Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-10

| this time Is not composed of youthful
| corn growers, bread makers even am
| bilious farmers. Instead. ii is made up
| of housewives. and he teaches through
the medium OF one Of the regular bulle-
| tins of the Department OF Agriculture.
| This latest publication is really text
| book on the use and preparation of vege-
| table foods. The bulletin was written by
| Anna BarroWs director, School of Do
| mestic Science. Chautauqua. y. V, and
| instructor, School of Household Arts. Co
| lumbia University. and Prof. o. I. Mason
| gives an interesting account OF the evo-
luton OF the use o. plant products as
| food.
|
| Concerning salads. Miss Barrows says:
''Cress. lettuce and other salad plants.
| carelessly cultivated and handled in the
market and half cleaned in the kitchen.
/ may transmit disease. The fashion of
| cutting across a head of lettuce or celery.
| though it may give each person fair
| share of the choice and less tender por-
| tons. cannot be recommended, because
it is practically impossible TO cleanse the
/ axis of the leaves. the grooves where
/ they join the stem. All such plants
| should be separated in their natural d.
visions and washed i'm more than one
| water. Vegetables, such as spinach,
which are difficult to free from grit.
/ should be washed in number OF wa
| tiers and lifted out of the pan each time
in loose handfuls before the water has
drained off. In this way the sand and
| grit have an opportunity to sink TO the
| bottom of the pan and can be rinsed out.
| If the water is poured from the pan with
| the vegetable still in 1t part OF the sand
at least is again distributed over the
washed leaves.
| Green vegetables also should he looked
| over carefully to make sure that any
| inferior portions. insects or other unde
| srable things are removed. Salt In the
water will aid in drawing out parasites.
| while washing in running water has IA
| distinct advantage. After having washed
salad plants they can be drained wrap
| ped in a clotn or put i'm a clean paper
| bag and kept in a cool cellar or refrigera-
| tor. where they will remain crisp for
some hours, and even a day.
In cleansing salad, the coarsest poI-
tons may be laid aside to add To soup
materials, and the next best may not be
attractive to serve by themselves but
can be cut shredded for combination
with other materials, while the best of
all-the heart of the cabbage, celery or
lettuce-should be served il. the least
elaborate way, with salt or a simple
dressing. No plan for serving salads.
however, should be encouraged which
| leads to waste of food material. If it
| is desired to use the outer portion of a
cabbage for salad bowl, any adherinE
dressing may afterward be washed off
and the cabbage used for scallop or
soup. The outer leaves of lettuce. too.
may be cooked for greens or soup. The
unpleasant odor and favor which result
| from cooking cabbage can be obviated in
large measure by cooking uncovered, and
/ In an abundance Of water"
| Rightly used. and in small quantities."
| says the writer garlic is ce<sidered a
desirable seasoning by most trained
cooks. A salad may be favored by rub
I HING he diGh yx-if1a fhn crtrf
/ Glove of garlic. Leeks also can be used.
when cooked. To prepare, remove the
! fine roots and green ends of the leaves
and cut the white portions in three-inch
| lengths. Wash and cook i'm boiling water
until tender: that is, for twenty minutes
| or more. Serve on buttered toast like
| asparagus, or with white sauce. The
| water in which leeks are cooked may be
| used in soups.
:: y
''Chive is perennial of this same race
| the leaves of which have a delicate APP
| petizing flavor frequently relished by
| those who object TO the stronger onion
| lavors Chives are sometimes used as
| border plant in flower gardens. having
an attractive blue blossom. \ clump oil
| these tiny bulbs will grow for weeks
| in the house: if they are planted in
dish of mixed ferns the peculiar shade Of
tractive combination with the other
plants, and the fine stalks may be cut
as needed to flavor salads and soups.
The essential oil is abundant that
very small quantity of the leaf suffices.
ITO prepare onions peel under water
SO that the volatile bodies which affect
the eyes may remain in the water and be
kept from scattering. Where the onions
are especially strong or liable to prove in
digestible they may be put. after peeling.
| into boiling water to each quart of which
one-fourth teaspoon of bicarbonate of
soda has been added After letting them
stand in this water half an hour drain
and boil in plenty of sailed water from
| one-half to two hours. according TO the
nature of the variety, changing the water
If desirable. The water in which onions
are boiled will contain much flavor, and
some of it may be reserved to flavor
| soups, either milk or stock.
1.-THE prominence of the white potato IN
the daily diet Of most American justifies
special attention.
Potatoes should weigh sixty pounds to
| the bushel. or fifteen pounds to the peck.
As three or four average potatoes will
together weigh one pound. peck should
| number from forty to sixty. When re-
ceived from the market 1T is desirable To
sort them carefully, that those OF the
same size may be cooked together ,
smooth, medium ones to be baked, large
ones to be steamed in their skins and I'M
perfect and inferior ones to be pared be-
fore boiling. Any portions that are dark
cOlOred or green should be removed, as
they impart bad flavor to the rest,
while sprouts should be broken from
potatoes before cooking When potatoes
are old and wrinkled they are much i'm
proved by cutting off the ends or by par-
TALLY or wholly pairing and by soaking in
cold water for several hours like dried
beans.
'The beet gives an excellent illustration
of the difference between the young and
old plant. The whole plant in an i'm
mature state may be cooked for greens,
but by the time the beet is as large as an
egg the leafstalk Is too fibrous to use.
Radishes, red or white, when a little too
large to eat raw may be cooked like
turnips and served with a white sauce.
Carrots can be used in number Of ways,
besides making greens OF the young
leaves. When grated. raw carrots may
be used in soups without further cooking.
or added to salads The carrot contains
SO much sugar that its use for sugar
making, in the same way as the beet, has
been seriously considered. Parsnips,
when frozen, become softened. Young
parsnips just from the ground in the
spring will cook in less than half an
hour. If steamed in their skins they lose
less sweetness than by boiling.
Green corn with potatoes and onion.
with the addition of milk, etc, makes
as good a chowder as fish In the opin-
ion of many. Potatoes boiled and cut