Omaha daily bee., 1910-02-06

dictitlans. cost is greatly masnlned by the
housekeeper's unwiliingness to take time
and trouble to prepare the dry legumes.
Bought dry and carefully done. they are
better and cheaper than when canned.
with legumes. as with most articles Of
food, they add, the cost is greatly In
creased by the ever growing demand for
food products out OF season. People demand
fresh string beans principally at the time
fresh string beans are out OF season.
The common white bean, the white pea
bean, the red kidney, the yellow eye. the
black turtle, the white lima, the imported
green flageolets, these are some Of the
varieties any grocer can show. There is
the whole pea and the split pea, the green
and the yellow. There are many types
OF leguminous plants which are almost IN
known to New Workers but which Japan
has found to be of great nutritive value.
Soup is by no means the only method
Of the legume's preparation. Baked or
broiled, alone or in combinations. appear
ing as salads or croquettes, the legume Of
large protein constituency. is a compare
lively cheap substitute for meat.
The peanut is the richest in fat Of the
iegumes. As basis of cream soup, as fill
ing substance for sandwiches. as salad
dressing in combination with oil and vine
gar. the food value of the peanut may be
we'll attested.
At the correspondingly high prices which
prevail for milk and eggs, ft is rather
doubtful whether their substitute for meat
makes for economy. Yet only a very mod
crate proportion OF milk or egg serves to
place many combinations OF vegetables
or Of cereals nutrtiyely beside the steak
or roast.
Egg and milk compounds, rich caramel
custards, should not be used as a supple
mentary desert. They are worth substitu-
tlon into the place of meat. The same
holds for ice cream or mousse. The eight
or ten eggs ignorantly used in many a
cake recipe are equivalent to a pound Of
medium fat meat.
Cereal foods and bread, though contain
ing fat and protein are not meat substi-
tutes. They contain too much starch which
is valuable, but must be supplemented.
The onion, turnip, carrot and eggplant,
combined with bread crumbs and butter
or cream, furnish fuel value and so replace
meat.
Horace Fletcher, the masticator, while
not protesting to be a vegetarian In the
strict sense, says that in the present age
of hurried eating and overeating the vege-
tartan undoubtedly has the advantage.
Archbishop Ireland attributes the high
cost Of living to the Ignorance of the
American woman In matters relating to
housekeeping and cooking.
Americans do not know how to save in
cooking he says, land what they do
cook they don't know how to prepare in
a manner to make it ~palatable and health
giving"
The department of foods and cookery
at Teachers college bears out this state
meut, saying that housekeepers today are
not willing to prepare the cheaper cuts of
meat, which would be in the highest de-
gree nutritive If adequately prepared. But
the big call is for the more tender cuts;
the supply is not equal to the demand ana
the prices soar.
When a fowl is bought the breast and
joints are used but the nutriive assets of
the neck and feet and legs are not drained,
and the less used of the bought article
the higher price is paid.
In the question of substitutes for meat
many factors enter. The fat and protein
components must be equalled; the assimi-
latlng qualities must be as ready and
complete, and the form and the smell and
the taste must appeal to the eater In like
degree as does the original. There is every
likelihood that 1t is the flavor of meat that
Is more keenly missed than any nutrive
quality Of it. Yet even in this line the
vegetable kingdom is manifesting pos
sibilities.
In vegetable soups and sauces a lightly
burned sugar caramel almost matches the
brown meat flavor. Drowned bread
croutons for soups. coarse crumbs for
scalloped vegetables and fine ones for
croquettes suggest animal tissues In their
flavor. If mans senses can be sufficiently
deceived the greatest problem in finding
meat substitutes will be solved; vegetarians
may abound.