1868.1 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
417 
raiE nnoDiLrsiEiHioiLiD). 
(t&~ For other Household Items, see " Basket " pages.) 
Sea-side Fare.— Scallops. 
Scallop shells arc the sea shells that are best known 
to those who live far inland, as their beauty of form 
Fig. 1.— SCALLOP SHELL. 
brings them in use for various kinds of ornamental 
work. The appearance of the shell is shown in 
figure 1, which represents one of medium size. 
For most ornamental purposes much smaller ones 
are used, while those sent to market are usually 
much larger. To sec the animal iu its greatest 
beauty it should be in an aquarium or other vessel 
of sea-water. When all is quiet it will open its 
shells as tar as the connecting "mantle" will 
allow, and this will be seen to be studded with bril- 
liant spots which glow like purple jewels. The 
scallops inhabit deep water, and during 6evere 
storms are thrown upon the beach iu large num- 
bers, where they may be picked up ; but they are 
mostly taken by dredging in deep water. In the 
New York market they are rarely to be found in 
the shells, but iu other sea-board cities it is com- 
mon to find them so. The scallop, as seen out of 
the shell, is a short, white cylinder, and it puzzles 
many to see how this can be a "shell-fish." The 
only eatable portion is the large and strong muscle 
that holds the shell together. This is shown in 
figure 2, in place, one of the shells and all the rest 
of the animal being removed. This muscle cor- 
responds to the one called the "eye," in the oys- 
ter, but it is much larger in proportion to the size 
of the animal, and it has a sirnilarfibrous structure. 
It has a remarkably sweet taste, much like that of 
the flesh of crabs, and is highly relished by many, 
though not considered as particularly digestible. 
Scallops may be opened by placing them in a pot 
over a fire, and boiliug them as directed for clams. 
When the shells open, the eatable portion is readily 
picked out, or they may be opened with a knife, 
and all but the part described rejected. Having 
shown which the eatable portion is, in speaking of 
the methods of cooking that part aloue is referred 
to. Scallops are 6tewed much in the same way as 
oysters, but as they have no liquor of their own, 
milk, or milk and water is added. They require to 
be cooked slowly for about 10 minutes, or until 
opaque white to the center. Season with butter, 
pepper, and salt. They need much more salt than 
oysters. To fry, cover the scallops with Indian 
meal, or finely powdered cracker, as for oysters, 
/then cook in plenty of fat, 
to a rich brown. While 
they must be cooked quite 
;- -■- through, they should not be 
, shrunken. Baked scallops 
: arc done in a dish the bot- 
tom of which is first cover- 
ed with a thin layer of fine 
bread crumbs, then a layer 
of scallops, another of 
crumbs, and so on ; when 
the dish is filled, cover with 
thin slices of bread, well 
buttered ; use salt aud pep- 
per as the materials are 
put in. Bake in a moderate 
oven 20 to 30 minutes. 
Large scallop 6hells are 
sometimes used as dishes 
iu which to cook oysters 
and other things in a fancy 
way; hence we have "scalloped" oysters, chicken, 
etc. Iu England they have scalloped scallops. 
The scallops are first stewed, then chopped, mixed 
with breadcrumbs, seasoned and buttered, put into 
the shells, aud placed in an oven until browned. 
About Pickles. 
Although " Aunt Hattie " had a great deal to say 
about pickles last month, it seems from the in- 
quiries we have had that she did not touch all the 
points, and we will endeavor to answer a number 
of correspondents in a sort of mixed pickle article, 
in which each must pick out his or her own answer. 
Almost any vegetable used as food will make 
pickles ; if it has no character itself, one cau be 
imparted by the use of spices. Iu pickling it seems 
to be necessary that the vegetable should, as a gen- 
eral thing, first be placed in salt and water. Most 
things put directly into vinegar do not make good 
pickles. A pound of salt to two quarts of water is 
the average strength, and iu this the article to be 
pickled may remain a few hours, or over uight ; 
then drain and add hot or cold vinegar, plain or 
spiced, as may be. Articles for pickles that have 
been put down in salt for keeping need a great 
deal of soaking, in order to freshen and plump 
them. The water should be repeatedly changed, 
until the pickles are fresh enough, and the process 
is hastened if warm water be used. Complaint is 
made that stores will not buy "home made" 
pickles, but send a long distance for those put up 
in factories. Store-keepers buy what will sell. 
Most people purchase an article that is attractive in 
appearance in preference to one that is not so. 
Pickles put up in whiskey vinegar look better 
than those in cider vinegar, and consequently 
sell more readily. Good cider vinegar gives the 
best flavor. Many ask us about the clear vinegar 
with which the bottled pickles are prepared. This 
is whiskey vinegar; when good, it is perfectly 
wholesome, and being colorless, pickles made with 
it look well, but they lack the aroma of those made 
with cider vinegar. This whiskey vinegar is sold 
under the name of white-wine vinegar. Pickles 
are always best kept in glass jars or in wooden ves- 
sels. In boiling the vinegar, use a glazed kettle or 
a tin one ; in the latter case, let it remain as short a 
time as possible. If the pickles arc green, all 
right, but do not trouble about the color, if they 
only taste well. They can be made green by the use 
of copper vessels — but don't doit. A kind of pickle 
is imported under the name of Picalilly, Chow- 
chow, etc., which consists of cucumbers, cauliflow- 
ers, onions, beans, etc., in a thick, rich, yellow 
pickle. One English concern is celebrated for the 
manufacture of this, and we have had several in- 
quiries for directions to prepare it. We have tried 
several recipes without producing an article equal 
to the imported. We give the last recipe we have 
received for Picalilly from an English source. 
" Take a pound each of ginger root, garlic, black 
pepper, and mustard seed, % oz. Tumeric root, 
some cayenne pepper, and one quart of vinegar. 
Soak the ginger in salt aud water one night, and 
slice it ; peel the garlic, slice it, salt for three days, 
and drain it dry ; bruise the Tumeric, black pep- 
per, and mustard, put all together into a jar, and 
pour the boiling vinegar over them. Keep the 
pickle for a month, and then put into it cucumbers, 
cauliflowers, or any other vegetable that has been 
previously salted." We have not tried this. 
Toast.— How to Make it. 
Did the reader ever ask for toast at a hotel ? If 
so, he probably was served with a piece of fresh 
bread, burned before the fire, the charcoal mostly 
scraped off, and served under the name of toast. 
Now there is a little science involved in making 
toast. It should always be made of stale bread ; 
the heat drives off whatever acids may have formed 
in the loaf, but more than that, the starch of the 
flour is more or less converted by the heat into a 
more digestible substance, dextrine. By nicely 
toasting a slice of bread we save the digestive or- 
gans a certain amount of labor ; hence toast is 
usually acceptable to invalids and those of impaired 
digestion. So much for the philosophy of tho 
thing; now for the practice. Make the toast from 
a stale home-made loaf. Bakers' bread will make 
an imitation of toast, but not the thing itself. 
Slice moderately thin, and place on the toasting 
fork, or iu some of the wire toasters, and hold it 
near the fire until it is well warmed through. 
Then — here comes the rub — bring it near the fire 
where it will quickly become of a light brown, or 
rather of a deep golden yellow, turn and treat the 
other side the same, aud serve. If buttered toast 
is desired, apply butter in moderate quantity while 
hot. Toast should not be piled upon a plate, as in 
that case the erispness is lost. If there is no toast- 
rack, lay the slices lapping over one another, shin- 
gle fashion, so that the moisture of the lower slices 
may escape, and not he absorbed by the others. 
A Foot Rest. 
In the "sauctum" of a friend we saw an odd 
looking piece of furniture, the use of which was 
not easy to conjecture. It consisted of two hard- 
wood boards, each 16 inches long and 12 inches 
wide, put together as shown in the engraving, the 
horizontal piece beiug fastened 3 inches below the 
top of the upright one, and braced by semicircular 
pieces let in at the edges. It is not an easy matter 
FOOT REST. 
to warm or dry the feet by a stove, where the fire is 
at a distance from the floor, and the ordinary way 
is to rest tliem upon a chair. Our friend finds this 
rest to be much more comfortable and convenient, 
as it accommodates itself readily to any slight 
movement or change of the position of the body. 
