Parsnips with Potatoes.—Wash, scrape, and slice enough parsnips to make two and a half quarts. Pare and slice enough potatoes to make one pint. Cook together in a small quantity of water. When tender, mash smoothly, add salt, the yolks of two eggs well beaten, and a cup of rich milk. Beat well together, put into an earthen or china dish, and brown lightly in the oven.
Stewed Parsnips.—Prepare and boil for a half hour; drain, cover with rich milk, add salt if desired, and stew gently till tender.
Stewed Parsnips with Celery.—Prepare and steam or boil some nice ones until about half done. If boiled, drain thoroughly; add salt if desired, and a tablespoonful of minced celery. Turn rich boiling milk over them, cover, and stew fifteen or twenty minutes, or till perfectly tender.
Description.—The garden carrot is a cultivated variety of a plant belonging to theUmbettiferæ, and grows wild in many portions of Europe. The root has long been used for food. By the ancient Greeks and Romans it was much esteemed as a salad. The carrot is said to have been introduced into England by Flemish refugees during the reigns of Elizabeth and James I. Its feathery leaves were used by the ladies as an adornment for their headdresses, in place of plumes. Carrots contain sugar enough for making a syrup from them; they also yield by fermentation and distillation a spirituous liquor. In Germany they are sometimes cut into small pieces, and roasted as a substitute for coffee.
Starch does not enter into the composition of carrots, but a small portion of pectose is found instead. Carrots contain more water than parsnips, and both much cellulose and little nutritive material. Carrots when well cooked form a wholesome food, but one not adapted to weak stomachs, as they are rather hard to digest and tend to flatulence.
Preparation and Cooking.—The suggestions given for the preparation of parsnips are also applicable to carrots; and they may be boiled, steamed, or browned in the same manner. From one to two hours time will be required, according to age, size, variety, and method of cooking.
Boiled Carrots.—Clean, scrape, drop into boiling water, and cook till tender; drain thoroughly, slice, and serve with a cream sauce. Varieties with strong flavor are better parboiled for fifteen or twenty minutes, and put into fresh boiling water to finish.
Carrots with Egg Sauce.—Wash and scrape well; slice and throw into boiling water, or else steam. When tender, drain thoroughly, and pour over them a sauce prepared the same as for parsnips (page 244), with the addition of a tablespoonful of sugar. Let them boil up once, and serve.
Stewed Carrots.—Prepare young and tender carrots, drop into boiling water, and cook for fifteen or twenty minutes. Drain, slice, and put into a stewpan with rich milk or cream nearly to cover; simmer gently until tender; season with salt and a little chopped parsley.
Description.—The beet is a native of the coasts of the Mediterranean, and is said to owe its botanical name,beta, to a fancied resemblance to the Greek letter B. Two varieties are in common use as food, the white and the red beet; while a sub-variety, the sugar beet, is largely cultivated in France, in connection with the beet-sugar industry in that country. The same industry has recently been introduced into this country. It is grown extensively in Germany and Russia, for the same pose, and is also used there in the manufacture of alcohol.
The beet root is characterized by its unusual amount of sugar. It is considered more nutritive than any other esculent tuber except the potato, but the time required for its digestion exceeds that of most vegetables, being three and three fourths hours.
Preparation and Cooking.—Beets, like other tubers, should be fresh, unshriveled, and healthy. Wash carefully, scrubbing with a soft brush to remove all particles of dirt; but avoid scraping, cutting, or breaking, lest the sweet juices escape. In handling for storage, be careful not to bruise or break the skins; and in purchasing from the market, select only such as are perfect.
Beets may be boiled, baked, or steamed. In boiling, if the skin is cut or broken, the juice will escape in the water, and the flavor will be injured; for this reason, beets should not be punctured with a fork to find if done. When tender, the thickest part will yield readily to pressure of the fingers. Beets should be boiled in just as little water as possible, and they will be much better if it has all evaporated by the time they are cooked.
Young beets will boil in one hour, while old beets require from three to five hours; if tough, wilted, and stringy, they cannot be boiled tender. Baked beets require from three to six hours.
Baked Beets.—Beets are far better baked than boiled, though it takes a longer time to cook properly. French cooks bake them slowly six hours in a covered dish, the bottom of which is lined with well-moistened rye straw; however, they may be baked on the oven grate, like potatoes. Wipe dry after washing, and bake slowly. They are very nice served with a sauce made of equal quantities of lemon juice and whipped cream, with a little salt.
Baked Beets No. 2.—Wash young and tender beets, and place in an earthen baking dish with a very little water; as it evaporates, add more, which must be of boiling temperature. Set into a moderate oven, and according to size of the beets, bake slowly from two to three hours. When tender, remove the skins and dress with lemon juice or cream sauce.
Beets and Potatoes.—Boil newly matured potatoes and young beets separately till tender; then peel and slice. Put thorn in alternate layers in a vegetable dish, with salt to taste, and enough sweet cream nearly to cover. Brown in the oven, and serve at once.
Beet Hash.—Chop quite finely an equal quantity of cold boiled or baked beets and boiled or baked potatoes. Put into a shallow saucepan, add salt and sufficient hot cream to moisten. Toss frequently, and cook until well heated throughout. Serve hot.
Beet Greens.—Take young, tender beets, clean thoroughly without separating the tops and roots. Examine the leaves carefully, and pick off inferior ones. Put into boiling water, and cook for nearly an hour. Drain, press out all water, and chop quite fine. Serve with a dressing of lemon juice or cream, as preferred.
Beet Salad, or Chopped Beets.—Cold boiled or baked beets, chopped quite fine, but not minced, make a nice salad when served with a dressing of lemon juice and whipped cream in the proportion of three tablespoonfuls of lemon juice to one half cup of whipped cream, and salt if desired.
Beet Salad No. 2.—Chop equal parts of boiled beets and fresh young cabbage. Mix thoroughly, add salt to taste, a few tablespoonfuls of sugar, and cover with diluted lemon juice. Equal quantities of cold boiled beets and cold boiled potatoes, chopped fine, thoroughly mixed, and served with a dressing of lemon juice and whipped cream, make a palatable salad. Care should be taken in the preparation of these and the preceding salad, not to chop the vegetables so fine as to admit of their being eaten without mastication.
Boiled Beets.—Wash carefully, drop into boiling water, and cook until tender. When done, drop into cold water for a minute, when the skins can be easily rubbed off with the hand. Slice, and serve hot with lemon juice or with a cream sauce.
Stewed Beets.—Bake beets according to recipe No. 2. Peel, cut in slices, turn into a saucepan, nearly cover with thin cream, simmer for ten or fifteen minutes, add salt if desired, and thicken the gravy with a little corn starch or flour.
Description.—The common white garden cabbage is one of the oldest of cultivated vegetables. A variety of the plant known as red cabbage was the delight of ancient gourmands more than eighteen centuries ago. The Egyptians adored it, erected altars to it, and made it the first dish at their repasts. In this they were imitated by the Greeks and Romans.
Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, considered the cabbage one of the most valuable of remedies, and often prescribed a dish of boiled cabbage to be eaten with salt for patients suffering with violent colic. Erasistratus looked upon it as a sovereign remedy against paralysis, while Cato in his writings affirmed it to be a panacea for all diseases, and believed the use the Romans made of it to have been the means whereby they were able, during six hundred years, to do without the assistance of physicians, whom they had expelled from their territory. The learned philosopher, Pythagoras, composed books in which he lauded its wonderful virtues.
The Germans are so fond of cabbage that it enters into the composition of a majority of their culinary products. The cabbage was first raised in England about 1640, by Sir Anthony Ashley. That this epoch, important to the English horticultural and culinary world, may never be forgotten, a cabbage is represented upon Sir Anthony's monument.
The nutritive value of the cabbage is not high, nearly ninety per cent being water; but it forms an agreeable variety in the list of vegetable foods, and is said to possess marked antiscorbutic virtue. It is, however, difficult of digestion, and therefore not suited to weak stomachs. It would be impossible to sustain life for a lengthened period upon cabbage, since to supply the body with sufficient food elements, the quantity would exceed the rate of digestion and the capacity of the stomach.
M. Chevreul, a French scientist, has ascertained that the peculiar odor given off during the boiling of cabbage is due to the disengagement of sulphureted hydrogen. Cabbage is said to be more easily digested raw than cooked.
Preparation and Cooking.—A good cabbage should have a well-developed, firm head, with fresh, crisp leaves, free from worm-holes and decayed portions. To prepare for cooking, stalk, shake well to free from dirt, and if there are any signs of insects, lay in cold salted water for an hour or so to drive them out. Rinse away the salt water, and if to be boiled, drop into a small quantity of boiling water. Cover closely and boil vigorously until tender. If cooked slowly, it will be watery and stringy, while overdone cabbage is especially insipid and flavorless. If too much water has been used, remove the cover, that evaporation may go on more rapidly; if too little, replenish with boiling water. Cabbage should be cooked in a porcelain-lined or granite-ware sauce pan or a very clean iron kettle. Cabbage may also be steamed, but care must be taken to have the process as rapid as possible. Fresh young cabbage will cook in about one hour; old cabbage requires from two to three hours.
Baked Cabbage.—Prepare and chop a firm head of young white cabbage, boil until tender, drain, and set aside until nearly cold. Then add two well-beaten eggs, salt to taste, and a half cup of thin cream or rich milk. Mix and bake in a pudding dish until lightly browned.
Boiled Cabbage.—Carefully clean a nice head of cabbage, divide into halves, and with a sharp knife slice very thin, cutting from the center of the head outward. Put into boiling water, cover closely, and cook rapidly until tender; then turn into a colander and drain, pressing gently with the back of a plate. Return to the kettle, add salt to taste, and sufficient sweet cream to moisten well, heat through if at all cooled, dish, and serve at once. If preferred, the cream may be omitted, and the cabbage served with tomato sauce or lemon juice as a dressing.
Cabbage and Tomatoes.—Boil finely chopped cabbage in as little water as possible. When tender, add half the quantity of hot stewed tomatoes, boil together for a few minutes, being careful to avoid burning, season with salt if desired, and serve. If preferred, a little sweet cream may be added just before serving.
Cabbage Celery.—A firm, crisp head of cabbage cut in slices half an inch or an inch thick, and then again into pieces four or five inches long and two or three inches wide, makes a quite appetizing substitute for celery.
Cabbage Hash.—Chop fine, equal parts of cold boiled potatoes and boiled cabbage, and season with salt. To each quart of the mixture add one half or three fourths of a cup of thin cream; mix well and boil till well heated.
Chopped Cabbage or Cabbage Salad.—Take one pint of finely chopped cabbage; pour over it a dressing made of three tablespoonfuls of lemon juice, two tablespoonfuls of sugar, and a half cup of whipped cream, thoroughly beaten together in the order named; or serve with sugar and diluted lemon juice.
Mashed Cabbage.—Cut a fine head of cabbage into quarters, and cook until tender. A half hour before it is done, drop in three good-sized potatoes. When done, take all up in a colander together, press out the water, and mash very fine. Season with cream, and salt if desired.
Stewed Cabbage.Chop nice cabbage quite fine, and put it into boiling water, letting it boil twenty minutes. Turn into a colander and drain thoroughly; return to the kettle, cover with milk, and let it boil till perfectly tender; season with salt and cream to taste. The beaten yolk of an egg, stirred in with the cream, is considered an improvement by some.
Description.—These vegetables are botanically allied to the cabbage, and are similar in composition. They are entirely the product of cultivation, and constitute the inflorescence of the plant, which horticultural art has made to grow into a compact head of white color in the cauliflower, and of varying shades of buff, green, and purple in the broccoli. There is very little difference between the two aside from the color, and they are treated alike for culinary purposes. They were known to the Greeks and Romans, and highly appreciated by connoisseurs. They are not as nutritious as the cabbage, but have a more delicate and agreeable flavor.
Preparation and Cooking.—The leaves should be green and fresh, and the heads of cauliflower creamy white; when there are dark spots, it is wilted. The color of broccoli will depend upon the variety, but the head should be firm, with no discolorations. To prepare, pick off the outside leaves, cut the stalk squarely across, about two inches below the flower, and if very thick, split and wash thoroughly in several waters; or better still, hold it under the faucet, flower downward, and allow a constant stream of water to fall over it for several minutes; then place top downward in a pan of lukewarm salted water, to drive out any insects which may be hidden in it; examine carefully for worms just the color of the stalk; tie in a net (mosquito netting, say) to prevent breaking, or place the cauliflower on a plate in a steamer, and boil, or steam, as is most convenient. The time required for cooking will vary from twenty to forty minutes.
(The recipes given are applicable to both broccoli and cauliflower.)
Boiled Cauliflower.—Prepare, divide into neat branches, and tie securely in a net. Put into boiling milk and water, equal quantities, and cook until the main stalks are tender. Boil rapidly the first five minutes, afterward more moderately, to prevent the flower from becoming done before the stalks. Serve on a hot dish with cream sauce or diluted lemon juice.
Browned Cauliflower.—Beat together two eggs, a little salt, four tablespoonfuls of sweet cream, and a small quantity of grated bread crumbs well moistened with a little milk, till of the consistency of batter. Steam the cauliflower until tender, separate it into small bunches, dip each top in the mixture, and place in nice order in a pudding dish; put in the oven and brown.
Cauliflower with Egg Sauce.—Steam the cauliflower until tender, separate into small portions, dish, and serve with an egg sauce prepared as directed for parsnips onpage 244.
Cauliflower with Tomato Sauce.—Boil or steam the cauliflower until tender. In another dish prepare a sauce with a pint of strained stewed smooth in a little water, and salted to taste. When the cauliflower is tender, dish, and pour over it the hot tomato sauce. If preferred, a tablespoonful of thick sweet cream may be added to the sauce before using.
Stewed Cauliflower.—Boil in as little water as possible, or steam until tender; separate into small portions, add milk, cream and salt to taste; stew together for a few minutes, and serve.
Scolloped Cauliflower.—Prepare the cauliflower, and steam or boil until tender. If boiled, use equal quantities of milk and water. Separate into bunches of equal size, place in a pudding dish, cover with a white or cream sauce, sprinkle with grated bread crumbs, and brown in the oven.
Description.—This plant is supposed to be a native of western Arabia. There are several varieties which are prepared and served as "greens." Spinach is largely composed of water. It is considered a wholesome vegetable, with slightly laxative properties.
Preparation and Cooking.—Use only tender plants or the tender leaves of the older stalks, and be sure to have enough, as spinach shrinks greatly. A peck is not too much for a family of four or five. Pick it over very carefully, trim off the roots and decayed leaves, and all tough, stringy stalks, and the coarse fibers of the leaves, as those will not cook tender until the leaves are overdone. Wash in several waters, lifting grit. Shake each bunch well. Spinach is best cooked in its own juices; this may be best accomplished by cooking it in adouble boiler, or if placed in a pot and slowly heated, it will however, be stirred frequently at first, to prevent burning; cover closely and cook until tender. The time required will vary from twenty minutes to half an hour or more. If water is used in the cooking, have a half kettleful boiling when the spinach is put in, and continue to boil rapidly until the leaves are perfectly tender; then drain in a colander, press with the back of a plate to extract all water, chop very fine, and either serve with lemon juice as a dressing, or add a half cup of sweet cream with or without a teaspoonful of sugar. Boil up once, stirring constantly, and serve very hot. A garnish of sliced boiled eggs is often employed with this vegetable.
Description.—The common celery is a native of Great Britain. In its wild state it has a strong, disagreeable taste and smell, and is known assmallage. By cultivation it becomes more mild and sweet. It is usually eaten uncooked as a salad herb, or introduced into soups as a flavouring. In its raw state, it is difficult of digestion.
Celery from the market may be kept fresh for some time by wrapping the bunches in brown paper, sprinkling them with water, then wrapping in a damp cloth and putting in some cool, dark place.
Celery Salad.—Break the stems apart, cut off all green portions, and after washing well put in cold water for an hour or so before serving.
Stewed Celery.—Cut the tender inner parts of celery heads into pieces about a finger long. The outer and more fibrous stalks may be saved to season soups. Put in a stewpan, and add sufficient water to cover; then cover the pan closely, and set it where it will just simmer for an hour, or until the celery is perfectly tender. When cooked, add a pint of rich milk, part cream if you have it, salt to taste, and when boiling, stir in a tablespoon of flour rubbed smooth in a little milk. Boil up once and serve.
Stewed Celery No. 2.—Cut the white part of fine heads of celery into small pieces, blanch in boiling water, turn into a colander, and drain. Heat a cup and a half of milk to boiling in a stewpan; add the celery, and stew gently until tender. Remove the celery with a skimmer, and stir into the milk the beaten yolks of two eggs and one half cup of cream. Cook until thickened; pour over the celery, and serve.
Celery with Tomato Sauce.—Prepare the celery as in the preceding recipe, and cook until tender in a small quantity of boiling water. Drain in a colander, and for three cups of stewed celery prepare a sauce with a pint of strained stewed tomato, heated to boiling and thickened with a tablespoonful of flour rubbed smooth in a little cold water. If desired, add a half cup of thin cream. Turn over the celery, and serve hot.
Celery and Potato Hash.—To three cups of cold boiled or baked potato, chopped rather fine, add one cup of cooked celery, minced. Put season. Heat to boiling, tossing and stirring so that the whole will be heated throughout, and serve hot.
Description.—The asparagus is a native of Europe, and in its wild state is a sea-coast plant. The young shoots form the edible portion. The plant was known to the ancient Greeks and Romans, who not only used it as a table delicacy but considered it very useful in the treatment of internal diseases. Roman cooks provided themselves with a supply of the vegetable for winter use by cutting fine heads and drying them. When wanted, they were put into hot water and gently cooked.
The asparagus is remarkable as containing a crystalline alkaloid calledasparagin, which is thought to possess diuretic properties.
Preparation and Cooking.—Select fresh and tender asparagus. Those versed in its cultivation, assert that it should be cut at least three times a week, and barely to the ground. If it is necessary to keep the bunches for some time before cooking, stand them, tops uppermost, in water about one half inch deep, in the cellar or other cool place. Clean each stalk separately by swashing back and forth in a pan ofcold water till perfectly free from sand, then break off all the tough portions, cut in equal lengths, tie in bunches of half a dozen or more with soft tape, drop into boiling water barely sufficient to cover, and simmer gently until perfectly tender.
If the asparagus is to be stewed, break: (not cut) into small pieces; when it will not snap off quickly, the stalk is too tough for use.
Asparagus must be taken from the water just as soon as tender, while yet firm in appearance. If boiled soft, it loses its flavor and is uninviting. It is a good plan when it is to be divided before cooking, if the stalks are not perfectly tender, to boil the hardest portions first. Asparagus cooked in bunches is well done, if, when held by the thick end in a horizontal position between the fingers, it only bends lightly and does not fall heavily down.
The time required for boiling asparagus depends upon its freshness and age. Fresh, tender asparagus cooks in a very few minutes, so quickly, indeed, that the Roman emperor Augustus, intimating that any affair must be concluded without delay, was accustomed to say, "Let that be done quicker than you can cook asparagus." Fifteen or twenty minutes will suffice if young and fresh; if old, from thirty to fifty minutes will be required.
RECIPES.
Asparagus and Peas.—Asparagus and green peas make a nice dish served together, and if of proportionate age, require the same length of time to cook. Wash the asparagus, shell and look over the peas, put together into boiling water, cook, and serve as directed for stewed asparagus.
Asparagus Points.—Cut of enough heads in two-inch lengths to make three pints. Put into boiling water just sufficient to cover. When tender, drain off the water, add a half cup of cream, and salt if desired. Serve at once.
Asparagus on Toast.—Cook the asparagus in bunches, and when tender, drain and place on slices of nicely browned toast moistened in the asparagus liquor. Pour over all a cream sauce prepared as directed below.
Asparagus with Cream Sauce.—Thoroughly wash, tie in small bunches, and put into boiling water; boil till perfectly tender. Drain thoroughly,untie the bunches, place the stalks all the same way upon a hot plate, with a dressing prepared as follows: Let a pint of sweet cream (about six hours old is best) come to the boiling point, and stir into it salt to taste and a level tablespoonful of flour rubbed smooth with a little cold cream.
Asparagus with Egg Sauce.—Prepare and cook asparagus as directed above. When tender, drain thoroughly, and serve on a hot dish or on slices of nicely browned toast, with an egg sauce prepared in the following manner: Heat a half cup of rich milk to boiling, add salt, and turn into it very slowly the well-beaten yolk of an egg, stirring constantly at the same time. Let the whole just thicken, and remove from the fire at once.
Stewed Asparagus.—Wash, break into inch pieces, simmer till tender in water just to cover, add sufficient rich milk, part cream if convenient, to make a gravy, thicken slightly with flour, a teaspoonful to a pint of milk; add salt if desired, boil up together once, and serve.
Description.—This plant, a native of Britain, and much esteemed as a vegetable in England and on the Continent, is also in its wild state a sea-coast plant. When properly cooked, it is nutritious and easy of digestion. In appearance and flavor it greatly resembles asparagus, and the suggestions for cooking and recipes given for that vegetable are applicable to sea-kale.
Description.—These two vegetables, although wholly different, the one being the leaf of a plant, the other the root, are both so commonly served as relishes that we will speak of them together. Both have long been known and used. Wild lettuce is said to be the bitter herb which the Hebrews ate with the Paschal lamb. The ancient Greek and Roman epicures valued lettuce highly, and bestowed great care upon its cultivation, in some instances watering the plants with sweet wine instead of water, in order to communicate to them a delicate perfume and flavor. The common garden lettuce of the present dayis a hardy plant, which supplies an agreeable, digestible, and, when served with a wholesome dressing, unobjectionable salad.
The common radish is supposed to be indigenous to China. Ancient writers on foods mention the radish as used by the early Greeks and Romans, who fancied that at the end of three years its seed would produce cabbages. They had also the singular custom of making the radish the ignominious projectile with which in times of tumult the mob pursued persons whose political opinions had made them obnoxious. When quiet was restored, the disgraced vegetable was boiled and eaten with oil and vinegar. Common garden radishes are of different shapes and of various colors on the outside, there being black, violet, red, and white radishes. The inside portion of all, however, is white. They are sometimes cooked, but more commonly served raw. A dish of crisp, coral radishes adds beauty to the appearance of the table, but they are not possessed of a high nutritive value, being very similar to the turnip in composition, and unless very young, tender, and when eaten thoroughly masticated, are quite difficult of digestion.
Lettuce.—Wash well, put into cold water, and set on ice or on the cellar bottom for an hour or more before using. Dry the leaves with a soft towel and use whole or tear into convenient pieces with a silver fork; never cut with a knife. Serve with a dressing prepared of equal quantities of lemon juice and sugar, diluted with a little ice water; or, with a dressing of cream and sugar, in the proportion of three or four tablespoonfuls of thin cream to a teaspoonful of sugar. The dressing may be prepared, and after the sugar is dissolved, a very little lemon juice (just enough to thicken the cream slightly, but not sufficient to curdle it) may be added if desired.
Radishes.—Wash thoroughly young and tender radishes, and arrange in a glass dish with the taper ends meeting. Scatter bits of cracked ice among them. An inch of the stem, if left on, serve as a convenience in handling.
Description.—The vegetable marrow (sometimes called cymling) is thought to be a variety of the common gourd, from which also the pumpkin and winter squash appear to have been derived. It is easily digested, but on account of the abundance of water in its composition, its nutritive value is very low.
Preparation and Cooking.—When very young, most varieties need no preparation for cooking, aside from washing thoroughly. After cooking, the skin can be easily rubbed off and the seeds removed. If more mature, pare thinly, and if large, divide into halves or quarters and scoop out the seeds. Summer squashes are better steamed than boiled. If boiled, they should be cooked in so little water that it will be quite evaporated when they are tender. From twenty to sixty minutes will be required for cooking.
Mashed Squash.—Wash, peel, remove seeds, and steam until tender. Place the squash in a clean cloth, mash thoroughly, squeeze until the squash is quite dry, or rub through a fine colander and afterward simmer until neatly dry; season with cream, and a little salt if desired, and heat again before serving. A teaspoonful of sugar may be added with the cream, if desired.
Squash with Egg Sauce.—Prepare, steam till tender, cut into pieces, and serve with an egg sauce made the same as directed for asparagus,page 256.
Stewed Squash.—Prepare, cut into pieces, and stew until tender in a small quantity of boiling water; drain, pressing out all the water; serve on toast with cream or white sauce. Or, divide in quarters, remove the seeds, cook in a double boiler, in its own juices, which when done may be thickened with a little flour. Season with salt if desired, and serve hot.
The winter squash and pumpkin are allied in nature to the summer squash.
Preparation and Cooking.—Select squashes of a firm texture, wash, break in pieces with a hatchet if hard-shell, or if the shell is soft, divide with a knife; remove all seeds, and boil, stew, steam, or bake, as preferred.
To boil or steam, from thirty minutes to one hour's time will be needed; to bake, one to two hours.
Baked Squash..—The hard-shell varieties are best for baking. Wash, divide, and lay, shells downward, on the top grate of the oven, or place in a shallow baking dish with a little boiling water. Boil until tender, serve in the shell, or scrape out the soft part, mash and serve with two largo tablespoonful of cream to a pint of squash. If preferred, the skins may be removed before baking, and the squash served the same as sweet potato, for which it makes a good substitute.
Steamed Squash.—Prepare the squash, and steam until tender. Mash and season as for baked squash.
Description.—When our forefathers came to this country, they found the pumpkin growing in the Indian cornfields, and at once made use of it. Although as food it did not supply what its handsome exterior promised, yet in the absence of other fruits and relishes, of which the exigencies of a new country deprived them, they soon found the pumpkin quite palatable; and the taste, cultivated through necessity, has been handed down through generations, until the pumpkin stewed and baked in pies, has become an established favorite.
Baked Pumpkin.—Wash the pumpkin well on the outside, divide into quarters if small, into sixths or eighths if large; remove the seeds but not the rind. Bake as directed for squash. Serve in the rind, dishing it out by spoonfuls.
Stewed Pumpkin—Select a good, ripe pumpkin, and cut in halves; remove the seeds, slice halfway around, pare, cut into inch pieces, put over the fire in a kettle containing a small quantity of boiling water, and stew gently, stirring frequently until it breaks to pieces. Cool, rub through a colander, and place where it will just simmer, but not burn, until the water is all evaporated and the pumpkin dry. Pumpkin for pies is much richer baked like squash, and rubbed through a colander after the skin has been removed.
Dried Pumpkin.—Pumpkin may be dried and kept for future use. The best way is first to cut and stew the pumpkin, then spread on plates, and dry quickly in the oven. Dried in this manner, it is easily softened, when needed, by soaking in a small quantity of water, and is considered nearly as good as that freshly stewed.
Description.—The tomato, or "love apple," as it was called in the early part of the century, is a native of South America and Mexico. It was formerly regarded as poisonous, and though often planted and prized as a curiosity in the flower garden, it has only within the last half century come to be considered as a wholesome article of diet. Botanically, it is allied to the potato. It is an acid fruit, largely composed of water, and hence of low nutritive value; but it is justly esteemed as a relish, and is very serviceable to the cook in the preparation of soups and various mixed dishes.
Preparation and Cooking.—Tomatoes to be served in an uncooked state should be perfectly ripe and fresh. The medium-sized, smooth ones are the best. To peel, pour scalding water over them; let them remain for half a minute, plunge into cold water, allow them to cool, when the skins can be easily rubbed off. Tomatoes should always be cooked in porcelain or granite ware; iron makes them look dark, and beingslightly acid in character, they are not wholesome cooked in tin vessels.
Tomatoes require cooking a long time; one hour is needed, and two are better.
Baked Tomatoes.—Fill a pudding dish two thirds full of stewed tomatoes; season with salt, and sprinkle grated crumbs of good whole-wheat or Graham bread over it until the top looks dry. Brown in the oven, and serve with a cream dressing.
Baked Tomatoes No. 2.Wash and wipe a quantity of smooth, even-sized tomatoes; remove the stems with a sharp-pointed knife. Arrange on an earthen pudding or pie dish, and bake whole in a moderate oven. Serve with cream.
Scalloped Tomatoes.—Take a pint of stewed tomatoes, which have been rubbed through a colander, thicken with one and one fourth cups of lightly picked crumbs of Graham or whole-wheat bread, or a sufficient quantity to make it quite thick, add salt if desired, and a half cup of sweet cream, mix well, and bake for twenty minutes. Or, fill a pudding dish with alternate layers of peeled and sliced tomatoes and bread crumbs, letting the topmost layer be of tomatoes. Cover, and bake in a moderate oven for an hour or longer, according to depth. Uncover, and brown for ten or fifteen minutes.
Stewed Corn and Tomatoes.—Boil dried or fresh corn until perfectly tender, add to each cup of corn two cups of stewed, strained tomatoes, either canned or freshly cooked. Salt to taste, boil together for five or ten minutes, and serve plain or with a little cream added.
Tomato Gravy.—Heat to boiling one pint of strained stewed tomatoes, either canned or fresh, and thicken with a tablespoonful of flour rubbed smooth in a little water; add salt and when thickened, if desired, a half cup of hot cream. Boil together for a minute or two and serve at once.
Tomato Salad.—Select perfectly ripe tomatoes, and peel at least an hour before using. Slice, and place on ice or in a cool place. Serve plain or with lemon juice or sugar as preferred.
Tomato Salad No. 2.—Use one half small yellow tomatoes and one half red. Slice evenly and lay in the dish in alternate layers. Powder lightly with sugar, and turn over them a cupful of orange juice to a pint of tomato, or if preferred, the juice of lemons may be used instead. Set on ice and cool before serving.
Broiled Tomatoes.—Choose perfectly ripened but firm tomatoes of equal size. Place them on a wire broiler, and broil over glowing coals,from three to eight minutes, according to size, then turn and cook on the other side. Broil the stem end first. Serve hot with salt to season, and a little cream.
Tomato Pudding.—Fill an earthen pudding dish with alternate layers of stale bread and fresh tomatoes, peeled, sliced, and sprinkled lightly with sugar. Cover the dish and bake.
Stewed Tomatoes.—Peel and slice the tomatoes. Put them into a double boiler, without the addition of water, and stew for an hour or longer. When done, serve plain with a little sugar added, or season with salt and a tablespoonful of rather thick sweet cream to each pint of tomatoes. If the tomatoes are thin and very juicy, they may be thickened with a little flour rubbed smooth in a little cold water. They are much better, however, to stew a longer time until the water they contain is sufficiently evaporated to make them of the desired consistency. The stew may also be thickened, if desired, by the addition of bread crumbs, rice, or macaroni.
Tomato with Okra.—Wash the okra, cut off the stem and nibs, and slice thin. For a quart of sliced okra, peel and slice three large tomatoes. Stew the tomatoes for half an hour, then add the okra, and simmer together for half an hour longer. Season with salt and a little cream.
Description.—The egg plant, a vegetable indigenous to the East Indies, is somewhat allied in character to the tomato. In shape, it resembles an egg, from which fact it doubtless derives its name. It ranks low in nutritive value. When fresh, the plant is firm and has a smooth skin.
Scalloped Egg Plant.—Pare a fresh egg plant. If large, divide in quarters, if small, in halves, and put to cook in boiling water. Cook until it can be easily pierced with a straw, and drain in a colander. Turn into a hot dish, and beat with a silver fork until finely broken. Measure the egg plant, and add to it an equal quantity of graded bread crumbs, a little salt, and a tablespoonful of thick sweet cream. Lastly, add one well beaten egg. Put in an earthen pudding dish, and brown in the oven until the egg is set, and the whole is heated throughout but not dry.
Baked Egg Plant.—Wash and cook whole in boiling water until tender. Divide in halves, remove the inside with a spoon, taking care not to break the skin. Beat the egg plant smooth with a fork. Season with salt andcream, and if desired, a stalk of celery or a small slice of onion very finely minced, for flavor. Put back in the skin, sprinkle the top with bread crumbs, and brown the outside uppermost in the oven.