ARTICHOKES. No. 1.
Wash them thoroughly and remove the outside leaves. Drop into salted boiling water and cook for 20 or 30 minutes. Add a few drops of vinegar to the water while boiling. Serve warm with a white sauce or let cool and serve with French or mayonnaise dressing.
ARTICHOKES. No. 2.
Prepare like the foregoing; when tender put them into a deep bowl and squeeze diluted lemon juice over them, or use vinegar diluted with one half or third water. Let stand in sufficient liquid to cover the hearts well for 10 or 20 minutes. Serve with a white sauce or with French or mayonnaise dressing. Wheat or rye bread with butter is a good addition, also dried stewed fruit. If served for dinner, boiled eggs or egg-food of some kind should be added. If soup is desired, pea, tomato or milk soup is the most suitable. Olives also form a good addition.
People who suffer from obesity, or those who can not use much sweets, should always treat cooked vegetables (except potatoes) with acid as mentioned above. The volatile oils and bitter preservative qualities in vegetables evaporate in the process of cooking, leaving it with a sweetish taste, and making it more liable to ferment.
ASPARAGUS.
Wash and cut into inch pieces until the hard part of the stem is reached. Boil for 20 minutes, or until tender. Serve warm with butter, milk, cream, or egg sauce, or cold with French or mayonnaise dressing. The asparagus may be scraped and tied into bundles when boiling.
BEETS.
Remove the green tops and wash them carefully. Do not prick the skin, as the juice will then escape and injure the color as well as the flavor. Young beets will be tender in about one hour, older ones take two or three hours. When done, peel and slice. Serve with a butter or cream sauce, or plain, with butter and chopped parsley. For salad, cut into slices and pour over them boiling vinegar, diluted with one-half water. Add whole spices if desired.