Half-past turkey day

Hi neighbors. How are you doing with those left-overs? Now you remember why you only have turkey once a year, right? If you're past the turkey sandwich phase and into casseroles, enjoy! I remember when a casserole or pot of soup was the sure cure for getting rid of left-overs. How many of you still keep left-overs by the way? Many people I know don't bother. They fix small amounts and what isn't eaten the first time around gets sent to the garbage disposal.

Then again, I know people who keep left-overs till they petrify and never use them at all. I suppose they just can't stand to throw them away.

I cook small meals and have a son at home, so left-overs usually aren't a consideration, but I remember when they were.

Cookbooks used to give ideas for using left-overs. I don't know if they still do or not as I haven't bought a cookbook in twenty years or so.

Cookbooks used to tell you how to clean house too. Maybe they should bring that part of cookbook instructions back. It would probably be too complicated now. Instead of "be sure to take down and dust behind all hanging pictures once a week" we'd have to have tips on how to turn on and off a robot vacuum.

One old time cookbook, "The Settlement Cookbook" was originally published in 1901 as an aid to immigrants new to American culture.

The book contained almost everything any woman would want to know about housekeeping in the new world. There were sections on cooking wild game, English cooking terms were explained. Tips on essential utensils and pots to have to set up housekeeping were given.

The American system of weights and measures was explained. Handy reference pages included spice and herb charts and commonly available substitutes for other recipe ingredients. How-to's on entertaining guests (formal or otherwise)included drawings of where to place what at each place setting.

Perhaps the most remarkable section title was "emergency housekeeping and improvising." One recipe for outdoor cooking included tips on baking birds, fish and other small game in clay. Yes, clay. One good feature of this type of cooking, according to the book, was that feathers and skin stick to the clay while the animal cooks. Then cleaning only involves a "snap" of the clay covering.

Many of these outdoor recipes said nothing about a grill and most referred to using a campfire.

Of course, many modern cooks would squirm at a recipe that starts out with the instructions to "skin, cut open, clean and joint" anything.

Handy tips on how to measure different foodstuffs, nutritional needs of various age groups and special diets for certain health conditions were included.

There was even a section on common stain removal techniques for laundry day.

Another useful section told all about canning, pickling, and drying vegetables and meats.

In the entertaining guests part was a reference to using a "silence cloth" over the table before putting on the table cloth. This was made of felt or flannel. The entertaining section included tips on how to wash the dishes after the party was over.

One section was about going to market, putting away groceries and other housekeeping chores. (This chapter was where our dusting behind the pictures tip came from.) One recipe was how to make soap from fat and lye.

Another useful tip was how to change a fuse (this tip was added in a later edition of course.) They mentioned a tip I still use, picking up tiny pieces of broken glass with wet cotton. (I use paper towels.) A stain removal tip that I found intimidating was instructions on how to remove berry stains. "Stretch fabric taut over a bowl, pour boiling water through stain from a height of three or four feet." I don't think I'd want to do that one! There were tips on starting a wood or coal fire. One tip, "cooking without equipment" advised wrapping food in leaves or using a green twig for a spit. Sounds simplistic doesn't it? That was its intent.

Back to left-overs...

There were some recipes devoted to using left-overs. One of my favorites was using those uneaten yams in a sweet potato pie.

Did you know you can make turkey tamales? According to this cookbook you can. I've never tried it, but I've never had much left-over turkey to deal with anyway.

Until the next time friends remember, cooking a big meal, and dealing with the left-overs is nothing new. You can handle it.