Mennonite Country-Style Recipes & Kitchen Secrets

Amateur chef Shank's compilation, which fairly bursts with unpretentious recipes and kitchen tips, is a boon for novice or busy cooks. Most of the hearty, appetizing dishes reflect the Mennonite hallmarks of simplicity, thrift, moderation and common sense. Shank shares her considerable expertise on coffee, breads, pastry, canning, freezing, preserving and leftovers, distinguishing the various meat cuts and cleaning fish. Nonfood recipes include old-time mustard plaster, prewash stain treatment and liquid fertilizer for houseplants. The offerings are overwhelmingly nostalgicsweet-potato biscuits, banana-pudding cake, Rice Krispies marshmallow squares, ham-and-cheese bake, country chicken 'n' biscuits, hamburger and spaghetti pies, sausage-and-cabbage dinner, clam chowderbut there are also helpful microwave recipes and hints. A quick-fix section is valuable for its time-saving recipes and advice, but Shank relies here on convenience foods, a deviation from traditional Mennonite cookery. Illustrations. (August 8)