My mother's cook book

The beets must be carefully washed in cold water, taking care not to break off the fine fibrous roots in order that they may not bleed in boiling and so lose their color. Put them when washed into a large saucepan with plenty of boiling water and boil them until a skewer or fork will pierce easily to their centres. When tender drain off the boiling water, and taking each beet separately, rub off their skins in a clean dry towel. Take four of the beets and cut them into slices about a quarter of an inch in thickness. Place these slices into a vegetable dish, melt the butter and pour it over them, and sprinkling„over also the pepper and salt, they are ready to serve. Meantime while the beets have been boiling, the vinegar, mace and peppercorns must have been put together in a saucepan and boiled five minutes. When the remaining two beets have been also sliced and arranged in a vegetable dish the prepared vinegar should be thrown over them and the whole put away to become cold before serving. Notes.— Beets prepared as above with the vinegar will keep for a week if desired. Beets, as well as potatoes may be baked in the oven and will be found very sweet ; but a long time is required to have them become Il6 VEGETABLES. thoroughly baked, the length of which must be determined by testing with a skewer. Macaroni and Cheese. — Three ounces of macaroni, 'three ounces of grated Parmesan cheese, one-half pint of milk, two ounces of butter, one gill of cream, one egg, one teaspoonful of dry mustard, one saltspoonful of grated nutmeg, one saltspoonful of salt, one saltspoonful of peppet. Wash the maccaroni in cold water, and removing it from the water, place it into a saucepan, cover it with cold water, and let it boil in this for fifteen minutes. At the end of this time drain off the water, cover the maccaroni with the milk, and allow all to boil for threequarters of an hour longer. When this is done put the cream into a bowl, beat it until very light, add the egg and beat both together until thoroughly blended. Season this mixture with the pepper, salt, cayenne and mustard, pour into it the boiled maccaroni, add to this two ounces of the cheese and one ounce of the butter, and wheii all has been well mixed; pour it out upon a platter, sprinkle over the remainder of the cheese, and distribute over also the remaining ounce of butter in small pieces. Place the plattet in a moderate oven and bake its contents for ten minutes, and serve at once upon the dish upon which it is prepared, Egg-Plant. — One small egg-plant, two eggs, four tablespoonfuls of bread crumbs, one-half teaspoonful of salt, one^half teaspoonful of pepper, three ounces of butter. Slice the egg-plant very thinly, and pour over the slices some boiling water, allowing them to soak in this for ten minutes. CHICKEN SALAD. "7 At the end of this time drain the water from them, and dry them very thoroughly with a towel. Beat the eggs until very light, dip the slices of eggplant into this one by one, season the bread crumbs with the pepper and salt, and roll the egg-plant in turn in this; melting an ounce of butter in a frying-pan, put into this when hot, as many of the slices of the plant as will lay flatly in the pan, and fry them to a delicate brown on both sides. Add then a little more butter to that already in the pan, let it become hot and fry as many more as the pan will conveniently hold. Continue thus, adding butter and frying until all of the slices of egg-plant are done, when they should be served arranged upon a flat vegetable dish. SALADS. Chicken Salad. — One chicken, one teaspoonful of .salt, one teaspoonful of white pepper, one-half head of celery, one grain of cayenne, yolks of two eggs, one tablespoonful of vinegar, one tablespoonful of capers, one head of lettuce, one gill of salad oil.