Salsifis although a very favourite vegetable on the continent and very
plentiful in England, is seldom used, but I hope the following recipes
will tend to bring it more in vogue.
Choose fifteen or twenty young ones, scrape the black skin, cut them
into pieces three inches long, rub each piece with lemon and throw them
into water, then put two onions, a carrot, one turnip, and a head of
celery, all cut small into a stewpan, with a handful of parsley, a
quarter of a pound of lean ham, a little thyme, two bay-leaves, and a
quarter of a pound of beef suet chopped fine, stir it over a sharp fire
ten minutes, then add two ounces of flour, (stir well in,) fill up with
two quarts of water, with the juice of a lemon, stir it till it boils,
then put in your salsifis which stew gently till tender, take them out
and lay them upon a cloth to drain, then put a pint of white sauce (No.
7) into another stewpan, with half a pint of white stock, stir over a
sharp fire till boiling, then add twenty button mushrooms and a
teaspoonful of chopped parsley; season with a little pepper, salt,
grated nutmeg, and powdered sugar, put in the salsifis, let simmer
gently for half an hour, (the sauce must be rather thick,) take out and
dress it in two rows upon a border of mashed potatoes, finish the sauce
with a liaison of two yolks of eggs mixed with a gill of cream, stir
over the fire till it thickens but do not let it boil; sauce over and
serve.