Woman's Institute Library of Cookery Volume II Part 20

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 16]

128. BAKED EGGPLANT.--An attractive dish can be made by removing the contents from an eggplant, filling the cavity with a well-seasoned stuffing, and then baking the stuffed eggplant. When an eggplant is prepared in this way, it will appear as in Fig. 16.

BAKED EGGPLANT (Sufficient to Serve Six)

1 medium-sized eggplant 2 c. dried bread crumbs 1/2 c. milk 2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 1 small onion, chopped 1 Tb. parsley 2 Tb. b.u.t.ter

Wash the eggplant and cook in boiling water for about 10 minutes. Remove from the water, cut off the top, scoop out the contents, and chop it into small pieces. With this finely chopped pulp, mix the bread crumbs, milk, salt, pepper, onion, parsley, and melted b.u.t.ter. When the whole is thoroughly blended, pack it into the sh.e.l.l of the eggplant and place in the oven. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the stuffing is thoroughly cooked and the top is brown. Serve hot.

129. SCALLOPED EGGPLANT.--If it is desired to increase the food value of eggplant and improve its flavor too, this vegetable should be scalloped.

The accompanying recipe carefully followed will produce a most appetizing dish.

SCALLOPED EGGPLANT (Sufficient to Serve Six)

1 medium-sized eggplant 1 c. dried crumbs 2 Tb. b.u.t.ter 2 tsp. salt 1/8 tsp. pepper 1-1/2 c. milk

Peel the eggplant and cut it into 1/2-inch pieces. Put into a saucepan, cover with boiling salted water, cook until tender, and then drain.

Grease a baking dish, spread 1/4 cupful of crumbs on the bottom, and add one-half of the eggplant. Dot with b.u.t.ter and then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add another 1/4 cupful of crumbs and the remaining eggplant, dot again with b.u.t.ter, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the milk over the whole and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cupful of crumbs on the top. Place in the oven and bake for 1/2 hour or more. Serve hot.

FRENCH ARTICHOKES AND THEIR PREPARATION

130. FRENCH ARTICHOKES, sometimes known as _globe artichokes, California artichokes_, and _cardoons_, are related to the family of thistles. They are grown for the sake of their large flower-heads, or buds, which are shown in Fig. 17 and which are much used as a food. These plants stand storage and shipment very well and may be kept for long periods of time without spoiling. It is therefore possible to transport them considerable distances, a very gratifying fact, since most persons consider artichokes a great delicacy.

131. Not all of the artichoke plant is eaten. The portions of the flower that develop in the center of the base are removed before the base is eaten. After the artichokes are cooked, the scales, or leaves, are pulled from the cooked head with the fingers and the lower part of each one is dipped into sauce and eaten. The inner scales are much more tender and edible than the coa.r.s.e outside ones. Although artichokes find favor with many and are considered somewhat of a delicacy, they are low in food value, being about equal to asparagus in this respect. To add food material, a dressing, such as drawn-b.u.t.ter sauce or mayonnaise dressing, is usually served.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 17]

132. ARTICHOKES WITH HOLLANDAISE SAUCE.--The usual method of preparing artichokes is to boil them and then serve them with melted b.u.t.ter or a sauce. Hollandaise dressing is used with the artichokes shown in Fig.

18. Boiled artichokes may also be cooled and then served with a salad dressing.

Secure the desired number of artichokes and prepare them for boiling by pulling off the coa.r.s.e outside leaves, cutting off the top of the bud, and removing the stem close to the bud. Cover well with boiling water, add 1 teaspoonful of salt to each quart, and boil until tender, or for about 45 minutes. Remove from the water and serve hot with melted b.u.t.ter or Hollandaise sauce. If it is desired to use them for a salad, allow them to cool before adding the salad dressing.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 18]

VEGETABLES (PART 1)

EXAMINATION QUESTIONS

(1) (_a_) To what is the flavor of vegetables largely due? (_b_) How does cookery affect this?

(2) Describe the structure of vegetables.

(3) What food substances do vegetables as a cla.s.s supply to the diet?

(4) (_a_) What are the legumes? (_b_) What food substance do they supply in quant.i.ty to the diet?

(5) Name the cla.s.ses of vegetables and give examples of each cla.s.s.

(6) (_a_) When is soaking vegetables in salt water necessary? (_b_) What proportions of salt and water are used?

(7) What effect has the application of heat on vegetables?

(8) Give an example of a method of cooking vegetables that: (_a_) wastes food material; (_b_) conserves food material.

(9) Give the reason for the use of soda in cooking vegetables.

(10) How should salt be used in the cooking of: (_a_) tender vegetables?

(_b_) tough vegetables?

(11) Why should care be taken not to overcook cabbage, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts?

(12) What is a good general rule to follow for the length of time necessary for cooking vegetables?

(13) Of what value are the sauces used to dress vegetables?

(14) Mention some methods of preparing vegetables that greatly increase their food value.

(15) What value has the addition of salt pork or bacon in the preparation of dried beans?

(16) (_a_) Why should the cover be left off the kettle during the cooking of cabbage? (_b_) What other vegetables are cooked in this way?

(17) Explain why old carrots and beets require longer cooking than young ones.

(18) (_a_) At what stage is green corn best for table use? (_b_) How may this be recognized?

(19) What value have corn pulp and bean puree?

(20) (_a_) How should cuc.u.mbers be prepared before serving raw? (_b_) How may the strong flavor of eggplant be improved?

VEGETABLES (PART 2) * * * * *

PREPARATION OF VEGETABLES AS FOOD (Continued)

GREENS AND THEIR PREPARATION

VARIETIES AND FOOD VALUE

1. Varieties of Greens.--The leaves and stems of many young plants in either their wild or their cultivated form are used for food. All of them are similar in composition, but many of them differ in flavor and appearance. The cultivated ones include beet tops, endive, spinach, and kale, as well as lettuce, collards, Swiss chard, sorrel, mustard greens, turnip tops, parsley, and cultivated cress and dandelion. The four greens mentioned first are ill.u.s.trated in Fig. 1, beet tops being shown in the lower right corner; endive, in the upper right corner; spinach, in the lower left corner; and kale, in the upper left corner. Commonest among the wild greens are dandelion, cress, wild mustard, dock, pokeweed sprouts, milkweed sprouts, and lamb's-quarters. Most of these wild varieties are excellent in the spring when they are young and tender, but it is not advisable to use them for food unless one is perfectly familiar with their appearance.

2. Food Value of Greens.--The food value of all greens with the exception of dandelion is very low, being just about equal to that of celery and cuc.u.mbers. This may be increased in their preparation by the addition of other food materials. However, the chief use of greens in the diet is not to supply food value, but mineral salts, the most important one being iron in a form that is necessary for building up the blood.

GENERAL DIRECTIONS FOR COOKING GREENS