pudding Red sago mold Sago fruit pudding Sago pudding Manioca with fruit Raspberry manioca mold Sea moss blancmange Desserts made with gelatin Gelatine an excellent culture medium Dangers in the use of gelatine Quantity to be used Recipes: Apples in jelly Apple shape Banana dessert Clear dessert Fruit foam dessert Fruit shape Gelatine custard Layer-pudding Lemon jelly Jelly with fruit Orange dessert; Oranges in jelly Orange jelly Snow pudding Desserts with crusts Recipes: Apple tart Gooseberry tart Cherry tart Strawberry and other fruit shortcakes Banana shortcake Lemon shortcake Berry shortcake with prepared cream Cream Raised pie Baked apple loaf Custard puddings Importance of slow cooking Best utensils for cooking Custard desserts in cups To stir beaten eggs into heated milk To flavor custards and custard puddings Recipes: Apple custard Apple custard No. 2 Apple custard No. 3 Apple cornstarch custard Apple and bread custard Almond cornstarch pudding Almond cream Apple charlotte Banana custard Boiled custard Boiled custard bread pudding Bread and fruit custard Bread custard pudding Bread and fig pudding Bread and apricot pudding Caramel custard Carrot pudding Cocoanut cornstarch pudding Cocoanut custard Cocoanut rice custard Corn meal pudding Corn meal pudding No. 2 Corn meal and fig pudding Cornstarch meringue Cracked wheat pudding Cup custard Farina custard Farina pudding Floating island Fruit custard Graham grits pudding Ground rice pudding Lemon pudding Lemon cornstarch pudding Lemon cornstarch pudding No. 2 Macaroni pudding Molded rice or snowballs Orange float Orange custard Orange pudding Peach meringue Picnic pudding Plain cornstarch pudding Plain custard Prune pudding Prune whip Rice apple custard pudding Rice custard pudding Rice snow Rice snow with jelly Rice with eggs Snow pudding Steamed custard Strawberry charlotte Pop corn pudding Sago custard pudding Sago and fruit custard pudding Snowball custard Tapioca custard Tapioca pudding Vermicelli pudding White custard White custard No. 2 Steamed pudding Precautions to be observed in steaming puddings Recipes: Batter pudding Bread and fruit custard Date pudding Rice balls Steamed bread custard Steamed fig pudding Pastry and cake Deleterious effects from the use of Reasons for indigestibility General directions for making pies Recipes Paste for pies Corn meal crust Granola crust Paste for tart shells Cream filling Grape tart Lemon filling Tapioca filling Apple custard pie Banana pie Bread pie Carrot pie Cocoanut pie Cocoanut pie No. 2 Cream pie Cranberry pie Dried apple pie Dried apple pie with raisins Dried apricot pie Farina pie Fruit pie Grape jelly pie Jelly custard pie Lemon pie Lemon meringue custard One crust peach pie Orange pie Peach custard pie Prune pie Pumpkin pie Pumpkin pie No. 2 Pumpkin pie without eggs Simple custard pie Squash pie Squash pie without eggs Sweet apple custard pie Sweet potato pie Cake General suggestions for preparation of Cake made light with yeast Cake made light with air Recipes: Apple cake Cocoanut custard cake Cream cake Delicate cup cake Fig layer cake Fruit jelly cake Gold and silver cake Icing for cakes Orange cake Fruit cake Loaf cake Pineapple cake Plain buns Sponge cake Sugar crisps Variety cake Table topics.

GRAVIES AND SAUCES Importance of proper preparation Accuracy of measurement Proportion of material necessary The double boiler for cooking gravies Flavoring of gravies for vegetables Gravies and sauces for vegetables Recipes: Brown sauce Cream and white sauce Celery sauce Egg sauce Pease gravy Tomato gravy Tomato cream gravy Sauces for desserts and puddings Recipes: Almond sauce Caramel sauce Cocoanut sauce Cream sauce Cranberry pudding sauce Custard sauce Egg sauce Egg sauce No. 2 Foamy sauce Fruit cream Fruit sauce Fruit sauce No. 2 Lemon pudding sauce Mock cream Molasses sauce Orange sauce Peach sauce Plain pudding sauce Red Sauce Rose cream Sago sauce Whipped cream sauce Table topics.

BEVERAGES Large quantities of fluid prejudicial to digestion Wholesome beverages The cup that cheers but not inebriates Harmful substances contained in tea Theine Tannin Use of tea a cause of sleeplessness and nervous disorders Tea a stimulant Tea not a food Coffee, cocoa, and chocolate Caffein Adulteration of tea and coffee Substitutes for tea and coffee Recipes: Beet coffee Caramel coffee Caramel coffee No. 2 Caramel coffee No. 3 Caramel coffee No. 4 Mrs. T's caramel coffee Parched grain coffee Wheat, oats, and barley coffee Recipes for cold beverages: Blackberry beverage Fruit beverage Fruit beverage No. 2 Fruit cordial Grape beverage Lemonade Mixed lemonade Oatmeal drink Orangeade Pineapple beverage Pineapple lemonade Pink lemonade Sherbet Tisane Table topics.

MILK, CREAM, AND BUTTER Milk, chemical composition of Proportion of food elements Microscopic examination of milk Casein Casein coagulated by the introduction of acid Spontaneous coagulation or souring of milk Adulteration of milk Quality of milk influenced by the food of the animal Diseased milk Kinds of milk to be avoided Distribution of germs by milk Proper utensils for keeping milk Where to keep milk Dr. Dougall's experiments on the absorbent properties of milk Washing of milk dishes Treatment of milk for cream rising Temperature at which cream rises best Importance of sterilizing milk To sterilize milk for immediate use To sterilize milk to keep Condensed milk Cream, composition of Changes produced by churning Skimmed milk, composition of Buttermilk, composition of Digestibility of cream Sterilized cream Care of milk for producing cream Homemade creamery Butter, the composition of Rancid butter Tests of good butter Flavor and color of butter Artificial butter Test for oleomargarine Butter in ancient times Butter making Best conditions for the rising of cream Upon what the keeping qualities of butter depend Cheese Tyrotoxicon Recipes: Hot milk Devonshire or clotted cream Cottage cheese Cottage cheese from buttermilk Cottage cheese from sour milk French butter Shaken milk Emulsified butter Table topics.

EGGS Eggs a concentrated food Composition of the egg How to choose eggs Quality of eggs varied by the food of the fowl Stale eggs Test for eggs How to keep eggs To beat eggs Albumen susceptible to temperature Left-over eggs Recipes: Eggs in shell Eggs in sunshine Eggs poached in tomatoes Eggs in cream Poached or dropped eggs Poached eggs with cream sauce Quickly prepared eggs Scrambled eggs Steamed eggs Whirled eggs Omelets Recipes: Plain omelets Foam omelets Fancy omelets soft omelets Table topics.

MEATS Character of meat Nutritive value Excrementitious elements Flesh food a stimulant Diseased meats Jewish customs in regard to meat Trichina Tapeworm and other parasites Meat unnecessary for health The excessive use of meat tending to develop the animal propensities Objections to its use Pork Calves' brains and other viscera Meat pies Scallops Pates Comparative nutritious value Variation and flavor Composition and digestibility Selection of meats Preservation of meats Jerked beef Pemmican Preparation and cooking of meat Frozen beef Best methods of cooking Boiling Stewing Steaming Roasting Broiling Beef, economy and adaptability in selection of Recipes: Broiled beef Cold meat stew Pan-broiled steak Pan-broiled steak No. 2 Roast beef Smothered beef Vegetables with stewed beef Stewed beef Mutton Cause of Strong flavor of Recipes: Boiled leg of mutton Broiled chops Pot roast lamb Roast mutton Stewed mutton Stewed mutton chop Stewed mutton chop No. 2 Veal and lamb Poultry and game To dress poultry and birds To truss a fowl or bird To stuff a fowl or bird Recipes: Birds baked in sweet potatoes Boiled fowl Broiled birds Broiled fowl Corn and chicken Pigeons quails and partridges Roast chicken Roast turkey Smothered chicken Steamed chicken Stewed chicken Fish, two classes of Difference in nutritive value Flavor and wholesomeness Poison fish Parasites in fish Fish as a brain food Salted fish Shellfish (Oysters, Clams, Lobsters, Crabs) Not possessed of high nutritive value Natural scavengers Poisonous mussels How to select and prepare fish Frozen fish Methods of cooking Recipes: Baked fish Broiled fish Meat soup Preparation of stock Selection of material for stock Quantity of materials needed Uses of scraps Extracting the juice Temperature of the water to be used Correct proportion of water Time required for cooking Straining the stock To remove the fat Simple Stock or broth Compound stock or double broth To clarify soup stock Recipes: Asparagus soup Barley rice sago or tapioca soup Caramel for coloring soup brown Julienne soup Tomato soup White soup Vermicelli or macaroni soup Puree with chicken Tapioca cream soup Table Topics.

FOOD FOR THE SICK Need of care in the preparation of food for the sick What constitutes proper food for the sick Knowledge of dietetics an important factor in the education of every woman No special dishes for all cases Hot buttered toast and rich jellies objectionable The simplest food the best Scrupulous neatness in serving important To coax a capricious appetite A "purple" dinner A "yellow" dinner To facilitate the serving of hot foods Cooking utensils Gruel Long-continued cooking needed Use of the double boiler in the cooking of gruels Gruel strainer Recipes: Arrowroot gruel Barley gruel Egg gruel Egg gruel No. 2 Farina gruel Flour gruel Gluten gruel Gluten gruel No. 2 Gluten cream Gluten meal gruel Graham gruel Graham grits gruel Gruel of prepared flour Indian meal gruel Lemon oatmeal gruel Milk oatmeal gruel Milk porridge Oatmeal gruel Oatmeal gruel No. 2 Oatmeal gruel No. 3 Peptonized' gluten gruel Raisin gruel Rice water Preparations of milk Milk diet Advantages of Quantity of milk needed Digestibility of milk Recipes: Albumenized milk Hot milk Junket, or curded milk Koumiss Milk and lime water Peptonized milk for infants Beef tea, broths, etc. Nutritive value Testimony of Dr. Austin Flint Recipes: Beef extract Beef juice Beef tea Beef tea and eggs Beef broth and oatmeal Bottled beef tea Chicken broth Mutton broth Vegetable broth Vegetable broth No. 2 Mixed vegetable broth Recipes for Panada: Broth panada Chicken panada Egg panada Milk panada Raisin panada Grains for the sick Recipes: Gluten mush Tomato gluten Tomato gluten No. 2 Meats for the sick Importance of simple preparation Recipes: Broiled steak Chicken Chicken jelly Minced chicken Mutton chop Minced steak Scraped steak Eggs for the sick Recipes: Floated egg Gluten meal custard Gluten custard Steamed eggs Soft custard Raw egg White of egg White of egg and milk Refreshing drinks and delicacies for the sick Nature's delicacies How to serve Fruit juices Recipes: Acorn coffee Almond milk Apple beverage Apple beverage No. 2 Apple toast water Baked milk Barley lemonade Barley and fruit drinks Barley milk Cranberry drink Currantade Crust coffee Egg cream Egg cream No. 2 Egg cream No. 3 Egg lemonade Flaxseed coffee Gum Arabic water Hot water Hot lemonade Irish moss lemonade Orangeade Plain lemonade Slippery elm tea Toast water Tamarind water Bread Recipes; Diabetic biscuit Diabetic biscuit No. 2 Gluten meal gems Jellies and other desserts for the side Recipes: Arrowroot jelly Arrowroot blancmange Currant jelly Iceland moss jelly Iceland moss blancmange Orange whey White custard Table topics.

FOOD FOR THE AGED AND THE VERY YOUNG Requisites of food for the aged Stimulating diet not necessary Flesh food unsuitable Bill of fare Quantity of food for the aged Heavy meals a tax upon digestion Cornaro's testimony Diet for the young Causes of mortality among young children Best artificial food Use of sterilized milk. Difference between cows' milk and human milk Common method of preparing cows' milk Artificial human milk Artificial human milk No. 2 Artificial human milk No. 3 Peptonized milk Mucilaginous food excellent in gastro-enteritis Preparation of food for infants Time required for digestion of artificial food Quantity of food for infants Rules for finding the amount of food needed Table for the feeding of infants Interval between feeding Intervals for feeding at different ages Manner of feeding artificial foods Danger from unclean utensils Diet of older children An abundance of nitrogenous material important Flesh food unnecessary Experiments of Dr. Camman Testimony of Dr. Clouston Candy and similar sweets Eating between meals Education of the appetite Inherited appetites and tendencies Table topics.

FRAGMENTS AND LEFT-OVER FOODS Preserving and utilizing the left-over fragments Precautions to be observed Uses of stale bread To insure perfect preservation of fragments Preparation of zwieback and croutons Left-over grains Left-over vegetables Left-over meats Left-over milk Table topics.

THE ART OF DINING Pleasant accessories essential The dining room Neatness an essential Care of the dining room Furnishings of the dining room Table talk A pleasant custom Table manners Suggestions for table etiquette The table Its appearance and appointments The table an educator in the household A well ordered table an incentive to good manners Ostentation not necessary Setting the table The sub-cover Napkins The center piece Arrangement of dishes "Dishing up" Setting the table over night Warming the dishes The service of meals A capital idea Fruit as the first course at breakfast To keep the food hot A employed General suggestions for waiters Suggestions concerning dinner parties Proper form of invitation Arrangement and adornment of table A pleasing custom The menu card Service for a company dinner Etiquette of dinner parties Table topics.

AFTER MEALTIME Clearing the table Washing the dishes papier-mache tubs Ammonia, uses of Clean dishes not evolved from dirty dishwater Washing all dishes of one kind together Washing milk dishes Uses of the dish mop Cleaning of grain boilers and mush kettles Washing of tin dishes To clean iron ware To wash wooden ware Care of steel knives and forks Draining the dishes Dishcloths and towels To make a dish mop The care of glass and silver To keep table cutlery from rusting To wash trays and Japanned ware Care of the table linen To remove stains To dry table linen To iron table linen Washing colored table linen The garbage Table topics.

A YEAR'S BREAKFASTS AND DINNERS A perplexing problem Requisites for a well arranged menu Suggestions for preparing bills of fare Table of food analyses Fifty-two weeks' breakfasts and dinners Average cost Analysis of various bills of fare Table topics.

A BATCH OF DINNERS Holiday dinners Holiday feasting Holiday dinners opposed to temperance Thanksgiving menus Holiday menus Picnic dinners The lunch basket, provision for Fruit sandwiches Egg sandwiches Picnic biscuit Fig wafers Suitable beverages School lunches Deficiency of food material in the ordinary school lunch Why the after dinner session of school drags wearily Simple lunches desirable Suggestions for putting up the lunch Creamy rice Neatness and daintiness essential The lunch basket Sabbath dinners A needed reform Feasting on the Sabbath, deleterious results of Simple meals for the Sabbath A Sabbath bill of fare Table topics.



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

THE ALIMENTARY CANAL AN OVEN THERMOMETER CONVENIENT KITCHEN TABLE A DOUBLE BOILER COMPARTMENT SINK FOR DISH-WASHING OPEN COMPARTMENT SINK FOR DISH-WASHING CLOSED THE STEAM COOKER VEGETABLE PRESS LEMON DRILL THE HANDY WAITER WALL CABINET PERCOLATER HOLDER KNEADING TABLE DISH TOWEL RACK VEGETABLE BRUSH A DOUBLE BOILER SECTIONAL VIEW OF WHEAT KERNEL MEASURING CUPS BREAD PAN MEXICAN WOMEN MAKING TORTILLAS STONE METATE GEM IRONS PERFORATED SHEET IRON PAN FOR ROLLS MAKING UNFERMENTED BREAD CANNING UTENSILS BAIN MARIE CHINESE SOUP STRAINER CREAMERY ORIENTAL BUTTER MAKING ARRANGEMENTS FOR STRAINING STOCK GRUEL STRAINER EXTENSION STRAINER WIRE DISHCLOTH A PICNIC DINNER



INTRODUCTION.

No one thing over which we have control exerts so marked an influence upon our physical prosperity as the food we eat; and it is no exaggeration to say that well-selected and scientifically prepared food renders the partaker whose digestion permits of its being well assimilated, superior to his fellow-mortals in those qualities which will enable him to cope most successfully with life's difficulties, and to fulfill the purpose of existence in the best and truest manner. The brain and other organs of the body are affected by the quality of the blood which nourishes them, and since the blood is made of the food eaten, it follows that the use of poor food will result in poor blood, poor muscles, poor brains, and poor bodies, incapable of first-class work in any capacity. Very few persons, however, ever stop to inquire what particular foods are best adapted to the manufacture of good blood and the maintenance of perfect health; but whatever gratifies the palate or is most conveniently obtained, is cooked and eaten without regard to its dietetic value. Far too many meals partake of the characteristics of the one described in the story told of a clergyman who, when requested to ask a blessing upon a dinner consisting of bread, hot and tinged with saleratus, meat fried to a crisp, potatoes swimming in grease, mince pie, preserves, and pickles, demurred on the ground that the dinner was "not worth a blessing." He might with equal propriety have added, "and not worth eating."

The subject of diet and its relation to human welfare, is one deserving of the most careful consideration. It should be studied as a science, to enable us to choose such materials as are best adapted to our needs under the varying circumstances of climate growth, occupation, and the numerous changing conditions of the human system; as an art, that we may become so skilled in the preparation of the articles selected as to make them both appetizing and healthful. It is an unfortunate fact that even among experienced housekeepers the scientific principles which govern the proper preparation of food, are but little understood, and much unwholesome cookery is the result. The mechanical mixing of ingredients is not sufficient to secure good results; and many of the failures attributed to "poor material," "bad luck," and various other subterfuges to which cooks ignorance of scientific principles. The common method of blindly following recipes, with no knowledge of "the reason why," can hardly fail to be often productive of unsatisfactory results, which to the uninformed seem quite inexplicable.

Cookery, when based upon scientific principles, ceases to be the difficult problem it so often appears. Cause and effect follow each other as certainly in the preparation of food as in other things; and with a knowledge of the underlying principles, and faithfulness in carrying out the necessary details, failure becomes almost an impossibility. There is no department of human activity where applied science offers greater advantages than in that of cookery, and in our presentation of the subjects treated in the following pages, we have endeavored, so far as consistent with the scope of this work, to give special prominence to the scientific principles involved in the successful production of wholesome articles of food. We trust our readers will find these principles so plainly elucidated and the subject so interesting, that they will be stimulated to undertake for themselves further study and research in this most important branch of household science. We have aimed also to give special precedence of space to those most important foods, the legumes, and grains and their products, which in the majority of cook books are given but little consideration or are even left out altogether, believing that our readers will be more interested in learning the many palatable ways in which these especially nutritious and inexpensive foods may be prepared, than in a reiteration of such dishes as usually make up the bulk of the average cook book.

For reasons stated elsewhere (in the chapter on Milk, Cream, and Butter), we have in the preparation of all recipes made use of cream in place of other fats; but lest there be some who may suppose because cream occupies so frequent a place in the recipes, and because of their inability to obtain that article, the recipes are therefore not adapted to their use, we wish to state that a large proportion of the recipes in which it is mentioned as seasoning, or for dressing, will be found to be very palatable with the cream omitted, or by the use of its place of some one of the many substitutes recommended. We ought also to mention in this connection, that wherever cream is recommended, unless otherwise designated, the quality used in the preparation of the recipes is that of single or twelve hour cream sufficiently diluted with milk, so that one fourth of each quart of milk is reckoned as cream. If a richer quality than this be used, the quantity should be diminished in proportion; otherwise, by the excess of fat, a wholesome food may become a rich, unhealthful dish.

In conclusion, the author desires to state that no recipe has been admitted to this work which has not been thoroughly tested by repeated trials, by far the larger share of such being original, either in the combination of the materials used, the method employed, or both materials and method. Care has been taken not to cumber the work with useless and indifferent recipes. It is believed that every recipe will be found valuable, and that the variety offered is sufficiently ample, so that under the most differing circumstances, all may be well served.

We trust therefore that those who undertake to use the work as a guide in their culinary practice, will not consider any given recipe a failure because success does not attend their first efforts. Perseverance and a careful study of the directions given, will assuredly bring success to all who possess the natural or acquired qualities essential for the practice of that most useful of the arts,—"Healthful Cookery."

ELLA E. KELLOGG.

Battle Creek, April 20, 1892.



Foods

The purposes of food are to promote growth, to supply force and heat, and to furnish material to repair the waste which is constantly taking place in the body. Every breath, every thought, every motion, wears out some portion of the delicate and wonderful house in which we live. Various vital processes remove these worn and useless particles; and to keep the body in health, their loss must be made good by constantly renewed supplies of material properly adapted to replenish the worn and impaired tissues. This renovating material must be supplied through the medium of food and drink, and the best food is that by which the desired end may be most readily and perfectly attained. The great diversity in character of the several tissues of the body, makes it necessary that food should contain a variety of elements, in order that each part may be properly nourished and replenished.

THE FOOD ELEMENTS.—The various elements found in food are the following: Starch, sugar, fats, albumen, mineral substances, indigestible substances.

The digestible food elements are often grouped, according to their chemical composition, into three classes; vis., carbonaceous, nitrogenous, and inorganic. The carbonaceous class includes starch, sugar, and fats; the nitrogenous, all albuminous elements; and the inorganic comprises the mineral elements.

Starch is only found in vegetable foods; all grains, most vegetables, and some fruits, contain starch in abundance. Several kinds of sugar are made in nature's laboratory; cane, grape, fruit, and milk sugar. The first is obtained from the sugar-cane, the sap of maple trees, and from the beet root. Grape and fruit sugars are found in most fruits and in honey. Milk sugar is one of the constituents of milk. Glucose, an artificial sugar resembling grape sugar, is now largely manufactured by subjecting the starch of corn or potatoes to a chemical process; but it lacks the sweetness of natural sugars, and is by no means a proper substitute for them. Albumen is found in its purest, uncombined state in the white of an egg, which is almost wholly composed of albumen. It exists, combined with other food elements, in many other foods, both animal and vegetable. It is found abundant in oatmeal, and to some extent in the other grains, and in the juices of vegetables. All natural foods contain elements which in many respects resemble albumen, and are so closely allied to it that for convenience they are usually classified under the general name of "albumen." The chief of these is gluten, which is found in wheat, rye, and barley. Casein, found in peas, beans, and milk, and the fibrin of flesh, are elements of this class.

Fats are found in both animal and vegetable foods. Of animal fats, butter and suet are common examples. In vegetable form, fat is abundant in nuts, peas, beans, in various of the grains, and in a few fruits, as the olive. As furnished by nature in nuts, legumes, grains, fruits, and milk, this element is always found in a state of fine subdivision, which condition is the one best adapted to its digestion. As most commonly used, in the form of free fats, as butter, lard, etc., it is not only difficult of digestion itself, but often interferes with the digestion of the other food elements which are mixed with it. It was doubtless never intended that fats should be so modified from their natural condition and separated from other food elements as to be used as a separate article of food. The same may be said of the other carbonaceous elements, sugar and starch, neither of which, when used alone, is capable of sustaining life, although when combined in a proper and natural manner with other food elements, they perform a most important part in the nutrition of the body. Most foods contain a percentage of the mineral elements. Grains and milk furnish these elements in abundance. The cellulose, or woody tissue, of vegetables, and the bran of wheat, are examples of indigestible elements, which although they cannot be converted into blood in tissue, serve an important purpose by giving bulk to the food.

With the exception of gluten, none of the food elements, when used alone, are capable of supporting life. A true food substance contains some of all the food elements, the amount of each varying in different foods.

USES OF THE FOOD ELEMENTS.—Concerning the purpose which these different elements serve, it has been demonstrated by the experiments of eminent physiologists that the carbonaceous elements, which in general comprise the greater bulk of the food, serve three purposes in the body;

1. They furnish material for the production of heat;

2. They are a source of force when taken in connection with other food elements;

3. They replenish the fatty tissues of the body. Of the carbonaceous elements,—starch, sugar, and fats,—fats produce the greatest amount of heat in proportion to quantity; that is, more heat is developed from a pound of fat than from an equal weight of sugar or starch; but this apparent advantage is more than counterbalanced by the fact that fats are much more difficult of digestion than are the other carbonaceous elements, and if relied upon to furnish adequate material for bodily heat, would be productive of much mischief in overtaxing and producing disease of the digestive organs. The fact that nature has made a much more ample provision of starch and sugars than of fats in man's natural diet, would seem to indicate that they were intended to be the chief source of carbonaceous food; nevertheless, fats, when taken in such proportion as nature supplies them, are necessary and important food elements.

The nitrogenous food elements especially nourish the brain, nerves, muscles, and all the more highly vitalized and active tissues of the body, and also serve as a stimulus to tissue change. Hence it may be said that a food deficient in these elements is a particularly poor food.

The inorganic elements, chief of which are the phosphates, in the carbonates of potash, soda, and lime, aid in furnishing the requisite building material for bones and nerves.

PROPER COMBINATIONS OF FOODS.—While it is important that our food should contain some of all the various food elements, experiments upon both animals and human beings show it is necessary that these elements, especially the nitrogenous and carbonaceous, be used in certain definite proportions, as the system is only able to appropriate a certain amount of each; and all excess, especially of nitrogenous elements, is not only useless, but even injurious, since to rid the system of the surplus imposes an additional task upon the digestive and excretory organs. The relative proportion of these elements necessary to constitute a food which perfectly meets the requirements of the system, is six of carbonaceous to one of nitrogenous. Scientists have devoted much careful study and experimentation to the determination of the quantities of each of the food elements required for the daily nourishment of individuals under the varying conditions of life, and it has come to be commonly accepted that of the nitrogenous material which should constitute one sixth of the nutrients taken, about three ounces is all that can be made use of in twenty-four hours, by a healthy adult of average weight, doing a moderate amount of work. Many articles of food are, however, deficient in one or the other of these elements, and need to be supplemented by other articles containing the deficient element in superabundance, since to employ a dietary in which any one of the nutritive elements is lacking, although in bulk it may be all the digestive organs can manage, is really starvation, and will in time occasion serious results.

It is thus apparent that much care should be exercised in the selection and combination of food materials. The table on page 484, showing the nutritive values of various foods, should be carefully studied. Such knowledge is of first importance in the education of cooks and housekeepers, since to them falls the selection of the food for the daily needs of the household; and they should not only understand what foods are best suited to supply these needs, but how to combine them in accordance with physiological laws.

CONDIMENTS.—By condiments are commonly meant such substances as are added to season food, to give it "a relish" or to stimulate appetite, but which in themselves possess no real food value. To this category belong mustard, ginger, pepper, pepper sauce, Worcestershire sauce, cloves, spices, and other similar substances. That anything is needed to disguise or improve the natural flavor of food, would seem to imply either that the article used was not a proper alimentary substance, or that it did not answer the purpose for which the Creator designed it. True condiments, such as pepper, pepper sauce, ginger, spice, mustard, cinnamon, cloves, etc., are all strong irritants. This may be readily demonstrated by their application to a raw surface. The intense smarting and burning occasioned are ample evidence of the irritating character. Pepper and mustard are capable of producing powerfully irritating effects, even when applied to the healthy skin where wholly intact. It is surprising that it does not occur to the mother who applies a mustard plaster to the feet of her child, to relieve congestion of the brain, that an article which is capable of producing a blister upon the external covering of the body, is quite as capable of producing similar effects when applied to the more sensitive tissues within the body. The irritating effects of these substances upon the stomach are not readily recognized, simply because the stomach is supplied with very few nerves of sensation. That condiments induce an intense degree of irritation of the mucous membrane of the stomach, was abundantly demonstrated by the experiments of Dr. Beaumont upon the unfortunate Alexis St. Martin. Dr. Beaumont records that when St. Martin took mustard, pepper, and similar condiments with his food, the mucous membrane of his stomach became intensely red and congested, appearing very much like an inflamed eye. It is this irritating effect of condiments which gives occasion for their extended use. They create an artificial appetite, similar to the incessant craving of the chronic dyspeptic, whose irritable stomach is seldom satisfied. This fact with regard to condiments is a sufficient argument against their use, being one of the greatest causes of gluttony, since they remove the sense of satiety by which Nature says, "Enough."

To a thoroughly normal and unperverted taste, irritating condiments of all sorts are very obnoxious. It is true that Nature accommodates herself to their use with food to such a degree that they may be employed for years without apparently producing very grave results; but this very condition is a source of injury, since it is nothing more nor less than the going to sleep of the sentinels which nature has posted at the portal of the body, for the purpose of giving warning of danger. The nerves of sensibility have become benumbed to such a degree that they no longer offer remonstrance against irritating substances, and allow the enemy to enter into the citadel of life. The mischievous work is thus insidiously carried on year after year until by and by the individual breaks down with some chronic disorder of the liver, kidneys, or some other important internal organ. Physicians have long observed that in tropical countries where curry powder and other condiments are very extensively used, diseases of the liver, especially acute congestion and inflammation, are exceedingly common, much more so that in countries and among nations where condiments are less freely used. A traveler in Mexico, some time ago, described a favorite Mexican dish as composed of layers of the following ingredients: "Pepper, mustard, ginger, pepper, potato, ginger; mustard, pepper, potato, mustard, ginger, pepper." The common use of such a dish is sufficient cause for the great frequency of diseases of the liver among the Mexicans, noted by physicians traveling in that country. That the use of condiments is wholly a matter of habit is evident from the fact that different nations employ as condiments articles which would be in the highest degree obnoxious to people of other countries. For example, the garlic so freely used in Russian cookery, would be considered by Americans no addition to the natural flavors of food; and still more distasteful would be the asafetida frequently used as a seasoning in the cuisine of Persia and other Asiatic countries.

The use of condiments is unquestionably a strong auxiliary to the formation of a habit of using intoxicating drinks. Persons addicted to the use of intoxicating liquors are, as a rule, fond of stimulating and highly seasoned foods; and although the converse is not always true, yet it is apparent to every thoughtful person, that the use of a diet composed of highly seasoned and irritating food, institutes the conditions necessary for the acquirement of a taste for intoxicating liquors. The false appetite aroused by the use of food that "burns and stings," craves something less insipid than pure cold water to keep up the fever the food has excited. Again, condiments, like all other stimulants, must be continually increased in quantity, or their effect becomes diminished; and this leads directly to a demand for stronger stimulants, both in eating and drinking, until the probable tendency is toward the dram-shop.

A more serious reason why high seasonings leads to intemperance, is in the perversion of the use of the sense of taste. Certain senses are given us to add to our pleasure as well as for the practical, almost indispensable, use they are to us. For instance, the sense of sight is not only useful, but enables us to drink in beauty, if among beautiful surroundings, without doing us any harm. The same of music and other harmonics which may come to us through the sense of hearing. But the sense of taste and was given us to distinguish between wholesome and unwholesome foods, and cannot be used for merely sensuous gratification, without debasing and making of it a gross thing. An education which demands special enjoyment or pleasure through the sense of taste, is wholly artificial; it is coming down to the animal plane, or below it rather; for the instinct of the brute creation teaches it merely to eat to live.

Yet how wide-spread is this habit of sensuous gratification through the sense of taste! If one calls upon a neighbor, he is at once offered refreshments of some kind, as though the greatest blessing of life came from indulging the appetite. This evil is largely due to wrong education, which begins with childhood. When Johnnie sits down to the table, the mother says, "Johnnie, what would you like?" instead of putting plain, wholesome food before the child, and taking it as a matter of course that he will eat it and be satisfied. The child grows to think that he must have what he likes, whether it is good for him or not. It is not strange that an appetite thus pampered in childhood becomes uncontrollable at maturity; for the step from gormandizing to intoxication is much shorter than most people imagine. The natural, unperverted taste of a child will lead him to eat that which is good for him. But how can we expect the children to reform when the parents continually set them bad examples in the matter of eating and drinking?

The cultivation of a taste for spices is a degradation of the sense of taste. Nature never designed that pleasure should be divorced from use. The effects of gratifying the sense of taste differ materially from those of gratifying the higher senses of sight and hearing. What we see is gone; nothing remains but the memory, and the same is true of the sweetest sounds which may reach us through the ears. But what we taste is taken into the stomach and what has thus given us brief pleasure through the gratification of the palate, must make work in the alimentary canal for fourteen hours before it is disposed of.

VARIETY IN FOOD.—Simplicity of diet should be a point of first consideration with all persons upon whom falls the responsibility of providing the family bills of fare, since the simplest foods are, as a rule, the most healthful. Variety is needed; that is, a judicious mingling of fruits, grains, and vegetables; but the general tendency is to supply our tables with too many kinds and to prepare each dish in the most elaborate manner, until, in many households, the cooking of food has come to be almost the chief end of life. While the preparation of food should be looked upon as of so much importance as to demand the most careful consideration and thought as to its suitability, wholesomeness, nutritive qualities, and digestibility, it should by no means be made to usurp the larger share of one's time, when simpler foods and less labor would afford the partakers equal nourishment and strength.

A great variety of foods at one meal exerts a potent influence in creating a love of eating, and is likewise a constant temptation to overeat. Let us have well-cooked, nutritious, and palatable food, and plenty of it; variety from day to day, but not too great a variety at each meal.

The prevalent custom of loading the table with a great number of viands, upon occasions when guests are to be entertained in our homes, is one to be deplored, since it is neither conducive to good health nor necessary to good cheer, but on the contrary is still laborious and expensive a practice that many are debarred from social intercourse because they cannot afford to entertain after the fashion of their neighbors. Upon this subject a well-known writer has aptly said: "Simplify cookery, thus reducing the cost of living, and how many longing individuals would thereby be enabled to afford themselves the pleasure of culture and social intercourse! When the barbarous practice of stuffing one's guests shall have been abolished, a social gathering will not then imply, as it does now, hard labor, expensive outlay, and dyspepsia. Perhaps when that time arise, we shall be sufficiently civilized to demand pleasures of a higher sort. True, the entertainments will then, in one sense, be more costly, as culture is harder to come by than cake. The profusion of viands now heaped upon the table, betrays poverty of the worst sort. Having nothing better to offer, we offer victuals; and this we do with something of that complacent, satisfied air with which some more northern tribes present their tidbits of whale and walrus."



TABLE TOPICS.

"Let appetite wear reason's golden chain, and find in due restrain its luxury."

A man's food, when he has the means and opportunity of selecting it, suggests his moral nature. Many a Christian is trying to do by prayer that which cannot be done except through corrected diet.—Talmage.

Our pious ancestors enacted a law that suicides should be buried where four roads meet, and that a cart-load of stones should be thrown upon the body. Yet, when gentlemen or ladies commit suicide, not by cord or steel, but by turtle soup or lobster salad, they may be buried on consecrated ground, and the public are not ashamed to read an epitaph upon their tombstones false enough to make the marble blush.—Horace Mann.

It is related by a gentleman who had an appointment to breakfast with the late A.T. Stewart, that the butler placed before them both an elaborate bill of fare; the visitor selected a list of rare dishes, and was quite abashed when Mr. Stewart said, "Bring me my usual breakfast,—oatmeal and boiled eggs." He then explained to his friend that he found simple food a necessity to him, otherwise he could not think clearly. That unobscured brain applied to nobler ends would have won higher results, but the principle remains the same.—Sel.

Study simplicity in the number of dishes, and a variety in the character of the meals.—Sel.

I have come to the conclusion that more than half the disease which embitters life is due to avoidable errors in diet, ... and that more mischief, in the form of actual disease, of impaired vigor, and of shortened life, accrues to civilized man from erroneous habits of eating than from the habitual use of alcoholic drink, considerable as I know that evil to be.—Sir Henry Thompson.

The ancient Gauls, who were a very brave, strong, and hearty race, lived very abstemiously. Their food was milk, berries, and herbs. They made bread of nuts. They had a very peculiar fashion of wearing a metal ring around the body, the size of which was regulated by act of Parliament. Any man who outgrew in circumference his metal ring was looked upon as a lazy glutton, and consequently was disgraced.

To keep in health this rule is wise: Eat only when you need, and relish food, chew thoroughly that it may do you good, have it well cooked, unspiced, and undisguised.

—Leonardo da Vinci



THE DIGESTION OF FOODS.

It is important that the housekeeper not only understand the nature and composition of foods, but she should also know something of their digestive properties, since food, to be serviceable, must be not only nutritious, but easily digested. Digestion is the process by which food rendered soluble, and capable of being absorbed for use in carrying on the various vital processes.

The digestive apparatus consists of a long and tortuous tube called the alimentary canal, varying in length from twenty-five to thirty feet, along which are arranged the various digestive organs,—the mouth, the stomach, the liver, and the pancreas,—each of which, together with the intestines, has an important function to perform. In these various organs nature manufactures five wonderful fluids for changing and dissolving the several food elements. The mouth supplies the saliva; in the walls of the stomach are little glands which produce the gastric juice; the pancreatic juice is made by the pancreas; the liver secretes bile; while scattered along the small intestines are minute glands which make the intestinal juice. Each of these fluids has a particular work to do in transforming some part of the food into suitable material for use in the body. The saliva acts upon the starch of the food, changing it into sugar; the gastric juice digests albumin and other nitrogenous elements; the bile digests fat, and aids in the absorption of other food elements after they are digested; the pancreatic juice is not confined in its action to a single element, but digests starch, fats, and the albuminous elements after they have been acted upon by the gastric juice; the intestinal juice is capable of acting upon all digestible food elements.



THE DIGESTION OF A MOUTHFUL OF BREAD.—A mouthful of bread represents all, or nearly all, the elements of nutrition. Taking a mouthful of bread as a representative of food in general, it may be said that its digestion begins the moment that it enters the mouth, and continues the entire length of the alimentary canal, or until the digestible portion of the food has been completely digested and absorbed. We quote the following brief description of the digestive process from Dr. J.H. Kellogg's Second Book in Physiology[A]:—

[Footnote A: Good Health Pub. Co., Battle Creek, Mich.]

"Mastication.—The first act of the digestive process is mastication, or chewing the food, the purpose of which is to crush the food and divide it into small particles, so that the various digestive fluids may easily and promptly come into contact with every part of it.

"Salivary Digestion.—During the mastication of the food, the salivary glands are actively pouring out the saliva, which mingles with the food, and by softening it, aids in its division and prepares it for the action of the other digestive fluids. It also acts upon the starch, converting a portion of it into grape-sugar.

"Stomach Digestion.—After receiving the food, the stomach soon begins to pour out the gastric juices, which first makes its appearance in little drops, like beads of sweat upon the face when the perspiration starts. As the quantity increases, the drops run together, trickle down the side of the stomach, and mingle with the food. The muscular walls of the stomach contract upon the food, moving it about with a sort of crushing action, thoroughly mixing the gastric juice with the food. During this process both the openings of the stomach are closed tightly. The gastric juice softens the food, digests albumen, and coagulates milk. The saliva continues its action upon starch for sometime after the food reaches the stomach.

"After the food has remained in the stomach from one to three hours, or even longer, if the digestion is slow, or indigestible foods have been eaten, the contractions of the stomach become so vigorous that the more fluid portions of the food are squeezed out through the pylorus, the lower orifice of the stomach, thus escaping into the intestine. The pylorus does not exercise any sort of intelligence in the selection of food, as was once supposed. The increasing acidity of the contents of the stomach causes its muscular walls to contract with increasing vigor, until finally those portions of the food which may be less perfectly broken up, but which the stomach has been unable to digest, are forced through the pylorus.

"Intestinal Digestion.—As it leaves the stomach, the partially digested mass of food is intensely acid, from the large quantity of gastric juices which it contains. Intestinal digestion cannot begin until the food becomes alkaline. The alkaline bile neutralizes the gastric juice, and renders the digesting mass slightly alkaline. The bile also acts upon the fatty elements of the food, converting them into an emulsion. The pancreatic juice converts the starch into grape-sugar, even acting upon raw starch. It also digest fats and albumem. The intestinal juice continues the work begun by the other digestive fluids, and, in addition, digests cane-sugar, converting it into grape-sugar.

"Other Uses of the Digestive Fluids.—In addition to the uses which we have already stated, several of the digestive fluids possess other interesting properties. The saliva aids the stomach by stimulating its glands to make gastric juice. The gastric juice and the bile are excellent antiseptics, by which the food is preserved from fermentation while undergoing digestion. The bile also stimulates the movements of the intestines by which the food is moved along, and aids absorption. It is remarkable and interesting that a fluid so useful as the bile should be at the same time composed of waste matters which are being removed from the body. This is an illustration of the wonderful economy shown by nature in her operations.

"The food is moved along the alimentary canal, from the stomach downward, by successive contractions of the muscular walls of the intestines, known as peristaltic movements, which occur with great regularity during digestion.

"Absorption.—The absorption of the food begins as soon as any portion has been digested. Even in the mouth and the esophagus a small amount is absorbed. The entire mucous membrane lining the digestive canal is furnished with a rich supply of blood-vessels, by which the greater part of the digestive food is absorbed.

"Liver Digestion.—The liver as well as the stomach is a digestive organ, and in a double sense. It not only secretes a digestive fluid, the bile, but it acts upon the food brought to it by the portal vein, and regulates the supply of digested food to the general system. It converts a large share of the grape-sugar and partially digested starch brought to it into a kind of liver starch, termed glycogen, which it stores up in its tissues. During the interval between the meals, the liver gradually redigests the glycogen, reconverting it into sugar, and thus supplying it to the blood in small quantities, instead of allowing the entire amount formed in digestion to enter the circulation at once. If too large an amount of sugar entered the system at once, it would be unable to use it all, and would be compelled to get rid of a considerable portion through the kidneys. The liver also completes the digestion of albumen and other food elements."

TIME REQUIRED FOR DIGESTION.—The length of time required for stomach digestion varies with different food substances. The following table shows the time necessary for the stomach digestion of some of the more commonly used foods:—

min Rice 1 00 Sago 1 45 Tapioca 2 00 Barley 2 00 Beans, pod, boiled 2 30 Bread, wheaten 3 30 Bread, corn 3 15 Apples, sour and raw 2 00 Apples, sweet and raw 1 30 Parsnips, boiled 2 30 Beets, boiled 3 45 Potatoes, Irish, boiled 3 30 Potatoes, Irish, baked 2 30 Cabbage, raw 2 30 Cabbage, boiled 4 30 Milk, boiled 2 00 Milk, raw 2 15 Eggs, hard boiled 3 30 Eggs, soft boiled 3 00 Eggs, fried 3 30 Eggs, raw 2 00 Eggs, whipped 1 30 Salmon, salted, boiled 4 00 Oysters, raw 2 55 Oysters, stewed 3 30 Beef, lean, rare roasted 3 00 Beefsteak, boiled 3 00 Beef, lean, fried 4 00 Beef, salted, boiled 4 15 Pork, roasted 5 15 Pork, salted, fried 4 15 Mutton, roasted 3 15 Mutton, broiled 3 00 Veal, broiled 4 00 Veal, fried 4 30 Fowls, boiled 4 00 Duck, roasted 4 30 Butter, melted 3 30 Cheese 3 30 Soup, marrowbone 4 15 Soup, bean 3 00 Soup, mutton 3 30 Chicken, boiled 3 00

The time required for the digestion of food also depends upon the condition under which the food is eaten. Healthy stomach digestion requires at least five hours for its completion, and the stomach should have an hour for rest before another meal. If fresh food is taken before that which preceded it is digested, the portion of food remaining in the stomach is likely to undergo fermentation, thus rendering the whole mass of food unfit for the nutrition of the body, besides fostering various disturbances of digestion. It has been shown by recent observations that the length of time required for food to pass through the entire digestive process to which it is subjected in the mouth, stomach, and small intestines, is from twelve to fourteen hours.

HYGIENE OF DIGESTION.—With the stomach and other digestive organs in a state of perfect health, one is entirely unconscious of their existence, save when of feeling of hunger calls attention to the fact that food is required, or satiety warns us that a sufficient amount or too much has been eaten. Perfect digestion can only be maintained by careful observance of the rules of health in regard to habits of eating.

On the subject of Hygiene of Digestion, we again quote a few paragraphs from Dr. Kellogg's work on Physiology, in which is given a concise summary of the more important points relating to this:—

"The hygiene of digestion has to do with the quality and quantity of food eaten, in the manner of eating it.

"Hasty Eating.—If the food is eaten too rapidly, it will not be properly divided, and when swallowed in coarse lumps, the digestive fluids cannot readily act upon it. On account of the insufficient mastication, the saliva will be deficient in quantity, and, as a consequence, the starch will not be well digested, and the stomach will not secrete a sufficient amount of gastric juice. It is not well to eat only soft or liquid food, as we are likely to swallow it without proper chewing. A considerable proportion of hard food, which requires thorough mastication, should be eaten at every meal.

"Drinking Freely at Meals is harmful, as it not only encourages hasty eating, but dilutes the gastric juice, and thus lessens its activity. The food should be chewed until sufficiently moistened by saliva to allow it to be swallowed. When large quantities of fluid are taken into the stomach, digestion does not begin until a considerable portion of the fluid has been absorbed. If cold foods or drinks are taken with the meal, such as ice-cream, ice-water, iced milk or tea, the stomach is chilled, and a long delay in the digestive process is occasioned.

"The Indians of Brazil carefully abstain from drinking when eating, and the same custom prevails among many other savage tribes.

"Eating between Meals.—The habit of eating apples, nuts, fruits, confectionery, etc., between meals is exceedingly harmful, and certain to produce loss of appetite and indigestion. The stomach as well as the muscles and other organs of the body requires rest. The frequency with which meals should be taken depends somewhat upon the age and occupation of an individual. Infants take their food at short intervals, and owing to its simple character, are able to digest it very quickly. Adults should not take food oftener than three times a day; and persons whose employment is sedentary say, in many cases at least, adopt with advantage the plan of the ancient Greeks, who ate but twice a day. The latter custom is quite general among the higher classes in France and Spain, and in several South American countries.

"Simplicity in Diet.—Taking too many kinds of food at a meal is a common fault which is often a cause of disease of the digestive-organs. Those nations are the most hardy and enduring whose dietary is most simple. The Scotch peasantry live chiefly upon oatmeal, the Irish upon potatoes, milk, and oatmeal, the Italian upon peas, beans, macaroni, and chestnuts; yet all these are noted for remarkable health and endurance. The natives of the Canary Islands, an exceedingly well-developed and vigorous race, subsist almost chiefly upon a food which they call gofio, consisting of parched grain, coarsely ground in a mortar and mixed with water.

"Eating when Tired.—It is not well to eat when exhausted by violent exercise, as the system is not prepared to do the work of digestion well. Sleeping immediately after eating is also a harmful practice. The process of digestion cannot well be performed during sleep, and sleep is disturbed by the ineffective efforts of the digestive organs. Hence the well-known evil effects of late suppers.

"Eating too Much.—Hasty eating is the greatest cause of over-eating. When one eats too rapidly, the food is crowded into the stomach so fast that nature has no time to cry, 'Enough,' by taking away the appetite before too much has been eaten. When an excess of food is taken, it is likely to ferment or sour before it can be digested. One who eats too much usually feels dull after eating.

"How Much Food is Enough?—The proper quantity for each person to take is what he is able to digest and utilize. This amount of various with each individual, at different times. The amount needed will vary with the amount of work done, mental or muscular; with the weather or the season of the year, more food being required in cold than in warm weather: with the age of an individual, very old and very young persons requiring less food than those of middle age. An unperverted appetite, not artificially stimulated, is a safe guide. Drowsiness, dullness, and heaviness at the stomach are indications of an excess of eating, and naturally suggest a lessening of the quantity of food, unless the symptoms are known to arise from some other cause.

"Excess of Certain Food Elements.—When sugar is too freely used, either with food or in the form of sweetmeats or candies, indigestion, and even more serious disease, is likely to result. Fats, when freely used, give rise to indigestion and 'biliousness.' An excess of albumen from the too free use of meat is harmful. Only a limited amount of this element can be used; an excess is treated as waste matter, and must be removed from the system by the liver and the kidneys. The majority of persons would enjoy better health by using meat more moderately than is customary in this country.

"Deficiency of Certain Food Elements.—A diet deficient in any important food element is even more detrimental to health than a diet in which certain elements are in excess.

"The popular notion that beef-tea and meat extracts contain the nourishing elements of meat in a concentrated form, is a dangerous error. Undoubtedly many sick persons have been starved by being fed exclusively upon these articles, which are almost wholly composed of waste substances. Prof. Paule Bernard, of Paris, found that dogs fed upon meat extracts died sooner than those which received only water."

FOOD COMBINATIONS.—Some persons, especially those of weak digestive powers, often experience inconvenience in the use of certain foods, owing to their improper combinations with other articles. Many foods which are digested easily when partaken of alone or in harmonious combinations, create much disturbance when eaten at the same meal with several different articles of food, or with some particular article with which they are especially incompatible. The following food combinations are among the best, the relative excellence of each being indicated by the order in which they are named: Milk and grains; grains and eggs; grains and vegetables or meats; grains and fruits.

Persons with sound stomachs and vigorous digestion will seldom experience inconvenience in making use of other and more varied combinations, but dyspeptics and persons troubled with slow digestion will find it to their advantage to select from the bill of fare such articles as best accord with each other, and to avoid such combinations as fruits and vegetables, milk and vegetables, milk and meats, sugar and milk, meat or vegetables, fats with fruits, meats, or vegetables, or cooked with grains.



TABLE TOPICS.

Now good digestion waits on appetite, and health on both—Shakespeare.

We live not upon what we eat, but upon what we digest.—Abernethy.

If we consider the amount of ill temper, despondency, and general unhappiness which arises from want of proper digestion and assimilation of our food, it seems obviously well worth while to put forth every effort, and undergo any sacrifice, for the purpose of avoiding indigestion, with its resulting bodily ills; and yet year after year, from the cradle to the grave, we go on violating the plainest and simplest laws of health at the temptation of Cooks, caterers, and confectioners, whose share in shortening the average term of human life is probably nearly equal to that of the combined armies and navies of the world.—Richardson.

Almost every human malady is connected, either by highway or byway, with the stomach.—Sir Francis Head.

It is a well-established fact that a leg of mutton caused a revolution in the affairs of Europe. Just before the battle of Leipsic, Napoleon the Great insisted on dining on boiled mutton, although his physicians warned him that it would disagree with him. The emperor's brain resented the liberty taken with its colleague, the stomach; the monarch's equilibrium was overturned, the battle lost, and a new page opened in history.—Sel.

Galloping consumption at the dinner table is one of the national disorders.—Sel.

The kitchen (that is, your stomach) being out of order, the garret (the head) cannot be right, and every room in the house becomes affected. Remedy the evil in the kitchen, and all will be right in parlor and chamber. If you put improper food into the stomach, you play the mischief with it, and with the whole machine besides.—Abernethy.

Cattle know when to go home from grazing, but a foolish man never knows his stomachs measures.—Scandinavian proverb.

Enough is as good as a feast.

Simplicity of diet is the characteristic of the dwellers in the Orient. According to Niebuhr, the sheik of the desert wants only a dish of pillau, or boiled rice, which he eats without fork or spoon. Notwithstanding their frugal fare, these sons of the desert are among the most hearty and enduring of all members of the human family. A traveler tells of seeing one of them run up to the top of the tallest pyramid and back in six minutes.

One fourth of what we eat keeps us, and the other three fourths we keep at the peril of our lives.—Abernethy.



COOKERY.

It is not enough that good and proper food material be provided; it must have such preparation as will increase and not diminish its alimentary value. The unwholesomeness of food is quite as often due to bad cookery as to improper selection of material. Proper cookery renders good food material more digestible. When scientifically done, cooking changes each of the food elements, with the exception of fats, in much the same manner as do the digestive juices, and at the same time it breaks up the food by dissolving the soluble portions, so that its elements are more readily acted upon by the digestive fluids. Cookery, however, often fails to attain the desired end; and the best material is rendered useless and unwholesome by a improper preparation.

It is rare to find a table, some portion of the food upon which is not rendered unwholesome either by improper preparatory treatment, or by the addition of some deleterious substance. This is doubtless due to the fact that the preparation of food being such a commonplace matter, its important relations to health, mind, and body have been overlooked, and it has been regarded as a menial service which might be undertaken with little or no preparation, and without attention to matters other than those which relate to the pleasure of the eye and the palate. With taste only as a criterion, it is so easy to disguise the results of careless and improper cookery of food by the use of flavors and condiments, as well as to palm off upon the digestive organs all sorts of inferior material, that poor cookery has come to be the rule rather than the exception.

Another reason for this prevalence of bad cookery, is to be found in the fact that in so many homes the cooking is intrusted to an ignorant class of persons having no knowledge whatever of the scientific principles involved in this most important and practical of arts. An ethical problem which we have been unable to solve is the fact that women who would never think of trusting the care of their fine china and bric-a-brac to unskilled hands, unhesitatingly intrust to persons who are almost wholly untrained, the preparation of their daily food. There is no department of life where superior intelligence is more needed than in the selection and preparation of food, upon which so largely depend the health and physical welfare of the family circle.

The evils of bad cookery and ill-selected food are manifold, so many, in fact, that it has been calculated that they far exceed the mischief arising from the use of strong drink; indeed, one of the evils of unwholesome food is its decided tendency to create a craving for intoxicants. Bad cookery causes indigestion, indigestion causes thirst, and thirst perpetuates drunkenness. Any one who has suffered from a fit of indigestion, and can recollect the accompanying headache and the lowness of spirits, varying in degree from dejection or ill-humor to the most extreme melancholy, until the intellectual faculties seemed dazed, and the moral feelings blunted, will hardly wonder that when such a condition becomes chronic, as is often the case from the use of improperly prepared food, the victim is easily led to resort to stimulants to drown depression and enliven the spirits.

A thorough practical knowledge of simple, wholesome cookery ought to form a part of the education of every young woman, whatever her station in life. No position in life is more responsible than that of the person who arranges the bills of fare and selects the food for the household; and what higher mission can one conceive than to intelligently prepare the wherewithal to make shoulders strong to bear life's burdens and heads clear to solve its intricate problems? what worthier work than to help in the building up of bodies into pure temples fit for guests of noble thoughts and high purposes? Surely, no one should undertake such important work without a knowledge of the principles involved.

THE PRINCIPLES OF SCIENTIFIC COOKERY.

Cookery is the art of preparing food for the table by dressing, or by the application of heat in some manner.

FUELS.—Artificial heat is commonly produced by combustion, caused by the chemical action of the oxygen of the air upon the hydrogen and carbon found in fuel. The different fuels in common use for cooking purposes are hard wood, soft wood, charcoal, anthracite coal, bituminous coal, coke, lignite, kerosene oil, gasoline, and gas. As to their respective values, much depends upon the purpose for which they are to be used. Wood charcoal produces a greater amount of heat than an equal weight of any other fuel. Soft wood burns quicker and gives a more intense heat than hard wood, and hence is best for a quick fire. Hard wood burns slowly, produces a larger mass of coals, and is best where long-continued heat is desired. Anthracite coal kindles slowly, and burns with little flame or smoke, but its vapor is sulphurous, and on that account it should never be burned in an open stove, nor in one with an imperfect draft. Its heat is steady and intense. Bituminous coal ignites readily, burns with considerable flame and smoke, and gives a much less intense heat than anthracite, Lignite, or brown coal, is much less valuable as fuel. Coke is useful when a short, quick fire is needed. Kerosene and gas are convenient and economical fuels.