"Dear me, that sounds pretty hard!" said Mildred, as she finished.
"Cookies are not quite as easy to make as some other things, but they are so good, so nice for luncheon and suppers and other times, that I think you will be glad to know how to make them. And Father is so fond of cookies!"
"So he is. Well, Mother, I'll try them. And now what comes next?"
"Some cunning, easy little cakes, so easy that next time Brownie can make them herself. They are called:"
20 round, thin crackers. 20 marshmallows. 2 tablespoonfuls of chopped nuts. 2 teaspoonfuls of butter.
Butter the crackers on one side, just a little; put a marshmallow on each, a tiny bit of butter on it, and a sprinkle of chopped nuts of any kind. Put them in a shallow pan, and bake till they are soft and brown; eat while fresh and warm.
"Oh, lovely! Mother, I must have some of the girls in and have those for myself!"
"So you shall, any day you want to. Now don't you think that is almost enough for the picnic?"
"I think we ought to have something to finish off with--to eat with the cookies and marguerites; don't you think so?"
"Yes, I do; something in the way of fruit. Suppose we give them this--it is much nicer than plain oranges or bananas; write it down, dear."
6 large oranges. 2 bananas. 2 tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar.
Cut the oranges in halves; take out the pulp with a spoon, and put it in a bowl. Scrape out the inside, leaving nice, clean shells, and then scallop or point the edges with the scissors. Peel the bananas, cut them in long, narrow strips, and these into small bits, and mix lightly with the orange, and add the sugar; heap in the baskets and set away to grow cold.
"If we happened to have any pineapple or white grapes in the house, I should put some of those in too; but these will be delicious just as they are. Now anything more?"
"Something to drink with the lunch. I think pink lemonade would be nice."
"Perfectly lovely!" laughed Mother Blair. "We will get a can of raspberries out of the fruit closet, and make something for them that will be ever so good. This is the rule:"
8 lemons. 12 glasses of water. 3 cups of sugar. 1 cup of raspberry juice.
Roll the lemons till they are soft; cut them and squeeze the juice out. Put the sugar in a little pan with a glass of water, and boil it two minutes; add this to the lemon and raspberry juice, and strain it; add the rest of the water; serve with broken ice in a glass pitcher.