HAMPSHIRE COUNTY FARM BUREAU MONTHLY 



home: making 



MISS HKLKN A. H AKKIMAN. l>eiiii>nstratioil Affent 



Conservation of Clothing 



Conservation of clothing is equally as 

 important as food conservation. The 

 shortage of wool and the increased de- 

 mand for it makes it highly important 

 that we should economize in its use. Re- 

 member that a soldier needs three times 

 as much wool as a civilian, and we have 

 about 3,000,000 soldiers. Before the 

 war, we as a nation, used 225,000,000 

 lbs. of wool annally, and we produced 

 ■only 135,000,000 lbs. The fact remains 

 that we must use one-third less our- 

 selves, and see that our soldiers are 

 clothed. There always will be wool on 

 the market, as there always will be beef, 

 but people must be satisfied with ma- 

 terials made of shoddy or part cotton 

 or silk. 



In many homes a more complete use 

 of garments could be made if one under- 

 stood methods of renovating and re- 

 modeling garments which are partially 

 worn out. A brief course of four lessons 

 would give valuable information to many 

 women who are anxious to make better 

 use of material and money. 



1. Selection of Material and Equip- 

 ment. 



2. Use and Alteration of Commercial 

 Patterns. 



3. Remodeling and Renovating Gar- 

 ments. 



4. Continuation of number 3. 



These lessons could be arranged once 

 a week for four weeks or once in two 

 weeks for 8 weeks, and could be given 

 to groups of 10-15 women. Such ar- 

 rangements may be made by consulting 

 the Home Demonstration Agent. 



I 



School Lunches 



Does your child carry his lunch to 

 school? And does he have .something 

 warm to eat at noon? Good reports 

 have come in from the schools in Plain- 

 field, Cummington, West Cummington, 

 and Belchertown, Hatfield and West- 

 hampton. In some cases, the children 

 bring a dish to be warmed and in others, 

 the teachers supervise the making of 

 cocoa or soup. West Cummington chil- 

 dren even sold ashes to get money for 

 the food. Some of the good results are: 

 better lunches, less candy purcha.sed at 

 stores, and better afternoon work and 

 more satisfied children. 



There are still some schools where the 

 children have nothing warm at noon. 

 What is the school in your neighborhood 

 doing? 



"Have heard people express that the 

 school was fine and that more would at- 

 tend next year, having heard what it 

 was this year." — Southampton. 



Many Ways of Reducing Food Bills 



The Extension Department of the 

 Mechanics Institute, Rochester, N. Y., 

 suggests the following ways of reducing 

 the food bills. Food that is not needed 

 for building- up strength is wasted, since 

 it interferes with digestion and therefore 

 impairs efficiency, besides literal food 

 waste money spent for unnecessary food 

 is wasted. 



Buy in rcasuridbU' qnantities. 



It would seem legitimate to take ad- 

 vantage of the reduced cost of reasonable 

 quantities of food, but every one should 

 be careful not to lay in a large enough 

 stock to aff^ect the market. 



Buij foods ill hulk. 



When purchases are made at reliable 

 stores we are safe in buying by the 

 pound instead of paying for fancy 

 packages. A saving of from fifty to 

 one hundred per cent is possible in some 

 cases. 



Learn the laws relating to contttiners. 



By so doing the housekeeper will not 

 buy wooden butter dishes with tin on the 

 edges unless the tradesman weighs the 

 container separately. 



Post a table of iceights and measures in 

 your kitchen. 

 Such a table will enable you to check 

 the weight or measure of any store. 



Check weights at home. 



Worth while if there is the slightest 

 doubt as to the honesty of the dealer. 

 Better find a dealer whom you can trust, 

 and then tell him that you are counting 

 on his cooperation. 



Find stores that sell cheaply. 



Any legitimate lowering of prices 

 pi'obably means that there is no delivery 

 system, and that the storekeeper does 

 not have to pay a high rent. The house- 

 keeper should be careful to ascertain the 

 possible saving. If this is offset by extra 

 carfare it would be poor economy. 



Ask for trimmings of meat purchased. 



Most butchers are glad to cooperate in 

 this way and trimmings from meat kept 

 in a high class store are good, whole- 

 some food. One may even buy such 

 trimmings, particulai-ly if near a packing 

 house, at an appreciable saving. The 

 meat is good for minced dishes, etc. 



Group buying. 



Join a group of families and so get the 

 benefit of wholesale prices, unless the 

 plan is detrimental to the local trade. 

 Let your dealer arrange it for you. 



Provide a fireless cooker. 



This insures considerable saving in 

 Concluded in colunm 'S 



Uses of Sour Milk 



Save sour milk. 



Save money by using sour milk in 

 making cottage cheese, quick breads, 

 puddings, cakes, cookies, doughnuts, gi-id- 

 die cakes. 



The souring of milk is due to lactic 

 acid bacteria in the milk. It is mild in 

 acidity immediately after it has curdled 

 and has a very good flavor. It is some- 

 times served in this form and is known 

 as clabber. 



Sour milk is a cheap source of protein 

 for tissue building. It is also a valuable 

 source of lime and phosphorus and has a 

 slightly tonic eff"ect. 



Sour milk is much used in cookery. 

 The dishes are leavened by the addition 

 of soda. One-half teaspoon of soda is 

 used to each cup of sour milk. 



Some people prefer to add enough 

 soda to the sour milk to counteract the 

 acid taste, then leaven the mixture with 

 baking powder using the following pro- 

 portions, 2 tsp. of baking powder to 1 c. 

 flour, both measurements level. 



CORN MEAL MUFFINS 



1 c. cornmeal, 1 c. flour, 1 t. salt, 1 T. 

 molasses, I T. soda, IJ c. sour milk, 1 egg, 

 1 T. fat. Sift dry ingredients; add 

 beaten egg, milk and melted fat. Bake 

 in buttered muffin pans 15 minutes. 



SOtIR MILK GRIDDLE CAKES 



2i c. flour, 4 t. salt, 1 egg, 2 c. sour 

 milk, 1 t. soda. Mix and sift flour, salt 

 and soda together. Add sour milk and 

 well beaten egg; beat thoroughly and 

 drop by spoonfuls on a hot griddle. 

 Concluded on page i 



fuel, and inexpensive food is improved 

 in flavor by long, slow cooking. 



Study flavorings. 



Such knowledge makes it possible to 

 render inexpensive food attractive and 

 digestible. 



Keep a window box. 



It is quite possible to raise herbs for 

 seasonings and garnishing at practically 

 no expense. Have a plant of parsley. 



Extending the flavor of meat. 



A smair amount of meat can be made 

 to aid flavor to a good sized dish of cereal 

 composition. See Bulletin, "Economical 

 Use of Meat in the Home." 



Use meat substitutes. 



Cheese and dried vegetables are the 

 standbys as a basis for these. 



Keep a stock pot. 



All any small quantites of cooked vege- 

 tables and cereals as well as fresh bits 

 of meat. Cleanliness is necessary. 



