THE parfaits, mousses, and biscuits (pronounced, in French, "biskwee") are particularly practical desserts, as they need no stirring during the freezing process. Taken as a whole there are perhaps no desserts other than the multitudes of frozen ones that so pleasantly bring a dinner to its close. They are practical, too. They can be made and left to ripen some hours before serving. This enables the cook to set the dessert aside and do all the rest of her work up to the last minute. And again, they are less trouble to prepare than pies, cakes, or puddings.

These simple concoctions are in general a light ice cream, having as a base custard, creams, whipped eggs reinforced with fruits, syrups, and gelatine; or combinations of these. The most frequent base is whipped cream. The cream must be beaten until very stiff, flavored as desired, and placed in a mold in the ice for three to four hours. All ingredients must be carefully folded into the cream to preserve the mosslike texture of the frozen product. Gelatine can be used with thin cream; and the whip of thin cream as well. The proportions of sugar and flavorings are about double those needed for an ordinary pudding which is not to be frozen.

When using fruit it is generally better to use the juices, or pulp, as bits of fruit may become too much like lumps of ice.

The difference between parfaits and mousses may be said to consist in the use of eggs and syrups in parfaits and the sugar and gelatine in mousses. The biscuits are merely mousses molded in individual forms.

How To Mold These Desserts

While preparing the mixture, place the mold on ice until it is thoroughly cold, then put in the mixture by spoonfuls and spread it carefully throughout the mold. Fill so that when the cover is put on some of the mixture will be forced out. Cover the top of the mold (before putting on the lid) with buttered paper or soft wrapping paper a little larger than the surface to be covered. Put on the cover, and bury the mold in the freezing mixture for from three to four hours. If this method is followed, no salt can possibly enter the mold.

To Freeze

The ordinary proportion for freezing is three parts of ice to one of rock salt, but here we suggest two parts of ice to one of rock salt. When rock salt and ice of about the same size are mixed, the salt melts the ice. In this way the salt, too, dissolves, so that both solids are liquefied. The heat which causes this to happen is drawn from the ice cream which is to be frozen, as it is by this extraction of heat that the freezing process takes place. The best ice for freezing is porous or snow ice, as the air holes permit the salt's easy access to the ice, causing it to melt rapidly. Do not draw off the water in the freezer until the ice floats on top (this liquid is colder than the unmelted ice), because the freezing process is at its height and the water from this time on will rise in temperature and can then be drawn off. If necessary, at this point, more of the freezing mixture can be added.