“A supper tray which stands out pre-eminently in my memory, by reason of its exquisite tones of color, contained a plate with four luscious oysters on cracked ice, the bivalves laid in the form of a star, and between the rays yellow wafers and discs of lemon. There was a plate of lettuce sandwiches in strips an inch wide by three long; a mould of farina, with its attendant pitcher of cream, a glass dish of apple sauce whipped to a foam with white of an egg; triangles of white and gluten bread buttered and cut in the thinnest of slices; a pitcher of cocoa and three Reve D’or roses.
“Sometimes dainty sprays of Cecil Bruner roses lay among the tempting viands, and fell in delicate profusion over the edge of the tray. Again, little clusters of violets peeped over its rim and perfumed the whole atmosphere, or the ruddy glow of crimson strawberries would be accentuated by the deep red of roses of Sharon nestling in their glossy, dark green leaves.”
Hints on Serving
An ordinary fruit, vegetable, or meat may be quite transformed by the manner in which it is being served. An orange may be cut through crosswise and served with a very small dish of powdered sugar and an orange spoon, or it may have the whole fruit cut in carpels or sections from pole to pole and the skin drawn back from each enough to loosen it, and then again drawn into shape. If a baked potato form a part of the meal, cut a slice from the upper side, take out the potato with a small spoon, mash with butter, cream, and salt, whipping light with a fork; fill the skin again, and stand in the oven long enough for the little cone of potato exuding from the top to take a golden brown tinge.
Fruit foams are digestible and dainty for invalids. Any sort of stewed fruit—apricots, apples, peaches, or prunes—should be whipped smooth while warm, and when thoroughly smooth beat in the white of an egg whipped to a stiff froth; serve in thin glass, a pretty cup, or low Japanese bowl.
A patient may be beguiled into eating nutritious food simply through the manner of its preparation. To speak of raw beef sandwiches would doubtless destroy the appetite of a delicate person, but if you will prepare them as follows he will eat them without knowing, probably, what he is eating: Lay a thin slice of round steak on a clean board, and with a rather dull knife scrape off the meat, leaving the tough fibers remaining; do the same on the other side, laying the scraped beef on a dish. Spread two slices of very thin bread with the beef, seasoning plentifully with salt; lay on these two slices of plain bread, and cut into very small triangles, squares, or strips. Arrange these prettily on a fringed napkin laid on a pretty dish, and garnish with very small inner leaves of lettuce or with watercress.
Another way of serving beef which is digestible, palatable, and nutritious, is to mould the beef, scraped as above, into small olives; heat a small frying pan very hot, sprinkle with salt; lay in these olives and shake over a hot fire for a minute or two until the outer surfaces are heated; turn onto a hot dish and garnish with strips of buttered toast.
Now in a general hospital where a hundred or more or less trays have to be prepared for each meal, it is out of the question to devote as much time to artistic serving as could be wished, but one thing is certain, if nurses are not impressed with the importance of taking pains to serve food attractively, and taught how to do it while in the hospital, they cannot be expected to secure the best results in serving food in private practice. Even a thing as simple of preparation as a slice of toast gives room for the production of dainty and artistic and wholesome meal more attractive. Butter should be rolled in little balls between wooden spatters and can be prepared hours
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how to prepare a slice of buttered toast so that it will be just right. A good deal of the time the toast served in hospitals is either burnt, half done or soggy, buttered over much or in patches and served in slices so that the patient cannot possibly manage to eat it without getting his hands well greased. It would cost no more either of time or money to toast it a golden brown, put the right amount of butter on it, and serve it cut in small squares between hot plates.