Menu Building

Description

This section is from the book "Mrs. De Graf's Cook Book", by Belle De Graf. Also available from Amazon: Mrs. De Graf's Cook Book.

Menu Building

Planning meals day after day is one of the most difficult tasks for the housewife, and this particular branch of the housekeeping system needs as much skill and judgment as the preparation and cooking of foods. With an almost unlimited variety of foods to choose from, the housewife should know how to select those foods which will prove nutritious and give the greatest return of energy to the body for the money she has to spend. Wise economy demands that foods should be so combined that there will be no waste of either material or energy.

In order to plan foods wisely, the housewife should understand how the various foods differ in nutritive values. The foods selected depend largely upon climate and season. In localities where the summer months are warm, foods which would be very acceptable in winter would prove anything but appetizing served on a hot day.

A generous amount of fat and starch may be served when the weather is cold, but these must be avoided during the summer, green salads, jellied soups, and light cold desserts or fruits taking their places.

Dishes containing the food principles in the same proportion should not be served together. A well-balanced meal contains neither too much protein, starch, sugar, or fat.

To meet this requirement, the housewife must have some knowledge of food values. The substances found in foods have been divided into five classes, called food principles. These are water, fat, mineral matter, starch and sugar (called carbohydrates), and protein. Scarcely any food is made up of any one of these food principles, almost all containing several in combination. Most of the fat is obtained in butter, olive oil, other oils, and fat of meats, etc. The use of fat to the body is to give energy and heat. If more fat is taken than is required for immediate use, it is stored in the body ready to use when sufficient fat has not been consumed.

Mineral matter is found in most of the vegetables, and in all fruits; also in meat and milk. In fact, nearly all foods contain some mineral salts. As a rule this requirement is taken care of in the diet of the average adult, but food for growing children should contain a quantity of mineral matter.

Sugar and starch comes under one heading, as starch is changed into sugar in the process of digestion. These foods supply heat and energy to the body, and the amount necessary for an individual will depend largely upon the kind of work he does. For heavy, muscular labor and for active, growing children, more starch and sugar are required than for the clerk, student, or elderly person.

Protein is the most important food principle, and the foremost protein foods are meat, fish, eggs, milk, cheese, and most varieties of nuts. There are a few vegetables rich in protein as well as starch. These are peas, beans, and lentils. When planning a meal with a limited serving of meat, as when using left-overs, any one of these vegetables will supply the necessary protein. Beans, cooked with some fat, may entirely take the place of meat.

If the menu is rich in starch, select a vegetable containing a high percentage of water. Do not serve two dishes at one meal where a cream sauce has been used - for example, a creamed soup and a creamed vegetable, or creamed fish or meat and creamed vegetable or soup. Never serve strong flavored vegetables together, such as onions, cauliflower, cabbage, turnips, or parsnips. Do not have rice, macaroni, or potatoes served at one meal.

A green salad should be served with a heavy dinner. A hearty salad of fish or meat, combined with mayonnaise dressing, supplies the main course at luncheon or supper, but is much too heavy for a dinner where meat and vegetables are served. With a main dish of macaroni and cheese, prepared with a cream sauce (a dish rich in protein and starch), such vegetables as spinach, a green salad, or tomatoes, cooked or raw, will prove appetizing, while any of the beans, dried or green, would make the meal too heavy.

The following offer some suggestions in menu building: