Meals for Young Cooks

By Winnifred and Ann Jardine

Rainy-Day Supper

Corn Soup
Pigs in Blankets
Celery Sticks
Rosy Baked Apples
Milk

The following time schedule can be a useful guide when preparing this supper.

4:00—Cut celery sticks, cover with plastic wrap, and chill. Also chill milk that has been poured into a pretty pitcher.

4:05—Prepare apples according to recipe for baking.

4:30—Put apples in to bake.

4:35—Prepare pigs in blankets and place in refrigerator until baking time.

5:00—Make corn soup and set over lowest heat until time to serve.

5:30—Remove apples from oven but leave lid on until time to serve.

5:35—Set table.

5:45—Bake pigs in blankets.

6:00—Serve food when family is ready.

Tips for Young Cooks

A “house of order” begins in the kitchen. To keep a clean kitchen, do the following:

1. After using each recipe place it back in a recipe file or in a notebook.

2. Put ingredients such as salt, butter, cinnamon, etc., back in their proper storage places.

3. Wash, wipe, and put away all pans, dishes, and utensils after using. Don’t let them stack up even though you are in a hurry.

4. Wipe off all counter and stove tops and sweep or wipe up any spills. It is easier to begin making the next recipe if you have a nice, clean kitchen.

Rosy Baked Apples

5 red baking apples

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

nuts and handful of raisins

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup water

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Wash and remove cores from apples with apple corer or a long-bladed carrot peeler. If necessary, ask your mother to help you.

2. Peel a strip from around top of each apple and set apples into covered baking dish.

3. Combine brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts, and raisins and fill apple centers with mixture. Top each apple with 1/2 teaspoon butter.

4. Pour 1/2 inch of water into baking dish around apples. Cover and bake for 1 hour or until apples are tender when pricked with point of paring knife.

5. Serve warm with cream, ice cream, or evaporated milk.

Pigs in Blankets

1 (8-ounce) package brown’n serve pork sausage links

1 (8-ounce) package refrigerated biscuits

1. Preheat oven to 425°. Then brown sausage links in skillet over medium heat according to directions on package.

2. Remove sausages from skillet, drain, and cool on paper towel. Save meat drippings for corn soup.

3. Open package of biscuits and separate.

4. On lightly floured board roll each biscuit with rolling pin to make a flat circle about 3 1/2 inches across.

5. Roll each sausage link up in a biscuit circle. Set on baking sheet with open edge down and bake 10 minutes.

6. Serve hot with catsup.

Corn Soup

5 tablespoons pork sausage drippings

1/3 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup flour

5 cups milk

2 (16-ounce) cans cream-style corn

1 teaspoon salt

shake of pepper

1. Heat sausage drippings in large saucepan over medium heat.

2. Add onion and cook and stir until onions are soft but not brown.

3. Stir in flour, cook for 1 minute, and remove pan from heat.

4. Add milk and stir until it is well blended. Then return pan to medium heat, cooking and stirring until soup is thick and smooth.

5. Add corn, salt, and pepper, and heat to boiling point before serving.

Illustrated by Tom Pratt