Miss Parloa's kitchen companion

Boil one-eighth of a pound of macaroni for half an hour in one quart of water seasoned with one teaspoonful of salt ; then turn it into a colander to drain. Next put it into a stew-pan with one pint of meat, half a pint of brown or white sauce, and half a pint of strained tomatoes. Add one-fifth of a teaspoonful of cayenne, and simmer for eight minutes. Serve very hot. Cold Duck Warmed with Olive Sauce. Use a pint of meat, half a pint of brown sauce, one dozen stoned olives, one table-spoonful of lemon juice, and a grain of cayenne. Put all the ingredients into a stew-pan, and simmer for five minutes. To some tastes it will be considered as an improvement to add three tablespoonfuls of claret. * Cold Meat au Gratin. Have a pint of cold meat cut into cubes, and seasoned with salt and pepper. Mix a generous half-pint of white or brown sauce with it. Turn into an escalop-dish holding about a pint and a half, and cover with half a pint of grated bread crumbs. Dot this covering with a scant table-spoonful of butter. Bake in a rather hot oven for twenty minutes, and serve at once. * Hashed Meat on Toast. Use a pint of meat, half a pint of stock, a generous teaspoonful of salt, a little pepper, a table-spoonful of flour, a table-spoonful of butter, and six small slices of toast. Put the meat in the chopping-tray, and sprinkle over it the salt, pepper, and flour ; then chop it rather coarse. Now put it in a small stew-pan with the stock. Cover, and simmer for half an hour ; then add the butter. Toast the bread and arrange it on a warm dish. Spread the hash upon it, and serve at once. If the hash be made of veal or duck, add one tablespoonful of lemon juice just as it is taken from the fire. These are only a few of the many healthful dishes that can be prepared by any housekeeper. The labor is slight, but the care should be the same as that given to the most delicate dessert. It will pay a hundred fold, as regards both economy and the attractiveness of the table. *A BOILED DINNER. Despite the array of savory viands and delectable dainties which may be produced by following modern modes of cooking, there is, for many people, nothing more attractive and satisfying than an old-fashioned saltfish dinner or a boiled dinner ; yet commonly people do not take the proper amount of pains in preparing either meal. The articles required for a boiled dinner are six or eight pounds of corned beef, a small head of cabbage, enough white or yellow turnips to make three quarts when sliced, three beets of medium size, a dozen goodsized potatoes, four carrots, and, if convenient, the same number of parsnips. There are two methods of preparing this dinner : one is to cook the meat and each vegetable separately, and the other is to cook all, except the beets, in one large kettle. The latter mode gives a savory meal ; yet many persons have no appetite for articles which have been boiled in a single utensil and each of which has acquired a combination of flavors from the water as the cooking progressed. By the second method of preparation each article retains its distinctive flavor. All the vegetables should be seasoned with salt and butter at serving-time. Cooking the Meat.