Buckeye Valley News And Buckeye Review

Nutritive Qualities.
By EDITH M. BARBER

THE avocado, one of our native American fruits, has comparatively recently made itself widely known. In its original form in our southern tropics, it has always been an important food and deservedly so, as it outranks all other members of the fruit family in some of the most important nutritive qualities. It contains even more fat than the olive and unlike other fruits also contributes a certain amount of protein.

It is grown today for our markets in Florida, the West Indies and in the Southwest, particularly California, where the fine grades have been given the name "calavo." Now that packing and shipping facilities have been perfected, it has been made possible for many parts of the country to become acquainted with this delicious fruit, which is sometimes called the alligator pear. Because of the distance which it must travel and because it must be used as soon as it is really ripe, the price in our markets is never low enough for us to use it as a staple food. The price, however, has dropped enormously. At the height of the season it may be found at real bargain prices. Both its flavor and texture have made it a popular addition to our table, where we generally use it as a salad.

In my opinion it is at its best when dressed with lime juice as it is in the tropics, with lemon juice, or with chili sauce, an idea, by the way, which came to me from Honolulu. If French dressing is used, the proportion of vinegar to oil should be larger than usual. The avocado combines well with tomatoes, grapefruit and oranges, which contrast with it both in flavor and texture. Alternate slices of the fruit may be arranged on a bed of romaine or lettuce or avocado halves may be filled with mixed fruits.

Avocado and Crabmeat.

3 avocadoes
1 cup picked crabmeat
1/4 cup finely minced celery
1 teaspoon onion juice
1/4 cup catsup or chili sauce

Cut avocadoes in halves and remove pits. Mix crabmeat with celery, onion and catsup or chili sauce and fill fruit with this mixture. Serve as a first course or as a luncheon salad.

Sweet-Sour Dressing.

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
2 tablespoons salad oil
1 tablespoon minced onion
1 tablespoon minced celery
1 tablespoon minced pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Mix ingredients, add a small piece of ice and beat one minute until thick.

Caramel Custard

1 cup sugar
3 eggs
Salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Put half the sugar into a small frying pan and stir over a low fire until a syrup is formed. Stir in another one-fourth cup of sugar and continue stirring until it is melted. Pour this mixture into six greased custard cups. Beat eggs slightly, add remaining sugar, salt, milk and vanilla. Mix well and pour into custard cups. Bake in a pan of hot water in a moderate oven, 375 degrees Fahrenheit, until custard is set.

Baked Prunes.

1 pound of prunes
Water to cover

Pick over the prunes and place in a baking dish, cover with water and soak several hours. Cover and bake in a slow oven an hour or more. The long, slow cooking will bring out the natural sugar and no sweetening will be needed. Other dried fruits may be cooked in the same way, but a small amount of sugar is desirable with the more acid fruits.

Jellied Tomato Ring.

3 tablespoons gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cans tomato soup
2 cups water
Salt
Pepper
5 or 6 cloves
Bay leaf
Stuffed olives

Soak gelatin in water. Heat soup with water and add seasoning. Add soaked gelatin and stir until dissolved. Arrange stuffed olives in a ring mold (quart size) and pour over a thin layer of hot mixture. Chill in refrigerator until set. Add rest mixture. Chill in refrigerator two hours until set. Turn out of mold on cold platter, fill center with vegetable salad and garnish with lettuce.

Cooked Salad Dressing.

2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons mustard (dry)
4 teaspoons sugar
Cayenne
2 tablespoons flour
2 eggs or 4 egg yolks
1 cup hot milk
1/2 cup vinegar
1 cup sour cream

Mix the dry ingredients and add to the eggs. Add the milk and vinegar and cook over hot water until mixture thickens. Cool quickly and add sour cream. Store in refrigerator in a covered jar.

© Bell Syndicate.-WNU Service.