If a bit of dry bread will brown in one minute fat is hot enough for a raw mixture. If cooked mixtures are to be browned the fat should be hot enough to brown a piece of bread in forty seconds. This method however, is only a makeshift and is not absolutely accurate. A thermometer should be used; 380 to 390 degrees is the right temperature for frying vegetable substances. Heat fat slowly.
Clean the green stalks and leaves of celery and dry, place in paper bags to be used for soups and savories when celery is out of season. This can be used in place of the celery seed called for in some receipts.
Peanuts shelled and well roasted with the skins rubbed off will, when ground, dissolve into a buttery substance which can be spread on bread and made into sandwiches. All kinds of nuts reduced to flour can be readily digested and can be placed on the table to be eaten with bread or spread on sandwiches.
Bay leaves contribute a most delicate and pungent flavor to soups, savories and gravies. They can be obtained at any druggist’s, and five cents worth will last a long time.