“That’s well, because if I teach her new things before she has learnt these thoroughly, she will get confused. I want to feel that there are a few things I can absolutely trust her to do. Then I can go on to fresh fields, so you may have things that are difficult to cook rather oftener than I like, till Marta is capable.”
“I shall not object to aid in Marta’s education so far,” said Harry.
CHAPTER X.
DETAILS OF MOLLY’S MANAGEMENT—RECIPES.
Molly had not entered so fully into matters with Harry as she would have done had he been a woman; but as this story is to tell, not only what Molly did, but how she did it, I must be a little more explicit.
She found herself on Wednesday with a breast of lamb, eight chops, half a box of boned chicken, and a small piece of steak. The chops were good for two breakfasts; the chicken, prepared as for croquettes, would make either eight of those, or three croquettes, three rissoles, and some fritters. Now, as eight croquettes for two people would be waste, since they were only an entrée, the main dinner being something else, she had no idea of that, but rissoles, fritters and croquettes being all prepared alike, and keeping better in that way, she made the mixture, and used enough for the three croquettes, leaving the rest in the ice-box for use another day. Part of the chops she would not want to use till the end of the week, and keeping them quite sweet she made all the fat that had come from the lamb (dripping and trimmings, etc.) boiling hot, then laid the chops in it—seethed them, as it were—for one minute, then put them away with the coat of fat on them, to be scraped off when they were to be cooked.
For the clam soup a pint and a half was all that was needed, and the liquor, with half the clams, was all that she used; the rest she scalloped for breakfast.
It was in making no more of each dish than they could eat (but allowing plenty for kitchen as well as dining-room) that Molly was able to have what seemed a surprising table,—that and one other thing, allowing nothing whatever to be wasted. The piece of steak left from Tuesday’s dinner was fag end; it was put away, and when the hash was made for Friday morning from the remains of à la mode beef, the steak was just the thing to add to it.
For lunch there had always been enough in the house from dinner the night before. As it was her plan to put Marta more on her own responsibility the following week, she had prepared for that purpose the recipes of the principal things; and as Marta’s mistakes and difficulties might occur to others, the working of them out in her hands will be more instructive than recounting Molly’s certain success.