All butter should be saved. Pieces left on butter plates if clean should be scraped into a wide-mouthed jar and kept for cooking.
Pieces of meat should be kept for reheating or “made” dishes, stews or soups or for salads. In hot weather, let your first order of meat be small, and dispose of left overs as rapidly as possible.
Vegetables may be reheated, or used for flavoring soups and stews, or used cold in salads.
Desserts and fruits may be used for a “pick up” luncheon.
Salads do not keep their freshness and flavor well, and should be used very soon.
Milk and cream should be returned to proper receptacles in the refrigerator as soon as possible.
Disposal of waste food.—This is the final test of good housekeeping, and many otherwise good housekeepers fail just here. Even at its best the garbage pail is not altogether a pleasing object, and at its worst it is unspeakable. It must not be ignored.
Have a system adapted to your own kitchen, and the municipal method of disposal, if there is such.
Use a covered pail of enamel ware, rather than one of galvanized iron. The surface of the enamel is smooth, and therefore easier to wash, and there is no excuse for putting off the cleansing of the pail. Wash, rinse, and dry the pail and the cover immediately after it is emptied. Do not put a piece of paper in the bottom of the pail. This request is made by the department in New York City, and it is always better not to mix food waste and paper waste. If you live in an apartment house, your name should be painted on the pail.