[831.] Parkerhouse Rolls.— 2 cups warm milk, 1 yeast cake, 2 cups sifted flour, 1 teaspoonful salt, 2 teaspoonfuls sugar, 2 tablespoonfuls melted butter and 1 egg; dissolve the yeast in a little warm milk; sift the flour into a bowl, add sugar and salt, make a hollow in center and put in the yeast and some of the milk; commence mixing it with the right hand; next add the egg, butter and the remaining milk; set it in a warm place till very light; then work with sufficient sifted flour into a soft dough and let it rise again till very light; then roll it out 1 inch in thickness and cut into rounds with a cake cutter; brush the rounds with melted butter, double them over and set in buttered pans 1 inch apart; let them rise to double their size and bake to a fine golden color; while hot brush them over with melted butter.
[832.] Bread.— 2 quarts flour, 1 teaspoonful salt, 2 teaspoonfuls sugar, small tablespoonful lard or butter, 1½ pints lukewarm water, 1 of Fleischmann’s yeast cakes. Break the yeast cake into a cup, add 1 teaspoonful sugar and sufficient lukewarm water to fill the cup, set it in a warm place till the yeast rises to the surface. Sift flour, sugar and salt into a bowl, add the lard or butter and rub it fine in the flour; then make a hollow in centre of flour, pour in the yeast and the remaining water, stir it with a spoon into a stiff dough, turn it on to a floured board and work it with the hands and some flour until it does not stick to the hands; return the dough to the bowl, cover and let it stand in a warm place to rise. When the dough has risen to double its size, butter 2 brick-shaped pans or use the crusty bread pans, dust them with flour, divide the dough into 2 equal parts, mould them into loaves on the board, put them into the buttered pans, cover and let stand till the dough is to top of pan, place it in medium hot oven and bake 1 hour. If the bread is to be mixed at night take only ½ yeast cake, otherwise proceed the same as above.
[ COFFEE.]
[833.] How to Make Coffee.— Coffee should always be bought in the bean and ground when wanted. It should never be allowed to boil, as all the fine aroma is thereby lost. The finest, quickest and most economical way to make coffee is by making it in a bag made as follows:—Take a piece of coarse unbleached muslin, about ⅜ yard long and ⅜ yard wide, costing about 5 cents per yard; fold on the bias to a point, sew it together in such a way that the bag has the shape of a funnel and hem it on the top; then place the bag in the coffee pot; let the point hang so that it does not quite reach the bottom; let the top of bag lay over the outside of the coffee pot; then put in 1 cup freshly ground coffee, pour over ½ pint boiling water and let it stand 1 minute; then add 1 quart boiling water and let it stand about 3 minutes on side of stove; have ready the urn in which the coffee is to be served, which should be well rinsed with boiling water, pour in the coffee and serve at once; pour more boiling water over the coffee grounds and let it stand on side of stove for a short while; then serve the same way; the second coffee will be found nearly as good as the first. If the coffee is too strong add more water; if not strong enough add less water, as some like it strong and others do not. Another way is to take 3 heaping tablespoonfuls freshly ground coffee and 6 cups boiling water; grind the coffee as fine as possible; rinse out the coffee pot with boiling water, put in the coffee and pour on enough boiling water to cover it well; let it stand in a warm place for 5 minutes, but do not allow it to boil; then add the remaining boiling water, let it stand for a few minutes and either serve in the same coffee pot in which it was made or strain through a fine sieve into a hot silver or china coffee urn and serve at once. This is also an easy and economical way of making good coffee, but the first-named method is the best.
[ FRUIT SALADS.]
[834.] Watermelon Salad.— Cut a watermelon in two, remove the seeds and break the red part into pieces with a silver fork; put it in layers in a glass dish, sprinkle each layer with sugar and place the dish on ice for 2 hours; when ready to serve pour over ½ pint claret. If objected to the wine may be omitted.
[835.] How to Serve Watermelon.— Cut a watermelon in half lengthwise; then cut each half first in two and then into long pieces about 2 inches in thickness; arrange the pieces nicely on an oblong plate and serve. The melon should lay for several hours on ice before being cut, as it is not nice unless cold.
[836.] Plum and Peach Salad.— Choose 1 dozen large egg plums, cut them in two and remove the pits; pare and quarter ½ dozen large, ripe peaches and put them in layers alternately with the plums in a glass dish with 1 cup sugar sprinkled between; place the dish on ice for ½ hour before serving.
[837.] Orange and Cocoanut Salad.— Pare and cut some nice oranges into pieces and remove the seeds; put a layer of the oranges sprinkled with sugar into a glass dish, then a layer of freshly grated cocoanut and next a layer of apple or currant jelly; then oranges again; continue in this way until the dish is filled; place the dish on ice for 1 or 2 hours and serve. If not handy the jelly may be omitted.
[838.] Peach and Pear Salad.— Pare and cut into fine slices 4 large, ripe Bartlett pears; pare and cut into quarters ½ dozen large, ripe peaches; put them with the pears into a glass dish with a layer of whipped cream and sugar between and serve at once.