General Method of Cooking Vegetables. — Most of the fresh vegetables should be put into boiling salted water to cook, the amount of water used varying with the amount present in the vegetable to be cooked. Tomatoes do not require the addition of any water, and spinach may be cooked with the water left on the leaves after washing. Green vegetables should boil rapidly during the cooking, but for potatoes the boiling should be gentle, that the vegetable may not be broken. To prevent them from being watery, the boiling should be uninterrupted. All vegetables should be well cooked, but they should remain firm, except for soups. They should be thoroughly drained, and such vegetables as spinach, cabbage, and turnips should be pressed lightly to remove part of the water. Peas and beans cannot be cooked tender in hard water, hence the salt should be added during the last part of the cooking. A very small amount of soda may be added to the water in which the beans and peas are cooked to soften the water. Vegetables are cooked to soften the cellulose, to cause the starch granules to swell and burst, to coagulate the protein, and to develop flavor. VEGETABLES 33 Potatoes. — Potatoes are native to South America and were brought from there to North America. They were introduced into Europe by the Spaniards in the sixteenth century, into Ireland by Sir John Hawkins in 1565, and into England by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1586. Potatoes belong botanically to the same family as the tobacco and deadly nightshade. They contain a bitter juice called solanine, which lies in and near the skin. This is drawn out into the water when they are boiled or is given off in the steam when they are baked. For this reason the custom of using for bread making the water in which potatoes have been boiled is not desirable. If potatoes have to stand after being baked, they should be pierced with a fork to allow the steam to escape. As potatoes are deficient both in protein and in fat, they are usually eaten with milk, eggs, etc., and with some form of fat. The protein of potatoes is largely in the form of albumen which, with the mineral matter, is dissolved in the moisture or juice. As albumen is soluble in cold water, there is an appreciable loss of it when the potatoes are peeled, cut in pieces, and soaked in cold water. When potatoes are placed in boiling water, the starch granules swell and burst and absorb the juice, the albumen coagulates, or is absorbed by the starch, and the mineral matter also is retained. Potatoe's should be kept in a dry, cool place, and any sprouts which may appear should be removed. Boiled Potatoes Wash and peel potatoes, put them into boiling salted water, using 1 ts. salt to every quart of water✪ Boiled Potatoes. Cook about thirty minutes or until tender. Drain well. Put the kettle, uncovered, on the back of the stove and shake it gently to allow the steam to escape D 34 DOMESTIC SCIENCE and make the potatoes mealy. Cover the kettle with a towel, which will keep them hot and absorb the steam. Mashed Potatoes Mash potatoes in the kettle in which they were boiled, beating until light with a wire potato masher, and moistening with hot milk. Add 1 or 2 tb. butter, ^ ts. salt, and a speck of pepper to every pint of potatoes.✪ Mashed Potatoes When beaten until white, creamy, and free from lumps, pile them lightly in a warm vegetable dish. Serve very hot.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

General Method of Cooking Vegetables. — Most of the fresh vegetables should be put into boiling salted water to cook, the amount of water used varying with the amount present in the vegetable to be cooked. Tomatoes do not require the addition of any water, and spinach may be cooked with the water left on the leaves after washing. Green vegetables should boil rapidly during the cooking, but for potatoes the boiling should be gentle, that the vegetable may not be broken. To prevent them from being watery, the boiling should be uninterrupted. All vegetables should be well cooked, but they should remain firm, except for soups. They should be thoroughly drained, and such vegetables as spinach, cabbage, and turnips should be pressed lightly to remove part of the water. Peas and beans cannot be cooked tender in hard water, hence the salt should be added during the last part of the cooking. A very small amount of soda may be added to the water in which the beans and peas are cooked to soften the water. Vegetables are cooked to soften the cellulose, to cause the starch granules to swell and burst, to coagulate the protein, and to develop flavor. Potatoes. — Potatoes are native to South America and were brought from there to North America. They were introduced into Europe by the Spaniards in the sixteenth century, into Ireland by Sir John Hawkins in 1565, and into England by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1586. Potatoes belong botanically to the same family as the tobacco and deadly nightshade. They contain a bitter juice called solanine, which lies in and near the skin. This is drawn out into the water when they are boiled or is given off in the steam when they are baked. For this reason the custom of using for bread making the water in which potatoes have been boiled is not desirable. If potatoes have to stand after being baked, they should be pierced with a fork to allow the steam to escape. As potatoes are deficient both in protein and in fat, they are usually eaten with milk, eggs, etc., and with some form of fat. The protein of potatoes is largely in the form of albumen which, with the mineral matter, is dissolved in the moisture or juice. As albumen is soluble in cold water, there is an appreciable loss of it when the potatoes are peeled, cut in pieces, and soaked in cold water. When potatoes are placed in boiling water, the starch granules swell and burst and absorb the juice, the albumen coagulates, or is absorbed by the starch, and the mineral matter also is retained. Potatoes should be kept in a dry, cool place, and any sprouts which may appear should be removed. Boiled Potatoes Wash and peel potatoes, put them into boiling salted water, using 1 ts. salt to every quart of water. Cook about thirty minutes or until tender. Drain well. Put the kettle, uncovered, on the back of the stove and shake it gently to allow the steam to escape D and make the potatoes mealy. Cover the kettle with a towel, which will keep them hot and absorb the steam. Mashed Potatoes Mash potatoes in the kettle in which they were boiled, beating until light with a wire potato masher, and moistening with hot milk. Add 1 or 2 tb. butter, ^ ts. salt, and a speck of pepper to every pint of potatoes. When beaten until white, creamy, and free from lumps, pile them lightly in a warm vegetable dish. Serve very hot.

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A textbook of domestic science for high schools