CHEESE
Cheese is good for sandwiches with pie or fruit tarts, with salads or as the final course of a good dinner with crackers. It can be served as the main hot dish for luncheon or dinner in place of meat.
It is highly nutritious food and contains all essential elements of milk from which it is made. It is rich in proteins and is toughened and rendered indigestible if exposed to a high temperature. It should always be cooked at a low temperature, either in a db or a moderate oven. Whenever it is to be combined with a liquid or a white sauce, the mixture may be beaten with a dover egg beater after the cheese is added, so as to hasten the process of melting and insure a smooth sauce. Cheese contains ⅓ more protein than meat and twice as much as eggs. Combined with a bulky food, such as spinach or with starchy ones, such as macaroni, rice, bread crumbs or potatoes, it makes many dishes which are as easily digested as they are appetizing. To keep cheese moist and to prevent it from drying out, simply wring out a cloth in vinegar and wrap around the cheese.
All the little dried pieces of cheese should be grated and placed in a covered glass jar. They are excellent for made-over dishes, and particularly good to use with starch foods, such as potatoes, macaroni, rice, etc. Grate cheese, putting through the fc.
CHEESE BALLS
Work cream or cottage cheese until smooth; shape in small balls; add a few drops of cream or French dressing if too dry to hold together; place halves of walnuts or pecans opposite each other on each ball; serve with salad and toasted crackers.
FROMAGE GOURMET
Slice favorite cheese and cut each slice into quarters; brown buttered saltines and serve them hot with squares of cheese and hot tea or coffee.
CHEESE AND SPINACH
1 can (1 lb 8 oz) or 1½ lbs of raw spinach, 1 c milk, 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper, 1 c buttered bread crumbs, ½ lb mild cheese.
Heat milk in db to scalding point; add diced cheese and seasoning; beat with egg beater until mixture is smooth; have spinach cooked and drained; stir cheese mixture through spinach; pour into buttered baking dish; sprinkle with buttered crumbs; bake in moderate oven 15 min. Strips of bacon may be laid across top before baking. Add springs of parsley if desired.
CELERY CASSEROLE
1 c mild cheese, 1 c milk, 2 tbp butter, 2 tbp flour, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, combined as white sauce, 2 tbp grated onion (if desired), 1 c cooked spaghetti, 2 c cooked diced celery, ½ c buttered grated bread crumbs.
To hot white sauce add finely diced cheese; stir or beat with egg beater until mixture is smooth; mix together spaghetti, celery and onions; add cheese mixture; place in oiled casserole; cover with buttered bread crumbs; bake 30 min in moderate oven.
CHEESE TARTLETS
2 tbp butter, ½ c bread crumbs, 2 eggs, ½ c grated cheese, 1 tsp bp, ⅓ c milk, pie paste.
Beat butter to a cream, add bread crumbs alternately with well-beaten eggs, stir in the cheese; add the milk and bp; line small tins with paste and put 1 tbp of the cheese mixture in each; bake in moderate oven 15 min; serve hot or cold.
CHEESE CAKES
1½ c cottage cheese, ½ c sugar, 3 eggs, 2 tbp cream, grated rind 1 lemon, pie paste.
Mix together cheese, sugar, cream and lemon rind; add eggs, yolks and whites well beaten together; line small tins with paste and nearly fill them with cheese cake mixture; bake in moderate oven 15 min.
CHEESE CROQUETTES
3 tbp butter, ⅓ c flour, 1 c milk, ½ tsp salt, ⅛ tsp pepper, yolks 2 eggs, 2 tbp cream or milk, 2 c soft mild cheese, cut in small cubes.
Melt butter; add flour; stir until well blended; pour on gradually milk, stirring constantly; bring to boiling point; add egg yolks slightly beaten and diluted with cream or milk and cheese; season with salt and pepper; spread on a plate and cool; shape; dip in crumbs, then egg and crumbs; fry in deep fat; drain on brown paper.
SAVORY RABBIT
6 slices bread, butter, minced ham, ¼ lb grated cheese, 2 tbp thin cream, seasoning to taste.
Cut bread into round or square slices and saute in butter till slightly crisp; the quantity of butter will depend on freshness of bread, as the fresher it is the more butter it will absorb; spread each piece with ham and keep hot; melt cheese in the upper part of db, and add cream and seasoning; spread over ham and serve immediately.
WELSH RABBIT
1½ lb cheese, 1 tbp butter, ½ c milk, 1 tbp Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp dry mustard, ⅓ tsp pepper or a little less of cayenne, 1 egg.
Cut cheese into small pieces and put it in upper part of db; let cheese melt and become creamy; add butter, milk and seasoning; cook till smooth and; just before serving, stir in egg slightly beaten; this prevents rabbit being stringy; have ready slices of bread or toast (preferably the former), dip them into cheese and pour more over them on serving plate.
BLUSHING BUNNY
1½ lb cheese, 1 tbp butter, 1 c cooked strained tomato or canned tomato soup, ⅓ tsp mustard, ⅓ tsp pepper, 1 tsp lemon juice.
Melt cheese as for Welsh rabbit; add butter and tomato, stirring constantly; season and add lemon juice just before serving.
PEPPER CROQUETTES
Wipe small sweet peppers; place in pan; put in hot oven and turn occasionally until skins blister; take from oven, remove skins, make a lengthwise slit in each and take out seeds; fill with cheese filling; dip in crumbs, thin egg and crumbs, fry in deep fat; drain on brown paper.
CHEESE FILLING
Melt 1½ tbp butter; add 2 tbp flour; stir until well blended; add ⅓ c milk and bring to boiling point; add ¼ c grated mild cheese and 1 egg, slightly beaten; as soon as cheese melts remove from fire and fold in ½ cup small cubes of soft mild cheese; season with ½ tsp salt and few grains, each, of pepper and cayenne.
TOMATO CHEESE TOAST
1 tbp chopped onions, ½ green pepper, 1 c canned tomato, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, 1 tbp flour, 3 tbp butter, 4 slices bread, 4 slices mild cheese.
Brown onion and pepper in 2 tbp of fat; add tomato and stew until green pepper is tender; add seasoning and drop in flour and 1 tbp butter which have been creamed together; boil until it thickens. Cut 4 slices of mild cheese about ¼ in thick; toast one side of slice of bread, place slice of cheese on other side and toast until bread and cheese are a golden brown; pour sauce over toast and serve very hot.
CHEESE TOAST
1 c milk, 1 tbp butter, 1 tbp flour, ¼ tsp salt, few grains pepper, ¾ c grated cheese, yolks 2 eggs, whites 2 eggs, 6 slices toast.
Make a white sauce of first 5 ingredients; add cheese, and as soon as cheese melts, yolks of eggs slightly beaten; when mixture thickens, fold in stiffly beaten whites of eggs; pour over hot toast.
TOMATOES AND CHEESE
6 large firm tomatoes, 1 c bread crumbs, ¼ lb mild cheese, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce.
Scoop out tomatoes; season bread crumbs; cut cheese in thin flakes; alternate layer of cheese and layer of bread crumbs until tomato is filled to top; put strip of bacon across each tomato; put in shallow pan with just enough water to keep tomato from sticking; bake about 25 min in moderate oven, or until tomato shells are tender.
PHENIX CLUB SAUCE
1 tsp flour, 1 tbp butter, 1 c milk, ¼ tsp salt, ⅛ tsp pepper, ½ tsp Worcestershire (if desired), ⅓ lb mild cheese.
Heat milk in db; cream butter and flour into a soft ball; drop into hot liquid and stir until mixture thickens; add seasonings and cheese; stir or beat with an egg beater until cheese is dissolved. This sauce is delicious for au gratin dishes like macaroni, rice and potatoes; serve also on toast, poached eggs, croquettes, vegetables, etc.; for a very thin sauce use ½ tbp flour.
CHEESE FONDUE
1 c scalded milk, 1 c soft stale bread crumbs, ¼ lb mild cheese, cut in small pieces, 1 tbp butter, ½ tsp salt, yolks 3 eggs, whites 3 eggs.
Mix first 5 ingredients; add yolks of eggs beaten thoroughly; fold in stiffly beaten whites of eggs; pour in buttered baking dish and bake 20 min in moderate oven.
CHEESE SOUFFLE
1 c finely diced mild cheese, 1 c milk, ½ tsp salt, 3 tbp butter, 3 tbp flour, ⅙ tsp pepper or paprika.
Cream butter and flour in saucepan; add milk slowly and stir until mixture boils; cook 5 min; add yolks of eggs slightly beaten, salt, pepper and diced cheese; partly cool; whip whites of eggs stiff, fold into souffle and bake immediately in large greased baking dish or in ramekins; if cooked in one dish, bake 45 min in moderate oven; if in ramekins 20 min. Souffles of all kinds must be used as soon as cooked.
WALNUT DECEITS
Work a large cream cheese until smooth and add ¼ c olives, stoned and chopped, ½ tsp salt, and few grains paprika; shape in balls; roll in sifted cracker crumbs, flatten and place halves of salted English walnuts opposite each other on each piece. The olives may be omitted and unsalted nuts may be used; serve with a fruit salad or crisp crackers.
COTTAGE CHEESE
Heat 1 qt sour milk from which you have taken the sour cream; add qt warm water and turn into a strainer lined with cheesecloth; gather cheesecloth up around curd to form a bag, and let curd hang until free from whey. Rub fine, moisten with sour cream and melted butter; shape and sprinkle with salt and pepper. This is good served with jelly or preserves and crisp crackers and excellent for the children. In 1 lb cottage cheese there is about ⅕ of a lb of protein, nearly all of which is digestible.
COTTAGE CHEESE CAKE
1½ c cottage cheese, 1 tbp butter, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp vanilla, ⅔ c milk, 1 tbp cornstarch, ⅔ c sugar, 2 eggs.
Blend cheese, butter, salt and vanilla until smooth; mix milk and cornstarch; bring to boiling point; stirring to prevent lumping or sticking; add sugar to cooked milk and cornstarch, and heat; pour hot milk mixture over slightly beaten eggs, stirring thoroughly, and heat to custard consistency; add cottage cheese mixture to custard, and pour into deep baking dish which has previously been lined with shortcake dough; bake until crust is done and slightly browned.
CHEESE CAKE CRUST
2⅔ c flour, 6 tbp fat (lard), 4 tsp bp, 1 tsp salt, ⅔ c milk, 2 tbp sugar.
Sift flour, bp, salt and sugar together; work lard into flour; add milk, forming dough as for biscuits; roll out crust about ¼ in thick; line inside of baking dish.
STUFFED DATES
Season cottage cheese with salt and thick cream, and with chopped nuts if desired. Remove stones from dates or soaked prunes, and open figs for stuffing. Fill cavities with seasoned cottage cheese and whole nut meats or candied fruits. This makes an excellent confection or dessert.
CHEESE SOUFFLE
1 c soft, stale bread crumbs, 1 tbp butter, ½ tsp salt; scald 1 c milk (skimmed milk will do), put hot milk and butter over bread crumbs; beat 2 eggs separately, very light, put in yolks, then whites; add ¼ lb American cheese cut up very fine or grated and bake same as an omelette.
STUFFED FIGS
Mash cream cheese, moisten with heavy cream; season highly with salt and cayenne; make into small balls; wash and dry figs; make an incision in each and stuff with cheese balls; arrange in piles on fancy plate; serve as an accompaniment to a light dinner salad or with crisp crackers.
PARMESAN CHEESE STICKS
Toss 1 c bread dough on floured board; pat and roll in rectangular shape as thin as possible; spread with 1 tbp butter; dredge with flour; fold from ends so as to make 3 layers; repeat 3 times; cut in finger-shaped pieces; arrange on sheet, cover, let stand 15 min, and when baked, brush over with white of egg and roll in grated Parmesan cheese, seasoned with salt and cayenne; return to oven again and bake 4 min.
CHEESE PIQUANT
Cut bread in dainty slices; toast and butter slightly; wrap in napkin to keep hot and serve with generous slices of American or Swiss cheese.
ROAST CHEESE
3 oz of good cheese, yolks 2 eggs, 4 oz grated bread crumbs, 3 oz butter, 1 tsp mustard, salt and pepper; grate cheese; add yolks, bread crumbs and butter; beat well; add mustard, salt and pepper; make some toast; cut in neat round slices; spread on paste thickly; cover with dish; place in oven till hot; then uncover and let cheese color a light brown; serve immediately on hot plates.
CHEESE POTATO BALLS
Take some hot mashed, cooked potatoes, flavor with grated cheese, salt and pepper; add sufficient milk to make mixture moist and smooth; form into balls; fry in deep fat; serve with grated cheese; garnish with fried parsley.
CHEESE BALLS
3 c grated cheese, salt and pepper to taste and whites 3 eggs beaten stiff; mix together; form into small balls; roll in fine cracker crumbs and fry in boiling lard; serve very hot with salad course.
When little bits of red pepper are left-over, mash them into a piece of American cheese, creamed with a little butter.
Baked celery, with grated cheese on top, is delicious.
Grated cheese is delicious over plain lettuce salad.
A pinch of salt added when preparing any cheese dish will make it more digestible.