Old-Time Cooking Tips

Slicing Pineapples

The
knife used for peeling a pineapple should not be used for slicing it,
as the rind contains an acid that is apt to cause a swollen mouth and
sore lips. The Cubans use salt as an antidote for the ill effects of
the peel.

To Sweeten Milk

Milk which is slightly turned or changed may be sweetened and rendered fit for use again by stirring in a little baking soda.

To Scald Milk

Put
in top of double boiler, having water boiling in under part. Cover, and
let stand on top of range until milk around edge of double boiler has a
bead-like appearance.

To Prevent Milk Curdling

A pinch of soda stirred into milk that is to be boiled will prevent curdling.

To Preserve Milk

A spoonful of grated horseradish will keep a pan of milk sweet for days.

To Keep Milk Sweet

Milk will keep sweet longer in a shallow pan than in a pitcher.

Cream For Emergencies

A good substitute for cream can be made with fresh milk, a little butter and flour.

To Test Nutmegs

Prick them with a pin; if good, the oil will instantly spread around the puncture.

Grating Nutmegs

Always grate nutmegs at the blossom end first.

To Caramelize Sugar

Put
sugar in a smooth granite saucepan or omelet pan, place over hot part
of range, and stir constantly until melted and of the color of maple
syrup. Care must be taken to prevent sugar from adhering to sides of
pan or spoon.

Cooking Tips

To Make Caramel

Continue
the caramelization of sugar until syrup is quite brown and a whitish
smoke arises from it. Add an equal quantity of boiling water, and
simmer until of the consistency of a thick syrup. Of use in coloring
soups, sauces, etc.

To Blanch Almonds

Cover
Jordan almonds with boiling water and let stand two minutes; drain, put
into cold water, and rub off the skins. Dry between towels.

To Shred Almonds

Cut blanched almonds in thin strips lengthwise of the nut.

To Make Macaroon Dust

Dry macaroons, pound and sift.

To Shell Chestnuts

Cut
a half-inch gash on flat sides and put in an omelet pan, allowing
one-half teaspoon butter to each cup chestnuts. Shake over range until
butter is melted. Put in oven and let stand five minutes. Remove from
oven, and with a small knife take off shells. By this method shelling
and blanching is accomplished at the same time, as skins adhere to
shells.

To Add Flavoring Extracts And Wine

They
should be added if possible to a mixture when cold. If added while
mixture is hot, much of the goodness passes off with the steam.

To Prevent Salt From Lumping

Mix with cornstarch, allowing one teaspoon cornstarch to six teaspoons salt.

After Broiling Or Frying

If any fat has spattered on range, wipe surface at once with newspaper.

Using Bread Crumbs For Pastry

This old cooking tip makes a tasty dessert.

Many
puddings that are commonly baked in a crust, such as coconut, potato,
apple, and lemon, are equally as good and more wholesome, made by
strewing grated bread crumbs over a buttered pie plate or pudding dish
to the usual depth of crust; pour in the pudding filling, strew another
layer of bread crumbs over the top, and bake.

Keeping Coffee

Keep coffee by itself, as its odor affects other articles.

Cooking Tips

To Keep Oranges And Lemons

They keep best wrapped in soft paper, and, if possible, laid in a wooden drawer.

To Keep Apples

They keep in dry place, as cool as possible without freezing.

When Baking Pies, Cakes, Cookies, Etc.

A bowl containing two quarts of water, set in an oven when baking, will prevent pies, cakes, cookies, etc., from being scorched.

To Store Flour

Keep flour cool, dry, and securely covered.

Gathering Herbs

Gather herbs when beginning to blossom; keep in paper sacks.

Cake Icing Tip

A pinch of soda in your icing will keep it moist and prevent its cracking on the cake.

To Prevent Pots From Boiling Over

Rub butter or lard on the rim of a pot, and it won't boil over readily.

To Cure Salty Soup

A raw potato added to the soup will absorb the extra salt.

Oatmeal

One-third cup of dry oatmeal in buckwheat cakes takes away the raw taste and makes cakes flaky.

To Dry Herbs

Dry
the gathered crop, thinly spread out and shaded from the sun, tie the
herbs in small bundles, and keep them compactly pressed down and
covered with white paper; or, after drying them, put each sort into a
small box, and by means of boards fitted in it, and a screw-press,
press the herbs into cakes or little trusses. These should be
afterwards carefully wrapped up in paper and be kept in a dry place,
when they will retain their aroma as perfectly as when they were put
into the press, for at least three years. By the common method of
hanging up herbs in loose bundles the odor soon escapes.

Cooking Tips

To Prevent A Tough Omelet

A little boiling water added to an omelet as it thickens will prevent it being tough.

To Cut Hard-Boiled Eggs

To cut hard-boiled eggs in smooth slices, dip the knife first in water.

To Prevent Heavy Cake And Breads

Much of the heavy cake and bread is the result of the oven door being slammed. Close as gently as possible.

To Cut Potatoes

An empty tin baking powder can makes a good cutter for slaw or potatoes.

To Make Fowl Tender

A little vinegar in the water will help make tender an old fowl when cooking.

To Keep Bread Sweet

A pinch of ginger will keep bread sweet.

To Beat White Of Egg Quicker

A pinch of salt will make the white of an egg beaten quicker.

To Prevent Scorching

Salt placed under baking tins in oven will prevent contents from scorching.

To Remove Cake From Pan

If cake sticks to the pan, set it on a wet cloth 5 minutes and cake can be removed.

To Remove Odor From Oven

If juice from pies runs out in oven, salt sprinkled on juice will remove the odor and smoke.

Cooking Tips

To Peel Oranges

This old-time cooking tip can be used with a microwave oven, but only heat for a few seconds.

Heat oranges a few minutes in oven before peeling, then the white inner skin will come off with the rind.

To Make Tough Meat Tender

Lay it a few minutes in a strong vinegar water.

Salt will Curdle New Milk

Hence, in preparing porridge, gravies, sauces, etc., the salt should not be added until the dish is prepared.

To Keep Fresh Meat

Never allow fresh meat to remain in paper; it absorbs the juices.

To Prevent Odor Of Boiling Ham Or Cabbage

Throw red pepper pods or a few bits of charcoal into the pan they are cooking in.

To Prevent Mold on the Top of Glasses of Jelly

Just
lay a lump of paraffin wax on the top of the hot jelly, letting it melt
and spread over it. If preferred, the paraffin can be melted and poured
over after the jelly is cold.

To Prevent Burning Saucepan

To
prevent burning saucepan when boiling milk, sprinkle bottom of the pan
with granulated sugar. Let it get hot, then pour in the milk. It also
keeps milk from boiling over.

To Keep Syrup From Crystallizing

A pinch of soda added to any boiled syrup will keep it from crystallizing.

When Squeezing Lemons

Heat lemons well before squeezing and there will be double the quantity of juice.

To Keep Salt From Sticking

A few grains of rice placed in the bottom of a salt cellar will keep salt from sticking in damp weather.

Cooking Tips

To Cook Cranberries

Add one-quarter teaspoon soda to cranberries while cooking and they will not require much sugar.

When Baking Fruit Pies

To
keep juice from running out of fruit pies, insert a small cornucopia of
white note paper into the center of the pie so that it is about twice
the height of the pie.

To Separate Eggs

When
separating eggs, if you drop a portion of egg yolk into the whites,
moisten a cloth with cold water, touch to the yolk, and it will adhere
to it.

To Make Fancy-Shaped Sandwiches

Cut bread for fancy sandwiches lengthwise instead of across the loaf and there is less waste.

After Freezing Ice Cream

Empty remaining cracked ice into sack; ice will melt, leaving salt which can be used again.

To Secure Dishes On Ice

Place rubber ring from fruit jar under dishes. Ring will adhere to both ice and dish.

Preventing Custard Pie Shrinking

When
a custard pie shrinks from the crust, it has been baked in too hot an
oven. The oven should be hot for the first eight or ten minutes, in
order to bake the pastry so that it will not become soaked with liquid.
Then reduce the heat or the custard will boil.

Testing Eggs For Freshness

If
an egg is strictly fresh it will, when placed in a pan of water, lie on
its side at the bottom of the pan. If stale, it will stand on end, and
if very old, it will rise to the surface.

To Remove Cooking Odors From Hands

Wash hands and before drying them rub on about 1 teaspoon of dry mustard powder.

Baking Apples

Prick the skin of the apples and they will cook without bursting.

Cooking Tips

To Remove Cooking Odor

Should
food become burnt while in the process of cooking, sprinkle two or
three coffee grains over the hot stove or element. The fragrance of the
burning coffee will kill the burning smell.

Cooking Pancakes

Dip the spoon in milk or water and the pancake batter will drop off the spoon easily.

To Slice Potatoes

First hold the paring knife over a hot stove or in boiling water and the potatoes will slice easily.

Beating Egg Whites

Never beat eggs in an aluminum pan, as it is sure to darken them.

Cake Icing Tip

A wee pinch of salt will stop icing from going sugary.

Butter Icing Tip

Add tablespoon of flour in butter icing to prevent melting.

An article by homemade-dessert-recipes.com