The Modern Home
[We shall be pleased to reply to any enquiries arising from the articles we publish on the Modern Home page. Enquiries should be addressed to the Editor, The SPECTATOR, 99 Gower Street, W.C. 1, with "Modern Home Page" written in the left-hand corner of the envelope.]
Some Christmas Suggestions
Tins year, so we learn from our morning papers, Christmas presents will be chosen with a strict eye to usefulness— colanders rather than calendars. It may be of service to glance at some of the newer appliances which should be sure of a welcome in any home, modern or otherwise. The two makes of glass oven-ware, " Pyrex " and " Orlak," can now be obtained with an embellishment in colours. Since this ware is also intended to make its appearance on the table, the innovation will commend itself to many; but the shapes of almost all pieces are so purely beautiful in themselves (unlike those of the average dinner-service) that others may prefer them unadorned—the more so in the case of Pyrex since the " prettiness " of the pattern is rather at variance with the robust modernity of the pieces them- selves. There is no doubt that glass cannot be excelled as a material for vessels in which food is to be cooked, and a further recommendation is the ease with which it can be cleaned—and the certainty with which dirt can be detected. Plates are now made in all sizes, and, with a wealth of casseroles and entree dishes from which receptacles for vegetables, gravy and sauces may be selected, an all-glass dinner-service can easily be built up. One can think of few nicer presents. I look forward to the day when glass teacups will be added to the range : these will have the great advantage of enabling a hostess to see when her guests' cups need refilling, without having to peer over the rims or interrupt conversation by asking.
An excellent present for any who do not possess farms would be a " Pentecreme "—a small machine which I men- tioned some months ago. Half a pint of milk and half a pound of fresh butter (New Zealand will do), warmed and lightly beaten together, are poured into this magic cruse ; a handle is pressed, and out comes a pint of really thick eseam —at a cost approximately one-fifth of that of -dairy cream. One's natural tendency is to shy away from such a con- trivance, feeling that there must be something artificial about it but, in actual fact, it simply unchurns the butter by emulsification, snaking use of no chemicals. Best of all, the cream is really good to taste, keeps well, and will whip if wanted. The machine is very easily cleaned and is beauti- fully made and finished.
Certain small households would be glad to have a " Stokes" Table Cooker. This is electric ; but as it uses only half a unit of current an hour, it is quite suitable for plugging into a lighting circuit where " power " is not available. It takes the form of a shallow, circular pan with the heating element inside, and, for use, it is inverted over, an ordinary plate on which the food to be cooked has been put. The two main advantages of cooking in this way are that no smell escapes into the room, and that there are no pans to be washed up. Next to using a Dutch oven (how seldom one sees them in these days !), it is perhaps the best way ot cooking bacon, as it is certainly the most convenient. The degree of heat reached is not high enough to do any damage to an ordinary plate, though one would obviously hesitate to put anything of great value beneath it. The small " Tricky " electric oven, which is designed to be built into a wall, would be a real luxury to the many who have to do their cooking in a microscopic kitchenette having space perhaps for no more than a gas-ring or two.
Chafing-dishes and " sluggards-joys " are to be found in considerable variety. Among coffee machines, I know oi none which can make coffee so well as the "Cons." The great secret with this (not mentioned in the maker.,' instructions) is to have the beans not ground but pulverized as for Turkish. The resulting economy is remarkable and the flavour infinitely better. There is some variety 01 opinion as to whether the liquid should be sent up through the funnel more than once. My own view is, very definitely, that it should not. Enough coffee should be used to give the required strength in one operation, but the lamp can be left underneath until the surface of the coffee above shows the first signs of coming to the boil. Spare bulbs and funnel, can now be got in "Pyrex."
The game for this Christmas is, I understand, to be " Corinthian Bagatelle," a much smaller and simpler variation of the game our fathers and—alas !—some of us used to play. It can be introduced to any nursery with the certain assurance that it will be borne off downstairs after dinner. I speak with confidence, having recently wasted several hours myself under its spell. A good deal of skill can be used and almost
any number of players take part. G. M. BOUMPHREY.
Previous page
