The Story of Crisco

by Marion Harris Neil

June 19

Roast Loin of Mutton
Creamed Spinach Baked Potatoes
Pineapple Charlotte
*Maids of Honor

*Maids of Honor—Crisco puff pastry, 4 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon ground almonds, 2 eggs, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 4 tablespoons melted Crisco, and 1 tablespoon cocoanut. Roll out Crisco puff pastry and line 8 gem pans with it. Put eggs and sugar into basin, and beat them together for 15 minutes; then stir in lightly Crisco, ground almonds, cocoanut, and vanilla. Put 3 teaspoons into each gem pan and bake in a moderate oven for 20 minutes. When cooked, sprinkle over with little sugar.

June 20

*Cream of Cucumber Soup
Grilled Salmon, Mayonnaise Sauce
Lamb Cutlets
Green Peas Mashed Potatoes
Cold Fruit Souffle
Coffee

*Cream of Cucumber Soup—2 large cucumbers, 8 onions, sprig parsley, handful spinach, 2 tablespoons Crisco, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, 1 quart white stock, 1 cup milk, 2 cups cream, 2 yolks eggs, nutmeg, 1 teaspoon sugar, pepper and salt to taste, croutons.

Peel cucumbers and cut firm part into dice, about 3 tablespoons; boil gently in salted water until soft, drain and reserve for soup. Cut remainder cucumber into pieces, cut onions small. Make Crisco hot in stewpan, fry onions and cucumber 5 minutes, add parsley with stock, let it simmer 20 minutes. Mix cornstarch with milk, stir in soup until it boils, let boil 10 minutes. Well wash and drain spinach, pound it in mortar, turn it into cloth and squeeze lightly as possible. Pour as much of this liquor into soup as will make it a delicate green color. Pass soup through sieve, turn it back into stewpan. Mix cream and yolks of eggs in basin, pour boiling soup on to them, stirring at same time, return to pan; it must not boil again or it will curdle. Season to taste with nutmeg, pepper, and salt. Cut bread into dice, fry pale color in hot Crisco, drain and toss them in sugar, sprinkle little red pepper over and place in oven 2 minutes. Warm dice of cucumber, put them in tureen with croutons and pour hot soup over and serve.

June 21

Fried Flounders, Lemon Sauce
*Beef, a la Mode
Cauliflower au Gratin
Creamed Potatoes
Fruit Chartreuse
Coffee

*Beef, a la Mode—3 pounds lean beef, larding bacon, 1 quart stock, 1 glass claret, 3 tablespoons Crisco, 4 tablespoons flour, 2 carrots, 1 chopped onion, 10 button onions, sprig parsley, piece thyme, 1 bay leaf, juice half lemon, 2 cloves, salt and pepper to taste.