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.
ASPARAGUS.
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 called
_asparagin_, 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 of cold 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.
SEA-KALE.
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.
LETTUCE AND RADISH.
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 day is 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.
_RECIPES._
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.
CYMLING, SUMMER SQUASH, OR VEGETABLE MARROW.
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.
_RECIPES._
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.
WINTER SQUASHES.
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.
_RECIPES._
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.
THE PUMPKIN.
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.
_RECIPES._
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.
TOMATO.
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 being
slightly 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.
_RECIPES._
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.
EGG PLANT.
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.
_RECIPES._
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 and cream, 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.
CUCUMBER.
DESCRIPTION.--The cucumber is a native of Southern Asia, although
it is quite commonly cultivated in most civilized countries. It formed a
part of the dietary of the Israelites when in Egypt, where it grew very
plentifully. The ancient Greeks held the cucumber in high esteem, and
attributed to it wonderful properties.
The cucumber is not a nutritious vegetable, and when served in its raw
state, as it so generally is, dressed with salt, vinegar, pepper, and
similar condiments, it is an exceedingly indigestible article. If it is
to be eaten at all, it should first be cooked. It may be pared, divided
in quarters, the seeds removed, and cooked in a small quantity of water
until perfectly tender, and served on toast with an egg sauce or a cream
sauce; or it may be prepared the same as directed for Escalloped Egg
Plant.
SALSIFY, OR VEGETABLE OYSTER.
DESCRIPTION.--The vegetable oyster plant, sometimes called purple
goat's-beard, or salsify, is indigenous to some portions of Great
Britain. The long, slender root becomes fleshy and tender under
cultivation, with a flavor, when cooked, somewhat resembling that of the
mollusk for which it is named. On this account, it is much esteemed for
soups. A variety of the plant grows near the line of perpetual snow, and
forms the principal article of fresh vegetable food in the dietary of
Kurdistan.
PREPARATION AND COOKING.--Select fresh and unshriveled roots, wash
and scrape well, dropping into cold water as soon as cleaned, to prevent
discoloration. If the roots are covered with cold water for a half hour
or more before scraping, they can be cleaned much easier. Use a
porcelain-lined kettle, for cooking, as an iron one will discolor it
and injure its flavor. From twenty minutes to one hour, according to
age, is required to cook it tender.
_RECIPES._
SCALLOPED VEGETABLE OYSTERS.--Boil two quarts of sliced vegetable
oysters in about two quarts of water until very tender. Skim them out,
and fill a pudding dish with alternate layers of crumbs and oysters,
having a layer of crumbs for the top. To the water in which they were
boiled, add a pint and a half of thin cream, salt to taste, boil up, and
thicken with a heaping tablespoonful or two of flour rubbed smooth in a
little cold cream. Pour this over the oysters and crumbs, and bake a
half hour. If this is not enough to cover well, add more cream or milk.
Stewed tomatoes are a nice accompaniment for escalloped vegetable
oysters.
STEWED VEGETABLE OYSTERS.--Wash, scrape, and cut into slices not
more than one half inch in thickness. Put into a small quantity of
boiling water and cook until tender. If a large quantity of water is
used, the savory juices escape, and leave the roots very insipid. When
tender, pour in a cup of rich milk and simmer for five or ten minutes;
add a little flour rubbed smooth in milk, and salt if desired; boil up
once, and serve as a vegetable or on slices of nicely browned toast. If
preferred, a well-beaten egg may be used in the place of flour.
GREEN CORN, PEAS, AND BEANS.
DESCRIPTION.--Corn, peas, and beans in their immature state are so
nearly allied to vegetables, that we give in this connection recipes for
cooking green corn, green beans, and green peas. A general rule
applicable to all is that they should, when possible, be cooked and
eaten the day they are gathered, as otherwise they lose much of their
sweetness and flavor. For corn, select young, tender, well-filled ears,
from which the milk will spurt when the grain is broken with the finger
nail. Beans and peas are fresh only when the pods are green, plump, snap
crisply when broken, and have unshriveled stems. If the pods bend and
appear wilted, they are stale. Corn, peas, and beans are wholesome and
nutritious foods when thoroughly cooked and sufficiently masticated, but
they are almost indigestible unless the hull, or skin, of each pea,
bean, or grain of corn, be broken before being swallowed.
_RECIPES FOR CORN._
BAKED CORN.--Select nice fresh ears of tender corn of as nearly
equal size as possible. Open the husks and remove all the silk from the
corn; replace and tie the husks around the ears with a thread. Put the
corn in a hot oven, and bake thirty minutes or until tender. Remove the
husks before serving.
BAKED CORN NO. 2.--Scrape enough corn from the cob (as directed
below for Corn Pulp) to make one and a half quarts. Put into a baking
dish, season with salt if desired, add enough milk, part cream if
convenient, barely to cover the corn, and bake in a hot oven twenty-five
or thirty minutes.
BOILED GREEN CORN.--Remove the husks and every thread of the silk
fiber. Place in a kettle, the larger ears at the bottom, with sufficient
boiling water nearly to cover. Cover with the clean inner husks, and
cook from twenty to thirty minutes, according to the age of the corn;
too much cooking hardens it and detracts from its flavor. Try a kernel,
and when the milk has thickened, and a raw taste is no longer apparent,
it is sufficiently cooked. Green corn is said to be sweeter, boiled with
the inner husks on. For cooking in this way, strip off all outer husks,
and remove the silk, tying the inner husk around the ear with a bit of
thread, and boil. Remove from the kettle, place in a heated dish, cover
with a napkin and serve at once on the cob. Some recommend scoring or
splitting the corn by drawing a sharp knife through each row lengthwise.
This is a wise precaution against insufficient mastication.
STEWED CORN PULP.--Take six ears of green corn or enough to make a
pint of raw pulp; with a sharp knife cut a thin shaving from each row of
kernels or score each kernel, and with the back of the knife scrape out
the pulp, taking care to leave the hulls on the cob. Heat a cup and a
half of rich milk--part cream if it can be afforded--to boiling, add the
corn, cook twenty or thirty minutes; season with salt and a teaspoonful
of sugar if desired.
CORN CAKES.--To a pint of corn pulp add two well-beaten eggs and
two tablespoonfuls of flour; season with salt if desired, and brown on a
griddle. Canned corn finely chopped can be used, but two tablespoonfuls
of milk should be added, as the corn is less moist.
CORN PUDDING.--One quart of corn pulp prepared as for stewing, one
quart of milk, three eggs, and a little salt. Mix the corn with a pint
of the milk, and heat it to boiling. Break the eggs into the remainder
of the milk, and add it to the corn, turn all into an oiled pudding
dish, and bake slowly until the custard is well set.