EXTENSION" COURSE IN VEGETABLE FOODS. 71 



COMBINATION IN PICKLING. 



Almost any combination of onions, peppers, and tomatoes, ripe or green, will 

 form an acceptable relish with vinegar and spices. The basis of the pickles 

 may be of one kind or several, but in the latter case each should be parboiled 

 separately, or some may be hard while others are overcooked. 



Exercise. — Collect personal and family recipes for all types of pickles and 

 refer to standard cookbooks dealing with the subject. With the aid of the 

 blackboard, reduce these formulas to their lowest terms and arrange in tabular 

 form. Thus it becomes apparent that it is not necessary to have so many 

 recipes. Moreover, proportions may be adapted to conditions. 



It will surprise the students to see how many recipes for sweet pickles may 

 be condensed to some such form as this : For 2 pounds of prepared vegetables 

 or fruit, 1 pound of sugar (or less), one-half pint vinegar, 1 ounce mixed spice. 



The usual sauce for mustard pickles is some variation of this formula : Mix 

 one-fourth to one-half cup sugar with 1 ounce ground mustard and 2 table- 

 spoonfuls flour. Stir into 1 pint hot vinegar and cook until thickened. Tur- 

 meric may be added to give color. Combine with 1 quart mixed vegetables 

 parboiled. Note resemblance between salads with cooked dressing and mustard 

 pickles. 



Salad oil, such as olive oil, cottonseed oil, or peanut oil, in small proportion is 

 often added to mixed pickles or poured over the top after they are put in jars 

 to protect them from the air and prevent the growth of molds. 



To show that the natural acid of some fruits may have the same antiseptic 

 effect as vinegar, put cranberries or rhubarb into sterile jars ; fill the jars with 

 clear, freshly sterilized water and seal ; time will show that the fruit keeps as 

 well this way as if cooked. 



REVIEW QUESTIONS, LESSON XIV. 



1. Define pickles. 



2. What are essential steps in the process of pickling? 



3. Describe the making of sweet pickles. 



4. Mention some names of products of this type which indicate a universal 

 demand for such foods. 



5. Is there any reason why pickles and relishes should be less important now 

 than formerly? 



6. Why is vinegar useful as a preservative? 



7. Are any fruits or vegetables ever pickled without vinegar? 



8. What may be combined with vinegar to give it greater efficiency? 



9. What need of caution in selecting utensils for pickle making? 



10. Are exact recipes essential in the preparation of pickles ? 



LESSON XV. VEGETABLES FOR THE TABLE— MARKETING. 



Savages found their food where they could, and dug roots, picked 

 fruits, and pursued game from place to place. Such nomadic tribes 

 required a large area to sustain a small population. The fixed 

 hearthstone and planting of seeds were higher steps on the ladder 

 of civilization, grazing succeeded the chase as a method of supply- 

 ing food, and grazing and crop raising combined are the founda- 

 tions of agriculture. The possibilities of intensive farming in the 

 development of the food supply are not yet known. Moreover, the 



