5. COOPERATIVE PARTIES

One of the best recipes for a good party is the choice of congenial guests who have common tastes. Most of us have a group of friends whom we see more than others, and who like to meet regularly. A practical plan for these social occasions is for each hostess in turn to entertain the group, with cooperation from the other members.

The hostess takes responsibility for planning the supper, which is usually served buffet style. She will, of course, consult with the other members of the group in regard to which foods each will bring. She will often prepare the meat in her own kitchen, and the man of the family will usually take responsibility for the mixing of the pre-dinner drinks. Sometimes the meat or other main dishes will be among the contributed articles, which should be of the type that can be transported successfully. Casseroles of vegetables, the ingredients and dressing for the salad, canapes or spreads and crackers to serve with the drinks, bread and rolls, and certain kinds of dessert will not be injured by traveling a few miles.

While the cooperative party may seem like a modern idea, a group of my friends from a small Pennsylvania town have been following this practice for several decades. The meals are called "tureen" suppers, as when they began this practice the word "buffet" was not used in the sense it is today. Whatever you call it, an affair of this sort makes a social occasion for all, calls for little work for the hostess and gives pleasure to everyone.

Veal scallopini

Spaghetti sprinkled with Parmesan cheese

Tossed green salad

Hot rolls

Bread sticks

Angel pie

Coffee

Meat loaf

Mushroom sauce

New potatoes with chives

Asparagus vinaigrette

Tomato and cucumber salad

Jellied grapefruit

Coffee

Stuffed veal rolls in wine

Noodles with poppy seeds

Baby beets

Wilted lettuce

Strawberries

Coffee

Scalloped oysters with watercress

Creamed potatoes

Peas with mushrooms

Salad bowl

Peaches Jubilee

Cinnamon cookies

Coffee

Roast pork

Sweet potato casserole

Applesauce

Creamed spinach

Red and white cabbage salad

Chocolate fudge pudding

Coffee

Very special pot roast

Potato puff

String beans Cucumbers with sour cream

Dutch apple cake

Coffee

SOUR CREAM DRESSING

1 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoons chopped chives (or 2 tablespoons minced onion and 1 tablespoon minced parsley)

2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar (about)

Add seasonings to sour cream. Stir in the chives or onion and parsley, and beat in vinegar to taste. Yield: 6 servings.

CUCUMBERS WITH SOUR CREAM

Pare cucumbers completely or partially, and crisp in salted water 1/2 hour. Drain thoroughly and mix with sour cream dress­ing. Sprinkle with minced chives or minced parsley.

ROCK LOBSTER SALAD

4 10-ounce South African rock lobster tails

4 cups diced celery

2 cups mayonnaise

½ cup sour cream

salad greens

3 hard-cooked eggs, sliced

4 tablespoons capers, OR ½ cup sliced stuffed olives

Cook lobster tails in boiling salted water. If thawed, boil 11 minutes. If unthawed, allow 1 minute longer. Drain, and drench with cold water. Cut with scissors through thin undershell and pull out meat with fingers. Chill and cut into dice. Combine lobster meat with celery, mayonnaise and sour cream. Test for salt. Line salad bowl with greens. Pile salad in center and garnish with sliced hard-cooked eggs and capers or olives. Yield: 12 servings.

Note: If larger lobster tails are used, allow for boiling 1 minute more than weight in ounces.

CREAMY SALAD DRESSING

½ cup mayonnaise

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons herb vinegar

¼ cup chopped chives

salt

pepper

paprika

Fold mayonnaise into sour cream. Stir in vinegar gradually and add remaining ingredients. Yield: 12 servings.

VEAL SCALLOPINI

2 pounds thin veal steak

flour

salt
pepper

¼ cup olive oil

½ cup marsala or sherry

1 tablespoon lemon juice

parsley

sliced lemon

Dredge veal with seasoned flour. Cook in hot olive oil quickly on both sides. Add wine and lemon juice. Cover and cook over low heat until tender. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and minced parsley. Garnish with sliced lemon dipped in minced parsley. Yield: 8 servings.

Note: A clove of garlic may be cooked with the meat and re­moved before serving. Butter may replace the olive oil.

STUFFED VEAL ROLLS IN WINE

2½ pounds veal steak

½ pound liver sausage

2 strips bacon

4 tablespoons butter or margarine

¾ cup white wine

2 tablespoons flour

Have veal steak sliced thin and cut into 6 portions. Spread generously with liver sausage, roll and skewer. Saute bacon until lightly browned and remove from fat. Add 2 tablespoons butter or margarine and saute veal rolls in this on all sides until very lightly browned. Add wine, cover and let simmer until meat is very tender. Add crumbled bacon. Remove rolls to hot platter. Blend 2 table­spoons melted or soft butter or margarine with flour. Stir into liquid in pan and continue stirring over low heat until sauce thickens slightly. Test for salt. Pour around meat and serve with noodles with poppy seeds. Yield: 6 servings.

MEAT LOAF

2 cups soft bread crumbs

1 cup milk

2 eggs, slightly beaten

½ cup minced onion

2 tablespoons chili sauce

1 tablespoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

1 pound ground beef

1 pound ground veal

¼ pound salt pork

3 strips bacon, halved

Soak bread crumbs in milk 5 minutes. Add eggs, onion, chili sauce, salt and pepper. Add ground meat and mix lightly until well blended. Pack in greased loaf pan 9x5x3. Cover with bacon and bake in moderately hot oven (400° F.) about 40 minutes until lightly browned. Unmold and garnish with sprigs of parsley. Yield: 10-12 servings.

VERY SPECIAL POT ROAST

1 cup red wine

4 medium-sized onions, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon allspice berries

1 teaspoon whole cloves

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon thyme or oregano

1 teaspoon peppercorns

few celery leaves or ½ teaspoon celery seed

4 pounds pot roast

salt

¼ cup flour

Combine wine with onion, garlic, spices and herbs. Make incisions in pot roast with sharp knife. Pour wine-spice mixture over meat in deep casserole and let stand several hours, turning meat occasionally. Remove meat and brown on all sides in its own fat or extra fat if needed. Sprinkle liberally with salt and return to casserole. Cover and bake in a slow oven (250° F.) 2 ½ to 3 hours until meat is tender. Remove from oven, skim off about ¼ cup of the fat. Stir the flour into this and when smooth add the spiced wine in which meat has been cooked. This may be strained if desired. Stir over low heat until sauce thickens and boils. If too thick, add a little water. Serve in bowl with pot roast and plenty of heated French bread for dunking in the sauce. Yield: 8-10 servings.

SCALLOPED OYSTERS

1 cup butter or margarine

8 cups soft bread crumbs

2½ teaspoons salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

2 cups cut watercress

2 quarts oysters

Melt butter or margarine. Add crumbs, seasonings and water­cress, and mix well. Arrange drained oysters in alternate layers with buttered crumbs in greased shallow baking dishes, using crumbs for the top layer. Bake in a hot oven (450° F.) 20 minutes.

Yield: 12 servings.

Note: 2 tablespoons lemon juice may replace the watercress.

GOLDEN NESSELRODE PIE

1 envelope unflavored gelatin

¼ cup cold milk

4 egg yolks, well beaten

½ cup sugar

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup scalded milk

½ cup cream

1 teaspoon rum flavoring

4 egg whites, stiffly beaten

1 tablespoon finely chopped maraschino cherries

baked pie shell

shaved sweet chocolate

Soak gelatin in cold milk. Mix egg yolks, 1/2 cup of sugar, salt, and stir in scalded milk. Stir over hot water until mixture thickens slightly. Remove from heat, add soaked gelatin and stir until dissolved. Add cream and flavoring and chill until syrupy. Fold in beaten egg whites and cherries. Pour into pie shell and chill until firm. Garnish with shaved sweet chocolate before serving. Yield: 1 9-inch pie.

PEACHES JUBILEE

6 medium-sized peaches

2 1-inch sticks cinnamon 12 whole cloves

½ cup sugar

¼ cup water

¼ cup heated rum

Peel and slice peaches. Place in skillet. Add stick cinnamon and whole cloves, and sprinkle with sugar. Add water, cover and let simmer over low heat until sugar melts. Remove cover, add heated rum, set on fire and baste fruit until flame disappears. Serve at once in deep sauce dishes or use as sauce for ice cream. Canned sliced peaches may replace fresh peaches. Substitute 1 cup peach syrup for the ¼ cup water. Yield: 6 servings.

Note: A dash of Angostura may be added after the sugar melts.

JELLIED GRAPEFRUIT CUCUMBER SALAD

1 envelope unflavored gelatin

¼ cup cold water

1 No. 2 can grapefruit

1½ cups grapefruit juice and water

2 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar

1 cup diced peeled cucumber

2 tablespoons minced onion

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