Put a quart can of tomatoes in a saucepan over the fire with half an onion, three cloves, a bay leaf, a sprig of parsley, a saltspoonful of sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook until the onion is tender—about ten minutes—remove from the fire, press through a sieve fine enough to retain the seeds. Put this in a spider; rub an even teaspoonful of potato flour with a tablespoonful of butter, add to the sauce, and when it boils break in as many eggs as required, keep them from sticking to the pan by running a tablespoon carefully around the edges; when the eggs are set remove from the sauce, place each one on a round of nice toast and pour the sauce around them; garnish with parsley and serve.
[EGGS IN A BROWN SAUCE.]
Boil hard as many eggs as needed and cut either lengthwise in quarters or in round slices. Brown a tablespoonful of butter and one of flour together, add a small onion, cut fine; when thick and smooth add enough vegetable stock to make the sauce the proper consistency, season with salt and pepper and strain. Put the egg slices in the sauce, let it come to the boiling point and serve on a small platter; garnish with parsley. Half a dozen olives boiled in a little water and cut from the stones are a nice addition to the sauce.
Soups.
Bran tea, made in the proportion of a pint of bran to three quarts of water, is used by many vegetarians as a foundation for soup. Butter should be used generously with it.
A broth made from white beans is also good where a white stock is required. Pick over the beans carefully, soak over night, drain and add fresh water in the morning—three pints of water to a pint of beans—cook gently until tender. If it is to be used as a stock, strain without mashing the beans. If the water they are boiled in is hard, a small pinch of soda will soften it.
[CREAM OF JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES.]
Wash and peel enough artichokes to make a pint when cut in slices. Put them in a saucepan with a tablespoonful of butter, let them simmer in this for a few minutes without taking color, then cover with water and boil until tender. Rub through a sieve, put back on the stove with a quart of milk, and a tablespoonful of butter rubbed into a tablespoonful—slightly heaping—of flour, season to taste with salt and pepper, let it come to a boil. Remove from the fire and add two egg yolks, beaten with half a cup of cream, stir rapidly, and serve at once.