SALADS

Salads are classified into two groups—i.e., the raw, such as lettuce, endive, radishes, cucumber, celery, etc., and the cooked, such as those made from cooked vegetables, eggs, cooked cold fish, poultry, and meat. The raw materials should be washed most carefully and well cleaned before mixing, and the utensils for cutting and mixing, as well as the basins or bowls used, should be clean and dry. Every salad, no matter how plain and simple it may be, should be made to look inviting and tempting. The method of draining or drying is a very easy performance so long as the salad leaves, whatever they may be, are almost free from moisture. This is effected best by putting the leaves, which should be broken, not cut with a knife, into a wire basket and drying them well, or else putting them into a cloth lightly folded and shaking well until the outer moisture of the leaves is well absorbed. The salad then is ready for mixing.

Any cold boiled vegetables left over from dinner are useful as giving variety to salads, and help to make a good accompaniment to cold meat served to luncheon. Thinly sliced cold potatoes—new ones for choice, green peas and string beans, are especially good for this purpose, and even Brussels sprouts, carrots, and turnips may be used on occasion in small quantities. More substantial salads, prepared with cold meat or fish, form appetizing luncheon or breakfast dishes. Those made with chicken, lobster and salmon respectively are most widely known, but fillets of flounder, cold ham or beef, or lamb make very good salads, and even the humble herring, and dried and salted fish, may be used with advantage in this way.

The meat or fish should be cut up into cubes or convenient small pieces, and piled up in the center of the dish or salad bowl on a layer of seasoned, shredded lettuce. Over this should be poured half of the dressing. Round this should be arranged the green constituents of the salad, cut up rather small, garnished with slices of tomato or beets, cucumber and hard-cooked egg. The remainder of the dressing should be poured over this, and the top of the meat or fish pyramid may be ornamented with a few sprigs of endive or parsley.

Apple, Celery and Nut Salad

For Dressing

1 tablespoonful Crisco

1 teaspoonful mustard

1 teaspoonful sugar

½ teaspoonful salt

¼ teaspoonful white pepper

2 eggs

4 tablespoonfuls lemon juice

1 cupful whipped cream

For Salad

1 quart chopped apples

1 pint diced celery

1½ cupfuls blanched and shredded almonds

⅔ cupful rolled pecan nut meats

For salad. Mix apples, celery and nut meats.

For dressing. Melt Crisco, add mustard, sugar, salt, pepper, yolks of eggs well beaten, and lemon juice. Cook in double boiler till it thickens, then add whites of eggs stiffly beaten. Chill and add whipped cream just before serving. Dressing should be mixed with fruit.

Asparagus Salad

For Dressing

6 tablespoonfuls melted Crisco

1 teaspoonful salt

¼ teaspoonful paprika

Pinch black pepper

1 tablespoonful tarragon vinegar

2 tablespoonfuls cider vinegar

1 tablespoonful chopped cucumber pickles

1 tablespoonful chopped green peppers

1 teaspoonful chopped parsley

1 teaspoonful chopped chives

1 can asparagus or fresh cooked asparagus

Drain asparagus and chill. Mix salt with paprika, add pepper, tarragon vinegar, cider vinegar, Crisco, pickles, peppers, parsley, and chives, mix well and pour over the asparagus.

Celery and Almond Salad

1 cupful melted Crisco

1 yolk of egg

1 tablespoonful lemon juice

1 tablespoonful vinegar

1 head celery

½ cupful blanched almonds

1 crisp lettuce

Few drops green color

½ teaspoonful sugar

1 teaspoonful salt

½ teaspoonful mustard

Red pepper to taste

Melt and cool Crisco. Prepare celery and cut into very thin strips and plunge in ice water until wanted. Blanch and shred almonds; wash and dry lettuce leaves. Put yolk of egg into bowl, add mustard, salt, and red pepper and mix well with wooden spoon. Add sugar, teaspoonful lemon juice, teaspoonful vinegar; beat in Crisco gradually. Remove spoon and beat with egg beater five minutes, then beat in rest of lemon juice and vinegar. Add more seasonings if needed and enough green color to make it look pretty. Dry celery and mix with almonds, then toss them into dressing. Serve on lettuce leaves.

Fruit Salad

Dressing

1 tablespoonful Crisco

Pinch of salt

2 tablespoonfuls sugar

2 tablespoonfuls vinegar

2 eggs

½ pint whipped cream

Salad

24 marshmallows

1 can pineapple

2 juicy apples

6 oranges

Lettuce leaves

For salad. Cut fruit and marshmallows into small pieces, then mix and chill.

For dressing. Beat up eggs in double boiler, add vinegar, sugar, salt, Crisco and cook until thick. Cool and add whipped cream. Mix with fruit and serve on crisp lettuce leaves.

Orange and Tomato Salad

3 tablespoonfuls melted Crisco

4 tomatoes

4 oranges

1 tablespoonful chopped parsley

Tarragon vinegar

Salt

Peel oranges and tomatoes, and slice and arrange alternately in salad bowl. Mix juice squeezed from “tops and bottoms” of oranges with an equal quantity of tarragon vinegar, add Crisco and salt to taste. Pour over fruit and sprinkle chopped parsley on top.

Potato and Nut Salad

For Dressing

5 tablespoonfuls melted Crisco

1 teaspoonful mustard

1 teaspoonful salt

2 teaspoonfuls sugar

2 yolks of eggs

¾ cupful cream or milk

¼ cupful vinegar

For Salad

3 cupfuls sliced cold potatoes

1 cupful broken hickory nut meats

1 teaspoonful chopped onion

Chopped parsley

Cold cooked sliced beets

Sliced lemon

Lettuce leaves

For dressing. Mix sugar, salt, and mustard, add Crisco and stir thoroughly; then add yolks of eggs well beaten, cream, and lastly vinegar. Cook in double boiler until consistency of cream. If milk is used instead of cream, add 1 teaspoonful flour to other dry ingredients.

For salad. Mix potatoes, nuts, and onion together, and place on crisp lettuce leaves; pour over dressing and garnish to taste with beets, lemon, and parsley.

Potato and Pimiento Salad

1 tablespoonful Crisco

4 potatoes

2 hard-cooked eggs

½ can pimientos

1 tablespoonful chopped cucumber pickle

1 teaspoonful salt

Dressing

1 tablespoonful Crisco

2 teaspoonfuls dry mustard

1 teaspoonful salt

2 tablespoonfuls sugar

1 lemon

½ pint vinegar

2 eggs

For salad. Boil potatoes and slice them, add Crisco and salt. Now chop pickles, eggs, and pimientos and add them and set in cool place to chill.

For dressing. Put vinegar into double boiler, add strained lemon juice, sugar, salt, mustard, then add Crisco and eggs well beaten. Cook until thick, then cool and use.

Shrimp Salad

2 tablespoonfuls Crisco

1 can shrimps

1 cupful celery cut in cubes

1 cupful tart apples cut in cubes

1 cupful broken Brazil nut meats

½ cupful broken English walnut meats

Salt and pepper to taste

1 lemon

4 tablespoonfuls vinegar

2 tablespoonfuls water

4 eggs

1 teaspoonful dry mustard

1 teaspoonful salt

1 teaspoonful sugar

½ teaspoonful white pepper

½ cupful thick cream and 1 cupful whipped cream

Crisp lettuce leaves

Break shrimps into pieces, put them into earthenware dish, moisten with a little melted Crisco, season with vinegar, salt and pepper. Put apple cubes into a small dish and sprinkle lightly with lemon juice, then put in celery cubes with a little more lemon juice and toss together. Cover and set aside. Prepare nut meats. Heat vinegar and water in double boiler, beat eggs, then gradually add them to vinegar, stirring all the time. Now add Crisco and cook slowly, stirring constantly. Remove from fire, and beat till cold, then add mustard, salt, sugar, and pepper. Add the thick cream just before serving. When ready to serve toss nuts, celery, apples and shrimps together with a silver fork, and add a little dressing. Heap on crisp lettuce leaves on individual plates, and pour over each salad a heaping spoonful of the dressing; and top with spoonful of unsweetened whipped cream.