1861 
Christmas Sweets 
Part I. 
Old-fashioned Molasse6 Candy.—Two 
cupfuls of molasses, one tablespoonful of 
vinegar, one teaspoonful vanilla or gin¬ 
ger extract, two tablespoonfuls of butter 
substitute, one-half teaspoonful of baking 
powder. Put molasses, vinegar and but¬ 
ter into a saucepan. Bring to a boiling 
point and boil, stirring all the time, until 
the mixture is brittle when dropped into 
cold water. Stir in baking powder and 
extract and pour into a buttered tin. 
When nearly cold pull until glossy. Cut 
into small pieces and lay on a buttered 
plate or wrap in waxed paper. 
Popcorn Candy.—One cupful of syrup, 
one tablespoonful vinegar, two or three 
quarts of popped corn. Boil together the 
syrup and vinegar until syrup hardens 
when dropped in cold water. Pour over 
freshly popped corn and mold into balls 
or fancy shapes for the Christmas tree. 
Little popcorn men will please the chil¬ 
dren. Mark in the features and outlines 
•with melted chocolate. Either honey, 
maple syrup, molasses, white cane sugar 
or corn syrup may be used. 
Chocolate Rocks.—Melt 1 lb. of grated 
chocolate over hot water, and when it is 
a smooth paste remove from the fire, beat 
for a few minutes, add gradually half a 
teaspoonful of rose extract and half an 
ounce of melted cocoa butter. Stir occa¬ 
sionally until quite cold, then rub through 
a wire sieve on white paper underneath. 
Put five ounces of sweet chocolate and 
one ounce of unsweetened chocolate into a 
saucepan and melt the mixture to a 
smooth paste, then add one cupful of 
thick cream, two tablespoonfuls of hot 
sugar syrup, one teaspoonful of vanilla 
and half a teaspoonful of almond extract, 
and set over the fire until well mixed. 
Remove from the fire and beat until the 
mixture becomes cold. Mold it into small 
round centers, then roll them in the sifted 
chocolate. Serve in dainty paper cases. 
Peppermints.—Put one cupful of syrup 
and three-fourths of a cupful of water 
into a saucepan and stir constantly until 
the syrup is mixed with the water, then 
boil for a quarter of an hour. Remove 
the saucepan from the fire and beat until 
the mixture begins to thicken; add eight 
drops of oil of peppermint. Drop from 
the tip of the spoon on waxed paper and 
set away to harden. If the mixture gets 
too stiff to drop add a few drops of hot 
water. 
Peanut Candy.—Two cupfuls of molas¬ 
ses. one cupful of syrup, one tablespoonful 
of butter and one tablespoon ful of vine¬ 
gar. Boil all together until brittle when 
dropped in cold water. Butter a good- 
sized shallow pan. On the bottom of this 
dispose the desired number of shelled 
and skinned peanuts, and when the candy 
is cooked pour over them. Before it has 
time to become cool mark into squares. 
Golden Syrup Candy.—Four pounds of 
golden syrup, one teaspoonful of vanilla 
or lemon extract and one-half teaspoonful 
of baking soda. Boil the golden syrup 
very slowly, stirring to prevent burning, 
till it snaps when tried in cold water, 
then add the flavoring and the baking 
soda, stirring hard. Take off immediately 
and pour on a buttered slab. "When cool 
enough to handle pull the candy rapidly, 
so as to make it light-colored, then cut 
with buttered scissors into sticks or 
cushions. 
Orange Candy Cubes.—Cover one- 
fourth of a cupful of gelatin with water 
until soft, boil one pound of sugar and a 
little water until it thickens, add the 
gelatin and cook for 20 minutes; take 
from the fire, stir in one cupful of chopped 
nuts, the grated rind of a large orange 
and two lemons. Stir a few minutes, 
turn into a pan wet with cold water, and 
cut into cubes when cold. 
Stuffed Prunes.—Soak large and per¬ 
fect prunes in cold water for several 
hours, steam until they are tender and 
the stones are easily removed. Take out 
the stones and fill the open space Avith 
a mixture of chopped dates, figs and can¬ 
died fruit. Press the prunes into fancy 
forms, theu roll in cocoanut. Let stand 
several days before serving. Very delicious. 
Maple Fondant.—Two cupfuls of maple 
sugar, broken up small, or syrup, one 
cupful of corn syrup, one-fourth teaspoon¬ 
ful cream of tartar, one-half cupful 
water. Flace sugar, syrup, cream of tar¬ 
tar and water into an agate saucepan, 
place it on range and stir the mixture 
until sugar is melted. Heat it slowly to 
boiling point. Boil it without stirring it 
until the syrup forms a soft ball in cold 
water. Pour syrup slowly on a large 
platter, and let it stand until it is nearly 
cold. Knead it like bread dough until it 
is perfectly smooth. Put it into a cov¬ 
ered jar and let it stand at least 20 hours 
before using it. 
Chocolate Caramels.—Boil slowly one 
cupful of molasses, one cupful of grated 
chocolate, two cupfuls of brown sugar, 
one cupful of boiled milk, one tablespoon¬ 
ful of flour and butter the size of a large 
English walnut. Pour on flat tins to cool 
and mark off while warm. 
Parisian Fruits.—Put through a meat 
chopper oue pound of prepared raisins, 
figs and nuts. Add one tablespoonful 
orange juice, a little grated orange peel 
and one-fourth cupful of honey or syrup. 
Mold the mixture into balls and roll them 
in chopped nuts, cocoanut or chocolate. 
This mixture may be packed in an oiled 
tin, set under a weight until firm, and 
then cut in any shape desired. Melted 
chocolate may be added to the mixture 
before molding if desired. 
HELEN A. I.YNAN. 
Ibe RURAL NEW.YORKER 
Letters to a Cousin 
Dear Amelia: When you want some¬ 
thing nourishing and inexpensive, do yon 
ever make Spanish stew? Probably you 
make stews somewhat like this one, but 
see how conveniently the quantities are 
specified and how about right the ming¬ 
ling of flavors proves to be. For each 
person to be served use one pork chop, 
one ripe tomato, one sweet green pepper 
and one tablespoon of rice. To the whole 
add one potato and one stalk of celery. 
Salt to taste. About'four hours are need¬ 
ed for making, and it is best to simmer the 
meat for three hours the day before, for 
then any fat that rises may be taken off 
while cold. Of course any sort of meat 
may be used, a foreleg of lamb being a 
good choice. At butchering time on the 
farm there are many small pieces of meat 
that can be made tender for such a stew. 
1003. Design for embroidering the cor¬ 
ners of a Table Cover. Four 9-inch corners 
are given. Blue and yellow. Price of 
transfer 15 cents. 
When ripe tomatoes are out of season any 
l'emnants from a can will suggest a stetv, 
and onions may at any time be substituted 
for the sweet peppers. A carrot for each 
person would be a good addition. Have 
enough water at all times to equal a 
pint for each serving, and if you like to 
break crackers or bread into the stew, 
make it even more liquid. 
Here is a recipe for a layer cake which 
makes up easily and is very good: One 
cup sugar, one and one-half cups of flour 
and tA\’o teaspoons baking powder sifted 
together. Break into this one large or 
two small eggs without previous heating. 
Melt one-fourth cup of butter, fill cup up 
Avith milk and stir this thoroughly into 
the dry mixture. Flavor with vanilla. 
Can be baked in two layers or in a long 
tin. 
And uoav for cakes as good as candy 
and sure to set the young people asking 
for more. For broAvnies one cup sugar 
and one-half cup of butter creamed to¬ 
gether. Two eggs beaten well Avith egg 
beater. Two squares of chocolate melted, 
one-half cup of flour, one cup nut meats 
broken small, one teaspoon vanilla and no 
salt. Bake in tin about seven inches 
square, and soon after taking from the 
oven cut into squares making nine or 16 
pieces. As these have only the eggs to 
make them light, they need careful and 
slow baking. You will see the batter 
come up slowly and the chocolate hold it 
from falling. A half hour, at least, is 
needed. When you send goodies to “the 
children” away at school or college, add 
some brownies; they never become dry 
and are very toothsome. 
And now for a suggestion concerning 
the old people. You may see a chance to 
pass it on to some minister or Grange. 
Not long ago I encountered quite a party 
of people on a trolley car. all bound for an 
afternoon reception which was held every 
year for the members of a certain church 
who were past seventy. They Avere cer¬ 
tainly a merry-hearted company, and one 
couple just arrived at the fourscore and 
ten limit seemed gayest of all. All the 
year these privileged “old people” look 
forward to their party at the parsonage, 
or else recall the cheerful occasions Avhen 
no physical disabilities prevented their 
attendance. Of course messages and 
postcards were sent to all too old or 
feeble for the simple social pleasures of¬ 
fered. I once heard a lady, who A\ T as her¬ 
self growing gray and deaf, say, “When 
I was young it never occurred to me that 
people did not like growing old. They 
said nothing about it. and I never knew 
they did not like it.” Neither do they 
want us to talk about it. but anything AA’e 
can do to make age seem honorable Ave 
surely owe to those ahead of us in the 
pathway. For them it must often seem 
all down hill. But if we will have it so, 
there will be compensations. More leisure 
to enjoy nature and the young people, 
more patience under disappointments, less 
eagerness for work or for gain ; these may 
ease the burdens of life for those who ac¬ 
cept unavoidable defeats and set about 
counting mercies. 
Heaven Ave all shall lie children again, 
( 1Inldren of One from children of twain ; 
None but the children can come into 
Heaven, 
Children of seventy, children of seven. 
r'O it is said and so it is sung. 
As we grow older A\ r e shall grow young.” 
I quote from memory, a care-free cheer 
fulness about the “old people” I saAv oi 
the trolley car having brought the bit o 
poetr.v to mind. If we must some day b 
old ladies, do let’s pray to be nice, com 
panionable old ladies! As ever. 
AURELIA. 
Make Your Christmas Candy 
at Home with Karo 
HE variety of wholesome candies so 
easily made at home with Karo syrup 
really intelligent solution of the 
gives a 
Christmas candy problems. 
Its lots of fun for the children themselves 
to make it and Karo always insures success. 
Christmas candies cost more than ever this 
year. Karo candies are as good as can be 
bought and at a fraction of the cost of good 
store candy. 
The Most Delicious Caramels 
You Ever Tasted 
KARO CARAMELS 
1/4 cup Vinegar 
2 tablespoons Mazola 
I teaspoon Vanilla 
Granulated Sugar 
Karo 
Water 
Boil the sugar, Karo, water and vinegar six 
minutes, and add the Mazola. Cook till it forms 
a soft ball in cold water. Remove from fire, and 
stir in the vanilla. If preferred, one-half cup of 
candied cherries, cut in halves, may be added. 
After heating thoroughly, turn into tins well oiled 
with Mazola. Mark in squares when cool, and 
cut when cold. Wrap each cube in waxed paper. 
PRFP Beautifully illustrated Com Products Cook 
r l\ nn Book of 64 pages containing more than a 
hundred valuable recipes for candies of all kinds, cakes 
and pastry of every variety, sauces, and salad dressings. 
All recipes originated by leading professional cooks 
and endorsed by Domestic Science Experts. Every 
housewife should possess a copy of this book—sent 
free. WRITE TODAY. Corn Products Refining Co., 
Dept. 48 P. O. Box 161, New York City. 
