Salads, Sandwiches and Chafing-Dish Dainties | Page 4

crown, And twice with vinegar
procured from town."
Aromatic vinegars, a few drops of which, used occasionally, lend
piquancy and variety to an every-day salad, can be purchased at
high-class provision stores; but the true salad-maker is an artist, and
prefers to compound her own colors (i.e., vinegars); therefore we have
given several recipes for the same, which may be easily modified to
suit individual tastes.

Indeed, the dressing of a salad, though in the early days of the century
considered a special art,--an art that rendered it possible for at least one
noted Royalist refugee to amass a considerable fortune,--is entirely a
matter of individual taste, or, more properly speaking, of cultivation.
On this account, particularly for a French dressing, no set rules can be
given. By experience and judgment one must decide upon the
proportions of the different ingredients, or, more specifically, upon the
proportions of the oil and acid to be used. Often four spoonfuls of oil
are used to one of vinegar. Four spoonfuls of oil to two, three or four of
vinegar may be the proportion preferred by others, and the quantity
may vary for different salads.
Though in many of the recipes explicit quantities of oil, vinegar and
condiments are given, it is with the understanding that these quantities
are indicated simply as an approximate rule; sometimes less and
sometimes more will be required, according to the tendency of the
article dressed to absorb oil and acid, or the taste of the salad dresser.
=Use of Dressings.=
The dressings in most common use are the French and the mayonnaise.
A French dressing is used for green vegetables, for fruit and nuts, and
to marinate cooked vegetables, or the meat or fish for a meat or fish
salad. Mayonnaise dressing is used for meat, fish, some varieties of
fruit, as banana, apple and pineapple, and for some vegetables, as
cauliflower, asparagus and tomatoes. Any article to be served with
mayonnaise, after standing an hour or more in a marinade,--i.e., French
dressing,--should be carefully drained, as, by the pickling process,
liquid will drain out into the bottom of the vessel and, mixing with the
mayonnaise, will liquefy the same.
=Arrangement of Salads.=
In the arrangement of salads there may be great display of taste and
individuality. By a judicious selection from materials that may be kept
constantly in store, and with one or two window boxes, in which herbs
are growing, any one, with a modicum of inventive skill, can so change
and modify the appearance and flavor of her salads that she may seem

always to present a new one.
=Composition of Mayonnaise.=
Mayonnaise dressing is composed largely of olive oil. A small amount
of yolk of egg is used as a foundation. The oil, with the addition of
condiments, is slightly acidulated with vinegar and lemon juice, one or
both, and the whole is made very light and thick by beating.
Mayonnaise forms a very handsome dressing, and it is much enjoyed
by those who are fond of oil.
=Value of Oil.=
Pure olive oil is almost entirely without flavor, and a taste for it can be
readily acquired; and, when we consider that it contains all the really
desirable qualities of the once-famous cod-liver oil, except the
phosphates, and that these may be supplied in the other materials of the
salad, it would seem wise to cultivate a taste for so wholesome an
article. By the addition of cream, in the proportion of a cup of whipped
cream to a pint of dressing, those to whom oil has not become
agreeable can so modify its "tone" that they too will enjoy the
mayonnaise dressing.
=Boiled and Cream Dressings.=
For the French and mayonnaise dressings--particularly for the
latter--we sometimes substitute a boiled and sometimes a cream
dressing. In the first, butter, or cream, is substituted for oil, and the
materials are combined by cooking. In the latter, as the name implies,
cream is the basis, and this may be either sweet or sour.
=Important Points in Salad-Making.=
(1) The green vegetables should be served fresh and crisp.
(2) Meat and fish should be well marinated and cold.
(3) The ingredients composing the salad should not be combined until

the last moment before serving.
=When to Serve Salads with French or Mayonnaise Dressing.=
As a rule, subject, however, to exceptions, light vegetable salads,
dressed with French dressing, are served at dinner; while heavy meat or
fish Salads are reserved for luncheon, or supper, and are served with
mayonnaise or cream dressing.
=When to Serve a Fruit Salad.=
A fruit salad, with sweet dressing, is served with cake at a luncheon, or
supper, or in the evening; that is, it may take the place of fruit in the
dessert course. A fruit salad, with French or mayonnaise dressing, may