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High-Pressure Dinners

It was quarter past one when we came in and took off our wraps and we had to leave the house by quarter past two in order to secure our seats for a lecture. On a wild impulse I had asked three friends to come out and be good sports with me in getting a bite to eat. Veal stew and dumplings I had planned for myself, with just a pound of stewing veal in the refrigerator. New Bermuda potatoes were on hand, however, and we hastily washed and brushed these while the meat was turned into the hot pressure cooker to brown in a bit of vegetable oil and butter. The meat browned, the potatoes were turned in and High-Pressure Dinners salted with the meat on the rack, two cups of hot water added, and the cover was clamped on. In five minutes the pressure gauge ran up to twenty pounds, where by turning down the gas flame, it was held for ten minutes.

A can of tomatoes was opened, sugared, and put on to heat. Four level tablespoonfuls of coffee were put into the percolator and two cups of hot water added and set over the simmerer of the gas range to percolate. The celery was washed and cut and the butter put on the butter dishes. The mushroom caps were washed and peeled and the bread cut. The ten minutes up, the pressure cooker was taken to the window sill and exhausted to the outer air. The meat and potatoes were removed, and three tablespoonfuls of browned flour and the mushroom caps were added to the stock in the kettle to make the brown gravy.

The salad had to be stretched as much as the meat, so each salad plate drew for its share two heart leaves of lettuce with some shredded outer leaves. Two tablespoonfuls of grated carrot were placed on each serving of lettuce; a French dressing was quickly made in the glass-stoppered salad bottle and poured over the carrot and lettuce.

In just forty minutes from the time we entered the door we sat down to the following dinner : Browned Veal with Mushroom Sauce Steamed Potatoes Stewed Tomatoes Celery Ripe Olives Bread and Butter Complexion Salad with Crackers Fruit Coffee BOSTON BAKED BEANS IN A KITCHENETTE?