Science of food & cookery

Pick the greens over carefully, and wash in several waters to remove grit. If the greens are very tender, lift them out of the water, drain well, and put them into a saucepan with a little salt and vegetable butter to season, adding no water. Cover, and cook until done, turning them over in the pan now and then. When greens are more matured, cook them in deep boiling water with the cover off. When done, drain, cut fine, and season with vegetable butter and salt to taste. Reheat, and serve with quartered lemon or hard-boiled egg, or both. CREAMED SPINACH Put il/2 tablespoons vegetable butter into a saucepan, and when melted, add y2 tablespoon flour, and stir for a few moments. Add i quart of cooked and minced spinach, as given in the preceding recipe, and stir over the fire for 5 minutes ; then add I cup hot cream or rich milk, cook a few minutes longer, and serve. BEET GREENS Young beet tops, or the young plants pulled from the bed where sown too thick, make delicious greens, particularly if the root has attained some little size. Wash thoroughly in many waters, put into a stewpan (roots and leaves), cover generously with boiling water, salt to taste, and let boil quite rapidly for about 30 minutes, or until tender. Drain, saving the water for soups or gravies, and chop rather coarse. Season with vegetable butter and salt, reheat, and serve. SWISS CHARD This vegetable is a variety of the beet in which the leaf stalk and the midrib have been developed instead of the root. The green, tender leaves are prepared exactly like spinach. When full-grown, the midribs should be removed, and cooked like celery. BROWNED PARSNIPS Wash and scrape parsnips, and cook in salted boiling water until well done. Remove the vessel from the fire, and let stand until cold, preferably overnight. Drain the vegetables, cut in two lengthwise, lay in an oiled baking pan, brush over each piece with an oiled brush, cover with another inverted pan, and bake for 20 minutes or a half hour; then remove the top pan, and brown lightly. BAKED PARSNIPS Prepare and cook parsnips as in the preceding recipe, drain, lay the pieces in an oiled baking pan, pour a spoonful of rich cream sauce over each piece, and bake to a light brown. STEWED PARSNIPS WITH EGG SAUCE Prepare the parsnips for cooking, the same as in the foregoing recipe. Slice, or cut into small pieces, cover with water, add salt to taste, and boil gently until done. Drain, add enough egg sauce to season well, reheat, and serve. SUMMER SQUASH When young and tender, sunimer squash need only be washed and quartered, put into a steamer or a strainer over a kettle of boiling water, and cooked for about 30 minutes, or until tender. Mash, and season with a little salt, and rich cream or vegetable butter. If very watery, press out part of the juice between two colanders, before mashing. ' BAKED STUFFED SQUASH