[Transcriber's Notes: 'Seive' and "sieve' seem to be usedinterchangeably by the author, they have left them as they were foundon page. Hyphenation, spelling and punctuation have also been left as they are on the page.The one entry for 'W' in the index appears whereit is on the page, between the 'T' and the 'V.']
Superintendent of the New York Cooking School.
AUTHOR OF "THE COOKING MANUAL,"
"OUR HOUSEHOLD COUNCIL,"
"THE BILL OFFARE, WITH ACCOMPANYING RECEIPTS AND ESTIMATED COST,"
"A TEXT-BOOK FORCOOKING SCHOOLS,"
"FIFTEEN-CENT DINNERS FOR WORKINGMEN'S FAMILIES," ETC.
THIRTEENTH EDITION, REVISED AND ENLARGED.
NEW YORK:ORANGE JUDD COMPANY,
245 BROADWAY,
1879.
Copyright by JULIET CORSON, 1878.
All Rights Reserved.
TO
During the time that this little book has been a candidate for publicfavor, it has attained a success far beyond the expectations of its mostsanguine advocates; and in issuing this revised and enlarged edition theauthor returns her sincere thanks to both press and public, who have sosubstantially seconded her efforts for culinary reform.
In this edition an additional chapter has been devoted to thepreparation of fruit for dessert, with special reference to the needs ofAmerican housewives. Most American ladies prepare fruit for table useeither by canning it, or making it into rich and expensive preserves;while both of these methods are palatable, and available for winter use,the receipts given in the closing chapter will provide a welcome varietyfor serving fresh fruits at the table, and will tend to increase thehealthy consumption of those abundant and excellent domesticproductions, while they cannot fail to decrease the deplorableprevalence of that objectionable national compound, the pie.
Recent investigations concerning retail prices in different sections ofthe country confirm the author in the estimate of cost given in thiswork; in certain localities some of the articles quoted are moreexpensive, while others are cheaper; but the average is about equal.[Pg 3]
TO ECONOMICAL HOUSEWIVES:
The wide publicity which the press in different sections of the countryhas given to my offer to show workingpeople earning a dollar and a half,or less, per day, how to get a good dinner for fifteen cents, hasbrought me a great many letters from those who earn more, and canconsequently afford a more extended diet.
In response to their requirements I have written this book, which I hopewill be found servicable in that middle department of cookery it isdesigned to occupy, where we begin to look for more than the absolutenecessaries of life; it is a practical guide to the economical,healthful, and palatable preparation of food, and will serve to showthat it is possible to live well upon a very moderate income.
It is necessary to repeat in this book some of the directions given inthe work on "FIFTEEN CENT DINNERS;" but I hope their reappearance willbe pardoned on the ground of their usefulness, and also because thefirst book will fail to reach many for whom this one is intended.
The cheapest kinds of food are sometimes the most wholesome andstrengthening; but in order to obtain all their best qualities we mustknow how to choose them for their freshness, goodness, and suitabilityto our needs. That done, we must know how to cook them, so as to makesavory and nutritious meals instead of tastele