The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1917-05-26
SOUPS THAT NOURlSH

Although Cledr soups. winch are
largely water, contain little nourish-
ment, some thick soups, broths, and
chowders are literally meal in
themselves, according to the dietary
specialists of the United States De-
partment of Agriculture. Even
thin soup, taken at the beginning of
meal, by its warmth and pleasant
flavor may stimulate digestion, so
that the heavier foods are more easily
digested and the combination of soup
and bread is pleasant and leads to the
eating of more bread or crackers
than would be consumed ordinarily.
Appetizing soups also may be made
often of materials which otherwise
would be wasted. In this way such
materials are made to contribute
whatever food value they may have
for the cost of the labor and fuel
needed to prepare them.
One of the purposes which food
serves in the body is to furnish en-
ergy for its muscular work, and one
way of comparing the relative food
value of different foods is to COM
pare the amounts of energy which
they furnish, or. as psychologists call
it, their fuel values. A cup ii. e.
one-half pint of a large soup plate
fuD of milk soup favored with
vegetables yields a little more energy
to the body than the same amount
of milk. A thick meat soup with
pieces of meat and vegetables in it.
a fish chowder, or a rich vegetable
soup, such as cream Of tomato, yields
half again as much energy as the
milk; while a thin soup like bouillon.
consomme, or clear tomato soup,
yields not quite two-thirds as much
as the milk, and less than half as
much as the thick soup or chowder.
A generous serving of thick meat
soup or fish chowder yields more
energy than an ordinary portion of
roast beef, and even moderate
helping Of vegetable milk soup usu-
ally furnishes fully as much body
fuel as a moderate sized rib chop
of lamb.
There are other things to be con-
sldered besides energy in connection
with the food value of differet
kinds of food. One is the amount of
the substance called protein with
out which the body can not build
and maintain it's tissues. Meat and
milk soups contribute some Of
needed protein. Meat, poultry, fish,
eggs, milk, cheese, dried peas, beans,
and other legumes are the common
foods In which protein is the most
abundant, though it also appears in
fair amounts in the cereal foods such
as bread, breakfast foods, macaroni
rice and the like.
The Soup Pot a Means of Economy.
Since many of the protei-rich foods
are among the most expensive of
those in common use, it is especially
important to make the fullest pos
sible use Of what is bought. Not all
of the meat which we buy is suit
able for use as such. The masses
of fat which are trimmed off be-
fore cooking or are left on the plat
tiers may be saved, rendered, and
used in cooking, while the bones,
grlstle, and other refuse parts find
their best use in the soup pot, where
the long, slow cooking in water
draws out the gelatin, fat, and bther
nutritive material they contain. This
stock, as the resulting liquid is
called, may serve as the basis not
only of a great variety Of soups, but
also of gravfes and sauces, and may
be used for cooking vegetables, rice,
and similar foods. When it is used
Tor soup, its flavor may be varied
by addig various vegetables, such
as carrots, onions, tomatoes, turnips,
and celery. It may be thickened
with flour, bread crumbs, or okra.
Boiled rice, barley, macaroni, and
other pastes and croutons, small
pieces Of stale bread fried q deli
cate brown in deep fat may be put
in to increase the food value of
soup and vary it's appearance and
taste.
Milk Soups and Vegetable Purees,
Soup is not necessarily made from
meat stock. Vegetable soups or pu-
rees are made by boiling potatoes,
beans, peas, or other vegetables until
soft, MASKING through sieve and
then heating with a little liquid
(Water, milk, soup stock, or what
ever seems desirable) and flavoring.
Using leftover vegetables for such
purees, is an economical practice.
Milk soups, which are really milk
thickened and favored with some
vegetable, fish, or other food to give
flavor, and perhaps thickened still
more with a little flour or stale
bread crumbs, are both nutritious
and appetizing. Thep furnish also
an excellent means of using up skim
milk. Those who wish to bring
tho ~ eI,@