HAMPSHIRE COUNTY FARM BUREAU MONTHLY 



home: making 



MISS HELEN A. HARRIMAN, Demonstration Asent 



The School Lunch 



When children are unable to come 

 home for dinner, their noon meal becomes 

 a good deal of a problem. Of course it 

 is comparatively easy to put up some- 

 thing for them, but this method is not 

 wholly satisfactory, especially in cold 

 weather. The growing child really ought 

 to have something warm at noon. It 

 should be obvious that this would mean 

 better health and therefore better study 

 as well. 



It would not be a very difficult matter 

 to provide something warm with the mid- 

 day school lunch. The necessary equip- 

 ment, — a few dishes and possibly an oil 

 stove, — would not be expensive. The 

 work might be done by the teacher, or 

 by the children under some organization 

 and supervision. In the latter case it 

 would become educational and would 

 tend to solve the problem of the noon 

 hour. The school board would see to it 

 that the teacher would suffer no serious 

 inconvenience without such compensation 

 as would be acceptable. Whatever ar- 

 rangement might be made regarding 

 time, the work should be made a regular 

 part of the school schedule and purpose. 



The U. S. D. A. has suggested some 

 sample bills of fare as follows: 



1. Vegetable-milk soup, crackers, 

 rolls, fruit, plain cake. 



2. Meat and vegetable stew, bread 

 and butter, sweet chocolate. 



3. Boiled custard, lettuce sandwiches, 

 fruits, cookies. 



4. Dried codfish, crackers, fruit, ma- 

 ple-sugar sandwiches. 



Quite possibly it would be better to 

 prepare nothing but a single hot dish 

 at the school-house, relying upon the chil- 

 dren to bring the staples from home as 

 they do at present. It would seem that 

 this could be readily brought to pass, 

 thereby bringing relief to many a mother 

 who hates to see her girl start off for 

 school on a bleak November day with 

 nothing but cold food for her dinner. 



In connection with the school lunch it 

 might be well to add a few recipies for 

 sandwich fillings. 



Egg Filling, 1. 



1 hard cooked egg, chopped fine; 

 equal amount chopped ham ; 1 tea- 

 spoon melted butter; all mixed to- 

 gether. 



Egg Filling, 2. 



Scrambled egg and a little crisp 

 bacon. < 



Egg Filling, 3. | 



Chop hard cooked eggs fine, mix with 

 salad dressing, season with salt and 

 pepper. 



Celery and Apple Filling 



Put equal amounts of celery and 

 apple through coarse food chopper. 

 Squeeze out water, add salad dress- 

 ing, and salt to taste. 



Fruit Filling. 



Figs, raisins, dates. Remove stems 

 and stones. Chop fine, add a little 

 cold water and cook to paste. Add 

 a few drops lemon juice. 



Cheese and Nut Filling. 



Chop nuts fine and mix with grated 

 cheese. Moisten with milk and sea- 

 son with salt. Raisins may be used 

 instead of nuts. 



Salmon Filling. 



Remove bones and skins from cold 

 salmon and mash. Add yokes of 

 hard cooked eggs. Moisten with 

 melted butter and add shredded 

 lettuce. Season with salt, pepper, 

 and lemon juice. 



Study Groups 



Within a month or so Miss Harriman 

 will organize domestic study groups in 

 as many of the towns as possible. The 

 plan is to get a few alert and interested 

 women together at regular times to 

 follow a course of study in some phase 

 of home-making. The social element and 

 exchange of views have made the group 

 method seem most advantageous. There 

 are three general courses open to the 

 gi-oups; one having to do with foods, 

 the second with meal planning, and the 

 third with home sanitation and con- 

 venience. 



Miss Harriman has given a demon- 

 stration of Meat-substitues in Hunting- 

 ton and Leeds, and would be glad to give 

 it elsewhere upon request. 



"Remember the question is not whether 

 you personally may feel that you can 

 afford to waste food; the point is that 

 the Nation cannot afford to have any 

 food wasted by anybody." 



Conservation Notes 



The canning bulletin has been trans- 

 lated into Polish and Italian. Copies 

 may be secured by application to the 

 Bureau office. 



At the field day in Granby there was 

 an exhibit of the canned goods of the 

 local girls' club. There were ten exhib- 

 itors, aged 10-15 years, and each pre- 

 sented jars of vegetable, fruit and 

 gi-eens. In Middlefield the exhibit was 

 held in connection with the local fair 

 and prizes were awarded at that time. 



Failures in canning are usually due 

 to carelessness and inaccurate following 

 of directions. The products must not be 

 allowed to stand after blanching, nor 

 must they be allowed to stay in the cold 

 dip for more than a minute. There is 

 much loss due to use of poor rubbers. 

 Old rubbers should never be used again, 

 and new ones should be stretched to test 

 their strength. 



Jars of preserves should be kept in a 

 cool, dry place. In case they are kept 

 in the light, they should be wrapped in 

 paper. 



The canning work in the James House, 

 Northampton, continues. Not only have 

 the promoters accomplished much actual 

 conservation, but others have learned 

 the approved ways of doing the work. 



Eat New Corn 



The U. S. D. A. is urging people to 

 eat new corn instead of the old which 

 comes tkrough the public market. While 

 the corn is fresh, clean and sweet and 

 before the germ has been removed to 

 prevent spoilage, it is better in every 

 sense of the word. The animals all know 

 this and often refuse to eat old corn 

 unless very hungry. For less than $5 

 a hand mill and sieves may be Bought, 

 which will insure your family all the 

 fresh meal which it may desire. 



Middlefield Fair 



The Middlefield fair is one of the most 

 interesting ones in the state. It is ac- 

 tually what many fairs purport to be, a 

 cattle show. The exhibits this year, par- 

 ticularly the cattle one, were highly com- 

 mendable. Splendid stock was shown, 

 and the friendly rivalry between breed- 

 ers and the universal interest of the 

 crowd bespeak the right attitude of 

 mind. The Middlefield people justly 

 feel that their fair has infinite possibili- 

 ties as an educational and recreative in- 

 stitution. 



The Bureau had an exhibit at the fair, 

 and since then has had another at the 

 fair in Amherst. 



Onions are selling for nearly $3.00 a 

 bag, and apples, in Apple Valley, for 

 $3.50 a barrel, orchard-run. 



Cover Crops for Tobacco 



A year ago Dr. Beinhart, U. S. D. A., 

 speaking before the Tobacco Growers' 

 Association of New England very strong- 

 ly urged the use of rotations to control 

 rot-root and a cover crop of timothy for 

 other toxic troubles. One or two of the 

 growers testified to the same conclusion. 

 It might be well to call to the attention 

 of the readers of the Monthly that this 

 principle seems to have been sustained 

 by another year of experimental and 

 practical work. Dr. Chapman of the 

 state college is most enthusiastic over 

 the benefits to be derived from the use 

 of a cover crop. 



