apple preparation with the same respectful
and dainty care that is usually bestowed upon the rarer but not more
worthy pineapple and orange.

In the summer and autumn, when the fruit is at its best, no additional
flavor is needed. Toward spring, when it becomes less palatable, the
deficiency may be best supplied with a little lemon juice and grated
rind, a bit of pineapple or quince, a few drops of almond extract or
rose water, or a few whole cloves. Sweet apples which are dry and rather
tasteless may be utilized satisfactorily if stewed, canned or preserved
with one-third their bulk of quince.

Apples, Raw, for Breakfast.--Select fresh, unspotted apples of good
flavor, but not very sour, wash and wipe thoroughly, and arrange
tastefully, alone or with other fruit. For serving, use small plates and
fruit-knives, to be removed with them. Individual taste must decide
whether the fruit should be eaten before or after the heavier part of
the breakfast.

Apples and Cream.--A delicious breakfast dish, to be served with the
cooked cereal or alone, consists of fresh, mellow, sweet apples, pared
and sliced, sprinkled with fine sugar and dressed with cream.

Apples and Bread and Milk.--For a summer luncheon, a bowl of rich milk
and bread may be pleasantly varied by the addition of a ripe sweet
apple, pared and thinly sliced. If the fruit is not thoroughly ripe and
mellow, it is improved by slow baking until quite soft.

Baked Apples.--Select moderately tart or very juicy sweet apples, of
equal size. Wash them, remove the cores (or at least the blossom ends)
and any imperfections, with the skin also, if it is objectionable. Put
in a shallow baking dish, and fill the cavities with sugar and such
flavoring as seems to be demanded, allowing from one-third to one-half
of a cup of sugar and about one-fourth of a teaspoonful of nutmeg or
cinnamon to eight apples, with sometimes the juice and grated rind of
half a lemon. Cover the bottom of the dish with boiling water (which may
need to be replenished if the fruit is not very juicy), and bake in a
hot oven until soft, basting often with the syrup in the dish. Sweet
apples need to bake longer and more slowly than sour, and when done
should be very soft. Set the baking dish in a cool place until the fruit
is almost cold, then transfer the apples to a glass dish and pour the
syrup, which should be thick and amber colored, around them.

Apples in Bloom. (By consent, from "Boston Cooking