2 hot dishes (as meat and vegetable)
Bread and butter
Dessert
II
Soup
2 or 3 other hot dishes (as meat and one or two vegetables)
Bread and butter
Dessert
Beverage
III
Soup
2 or 3 hot dishes
A relish (as jelly or pickle)
Bread and butter
Salad
Dessert
Beverage
More elaborate plans than these should usually be reserved for state occasions.
The cost of the dietary.—The types of menu used will depend very largely upon the income of the family. It is comparatively easy to plan attractive bills of fare if one does not have to consider the amount of work involved in preparing them, or the cost of the materials to be used. With knowledge of food values an expensive dietary may be wholesome, but there is great temptation to overeating and waste of food, and it is wise to keep meals simple for the sake of good digestion. Most families have to consider carefully the cost of food if any money is to be saved for books or travel or emergencies. A dietary such as planned on page [313] will probably cost from $1.50 to $2.00 for the day, or from 11⁄2 to 2 cents per 100 Calories, depending on the locality. Nothing is allowed for waste, which may, if the cook and those who eat the food are not careful, amount to from 10 to 15
per cent of the total cost. It is often estimated that the “average” man will consume about 3000 Calories per day, and the cost may be expressed on this basis as from 45 to 60 cents per man per day; or the dietary spoken of as a 45-cent or 60-cent dietary or whatever the exact cost per 3000 Calories may be. The cost of food for such a family for a year would at this rate be from $550 to $750.
If the allowance for food be placed at 25 per cent of the total income,[22] this dietary would be appropriate for a family with an income of $2200 to $3000 per year. The majority of families have to get along with a lower expenditure for food, yet they want to be well nourished and to enjoy their fare. Fortunately there is no real connection between cost and nutritive value, some of the most nutritious foods being among the cheapest. At the same time, we cannot get wholesome food for nothing. There are very few foods which to-day cost less than 1⁄3 of a cent per 100 Calories, and these are mostly cereal products, such as cornmeal, rolled oats, and flour, or sugars and molasses. These alone will not make a well-balanced, palatable dietary, though they will supply all the fuel needed for an “average” man for a day for ten cents. In many parts of the country to-day it is hardly possible to make a dietary satisfactory week in and week out with an average allowance of less than 3⁄4 of a cent per 100 Calories, and even this sum will prove satisfactory only provided there be skill in food preparation as well as food selection. With an allowance of 1 cent per 100 Calories it is possible almost anywhere to make a balanced dietary with some attractiveness in appearance and flavor. In
choosing foods with regard to cost a table that shows which are cheap fuel and which dear, is a great help. Prices vary so much with place and season that it is difficult to make one which is very exact, and some rearrangement to suit any particular region may be necessary. The table on page[ 318] will, however, serve as a guide.