352 
ladies’ department. 
CctbUs’ JPepartmmt. 
A DAY TO MYSELF. 
Old Ladies’ Diary. —The stars were still glit¬ 
tering in the clear sky, when I was called to break¬ 
fast by my good Betsey, and the wagon was at the 
door all in readiness to take us to farmer Jones’ 
“Harvest Home.” The merry group soon de¬ 
spatched their meal, and left me in quiet possession 
of the house, with the prospect of a lonely day : but 
I was agreeably disappointed, for my dear old 
friend M***, kindly came to bear me company. It 
has been long since we have enjoyed a day of such 
uninterrupted communion, and we lived over many 
hours of innocent pleasure, that had gladdened our 
hearts when life was new, and hope pointed to a 
bright future. But this day of pleasure, like all 
the rest, has passed away. Let me now recall it to 
memory, and see if it has not been one of profit 
as well as of pleasure. I think it has. To say 
nothing of the good that we may dern e from social 
intercourse, when the affections are cultivated, I 
find myself the gainer in many ways from this 
day’s gossip with my old friend. 
As I expected to be alone, I had made but slender 
preparations for dinner, and so set my wits to work 
to find the best that could be made with the least 
trouble, and scanty fare. My mind ran over all 
the provisions in the house—ham, tongue, salt beef, 
&c.; but all required too much cooking and pre¬ 
paration for our fancy. I say our, for M. was in 
my councils, and intended joining me in my homely 
duties. I thought of many good things that could 
be quickly done in the frying pan; but M. has a 
horror of fries, being in her mind synonymous with 
headache, indigestion, and low spirits, and all the 
train of evils that attend improper cooking to those 
who do not work in the open fields. Time was pre¬ 
cious with us, and we could not afford to lose an hour 
in idle ceremony; so we agreed that we could be as 
agreeable to each other in the kitchen, as in the 
parlor. The pantry afforded nothing but apiece of 
cold mutton, and half a boiled fowl, and both Peter 
and M.’s driver were to be fed. Let us have soup 
and apple dumplings, said M., then, with other 
light dishes, there will be plenty for all. I knew 
she could make soup out of anything ; so I assign¬ 
ed that portion of our task to her, while I went in 
search of the other light dishes she talked of. 
There were no vegetables gathered, except potatoes, 
but I had a box of macaroni in the closet, that most 
valuable viand, which no country house keeper 
should ever be without, if she can possibly procure 
it, so acceptable at all times, and particularly valua¬ 
ble for an emergency like the present. Soup and 
cold fowl, with macaroni and potatoes, was an en¬ 
viable dinner for hungry people, with apple 
dumplings in prospective. I watched with some 
interest the making of the soup; but my friend 
knew well what she was about. The mutton was 
hashed and put into two quarts of water; then was 
added two onions, four potatoes, two carrots, and a 
small leaf of cabbage, all cut fine ; half a tea cupful 
of rice, and a table spoonful of salt., When all had 
boiled half an hour, half a tea cupful of tomato 
catsup was added, with two ounces of butter, rolled 
in two table spoonfuls of flour, and suffered to boil 
a quarter of an hour longer, when the soup was 
ready for the table. I must remember this receipt, 
for it is a good one. 
We had much discussion over our receipts for 
cooking macaroni, making apple dumplings, and 
boiling potatoes. On the first two we disagreed; 
but upon potato boiling, there was but one opinion 
—that much-abused vegetable, the one most easy 
to cook, was but little understood. Potatoes 
should never be soaked in water either before, nor 
after boiling; they should be washed only a few 
minutes before putting them into the pot, but 
thrown into boiling water, with a little salt, and 
placed over a quick fire. Twenty minutes is quite 
long enough to allow for small potatoes, but large 
ones require half an hour. As soon as a fork will 
pass through them with ease, the water must be 
drained off, and the potatoes dished for the table. 
Our receipts for dressing macaroni were compared 
—mine, the true Italian mode, was pronounced too 
patrician for us, to-day, it being as follows:—One 
quarter of a pound of macaroni, boiled in water, in 
which there must be a little salt. When the mac¬ 
aroni is done (twenty or thirty minutes is suffi¬ 
cient), the water must be drained off, and the sauce 
pan kept covered; roll two table spoonfuls of but¬ 
ter in four of flour; boil a pint of milk and half a 
pint of cream, to which add the butter and flour ; 
boil it until it becomes thick. The sauce must be 
stirred all the time it is boiling—grate a quarter of 
a pound of cheese; butter the pan in which it is 
to be baked ; put in first a layer of macaroni then 
one of cheese, with some sauce, and so on, until 
the dish is full. The last layer is to be cheese, 
with which macaroni is to be covered : ten minutes 
will bake it in a quick oven. My friend’s mode, 
however, which was the simple plebeian style, was 
decided on, and was this : The macaroni, with a 
little salt, must be boiled half an hour, in water 
enough to cover it; the sauce is made of a gill of 
boiled milk, into which is stirred two ounces of 
butter, rolled in a table spoonful of flour, pepper, 
salt, half a tea spoonful of mustard, and if agreeable, 
a little grated cheese. When the macaroni is done, 
and the water drained off, stir into the boiling sauce 
two well-beaten eggs, and immediately pour the 
mixture over the macaroni, and it will then be ready 
for the table. Nothing could suit us better—only 
half an hour to cook, and such a nice dish, when 
done, and should there be any left, too, it can be 
dressed my way to-morrow. 
The apples being prepared, my friend’s better 
knowledge came to my aid. Her receipt is more 
wholesome, tender, and economical of butter and 
time—nothing but pouring boiling water into a pan 
of flour, into w’hich a little salt has-been thrown, and 
stirring it quickly until a paste is made ; the hands 
must be well dusted wfith flour, and enough of the 
paste kneaded at a time, to cover one apple. Each 
dumpling must be tied in a separate cloth, and put 
into boiling water, if the crust be thin, three quar¬ 
ters of an hour is sufficient to boil them. There, 
then, was a comfortable dinner prepared and cooked 
in an hour and a half, without bustle, and with lit¬ 
tle trouble. 
We had earned our dinner, and enjoyed it ac¬ 
cordingly. Accustomed to wait on ourselves, we 
were not long in washing up, and reducing all to 
