THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



163 



^BtB of JfrititB. 



Next in importance to the best modes of cultivation 

 and the xelection of the choicest varieties, comes the 

 most appromd m-ethod.s of prepaiintr fruits fomse. 

 We, would he <jlad therefore if the ladies, who read 

 this Journal, would make free use of this column 

 for an interchanr/e of ideas on this subject. 



STRAWBERRY SHORT CAKE-A HYGIENIC 

 RECIPE. 



BY SUSANNA W. DODDS, M. D. 



Singularly enough, some of those 

 dishes that are most highly esteemed 

 as " delightful deserts," judging after 

 the manner of the ordinary palate, are 

 just the ones that have given the best 

 results under hygienic treatment. 

 Among these is strawberiy shortcake. 

 Made according to the hygienic recipe 

 given below and pi'operly managed in 

 all the little details, it never fails to 

 give good satisfaction. 



Fruits — and especially the small 

 fruits — are such delicate j^roducts of 

 the soil that, whether served as such or 

 in combination with some cereal pro- 

 duct, they require exceedingly careful 

 management at every stage, else a part 

 of their exquisite flavor is lost. This 

 is too often done by over-sweetening, 

 or (in the cooking) by making inju- 

 dicious combinations, as with butter, 

 spices, etc. 



To the unperverted palate no im- 

 provement can be made on the tho- 

 roughly ripe raw strawberries. If 

 slightly under-ripe, a trifle of sugar 

 may be tolerated ; but do not add 

 thereto either milk or cream. If you 

 do, my word for it, you will in less 

 time than it takes to tell it, have a 

 curdled unsightly mass, fit only for the 

 slop pail. 



But was it not the " cake " we were 

 talking aV)Out '? Well, ''our" straw- 

 berry cake has no butter in it, neithei- 

 in the mixing nor after it is baked. 

 " Is it good 1" Sujjpose you try the 

 experiment. One thing, it will not 

 cause a headache, even if you eat two 



large pieces — provided you have not 

 already dined too sumptuously before 

 it is served. Now for the making of it. 



Strawberry Shortcake. — Three 

 cups sifted Graham flour, three cups 

 sifted white flour, two cups sweet 

 cream, one teaspoonful soda, finely pul- 

 verized ; two teaspoonfuls cream of 

 tartar, four quarts of fine strawberries, 

 or six ordinary. 



If the fruit has been properly gath- 

 ered and not carted in open trays 

 through a dusty thoroughfare, no wash- 

 ing will be needed ; when this has to be 

 done much of the juice is necessarily 

 wasted. When the berries are a little 

 firm, a good plan is to sprinkle lightly 

 with ice water and then with sugar, in 

 order to start the juice. Do this at 

 least an hour before they are wanted ; 

 and unless very ripe and soft, it is best 

 to chop them with a knife — a silver one 

 if you have it. 



Mix the cake as for "cream biscuits," 

 sifting the soda and cream of tartar 

 several times thi-ough the flour. Roll 

 to the thickness of half an inch, prick 

 well with a fork and bake in a mode- 

 rate oven from thirty to forty minutes ; 

 it must be nicely browned, top and 

 bottom. When done, remove from the 

 oven and lean edgewise to cool till you 

 can handle comfortably. Split care- 

 fully in halves by first dividing the 

 crust (at its edge) with a knife, and 

 then taking a fork and separating the 

 cake as nearly through the middle as 

 possible. Lay these each on a plate, 

 crust downward, and put on the pre- 

 pared fruit ; then lay one half upon the 

 other, the crusts still downward, and 

 alter half an hour serve. 



The above quantity of flour will make 

 three cakes the size of a tea-plate. It 

 is best in spreading the fi-uit not to 

 drench the cake with it, but to leave 

 out a bowlful of berries and pass as you 

 serve ; no other sauce is needed. Should 

 you have the ordinary Graham flour 



