Small portions of meat that would be insufficient to serve alone can be utilized in making these dishes.  When making gravy, prepare enough so that a cup or more may be set aside to use in the macaroni dishes.  Bones, gristle and meat joints left on the serving platter may all be made into stock, from which the various gravies can be made.  The Italian cook uses a small piece of meat for flavoring, usually chopping it in small pieces.

MACARONI CUSTARD

Place in a saucepan

  Two cups of milk,
  One and one-half cups of water,
  Six level tablespoons of cornstarch.

Dissolve the starch in the water and add the milk.  Bring to a boil and cook for five minutes.  Remove from the fire and add

  Yolks of two eggs,
  One cup of sugar,
  One and one-half teaspoons of vanilla.

Beat to mix and then pour over six ounces of macaroni prepared as given in the method for preparation.  Add one-half cup of raisins and then bake in a moderate oven for twenty-five minutes.  Place the whites of two eggs in a bowl and add one glass of jelly.  Beat until the mixture holds its shape; then pile on top of pudding.

MACARONI AU GRATIN

Cook one-half pound of macaroni as given in the method of preparing.  Place in a baking dish and then make three cups of cream sauce, using

  One and one-half cups of milk,
  One and one-half cups of clear stock,
  One-half cup of flour.

Blend well and then pour over the macaroni.  Sprinkle the top with fine bread crumbs and grated cheese and bake in a moderate oven for twenty-five minutes.

POTATOES

This nutritious tuber is said to have saved the Irish people from famine, and it is fitting that this variety of potato should bear that name.  The potato was unknown to Europe before the venturesome expedition of the fifteenth century to the Americas, where it was found to be used freely by the natives of both continents.

Frequently it has been said that the potato competes with bread as the staff of life, because its use is almost universal.  There are more than thirty-five varieties of potato and although it is affected by soil and climate, the sandy soil necessary for its successful growth is found in almost every country.

The housewife should understand its food value.  The average analysis of the white potato is as follows: 

Sixty-two per cent. water, 2 per cent. protein, 1 per cent. fat, 4 per cent. carbohydrates (starch and sugar), 20 per cent. waste and 1 per cent. mineral ash.

The proportion of water found in the potato depends largely upon the soil in which it is grown.  The small protein content is offset by its large carbohydrates (starch and sugar) content.

POTATO CAKES