Foods and home making

In the fir eless cooker dried legumes can be cooked economically. They can be very conveniently cooked in the heat-regulated oven. Luncheon or Supper 260 If these vegetables are cooked in the oven, it is well to cook other foods in the oven at the same time, so as to use fuel as economi- cally as possible. Recipes sometimes suggest adding baking soda to the water in which legumes are cooked. The baking soda may help some- what in softening the hard vegetables, but it is perhaps better not to use the soda. Although dried legumes are not rich Figure 88. Composition of a Dried Navy Bean Notice the high percentage of protein, but remember that the protein of this and other legumes is of poor quality and should be combined with, milk or eggs if used as a meat substitute. Notice the high percentage of carbohydrates. Vitamins: A+, B+ + . C*. G*. in vitamins, they contain vitamin B and some vitamin A. Cooking foods in water containing baking soda is believed to destroy the vitamins. BAKED BEANS 1 pound (2J cups') dried beans ^ teaspoon mustard 3 tablespoons molasses or brown sugar 31 cups boiling water 1 tablespoon salt 3 ounces salt pork or bacon Pick over the beans and wash them. Add enough cold water to cover the beans well. Cover and let stand over night or at least 6 hours. Then drain away the water in which the beans were soaked. The Main Luncheon Dish 261 Add the molasses, salt, mustard, and water to the beans. Place over a flame and heat until the mixture reaches the boiling point. Since salt pork and bacon are chiefly fat, they cannot be cleaned effectively by washing. Clean them by scraping the surface with a knife. Slice the pork or bacon or cut gashes in it almost to the rind. Add the fat meat to the hot beans. Pour the bean mixture into a bean crock or baking dish. Cover and place in the oven. Bake in a slow oven — 250° F. — for about 6 hours. Serve hot. Yield : 12 servings. Variation. — Dried lima beans may be baked as directed in the fore- going. SUMMARY Meat substitutes: 1. Eggs (good quality proteins) 2. Cheese (good quality proteins) 3. Legumes (beans, peas, lentils) (poor quality proteins ; need to be combined with milk, eggs, or cheese to make good meat substitutes) Approximate composition of eggs (edible portion) (see Figure 32, page 99) : Proteins (good quality) — about 12% Fat — about 12% Water • — about 75% Mineral matter — less than 1% Carbohydrates — none Vitamins — A++, B+ to ++, C, G+ ++. (See Note i,p. 37.) Two classifications of cheese: I. 1. Hard, such as American or Cheddar 2. Soft, such as cottage cheese, Neufchatel, or Philadelphia cream II. 1. Unripened, such as cottage cheese 2. Ripened, such as Swiss cheese Approximate composition of hard cheese (see Figure 86, page 256) : Proteins (good quality) — 25% Fat — 33% Water — 34% Mineral matter — 4% Carbohydrates — 2% Vitamins — A+ + to + ++, B, C, G+. (See Note 1, p. 37.) 262 Luncheon or Supper Approximate composition of dried beans (see Figure 88, page 260), peas, lentils: Proteins (poor quality) — 25% Fat — very little Water — 10% Mineral matter — 4% Carbohydrates — 60% Vitamins — A+, B ++, C, G. (See Note 1, p. 37.) REVIEW QUESTIONS AND EXERCISES