Nine Facts About Fiber

If you've been looking for a way towards a high

octane diet, you'll find fiber to be exactly what

you need. Even though research has shown fiber to

be powerful, many people aren't taking this nutrient

seriously.

To help you fuel your health with fiber, here are

10 facts to help.

1. Fiber fights diseases. A diet high in fiber can

help to prevent colon cancer and heart disease. High

fiber helps the body to eliminate cholesterol by

binding it in the digestive tract. For thousands of

years, fiber has been used to stop constipation.

2. Fiber can actually help with overeating. All high

fiber foods will take longer to chew and digest,

making you feel satisfied longer

3. Most popular foods don't have enough fiber. If

you like the more popular foods, you probably need

to increase your intake of fiber.

4. Grains offer the most fiber. Dietary fiber is

actually plant matter that we cannot digest. The best

sources are whole grains and concentrated grain

products.

5. Kids need fiber as well. Children that are older

than 2 years of age should consume a daily intake of

fiber. Kids are most receptive to fiber found in

fruits, vegetables, and even fortified breakfast

cereals.

6. More fiber needs more water. In order to keep

fiber moving through your digestive tract, you'll

need to consume a lot of water. With your diet of

fiber, you'll need eight or more glasses of water

every day.

7. Fiber cannot be cooked out. When you cook

your fruits and vegetables, don't worry about cooking

the fiber out, as it stays. The fiber found in

fruits and vegetables aren't just in the skin or

in the peel.

8. You can get enough fiber. If you eat more than

50 grams of fiber in a day, you can get diarrhea

and bloating, which can interfere with your body's

absorption of other key minerals.

9. Getting the right amount of fiber in your diet

doesn't have to be hard. Even though you may think

so, getting the amount of fiber you need isn't very

hard to do. All you have to do is eat the right

foods and you'll be well on your way to a fiber

rich lifestyle.

As one of the key ingredients to healthy eating,

fiber is something you don't want to skip. Fiber can

serve many different purposes, which were covered

above. If you aren't getting enough fiber in your

diet - you should do something about now instead

of waiting until it is too late.

IMPORTANCE OF FOOD ELEMENTS

The purposes of food are to promote growth, to supply force and heat, and to furnish material to repair the waste which is constantly taking place in the body. Every breath, every thought, every motion, wears out some portion of the delicate and wonderful house in which we live. Various vital processes remove these worn and useless particles; and to keep the body in health, their loss must be made good by constantly renewed supplies of material properly adapted to replenish the worn and impaired tissues. This renovating material must be supplied through the medium of food and drink, and the best food is that by which the desired end may be most readily and perfectly attained. The great diversity in character of the several tissues of the body, makes it necessary that food should contain a variety of elements, in order that each part may be properly nourished and replenished.

The food elements.

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The various elements found in food are the following: Starch, sugar, fats, albumen, mineral substances, indigestible substances.

The digestible food elements are often grouped, according to their chemical composition, into three classes; vis., carbonaceous, nitrogenous, and inorganic. The carbonaceous class includes starch, sugar, and fats; the nitrogenous, all albuminous elements; and the inorganic comprises the mineral elements.

Starch is only found in vegetable foods; all grains, most vegetables, and some fruits, contain starch in abundance. Several kinds of sugar are made in nature's laboratory; cane, grape, fruit, and milk sugar. The first is obtained from the sugar-cane, the sap of maple trees, and from the beet root. Grape and fruit sugars are found in most fruits and in honey. Milk sugar is one of the constituents of milk. Glucose, an artificial sugar resembling grape sugar, is now largely manufactured by subjecting the starch of corn or potatoes to a chemical process; but it lacks the sweetness of natural sugars, and is by no means a proper substitute for them. Albumen is found in its purest, uncombined state in the white of an egg, which is almost wholly composed of albumen. It exists, combined with other food elements, in many other foods, both animal and vegetable. It is found abundant in oatmeal, and to some extent in the other grains, and in the juices of vegetables. All natural foods contain elements which in many respects resemble albumen, and are so closely allied to it that for convenience they are usually classified under the general name of "albumen." The chief of these is gluten, which is found in wheat, rye, and barley. Casein, found in peas, beans, and milk, and the fibrin of flesh, are elements of this class.

Fats are found in both animal and vegetable foods. Of animal fats, butter and suet are common examples. In vegetable form, fat is abundant in nuts, peas, beans, in various of the grains, and in a few fruits, as the olive. As furnished by nature in nuts, legumes, grains, fruits, and milk, this element is always found in a state of fine subdivision, which condition is the one best adapted to its digestion. As most commonly used, in the form of free fats, as butter, lard, etc., it is not only difficult of digestion itself, but often interferes with the digestion of the other food elements which are mixed with it. It was doubtless never intended that fats should be so modified from their natural condition and separated from other food elements as to be used as a separate article of food. The same may be said of the other carbonaceous elements, sugar and starch, neither of which, when used alone, is capable of sustaining life, although when combined in a proper and natural manner with other food elements, they perform a most important part in the nutrition of the body. Most foods contain a percentage of the mineral elements. Grains and milk furnish these elements in abundance. The cellulose, or woody tissue, of vegetables, and the bran of wheat, are examples of indigestible elements, which although they cannot be converted into blood in tissue, serve an important purpose by giving bulk to the food.

With the exception of gluten, none of the food elements, when used alone, are capable of supporting life. A true food substance contains some of all the food elements, the amount of each varying in different foods.

Uses of the food elements.

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Concerning the purpose which these different elements serve, it has been demonstrated by the experiments of eminent physiologists that the carbonaceous elements, which in general comprise the greater bulk of the food, serve three purposes in the body;

1. They furnish material for the production of heat;

2. They are a source of force when taken in connection with other food elements;

3. They replenish the fatty tissues of the body. Of the carbonaceous elements, starch, sugar, and fats, fats produce the greatest amount of heat in proportion to quantity; that is, more heat is developed from a pound of fat than from an equal weight of sugar or starch; but this apparent advantage is more than counterbalanced by the fact that fats are much more difficult of digestion than are the other carbonaceous elements, and if relied upon to furnish adequate material for bodily heat, would be productive of much mischief in overtaxing and producing disease of the digestive organs. The fact that nature has made a much more ample provision of starch and sugars than of fats in man's natural diet, would seem to indicate that they were intended to be the chief source of carbonaceous food; nevertheless, fats, when taken in such proportion as nature supplies them, are necessary and important food elements.

The nitrogenous food elements especially nourish the brain, nerves, muscles, and all the more highly vitalized and active tissues of the body, and also serve as a stimulus to tissue change. Hence it may be said that a food deficient in these elements is a particularly poor food.

The inorganic elements, chief of which are the phosphates, in the carbonates of potash, soda, and lime, aid in furnishing the requisite building material for bones and nerves.

Proper combinations of foods.

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While it is important that our food should contain some of all the various food elements, experiments upon both animals and human beings show it is necessary that these elements, especially the nitrogenous and carbonaceous, be used in certain definite proportions, as the system is only able to appropriate a certain amount of each; and all excess, especially of nitrogenous elements, is not only useless, but even injurious, since to rid the system of the surplus imposes an additional task upon the digestive and excretory organs. The relative proportion of these elements necessary to constitute a food which perfectly meets the requirements of the system, is six of carbonaceous to one of nitrogenous. Scientists have devoted much careful study and experimentation to the determination of the quantities of each of the food elements required for the daily nourishment of individuals under the varying conditions of life, and it has come to be commonly accepted that of the nitrogenous material which should constitute one sixth of the nutrients taken, about three ounces is all that can be made use of in twenty-four hours, by a healthy adult of average weight, doing a moderate amount of work. Many articles of food are, however, deficient in one or the other of these elements, and need to be supplemented by other articles containing the deficient element in superabundance, since to employ a dietary in which any one of the nutritive elements is lacking, although in bulk it may be all the digestive organs can manage, is really starvation, and will in time occasion serious results.

It is thus apparent that much care should be exercised in the selection and combination of food materials. Such knowledge is of first importance in the education of cooks and housekeepers, since to them falls the selection of the food for the daily needs of the household; and they should not only understand what foods are best suited to supply these needs, but how to combine them in accordance with physiological laws.

Making Healthy Food Choices

Vegetables, fruits, and grains are normally low in

fat and have no cholesterol. Most are great sources

of dietary fiber, complex carbs, and vitamins.

The American Heart Association recommends that you

eat foods that are high in complex carbs and fiber.

Below are some tips for making healthy food choices:

- Coconut is high in saturated fat, while olives

are high in monounsaturated fats and calories. You

should use these items sparingly to avoid getting

too many calories from fat.

- When vegetable grains are cooked, saturated fat

or cholesterol is often added. For example, egg

yolks may be added to bread or even pasta.

- Processed, canned, or preserved vegetables may

also contain added sodium. With some people, too

much sodium (salt) may lead to high blood pressure.

There are some food companies that are actually

canning vegetables with less salt. You can look

for these in the market area or choose fresh and

even frozen vegetables.

- Nuts and seeds tend to be high in calories and

fat, although a majority of the fat is polyunsaturated

or monounsaturated. There are some varieties,

macadamie nuts for example, that are also high in

saturated fat.

Foods that are high in soluble fiber are a great

choice as well. Examples include oat bran,

oatmeal, beans, peas, rice bran, barley, and

even apple pulp.

Whenever you are looking for healthy food choices,

always make sure you read the nutrition label

or information about the food. You can then

determine what the food contains and how healthy

it truly is for your body. By taking your time

and making your healthy food choices wisely,

you'll have a lifetime to enjoy the foods that

will take care of you.

MOUTH-WATERING LOBSTER RECIPES.

To boil lobsters.

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Ingredients:- 1/4 lb. of salt to each gallon of water.

Mode:- Medium-sized lobsters are the best. Have ready a stewpan of boiling water, salted in the above proportion; put in the lobster, and keep it boiling quickly from 20 minutes to 3/4 hour, according to its size, and do not forget to skim well. If it boils too long, the meat becomes thready, and if not done enough, the spawn is not red: this must be obviated by great attention. Hub the shell over with a little butter or sweet oil, which wipe off again.

Time. Small lobster, 20 minutes to 1/2 hour; large ditto, 1/2 to 1/3 hour.

Hot lobster.

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Ingredients:- 1 lobster, 2 oz. of butter, grated nutmeg; salt, pepper, and pounded mace, to taste; bread crumbs, 2 eggs.

Mode:- Pound the meat of the lobster to a smooth paste with the butter and seasoning, and add a few bread crumbs. Beat the eggs, and make the whole mixture into the form of a lobster; pound the spawn, and sprinkle over it. Bake 1/4 hour, and just before serving, lay over it the tail and body shell, with the small claws underneath, to resemble a lobster.

Time. 1/4 hour.

Lobster salad.

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Ingredients:- 1 hen lobster, lettuces, endive, small salad (whatever is in season), a little chopped beetroot, 2 hard-boiled eggs, a few slices of cucumber. For dressing, equal quantities of oil and vinegar, 1 teaspoonful of made mustard, the yolks of 2 eggs; cayenne and salt to taste; 3 teaspoonful of anchovy sauce. These ingredients should be mixed perfectly smooth, and form a creamy-looking sauce.

Mode:- Wash the salad, and thoroughly dry it by shaking it in a cloth. Cut up the lettuces and endive, pour the dressing on them, and lightly throw in the small salad. Mix all well together with the pickings from the body of the lobster; pick the meat from the shell, cut it up into nice square pieces, put half in the salad, the other half reserve for garnishing. Separate the yolks from the whites of 2 hard-boiled eggs; chop the whites very fine, and rub the yolks through a sieve, and afterwards the coral from the inside. Arrange the salad lightly on a glass dish, and garnish, first with a row of sliced cucumber, then with the pieces of lobster, the yolks and whites of the eggs, coral, and beetroot placed alternately, and arranged in small separate bunches, so that the colours contrast nicely.

Note. A few crayfish make a pretty garnishing to lobster salad.

Lobster (a la mode francaise).

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Ingredients:- 1 lobster, 4 tablespoonfuls of white stock, 2 tablespoonfuls of cream, pounded mace, and cayenne to taste; bread crumbs.

Mode:- Pick the meat from the shell, and cut it up into small square pieces; put the stock, cream, and seasoning into a stewpan, add the lobster, and let it simmer gently for 6 minutes. Serve it in the shell, which must be nicely cleaned, and have a border of puff-paste; cover it with bread crumbs, place small pieces of butter over, and brown before the fire, or with a salamander.

Time. 1/4 hour.

Lobster curry (an Entree).

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Ingredients:- 1 lobster, 2 onions, 1 oz. butter, 1 tablespoonful of curry-powder, 1/2 pint of medium stock, the juice of 1/2 lemon.

Mode:- Pick the meat from the shell, and cut it into nice square pieces; fry the onions of a pale brown in the butter, stir in the curry-powder and stock, and simmer till it thickens, when put in the lobster; stew the whole slowly for 1/2 hour, and stir occasionally; and just before sending to table, put in the lemon-juice. Serve boiled rice with it, the same as for other curries.

Time. Altogether, 3/4 hour.

Lobster cutlets (an Entree).

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Ingredients:- 1 large hen lobster, 1 oz. fresh butter, 1/2 saltspoonful of salt, pounded mace, grated nutmeg, cayenne and white pepper to taste, egg, and bread crumbs.

Mode:- Pick the meat from the shell, and pound it in a mortar with the butter, and gradually add the mace and seasoning, well mixing the ingredients; beat all to a smooth paste, and add a little of the spawn; divide the mixture into pieces of an equal size, and shape them like cutlets. They should not be very thick. Brush them over with egg, and sprinkle with bread crumbs, and stick a short piece of the small claw in the top of each; fry them of a nice brown in boiling lard, and drain them before the fire, on a sieve reversed; arrange them nicely on a dish, and pour bechamel in the middle, but not over the cutlets.

Time. About 8 minutes after the cutlets are made.

Lobster patties (an Entree).

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Ingredients:- Minced lobster, 4 tablespoonfuls of bechamel, 6 drops of anchovy sauce, lemon-juice, cayenne to taste.

Mode:- Line the patty-pans with puff-paste, and put into each a small piece of bread: cover with paste, brush over with egg, and bake of a light colour. Take as much lobster as is required, mince the meat very fine, and add the above ingredients; stir it over the fire for 6 minutes; remove the lids of the patty-cases, take out the bread, fill with the mixture, and replace the covers.

Potted lobster.

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Ingredients:- 2 lobsters; seasoning to taste, of nutmeg, pounded mace, white pepper, and salt; 1/4 lb. of butter, 3 or 4 bay-leaves.

Mode:- Take out the meat carefully from the shell, but do not cut it up. Put some butter at the bottom of a dish, lay in the lobster as evenly as possible, with the bay-leaves and seasoning between. Cover with butter, and bake for 3/4 hour in a gentle oven. When done, drain the whole on a sieve, and lay the pieces in potting-jars, with the seasoning about them. When cold, pour over it clarified butter, and, if very highly seasoned, it will keep some time.

NINE SALMON RECIPES.

Boiled salmon.

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Ingredients:- 6 oz. of salt to each gallon of water, sufficient water to cover the fish.

Mode:- Scale and clean the fish, and be particular that no blood is left inside; lay it in the fish-kettle with sufficient cold water to cover it, adding salt in the above proportion. Bring it quickly to a boil, take off all the scum, and let it simmer gently till the fish is done, which will be when the meat separates easily from the bone. Experience alone can teach the cook to fix the time for boiling fish; but it is especially to be remembered, that it should never be underdressed, as then nothing is more unwholesome. Neither let it remain in the kettle after it is sufficiently cooked, as that would render it insipid, watery, and colourless. Drain it, and if not wanted for a few minutes, keep it warm by means of warm cloths laid over it. Serve on a hot napkin, garnish with cut lemon and parsley, and send lobster or shrimp sauce, and plain melted butter to table with it. A dish of dressed cucumber usually accompanies this fish.

Time. 8 minutes to each lb. for large thick salmon; 6 minutes for thin fish.

Note. Cut lemon should be put on the table with this fish; and a little of the juice squeezed over it is considered by many persons a most agreeable addition. Boiled peas are also, by some connoisseurs, considered especially adapted to be served with salmon.

Salmon and caper sauce.

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Ingredients:- 2 slices of salmon, 1/4 lb. batter, 1/2 teaspoonful of chopped parsley, 1 shalot; salt, pepper, and grated nutmeg to taste.

Mode:- Lay the salmon in a baking-dish, place pieces of butter over it, and add the other ingredients, rubbing a little of the seasoning into the fish; baste it frequently; when done, take it out and drain for a minute or two; lay it in a dish, pour caper sauce over it, and serve. Salmon dressed in this way, with tomato sauce, is very delicious.

Time. About 3/4 hour.

Collared salmon.

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Ingredients:- A piece of salmon, say 3 lbs., a high seasoning of salt, pounded mace, and pepper; water and vinegar, 3 bay-leaves.

Mode:- Split the fish; scale, bone, and wash it thoroughly clean; wipe it, and rub in the seasoning inside and out; roll it up, and bind firmly; lay it in a kettle, cover it with vinegar and water (1/3 vinegar, in proportion to the water); add the bay-leaves and a good seasoning of salt and whole pepper, and simmer till done. Do not remove the lid. Serve with melted butter or anchovy sauce. For preserving the collared fish, boil up the liquor in which it was cooked, and add a little more vinegar. Pour over when cold.

Time. 3/4 hour, or rather more.

Curried salmon.

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Ingredients:- Any remains of boiled salmon, 3/4 pint of strong or medium stock, 1 onion, 1 tablespoonful of curry-powder, 1 teaspoonful of Harvey's sauce, 1 teaspoonful of anchovy sauce, 1 oz. of butter, the juice of 1/2 lemon, cayenne and salt to taste.

Mode:- Cut up the onions into small pieces, and fry them of a pale brown in the butter; add all the ingredients but the salmon, and simmer gently till the onion is tender, occasionally stirring the contents; cut the salmon into small square pieces, carefully take away all skin and bone, lay it in the stewpan, and let it gradually heat through; but do not allow it to boil long.

Time. 3/4 hour.

Salmon cutlets.

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Cut the slices 1 inch thick, and season them with pepper and salt; butter a sheet of white paper, lay each slice on a separate piece, with their ends twisted; broil gently over a clear fire, and serve with anchovy or caper sauce. When higher seasoning is required, add a few chopped herbs and a little spice.

Time. 5 to 10 minutes.

Salmon a la genevese.

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Ingredients:- 2 slices of salmon, 2 chopped shalots, a little parsley, a small bunch of herbs, 2 bay-leaves, 2 carrots, pounded mace, pepper and salt to taste, 4 tablespoonfuls of Madeira, 1/2 pint of white stock, thickening of butter and flour, 1 teaspoonful of essence of anchovies, the juice of 1 lemon, cayenne and salt to taste.

Mode:- Rub the bottom of a stewpan over with butter, and put in the shalots, herbs, bay-leaves, carrots, mace, and seasoning; stir them for 10 minutes over a clear fire, and add the Madeira or sherry; simmer gently for 1/2 hour, and strain through a sieve over the fish, which stew in this gravy. As soon as the fish is sufficiently cooked, take away all the liquor, except a little to keep the salmon moist, and put it into another stewpan; add the stock, thicken with butter and flour, and put in the anchovies, lemon-juice, cayenne, and salt; lay the salmon on a hot dish, pour over it part of the sauce, and serve the remainder in a tureen.

Nutrition For The Elderly

Healthy eating and nutrition for the elderly is

greatly impacted by several factors, one of them

being a change in body composition. During the

later years in life, the body will lose bone and

muscle and gain fat because the hormones aren't

very active anymore.

There are many factors which hinder an elderly

person's health. The information below will help

you to lead a healthy life - no matter how old you

may be.

Water

Water in the body decreases with age, so many older

folks will become dehydrated very easily. Sometimes

they won't feel thirsty, while other times it's

too much work to pour a glass a water. With this

in mind, it's recommended that they drink at least

1 ounce of water for every 2.2 pounds of weight.

Protein

At this stage in life, protein is very important.

Protein is needed to support a healthy immune

system and prevent the wasting of muscle. Since

energy needs are less, older folks should eat high

quality protein such as eggs, lean meats, poulty,

and fish.

Carbs and fiber

Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for

the entire body. You can find carbs in bread,

cereals, pasta, and other grain products. A diet

that's high in fiber and water will help to

prevent constipation as well.

Fat

Fat intake for the elderly should be limited, not

eliminated. You can limit fat by choosing lean meats,

low fat dairy products, and food preperation

methods that don't include frying.

Iron

For the elderly, iron deficiency can be seen with

those who aren't eating much. Good sources for

iron include lean red meats or breakfast cereals.

Zinc

Zinc intake is normally with the elderly, and to

make matters worse, it's not absorbed very well

either. Meat, poultry, and fish should be a part

of your diet to help you meet the requirements for

zinc.

Calcium

Calcium is one ingredient that most elderly folks

simply aren't getting enough of. Most believe

that milk upsets their stomach, and therefore they

will avoid it. They should be getting around 1,500

mg of calcium a day, and nonfat powdered milk can

be used in recipes as a substitute for milk. Other

foods such as yogurt, low fat cheese, and broccoli

can also help you meet the requirements for calcium.

Vitamin B12

In order to absorb the benefits of B12, the intrinsic

facotr must be produced by the stomach. Most elderly

people suffer from a deficiency in B12 because they

have a condition known as atrophic gastritis. This

condition causes inflammation of the stomach,

bacterial overgrowth, and the intrinsic factor.

Without the intrinsic factor, this vitamin can be

absorbed.

Each one of the above nutrients are needed to keep

an aged body in good health. Elderly individuals

should try to stay active and strive for a well

balanced diet. Even though the aged body isn't the

same as it used to be, proper care and the right

nutrients can help the elderly enjoy a healthy and

PREPARE AND COOK MACARONI.

Macaroni is a product of wheat prepared from a hard, clean, glutenous grain. The grain is ground into a meal called semolina, from which the bran is excluded. This is made into a tasty dough by mixing with hot water in the proportion of two thirds semolina to one third water. The dough after being thoroughly mixed is put into a shallow vat and kneaded and rolled by machinery. When well rolled, it is made to assume varying shapes by being forced by a powerful plunger through the perforated head of strong steel or iron cylinders arranged above a fire, so that the dough is partially baked as it issues from the holes. It is afterwards hung over rods or laid upon frames covered with cloth, and dried. It is called by different names according to its shape. If in the shape of large, hollow cylinders, it is macaroni; if smaller in diameter, it is spaghetti; if fine, vermicelli; if the paste is cut into fancy patterns, it is termed pasta d'Italia. Macaroni was formerly made only in Italy, but at present is manufactured to a considerable extent in the United States.

Good macaroni will keep in good condition for a long time. It is rough, elastic, and hard; while the inferior article is smooth, soft, breaks easily, becomes moldy with keeping. Inferior macaroni contains a large percentage of starch, and but a small amount of gluten. When put into hot water, it assumes a white, pasty appearance, and splits in cooking. Good macaroni when put into hot water absorbs a portion of the water, swells to nearly double its size, but perfectly retains its shape. It contains a much smaller amount of gluten.

Do not wash macaroni. Break into pieces of convenient size if it is long. Always put to cook in boiling liquid, taking care to have plenty of water in the saucepan (as it absorbs a large quantity), and cook until tender. The length of time required may vary from twenty minutes, if fresh, to one hour if stale. When tender, turn into a colander and drain, and pour cold water through it to prevent the tubes from sticking together. The fluid used for cooking may be water, milk, or a mixture of both; also soup stock, tomato juice, or any preferred liquid.

Macaroni serves as an important adjunct to the making of various soups, and also forms the basis of other palatable dishes.

THE CHEMISTRY AND ECONOMY OF SOUP-MAKING.

Stock being the basis of all meat soups, and, also, of all the principal sauces, it is essential to the success of these culinary operations, to know the most complete and economical method of extracting, from a certain quantity of meat, the best possible stock or broth. The theory and philosophy of this process we will, therefore, explain, and then proceed to show the practical course to be adopted.

As all meat is principally composed of fibres, fat, gelatine, osmazome, and albumen, it is requisite to know that the fibres are inseparable, constituting almost all that remains of the meat after it has undergone a long boiling. Fat is dissolved by boiling; but as it is contained in cells covered by a very fine membrane, which never dissolves, a portion of it always adheres to the fibres. The other portion rises to the surface of the stock, and is that which has escaped from the cells which were not whole, or which have burst by boiling. Gelatine is soluble: it is the basis and the nutritious portion of the stock. When there is an abundance of it, it causes the stock, when cold, to become a jelly. Osmazome is soluble even when cold, and is that part of the meat which gives flavour and perfume to the stock. The flesh of old animals contains more osmazome than that of young ones. Brown meats contain more than white, and the former make the stock more fragrant. By roasting meat, the osmazome appears to acquire higher properties; so, by putting the remains of roast meats into your stock-pot, you obtain a better flavour.

Albumen is of the nature of the white of eggs; it can be dissolved in cold or tepid water, but coagulates when it is put into water not quite at the boiling-point. From this property in albumen, it is evident that if the meat is put into the stock-pot when the water boils, or after this is made to boil up quickly, the albumen, in both cases, hardens. In the first it rises to the surface, in the second it remains in the meat, but in both it prevents the gelatine and osmazome from dissolving; and hence a thin and tasteless stock will be obtained. It ought to be known, too, that the coagulation of the albumen in the meat, always takes place, more or less, according to the size of the piece, as the parts farthest from the surface always acquire that degree of heat which congeals it before entirely dissolving it.

Bones ought always to form a component part of the stock-pot. They are composed of an earthy substance, to which they owe their solidity, of gelatine, and a fatty fluid, something like marrow. Two ounces of them contain as much gelatine as one pound of meat; but in them, this is so incased in the earthy substance, that boiling water can dissolve only the surface of whole bones. By breaking them, however, you can dissolve more, because you multiply their surfaces; and by reducing them to powder or paste, you can dissolve them entirely; but you must not grind them dry. Gelatine forms the basis of stock; but this, though very nourishing, is entirely without taste; and to make the stock savoury, it must contain osmazome. Of this, bones do not contain a particle; and that is the reason why stock made entirely of them, is not liked; but when you add meat to the broken or pulverized bones, the osmazome contained in it makes the stock sufficiently savoury.

In concluding this part of our subject, the following condensed hints and directions should be attended to in the economy of soup-making:

Beef makes the best stock. Veal stock has less colour and taste; whilst mutton sometimes gives it a tallowy smell, far from agreeable, unless the meat has been previously roasted or broiled. Fowls add very little to the flavour of stock, unless they be old and fat. Pigeons, when they are old, add the most flavour to it; and a rabbit or partridge is also a great improvement. From the freshest meat the best stock is obtained.

If the meat be boiled solely to make stock, it must be cut up into the smallest possible pieces; but, generally speaking, if it is desired to have good stock and a piece of savoury meat as well, it is necessary to put a rather large piece into the stock-pot, say sufficient for two or three days, during which time the stock will keep well in all weathers. Choose the freshest meat, and have it cut as thick as possible; for if it is a thin, flat piece, it will not look well, and will be very soon spoiled by the boiling.

Never wash meat, as it deprives its surface of all its juices; separate it from the bones, and tie it round with tape, so that its shape may be preserved, then put it into the stock-pot, and for each pound of meat, let there be one pint of water; press it down with the hand, to allow the air, which it contains, to escape, and which often raises it to the top of the water.

Put the stock-pot on a gentle fire, so that it may heat gradually. The albumen will first dissolve, afterwards coagulate; and as it is in this state lighter than the liquid, it will rise to the surface; bringing with it all its impurities. It is this which makes the scum. The rising of the hardened albumen has the same effect in clarifying stock as the white of eggs; and, as a rule, it may be said that the more scum there is, the clearer will be the stock. Always take care that the fire is very regular.

Remove the scum when it rises thickly, and do not let the stock boil, because then one portion of the scum will be dissolved, and the other go to the bottom of the pot; thus rendering it very difficult to obtain a clear broth. If the fire is regular, it will not be necessary to add cold water in order to make the scum rise; but if the fire is too large at first, it will then be necessary to do so.

When the stock is well skimmed, and begins to boil, put in salt and vegetables, which may be two or three carrots, two turnips, one parsnip, a bunch of leeks and celery tied together. You can add, according to taste, a piece of cabbage, two or three cloves stuck in an onion, and a tomato. The latter gives a very agreeable flavour to the stock. If fried onion be added, it ought, according to the advice of a famous French chef, to be tied in a little bag: without this precaution, the colour of the stock is liable to be clouded.

By this time we will now suppose that you have chopped the bones which were separated from the meat, and those which were left from the roast meat of the day before. Remember, as was before pointed out, that the more these are broken, the more gelatine you will have. The best way to break them up is to pound them roughly in an iron mortar, adding, from time to time, a little water, to prevent them getting heated. In their broken state tie them up in a bag, and put them in the stock-pot; adding the gristly parts of cold meat, and trimmings, which can be used for no other purpose. If, to make up the weight, you have purchased a piece of mutton or veal, broil it slightly over a clear fire before putting it in the stock-pot, and be very careful that it does not contract the least taste of being smoked or burnt.

Add now the vegetables, which, to a certain extent, will stop the boiling of the stock. Wait, therefore, till it simmers well up again, then draw it to the side of the fire, and keep it gently simmering till it is served, preserving, as before said, your fire always the same. Cover the stock-pot well, to prevent evaporation; do not fill it up, even if you take out a little stock, unless the meat is exposed; in which case a little boiling water may be added, but only enough to cover it. After six hours' slow and gentle simmering, the stock is done; and it should not be continued on the fire, longer than is necessary, or it will tend to insipidity.

Note. It is on a good stock, or first good broth and sauce, that excellence in cookery depends. If the preparation of this basis of the culinary art is intrusted to negligent or ignorant persons, and the stock is not well skimmed, but indifferent results will be obtained. The stock will never be clear; and when it is obliged to be clarified, it is deteriorated both in quality and flavour. In the proper management of the stock-pot an immense deal of trouble is saved, inasmuch as one stock, in a small dinner, serves for all purposes. Above all things, the greatest economy, consistent with excellence, should be practised, and the price of everything which enters the kitchen correctly ascertained. The theory of this part of Household Management may appear trifling; but its practice is extensive, and therefore it requires the best attention.

The Healthiest Foods You Can Get

The following is a list of the healthiest foods that

you can get. This will help you get an idea as

to what foods are the best for your body.

Fruits

Apricots

Apricots contain Beta-carotene which helps to

prevent radical damage and also helps to protect

the eyes. A single apricot contains 17 calories,

0 fat, and one gram of fiber. You can eat them

dried or soft.

Mango

A medium sized mango packs 57 MG of vitamin C,

which is nearly your entire daily dose. This

antioxidant will help prevent arthritis and also

boost your immune system.

Cantaloupe

Cantaloupes contain 117 GG of vitamin C, which is

almost twice the recommended dose. Half a melon

contains 853 MG of potassium, which is nearly

twice as much as a banana, which helps to lower

blood pressure. Half a melon contains 97 calories,

1 gram of fat, and 2 grams of fiber.

Tomato

A tomato can help cut the risk of bladder, stomach,

and colon cancers in half if you eat one daily.

A tomaton contains 26 calories, 0 fat, and only

1 gram of fiber.

Vegetables

Onions

An onion can help to protect against cancer. A

cup of onions offers 61 calories, 0 fat, and 3

grams of fiber.

Broccoli

Broccoli can help protect against breast cancer,

and it also contains a lot of vitamin C and beta-

carotene. One cup of chopped broccoli contains

25 calories, 0 fat, and 3 grams of fiber.

Spinach

Spinach contains carotenoids that can help fend

off macular degeneration, which is a major cause

of blindness in older people. One cup contains

7 calories, 0 fat, and 1 gram of fiber.

Grains, beans, and nuts

Peanuts

Peanuts and other nuts can lower your risk of

heart disease by 20 percent. One ounce contains

166 calories, 14 grams of fat, and over 2 grams of

fiber.

Pinto beans

A half cut of pinto beans offers more than 25

percent of your daily folate requirement, which

protects you against heart disease. Half a cup

contains 103 calories, 1 gram of fat, and 6 grams

of fiber.

Skim milk

Skim milk offers vitamin B2, which is important for

good vision and along with Vitamin A could improve

allergies. You also get calcium and vitamin D as

well. One cup contains 86 calories, o fat, and 0

fiber.

Seafood

Salmon

All cold water fish such as salmon, mackerel, and

tuna are excellent sources of omega 3 fatty acids,

which help to reduce the risk of cardiac disease.

A 3 ounce portion of salmon contains 127 calories,

4 grams of fat, and 0 fiber.

Crab

Crab is a great source of vitamin B12 and immunity

boosting zinc. A 3 ounce serving of crab offers

84 calories, 1 gram of fat, and 0 fiber.

Tips For Healthy Holiday Eating

When the holidays arrive, many people forget all

about their diets and healthy eating. Weight

gains of 7 - 10 pounds are common between

Halloween and Christmas. To make the holidays

easier, these tips will help you with healthy

eating through the season and not gaining weight.

Most traditional foods can be made low fat.

Turkey is very lean without the skin, and gravy

can be made without any fat. Potatoes that are

served without butter can be very healthy. The

beloved pumpkin pie is nutritious, although it

can be made into a fatty dessert with the adding

of whipped cream.

Even though the holidays are in, don't forget

about the exercise. Keeping weight off during

the holiday season is burning off the extra

calories. You should plan a walk after meals,

park farther from stores when you shop, and

take a few walks around the mall before you

begin shopping.

During holiday parties and at family dinners,

feel free to sample foods although you shouldn't

splurge. Decide on what you plan to eat in

advance, then stick to your plan. Eat plenty

of vegetables, fruit, low fat dressings, and

slices of lean meats. Before you go to a party,

eat a small snack to help curb your appetite.

If at all possible, avoid alcohol. Having too

many drinks can cripple your will power, and

also add excess calories to your diet. In the

place of alcohol, drink water with lemon. Water

can help to limit your appetite and keep you

from binging. Also make sure to avoid eggnog,

as each glass can have up to 300 calories.

Be flexible with your healthy eating, as one bad

meal won't ruin your diet. Try to balance your

calories over a few days and don't just look at

Tips For Healthy Eating

Healthy eating is a way of balancing the food you

eat to keep your body in great health. With healthy

eating, you'll have energy all day, get the vitamins

and minerals you need, stay strong for activities

you enjoy, and maintain a healthy weight.

Below, you'll find tips designed to help you with

healthy eating.

1. Don't skip any meals

Eating 3 meals with snacks in between is the ideal

way to maintain both energy and a healthy weight.

When you skip meals and get hungry, you're more

than likely to choose foods that aren't very good

for you.

If you are eating away from home, take food with

you or know where you can buy healthy food from.

2. Learn about how to prepare foods

Instead of deep frying, try grilling, stir frying,

microwaving, baking, and even boiling. You should

also try fresh or even dried herbs and spices to

add flavor to your food. Before you eat any type

of meat, be sure to trim the fat and skin off of

it.

3. Avoid a lot of sugar

Drinks that contain sugar are a major source of

empty energy. What this means, is that the drinks

contain a lot of energy that your body may not

need, and it doesn't contain any vitamins or

minerals. If you plan to drink sugary drinks,

don't go overboard - limit yourself to 1 a day.

4. Avoid thinking about diets

There are no good food nor any bad foods. All

food can be a part of a healthy diet, when eaten

in moderation. You don't need to buy any low

carb, fat free, or even diet foods, as these foods

normally have lots of other added ingredients

to replaces the carbohydrates or fat.

THE PRINCIPLES OF SCIENTIFIC COOKERY.

It is not enough that good and proper food material be provided; it must have such preparation as will increase and not diminish its alimentary value. The unwholesomeness of food is quite as often due to bad cookery as to improper selection of material. Proper cookery renders good food material more digestible. When scientifically done, cooking changes each of the food elements, with the exception of fats, in much the same manner as do the digestive juices, and at the same time it breaks up the food by dissolving the soluble portions, so that its elements are more readily acted upon by the digestive fluids. Cookery, however, often fails to attain the desired end; and the best material is rendered useless and unwholesome by a improper preparation.

It is rare to find a table, some portion of the food upon which is not rendered unwholesome either by improper preparatory treatment, or by the addition of some deleterious substance. This is doubtless due to the fact that the preparation of food being such a commonplace matter, its important relations to health, mind, and body have been overlooked, and it has been regarded as a menial service which might be undertaken with little or no preparation, and without attention to matters other than those which relate to the pleasure of the eye and the palate. With taste only as a criterion, it is so easy to disguise the results of careless and improper cookery of food by the use of flavors and condiments, as well as to palm off upon the digestive organs all sorts of inferior material, that poor cookery has come to be the rule rather than the exception.

Methods of cooking.

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Cookery is the art of preparing food for the table by dressing, or by the application of heat in some manner. A proper source of heat having been secured, the next step is to apply it to the food in some manner. The principal methods commonly employed are roasting, broiling, baking, boiling, stewing, simmering, steaming, and frying.

Roasting is cooking food in its own juices before an open fire. Broiling, or grilling, is cooking by radiant heat. This method is only adapted to thin pieces of food with a considerable amount of surface. Larger and more compact foods should be roasted or baked. Roasting and broiling are allied in principle. In both, the work is chiefly done by the radiation of heat directly upon the surface of the food, although some heat is communicated by the hot air surrounding the food. The intense heat applied to the food soon sears its outer surfaces, and thus prevents the escape of its juices. If care be taken frequently to turn the food so that its entire surface will be thus acted upon, the interior of the mass is cooked by its own juices.

Baking is the cooking of food by dry heat in a closed oven. Only foods containing a considerable degree of moisture are adapted for cooking by this method. The hot, dry air which fills the oven is always thirsting for moisture, and will take from every moist substance to which it has access a quantity of water proportionate to its degree of heat. Foods containing but a small amount of moisture, unless protected in some manner from the action of the heated air, or in some way supplied with moisture during the cooking process, come from the oven dry, hard, and unpalatable.

Boiling is the cooking of food in a boiling liquid. Water is the usual medium employed for this purpose. When water is heated, as its temperature is increased, minute bubbles of air which have been dissolved by it are given off. As the temperature rises, bubbles of steam will begin to form at the bottom of the vessel. At first these will be condensed as they rise into the cooler water above, causing a simmering sound; but as the heat increases, the bubbles will rise higher and higher before collapsing, and in a short time will pass entirely through the water, escaping from its surface, causing more or less agitation, according to the rapidity with which they are formed. Water boils when the bubbles thus rise to the surface, and steam is thrown off. The mechanical action of the water is increased by rapid bubbling, but not the heat; and to boil anything violently does not expedite the cooking process, save that by the mechanical action of the water the food is broken into smaller pieces, which are for this reason more readily softened. But violent boiling occasions an enormous waste of fuel, and by driving away in the steam the volatile and savory elements of the food, renders it much less palatable, if not altogether tasteless. The solvent properties of water are so increased by heat that it permeates the food, rendering its hard and tough constituents soft and easy of digestion.

The liquids mostly employed in the cooking of foods are water and milk. Water is best suited for the cooking of most foods, but for such farinaceous foods as rice, macaroni, and farina, milk, or at least part milk, is preferable, as it adds to their nutritive value. In using milk for cooking purposes, it should be remembered that being more dense than water, when heated, less steam escapes, and consequently it boils sooner than does water. Then, too, milk being more dense, when it is used alone for cooking, a little larger quantity of fluid will be required than when water is used.

Steaming, as its name implies, is the cooking of food by the use of steam. There are several ways of steaming, the most common of which is by placing the food in a perforated dish over a vessel of boiling water. For foods not needing the solvent powers of water, or which already contain a large amount of moisture, this method is preferable to boiling. Another form of cooking, which is usually termed steaming, is that of placing the food, with or without water, as needed, in a closed vessel which is placed inside another vessel containing boiling water. Such an apparatus is termed a double boiler. Food cooked in its own juices in a covered dish in a hot oven, is sometimes spoken of as being steamed or smothered.

Stewing is the prolonged cooking of food in a small quantity of liquid, the temperature of which is just below the boiling point. Stewing should not be confounded with simmering, which is slow, steady boiling. The proper temperature for stewing is most easily secured by the use of the double boiler. The water in the outer vessel boils, while that in the inner vessel does not, being kept a little below the temperature of the water from which its heat is obtained, by the constant evaporation at a temperature a little below the boiling point.

Frying, which is the cooking of food in hot fat, is a method not to be recommended Unlike all the other food elements, fat is rendered less digestible by cooking. Doubtless it is for this reason that nature has provided those foods which require the most prolonged cooking to fit them for use with only a small proportion of fat, and it would seem to indicate that any food to be subjected to a high degree of heat should not be mixed and compounded largely of fats.