Peach Salad.—Pare and quarter a quart of ripe peaches, (cost ten cents,) lay them in a heap in a shallow glass dish; squeeze over them the juice of an orange, (cost two cents,) and sprinkle them with powdered sugar, (cost two cents.) Put them on the ice to get very cold. A large dishful can be prepared for fifteen cents.
Cold Compôte of Pears.—Peel and slice thin a quart of Bartlett pears, (cost fifteen cents,) lay them in a glass dish, pour over them a little wine, and sprinkle them plentifully with powdered sugar. Let them stand in a cool place for an hour before using them. A nice dish will cost less than twenty cents.
Stewed Prunelles.—Put a pound of prunelles, (cost fifteen cents,) in enough boiling water to cover them, and stew them gently for one hour. Take them up with a skimmer, strain their juice, return it to the fire with four ounces of loaf sugar, (cost four cents,) the yellow rind and juice of one lemon, (cost two cents,) and a glass of wine; skim until clear, add the prunelles, and stew again for one hour. Take up the prunelles in a glass dish, cool the syrup a little, and strain it over them. Cool before using. The dish can be made for about twenty-five cents.
Quince Cakes.—Wash some quinces, boil them in enough water to cover them, until they are tender enough to rub through a seive; to each quart add a pound and a half of loaf sugar, place the mixture over the fire, and heat to the boiling point, stirring it constantly, but do not let it boil. Oil some plates, spread the quince upon them, and dry it in the mouth of a cool oven. Then cut it in cakes, pack it in a tin box, between layers of white wrapping paper, when it is thoroughly cold, and keep it in a cool, dry place. A good dishful can be made for twenty-five cents.
Quince Snow.—Boil some nice quinces until tender, peel them, rub them through a sieve with a wooden spoon, and add to each pound a pound of powdered sugar, (cost ten cents,) and the whites of three eggs, (cost three cents.) Beat with an egg whisk to a stiff froth and pile by the tablespoonful in the centre of a shallow glass dish. A nice dishful can be made for about twenty-five cents.
Iced Raspberries.—Beat the white of one egg, (cost one cent,) with two tablespoonfuls of cold water; pick over a quart of fine ripe raspberries, (cost ten cents,) dip them one by one into the egg, and roll them in powdered sugar; lay them on white paper spread on a baking sheet, so that they do not touch, and dry them in a cold, dry place, sifting a little more sugar over them, if they seem to grow moist. When the berries are in season, twenty-five cents will cover the cost of a large dish.
Raspberry Salad.—Pick over a quart of ripe raspberries, (cost ten cents,) pile them high in the centre of a glass dish, pour over them a glass of wine, (cost five cents,) dust them with an ounce of powdered sugar, (cost one cent,) and keep on the ice till used. A good dishful can be made for about twenty cents.
Compôte of Strawberries.—Carefully pick over a quart of ripe strawberries, (cost ten cents;) put them in an earthen dish, pour over them a syrup made by boiling quarter of a pound of sugar, (cost four cents,) with one gill of water, for ten minutes; let the berries stand in this syrup for one hour; then drain them and pile them in a heap in a shallow glass dish; add to the syrup the juice of one orange, (cost two cents,) or a glass of wine; boil it up and cool it a little, and strain it over the berries; cool and use. This delicious dish costs about fifteen cents.
Strawberry Drops.—Rub some ripe strawberries through a fine seive with a wooden spoon; add two ounces of this juice to half a pound of powdered sugar, (cost five cents,) put the mixture into a saucepan and stir it over the fire until it begins to simmer; remove it from the fire, and stir it briskly for five minutes, oil some paper, lay it on a baking sheet, drop the strawberries on it by the salt-spoonful, dry them in the mouth of a cool oven. Keep them between layers of white paper in a cool place. A good supply can be made for twenty-five cents.
Compôte of Mixed Fruit.—Boil half a pound of loaf sugar, (cost eight cents,) with one gill of cold water for ten minutes; pick over half a pound of red currants, (cost five cents,) and a pint of raspberries, (cost five cents,) and simmer them in the syrup for ten minutes. Take up the fruit on a glass dish, cool the syrup a little and pour it over the fruit. The dish will cost less than twenty cents.