VEGETABLES AND LEGUMES
Vegetables
There are few sights in the market so handsome as a display of fresh vegetables piled in colorful pyramids or laid out in neat rows. But how sad to think of the future many of them face. What once was a snowy head of cauliflower will appear on a dining room table as a soggy, yellow lump. Crisp green beans will be cooked until they are grayish and limp.
It’s hard to say whether vegetables are often poorly prepared because people dislike them or disliked because poorly prepared. Some food experts claim vegetables are eaten mainly because they are supposed to be good for us, and that our hearty ancestors ignored them and concentrated on vast meals of game, meat, poultry and sweets. Many fabulous old menus list no vegetables of any sort; but the omission can be explained by the fact that the most impressive menus of the past are derived from Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. In former times, people had no knowledge of canning, no refrigerated transportation to bring foods from far away. Winter was a time without fresh produce, but in warmer months our ancestors eagerly ate vegetables from their kitchen gardens. Plans of these gardens show they grew a vast array of vegetables, herbs and fruits, a much larger selection than most modern families eat.
A very old cookbook from the fourteenth century, one giving recipes of the chief cooks for King Richard II, describes how to prepare spinach, cabbage and a truly royal “salat” composed of leeks, fennel, cresses (watercress), porette (greens), onions and many herbs—these to be flavored with oil, vinegar and salt. Very tasty.
The Chinese and French, two peoples famed for their cookery, both respect vegetables and give them fine treatment. In the Orient, tender asparagus, snow peas or young green beans are cooked gently, just to the done stage, and served up still a little on the bitey side. The French excel in using various seasonings with vegetables, giving them an added richness and flavor. We can learn from both French and Chinese.
General rules for buying vegetables
The first step toward having tasty vegetable dishes is to select a good product. Of course, the fresher and crisper the vegetable is, the better. Wilted, tired vegetables can be freshened to some degree by soaking in icy water, but there hardly seems much point in buying them in the first place for they will never recapture the true fresh flavor. If you can buy direct from the grower, so much the better. You can have a steady supply of fresh products. Otherwise, select a market that takes care of its produce well, keeping it damped down and cool.
It is usually wise to buy the foods that are in season. They have a shorter distance to travel and are generally cheaper. The food page of most urban newspapers will give information on seasonal produce. Out-of-sea-son vegetables, though sometimes excellent, are apt to be expensive. These days we have such a fine choice of frozen vegetables, picked at the height of the season, that winter menus offer no problems. Sometimes, too, canned vegetables are a good choice. Compare price and quality before deciding.
Try to buy your fresh vegetables often, rather than buying larger amounts at a time and storing them in your refrigerator. They stay crisp, it is true, but they do lose some flavor.
Don’t stick to the old, familiar favorites. We have a large variety of vegetables available in our markets, and if you experiment a little, you may have some pleasant surprises.
General rules for cooking vegetables
Most vegetables—particularly the nontuberous ones, those that grow above ground—are delicate pieces of plant life. They should be cooked quickly in as little liquid as possible and served up at once while they still have their fresh taste. Five minutes too long in an oven will not absolutely ruin a beef roast, but five minutes too long in boiling water will turn the finest green vegetable to mush.
Plunge vegetables into boiling water slightly salted (about ½ teaspoon of salt to 2 cups of water) and use as little water as possible. If the vegetables are green, do not cover the pan, this helps them retain the green color.
White vegetables (cauliflower, onions, celeriac, white turnips, etc.) will stay whiter if the pan is covered. A dash of lemon juice or vinegar helps too.
Cook gently in boiling water, testing with a fork at frequent intervals. As soon as the vegetable is done (and do not let it get too done; it will be best if still a little firm), remove it from the fire and drain immediately. If you let cooked vegetables stand in the hot water, they lose their color and go limp.
Frozen vegetables have adequate instructions for cooking on the package. Be sure to follow them accurately.
The following recipes give specific instructions for cooking the best-known vegetables in a variety of ways, and include suggestions for seasoning or sauces. At the end of the chapter are recipes for dishes combining several vegetables.
Artichoke (Globe or French)
This winter vegetable, known as the globe or French artichoke, looks like a large green thistle. Many people have never tried it because it presents such a formidable appearance; they don’t know how to eat it. This is sad indeed, for they miss one of the tastiest and richest of vegetables. How-to-eat instructions follow, but first, how to buy: Look for artichokes that are bright green and have tightly packed leaves. Force a few of the leaves apart slightly and look inside for worm damage. Worms can nibble away at the base of the leaves and not show on the outer part of the thistle. Brownish streaks and spots mean age or frost damage. Such artichokes are sometimes still good eating, but look inside to see if the inner part of the leaves is still fresh and crisp, and do not pay a high price for them. The size of the artichoke does not affect quality. Buy one per person.
Eating the artichoke is fairly complicated. Because it demands the eater’s undivided attention, it is usually served as a separate course—either as a first course or immediately following the meat. If served with the meat, it should be served on a separate plate, large enough to hold all the discarded leaves. With each artichoke goes an individual bowl of sauce—melted butter, mayonnaise or Hollandaise.
To eat, pull the leaves off one at a time, dip the base of each leaf in the sauce and nibble off the fleshy end. Discard the rest of the leaf. Use your fingers for this operation, of course. When all the outer leaves are removed, you come to the tiny undeveloped leaves growing out of the heart. Pull these off and discard them, and with a knife cut out the feathery “choke” underneath. This exposes the most delectable part of the artichoke—the base. Cut this in bite-size pieces with your fork, spear each one, and dip it in the sauce.
And now for the cooking:
BOILED ARTICHOKES
1 artichoke per person
Water to cover
Salt
4 tablespoons of sauce per person (melted butter, Hollandaise or mayonnaise)
Be sure you have a deep kettle, large enough to hold all the artichokes standing upright. Fill the kettle with enough water to cover the artichokes and add 1 teaspoon of salt for each quart of water. Bring this to a boil. Meanwhile, cut the stem ends off so that the artichokes will stand upright. Some people like to trim off the tops and the ends of the large leaves because of the prickles, but this is a troublesome job and hardly necessary. Wash the artichokes thoroughly under running water, or soak in cold water for a half hour before cooking. This will remove any bugs lurking inside.
Plunge the artichokes into the boiling water and cook uncovered until they are tender when tested at the base with a fork. This will take anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the artichokes. When done, drain thoroughly upside down. Arrange on individual plates, with bowls of sauce for each person. Use melted butter, Hollandaise Sauce or mayonnaise.
Water to cover
Salt
Butter
1 clove of garlic, chopped
6 to 8 mushrooms, chopped
½ cup of chopped ham
1 cup of dry bread crumbs
4 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
½ teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoons of pepper
½ teaspoon of pepper
¼ cup of chopped parsley
Melted butter
1 cup of broth or dry white wine
For 4 people, buy 4 large artichokes. Prepare as for boiled artichokes and cook until half done, or tender enough so that the leaves can be separated.
Meanwhile, prepare the following stuffing: Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a skillet, add the chopped garlic, mushrooms and ham. When the mushrooms are tender, blend in the dry bread crumbs, salt, pepper and chopped parsley. Blend and remove from the fire.
When the artichokes are tender enough, drain them well and let them cool until you can handle them. Spread the leaves apart at the center, reach in and remove the underdeveloped leaves at the heart and then with a spoon cut out the feathery choke. Fill this space with stuffing and push a little between the outer leaves. You may sprinkle 1 tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese in each artichoke, if you like. Press the leaves back in shape and tie each artichoke around the middle with string to hold it in shape. Stand the artichokes upright in a deep casserole, brush with melted butter, add 1 cup of broth (this can be made with hot water and a bouillon cube) or dry white wine. Bake in a 375° oven for ½ hour, basting frequently with the broth or wine in the pan.
COLD ARTICHOKE
1 artichoke per person
Water to cover
Salt
3 to 4 tablespoons of mayonnaise per person or 3 tablespoons of Vinaigrette Sauce per person
This can be served as a first course, as a salad course or as a side dish on a cold buffet. Prepare and cook as for Boiled Artichokes. When they are done, cool them and then chill in the refrigerator. Serve with mayonnaise or Vinaigrette Sauce (see Salad Dressings).
COLD STUFFED ARTICHOKE
1 artichoke per person
Water to cover
Salt
⅓ to ½ cup of seafood salad per person
2 tablespoons of mayonnaise per person
This is a refreshing salad for a luncheon or supper party. Prepare and cook as for Boiled Artichokes. Cook and then chill in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, gently push aside the center leaves and remove the undeveloped leaves at the heart. Then remove the feathery choke with a spoon. Be careful not to break the artichoke apart. Fill the center with any seafood salad (page 342), using ⅓ to ½ cup per artichoke. Press back into shape and serve with additional mayonnaise.
ARTICHOKE AS AN HORS D’OEUVRE
1 artichoke for 2 to 3 persons
Water to cover
Salt
Dip sauce or mayonnaise
Allow about 1 artichoke to every 2 or 3 persons. Prepare and cook them as for Boiled Artichoke. Cool and chill. Remove all the outer leaves and arrange them in a circle around the edge of a large chop plate or platter. Discard the undeveloped leaves at the heart and the feathery choke. Cut the heart of the artichoke into bite-size pieces and spear each one with a toothpick. Heap these in the center of the platter. Place on the cocktail table with a bowl of dip sauce (see pages 26–27) or mayonnaise.
Asparagus
Asparagus lovers, like sweet-corn addicts, devote hours and days to gorging on this delightful green stalk during the height of the season. They even make whole meals of it. And indeed there are few food treats to equal fresh asparagus, cooked just to the bitey stage, bathed in plenty of melted butter. The French even give it the dignity of a separate course on the menu, following the meat course.
Some people will tell you that ½ pound of asparagus is ample for 1 person. Actually most people can easily consume ¾ pound. If the asparagus has a great amount of white, tough stalk, which must be discarded, then even a pound per serving may be needed. Look for young green stalks, tightly budded at the top and as nearly uniform in size as possible. Stalks of various sizes cook at various rates, and you will have some done before others begin to cook through. Asparagus with too much white stalk is a waste of money, unless it is being sold at a bargain price.
If you prefer to serve only the tips of the asparagus, save the green stalks for soup or a soufflé. Hot, fresh asparagus is delicious enough served with plain melted butter. If you want a more elaborate sauce, serve Hollandaise (page 357), crumbs browned in butter or browned butter. Cold asparagus should be served with Vinaigrette Sauce or mayonnaise (pages 343–344).
BOILED ASPARAGUS
¾ to 1 pound of asparagus per person
Water to cover
Salt
1 tablespoon of melted butter or 1½ tablespoons of Hollandaise Sauce per person
Wash asparagus thoroughly. There may be sandy grit lurking in the tips. Cut off the tough ends of the stalks and peel the stalk up for 2 or 3 inches. There are two ways to boil asparagus. You may place the stalks flat in a shallow skillet with just enough boiling salted water to cover them. (Use ½ teaspoon of salt to 2 cups of water.) In this case, cook them without a lid, and be sure to remove them as soon as the tips are tender. The stalks will still be bitey, but this crunchy texture is very good. Overcooked tips go mushy.
If you prefer an even doneness for your asparagus, use an asparagus cooker or a tall container and stand the stalks upright with the tips out of the water. You can use the bottom part of a double boiler, inverting the top as a cover, or you can use a coffee percolator with the percolating part removed. Fill the container with enough boiling, salted water to cover the stalks but not the tips. Tie the asparagus together with string, or wrap a collar of aluminum foil around it to hold it in place, and stand it in the boiling water. Cover and cook until the stalks are just tender. By this time the tips should be steamed to doneness. Asparagus cooked in this manner, because covered, will not be as green as that cooked in an open skillet, but it will be more evenly done.
Cooking time for asparagus varies with the thickness of the stalks. Allow about 10 to 12 minutes in an open skillet and 15 or so if cooked upright. Do not let the asparagus stand in the water after it is done. Drain at once and serve with melted butter or Hollandaise Sauce (page 351).
VARIATIONS
With crumbs: For each serving, toss 1 tablespoon of dry bread crumbs in a saucepan with 1 tablespoon of butter. Pour the brown buttered crumbs over the tips of the asparagus just before serving.
With cheese: For 2 persons, arrange 1 pound of cooked asparagus stalks in an oven-proof dish that has been well buttered. Pour over them 2 tablespoons of melted butter, sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese and 2 tablespoons of buttered crumbs (page 53). Place in a moderate oven or under the broiler flame until the cheese melts and the top is brown and bubbly.
ASPARAGUS, HELEN EVANS BROWN
½ pound of asparagus per person
Water to barely cover
Salt
1½ tablespoons of melted butter per person
Allow ½ pound of asparagus per person. Wash and clean as for Boiled Asparagus, and cut into diagonal slices about ¼ inch thick. This will enable the asparagus to cook in the briefest time. Cook it in the smallest possible amount of boiling, salted water until just barely tender, but still bitey. It should only take 2 to 3 minutes at the most. Drain at once and serve with plenty of butter.
ASPARAGUS, FRENCH STYLE
1 pound of asparagus for 2 persons leaves
3 or more tablespoons of butter
3 or 4 large outside lettuce
Salt
For 2 persons, buy 1 pound of asparagus and wash and slice it diagonally as for the preceding Chinese-style recipe. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and add the asparagus. Cover with the washed lettuce leaves, with water still clinging to them, and put a lid on the skillet. Steam the asparagus over very low heat until tender, adding more butter if necessary. This method will take longer—about 10 minutes. When the asparagus is done, discard the lettuce, sprinkle the asparagus with salt to taste and serve.
VARIATION
Cook whole asparagus stalks by this method.
ASPARAGUS, ITALIAN STYLE
Cook whole asparagus stalks as for the French Style above, but substitute olive oil for the butter in the recipe.
COLD ASPARAGUS, PLAIN
Prepare boiled asparagus and let it cool. Chill in the refrigerator and serve with mayonnaise.
COLD ASPARAGUS VINAIGRETTE
Prepare boiled asparagus and let it cool. Serve with a Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343), using about ½ cup of sauce per pound of asparagus.
ASPARAGUS Á LA GRECQUE
Boil 2 pounds of asparagus until barely tender in water to which you have added ¼ cup of olive oil, 1 crushed clove of garlic, the juice of 1 lemon, a sprig of parsley, a pinch of thyme, a pinch of tarragon, a bay leaf and 3 or 4 peppercorns. Drain and cool. Serve with Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343) or mayonnaise.
Green Beans (Snap Beans)
Probably not more than one person in a hundred has tasted that delicate tidbit—a properly cooked, tender green bean. Maybe green beans are so common that few people feel they deserve any special care. They are always with us, they are plentiful and they are cheap. Yet anyone who has enjoyed the results of a summer vegetable garden knows how delectable tiny new green beans can be when cooked just right, drained, buttered well and served piping hot. They crunch just a bit when you bite into them and have all the fresh garden flavor.
You can duplicate this without a garden if you select your green beans with care and treat them with respect. One pound of beans will serve four persons. Look for those that are young, fresh and bright green; the tinier they are, the better, for then they can be cooked whole. Break one in two; it should have a firm snap. Inside, the beans should be immature—barely formed—and embedded in moist, firm flesh. The larger ones, paler in color and with fully matured beans inside, will be tough and tasteless no matter what you do to them. Pass them by, and if no young beans are available, buy frozen green beans.
BOILED GREEN BEANS (Serves 4)
1 pound of green beans
Water to barely cover
Salt
4 to 6 tablespoons of butter
Wash 1 pound of green beans. If they are tiny, leave them whole, but snip off the tip ends. If they seem too large to cook whole, cut them diagonally into 1-inch pieces. Or you can slice them French fashion—the long way. (There are special slicers available to do this job.) However, young tender beans will be just as tasty cut diagonally, and they even seem to retain more of their fresh flavor if they are not so thoroughly shredded.
Plunge the beans into boiling salted water (½ teaspoon salt to 2 cups of water)—just enough to cover them—and cook without a lid until they are barely tender. They should still have some crispness left. This should take no more than 10 to 12 minutes—at the most, 15. Drain at once and dress with 4 to 6 tablespoons of melted butter.
VARIATIONS
With bacon: Prepare the beans as above, and while they are cooking, cut 4 or 5 bacon slices into small pieces. Fry the bacon until it is brown and crisp. When the beans are done, drain them, add the melted butter and sprinkle the bacon over the top.
With almonds: Prepare the beans as above and while they are cooking, blanch ¼ cup of almonds and then cut them in slivers. Melt 4 to 6 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and toss the almonds about in the hot butter until they are slightly browned. (Or you can use canned toasted almonds.) Drain the beans and toss them in the skillet with the buttered almonds.
With mushrooms: Prepare the beans as above and while they are cooking, wash and slice ¼ pound of fresh mushrooms. Melt 5 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and sauté the mushrooms until brown and tender. Drain the beans and toss them with the mushrooms.
With onions: Prepare the beans as above and while they are cooking, wash 6 scallions and cut them into 1-inch pieces. Melt 5 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan and add the onions. Cover tightly and steam until tender. (You may substitute tiny white onions—use about 1 dozen—and they should be no bigger around than a five-cent piece.) Drain the beans and toss them with the onions.
With cheese: Prepare the beans as above and when they are done, drain them well. Add 4 tablespoons of butter and 6 tablespoons of grated Italian-style or imported Swiss cheese. Toss and mix well.
GREEN BEANS, ITALIAN STYLE (Serves 4)
1 pound green beans
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 finely chopped cloves of garlic
1½ tablespoons lemon juice
1½ teaspoons lemon rind, finely chopped
½ teaspoon freshly ground black Pepper
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Cook the beans according the the recipe for Boiled Green Beans (page 385). Drain. Heat the olive oil in a skillet or the pan in which the beans were cooked, and sauté the garlic until just lightly browned, about a minute. Add the beans and toss with the garlic and oil. Add the lemon juice and rind and the pepper. Toss again. Transfer to a serving dish, and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Serve with roast chicken or a veal dish.
HOT BEAN SALAD (Serves 4)
1 pound of green beans
Water to cover
salt
4 strips of bacon
3 medium onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons of mild vinegar
Lemon vinegar
1 teaspoon of sugar
Pepper
Prepare the beans as for boiling, and while they are cooking cut up the strips of bacon and fry until crisp. Remove the bacon from the skillet and add the sliced onions to the bacon fat. Sauté these until just done. Add vinegar (a mild white wine vinegar is best), a dash of lemon juice and a sprinkling of sugar (about 1 teaspoon or less). Season with ½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt. When the beans are done, drain them and pour the sauce over them. Add the bacon bits and mix well.
GREEN BEANS VINAIGRETTE
1 pound of green beans
Water to cover
Salt
½ cup of Vinaigrette Sauce
Cook beans as for boiling. When done, drain and cool. Pour the Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343) over them and turn to be sure they are thoroughly bathed in the sauce.
Lima Beans
Fresh lima beans have a bland flavor, but there are many times when a bland vegetable is just what you want: with a highly seasoned pork sausage, for example. Their blandness also enables them to combine well with other flavorings, such as mushrooms, bacon bits, sour cream and chives. Then of course, there is that American Indian specialty, the lima bean and corn dish called succotash. This is delicious, especially with plenty of butter, freshly ground black pepper and a good spoonful or two of thick cream.
When you buy fresh lima beans, always buy them in the pod. Shelled beans soon turn tough. One pound of unshelled baby limas will serve two persons. Look for pods that are young and fresh. Feel them. Remember you want tiny beans. If the pods have big bumps, you can be sure the beans are too mature and will be starchy. If you can’t get baby limas, buy dried lima beans. They are starchy, it’s true, but you will get more for your money. Or buy frozen lima beans.
1 pound of unshelled lima beans for 2 persons
Water to cover
Salt
½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons of melted butter
Shell the limas the last minute before cooking so the beans will stay fresh. Open the shells at the rounded end and the beans will slip out easily. Cook in just enough boiling salted water (½ teaspoon of salt to 2 cups of water) to cover. Cook without a lid for 15 to 20 minutes, or until one of the larger beans is tender. Drain and add the freshly ground black pepper and melted butter.
VARIATIONS
With mushrooms: Prepare the beans as above and while they are cooking, wash and slice ⅓ pound of fresh mushrooms. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and sauté the mushrooms until tender and brown. Drain the beans and toss them in the skillet with the mushrooms, adding ½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper.
With bacon: Prepare lima beans as above, and while they are cooking cut 3 slices of bacon into pieces and fry. Chop one onion and add it to the hot bacon fat. Sauté the onion until tender. When the beans are done, drain them and add them to the onion and bacon bits. Season with ½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper.
With sour cream: Cook lima beans as above. Drain them and add ½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper, ½ cup of sour cream, 1 tablespoon of melted butter and 2 tablespoons of chopped chives. Heat through, but do not boil or the sour cream will curdle.
SUCCOTASH (Serves 4)
1 pound of unshelled lima beans
2 to 3 ears of sweet corn
Water to cover
Salt
4 tablespoons of melted butter
¾ teaspoon of freshly ground black Pepper
4 tablespoons of heavy cream
For this dish you need equal amounts of sweet corn and lima beans. To 1 pound of limas use about 2 to 3 ears of corn, depending on their size. This amount will make about 4 servings. Cook the beans as for boiled limas. Cook the corn in boiling salted water for 3 or 4 minutes. Remove the ears from the water and cut off the kernels, slicing lengthwise with a sharp knife. Drain the beans and add them to the corn. Add the melted butter, freshly ground black pepper and cream. Stir and heat well.
VARIATION
Use fresh green beans in place of the lima beans.
Beets
Why beets? And why not beets? Without beets there would be no red flannel hash, no New England boiled dinner, no borscht. And even the most stubborn beet boycotter has been known to succumb to beets in sour cream with chives and parsley. The reaction all depends on the quality of the beet.
As with most vegetables, beets are best when small and young. The large older beets tend to be woody and strong in flavor. Look for beets that are smooth and firm—not withered—and about 2 inches or less in diameter. The condition of the beet tops, or greens, is no indication of the quality of the vegetable, for the tops wither easily in transport. Small beets run about 6 or 7 to a bunch, and a bunch will serve 2 to 3 persons.
BOILED BEETS (Serves 2 to 3)
1 bunch of beets
Water to cover
Salt
3 tablespoons of butter
Cut the stems off about 2 inches from the beet—no closer. Do not peel or chop the beets before cooking or cut the stems too close, or the beets will bleed. That is, the red color will run out and you will be left with a whitish-pink, tasteless root vegetable. Wash the beets well and plunge into boiling, salted water (½ teaspoon of salt to 2 cups of water) to cover. Put a tight lid on the pan and cook for 20 to 30 minutes or until tender. Do not test with a fork until nearly done, as this will tend to make the beets bleed. When they are done, rinse them in cold water until cool enough to handle. Slip off the skins and stems, and slice, or leave whole, if very small. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a pan, add the beets and reheat.
VARIATIONS
Beets with sour cream: Prepare the beets as above. When the butter is melted add 1 tablespoon of chopped chives and 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley. Then add the beets, heat and add 4 tablespoons of sour cream. Heat through but do not boil or the cream will curdle.
Beets with onion: Cook beets as above. Melt the butter in a skillet and add 1 medium onion, peeled and sliced. Sauté until tender. Add the beets and 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley. Heat.
Hot pickled beets: Cook beets as above. Melt the butter in a skillet, add 1½ tablespoons of wine vinegar, a dash of lemon juice and ½ teaspoon of sugar. Add the beets and heat.
COLD BEETS VINAIGRETTE (Serves 2 to 3)
1 bunch of beets
Water to cover
Salt
½ cup of Vinaigrette Sauce
Cook beets as for Boiled Beets. Peel, cool and slice. Soak in Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343) for 1 or 2 hours. Serve in a salad.
VARIATION
Add 2 medium-sized sweet onions, peeled and sliced, to the beets while they soak in the sauce. Serve as a pickle relish or as garnish on a salad or meat platter.
COLD BEETS WITH SOUR CREAM (Serves 2 to 3)
1 bunch of beets
Water to cover
Salt
1 medium onion, chopped
½ cup of sour cream
½ teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoon of pepper
1 teaspoon of horseradish
Cook beets as for Boiled Beets. Cool, peel and slice. Arrange the slices in a bowl and top with the chopped onion. Season sour cream with salt, freshly ground black pepper and grated horseradish. Spread this mixture over the beets and chopped onion.
We tend to think of broccoli as being a relatively new vegetable, since it has become popular in this country only during the last seventy or so years. Actually, Americans knew about it in colonial days and even grew it in their own gardens. Old cookbooks of the eighteenth century give recipes for preparing “brockala,” and old order lists for garden seeds include it.
Why it was slow in catching on with the general public is a mystery. Today it is grown in California in large quantities and shipped all over the country. It ships well and is available through winter months when other green vegetables are hard to come by.
Broccoli is usually sold in 2-pound bunches, enough to serve four persons. Look for firm, bright green heads, tightly budded. Avoid broccoli that is beginning to open into tiny yellow flowers. It is too mature and will be tough and strong flavored.
BOILED BROCCOLI (Serves 4)
2 pounds of broccoli
Water
Salt and pepper
4 to 6 tablespoons of butter
Cut off the lower tough portion of the broccoli stalks and then peel the remaining stalks up an inch or so. Trim off any wilted leaves. If the bunches are not of uniform size, split the larger ones lengthwise so that all stalks will be the same thickness. Soak in cold water and a teaspoon of salt for 15 to 20 minutes to coax out any tiny insects.
In a kettle, put enough water to cover the broccoli and bring it to a boil. Add the vegetable and cook gently, uncovered. After 5 minutes add a teaspoon of salt and continue cooking until the stalks are tender when pierced with a fork. Total cooking time should be about 10 to 15 minutes. Be careful not to overcook. The tender buds will turn mushy, the broccoli will lose its color and the flavor will be too strong.
As with asparagus, the buds cook more quickly than the stalks. If you wish to be sure that they will not be overdone, prop the broccoli up in the kettle with the heads out of the water (or tie the stalks in bunches as you do asparagus) and cover the pan. Cook gently until just tender—about 10 to 12 minutes. Or separate the stems from the buds. Cook the stems until nearly tender, and then add the buds.
Drain the broccoli, season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with melted butter.
You may also serve the broccoli with lemon butter (add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to each 4 tablespoons of melted butter), Hollandaise Sauce, Buttered Bread Crumbs or sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese and then glazed under the broiler flame.
ITALIAN-STYLE BROCCOLI
Prepare the broccoli as above. Meanwhile heat ¼ cup of olive oil in a skillet with 1 minced clove of garlic. Add the drained broccoli and sauté very quickly in the hot oil. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese or buttered crumbs.
VARIATION
If you wish to use only the heads of broccoli for vegetable at a company dinner, reserve the stalks and cook them the next day Italian style.
PURÉED BROCCOLI
Prepare 2 pounds of broccoli and boil until just tender. (See Boiled Broccoli, page 391). Put the cooked and drained stalks through a food mill or purée in a food processor. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and reheat the puréed broccoli in the hot butter, stirring to blend thoroughly. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
VARIATIONS
With onion: Add 1 tablespoon of grated onion.
With cream: Add 2 tablespoons of heavy cream.
COLD BROCCOLI, PLAIN—Follow directions for Cold Asparagus, Plain page 384).
COLD BROCCOLI VINAIGRETTE
An English cookbook, almost 200 years ago, stated of “brockala”: “the French eat oil and vinegar with it.” To prepare broccoli in this fashion, follow directions for Cold Asparagus Vinaigrette (page 384).
These miniature members of the cabbage family are excellent winter standbys. They go well with all pork dishes. Brussels sprouts have been maligned by people who have only encountered them cooked to a gray mush. Cook them until just tender and serve them up still bright green.
Brussels sprouts are sold by the pound or in pint and quart baskets. One pound or 1 quart basket will serve 4 persons. As with all green vegetables, Brussels sprouts should be firm and fresh-looking.
BOILED BRUSSELS SPROUTS
1 quart or 1 pound of Brussels sprouts
Water
Salt and pepper
4 tablespoons of melted butter
Trim the stems off close to the sprouts and remove any discolored leaves. Put the sprouts to soak for 15 to 20 minutes in water to which you have added 1 teaspoon of salt.
In a kettle put enough water to cover the Brussels sprouts and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring this to a boil and add the vegetable. Do not cover. Cook gently until just tender when pierced with a fork. This should take about 15 minutes.
Drain well and serve with melted butter and salt and pepper to taste.
Some people like a dash of vinegar or some lemon juice added.
SAUTÉED BRUSSELS SPROUTS
Clean and soak the sprouts as above. In a large skillet melt 4 tablespoons of butter. Add the well-drained Brussels sprouts and cover tightly. Lower the flame and cook very slowly until the sprouts are barely tender. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add a tablespoon of grated onion.
VARIATION
At the very last minute, add 2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese.
BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH MUSHROOMS
Prepare sprouts as for Boiled Brussels Sprouts (page 393). While they are cooking, melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a skillet. Clean ½ pound of fresh mushrooms and sauté them gently in the melted butter.
When the sprouts are done, add them to the mushrooms in the skillet and toss them about to blend with the juices. Add a dash or so of lemon juice and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH GREEN ONIONS
Prepare as for Brussels Sprouts with Mushrooms (see above), substituting 6 chopped green onions (scallions) for the fresh mushrooms.
BRUSSELS SPROUTS WITH BACON
Prepare as for Boiled Brussels Sprouts (page 393), and while the sprouts are cooking, fry 6 slices of bacon. When crisp, remove and chop fine. Drain off all but 4 tablespoons of the bacon fat. Return the chopped bacon to the pan and add the cooked and drained sprouts. Season with 1 tablespoon of grated onion.
BRAISED BRUSSELS SPROUTS
Clean and soak as for Boiled Brussels Sprouts (page 393). Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and add the drained sprouts. Cook quickly for a few minutes to sear the sprouts lightly in the butter. Add ½ cup of broth or stock (you may use ½ cup of hot water and 1 bouillon cube), cover the pan and cook the vegetable over a very low heat until tender.
Cabbage
The importance of cabbage has never been thoroughly assessed. Indeed, without its existence the history of the Western world might have been radically different. For centuries it has been a mainstay in the diet of much of Europe, Britain and many regions of North America. Lowly though it may seem, it has no rival in versatility except the potato. It is available the year round; it can be eaten raw or cooked in almost any manner—boiled, steamed, braised, sautéed, baked; and a list of recipes calling for cabbage would fill a book.
There are several varieties of cabbage found in our markets. The common or green cabbage is sold everywhere. In summer the fresh young heads are bright green and rather small (2 to 3 pounds); the late or winter crop is lighter in color, sometimes almost white, firmer and larger (up to 6 pounds). In some areas of the country Savoy cabbage is sold. This is bright green with a curly leaf and more delicate in flavor. Red cabbage is popular in certain German and Pennsylvania Dutch dishes. It is attractive, but must be cooked with some acid added—vinegar, lemon juice or tart apple. Without acid it turns a grayish purple. The long-leafed, curly Chinese cabbage is available in some parts of the country.
A small head of cabbage, 2 to 3 pounds, will serve 4 persons. Some grocers will cut a larger cabbage in half if you cannot use the whole head.
Whatever you do, don’t cook cabbage for hours. This old-fashioned method accounts for too much cabbage smell, and results in a mushy, gray vegetable, unappetizing and completely lacking in any food value. Like most green vegetables cabbage benefits by being cooked quickly in a small amount of water just to the bitey stage.
SHREDDED BOILED CABBAGE (Serves 4)
If you cook cabbage by this method you will be more certain to have a crisp, refreshing dish. It takes less cooking time but more preparation and more attention.
2- to 3-pound head of cabbage
Water
Salt
6 tablespoons of melted butter
Remove any outer wilted leaves and trim off the stalk end of the cabbage. With a sharp knife, cut through the head in thin slices, shredding it as you would for coleslaw. Soak for 20 to 30 minutes in cold water to which you have added 1 teaspoon of salt.
In a wide skillet place a small amount of water—about 2 inches or so. Add a teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Add the drained cabbage and cover. Cook quickly, turning once or twice during the cooking to be sure all the cabbage is evenly cooked. Test for doneness with a fork and remove from the fire and drain as soon as the cabbage is barely tender. Young green cabbage will cook in this manner in about 4 minutes; older winter cabbage may take twice as long. Savoy cabbage, which is the most delicate, will take about 3 minutes.
Drain well, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour melted butter over the cabbage.
Note: Red cabbage needs the addition of acid. If you shred it and boil it, be sure to add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to the water in which it cooks. Actually red cabbage seems to taste better when sautéed (page 398).
QUARTERED BOILED CABBAGE (Serves 4)
This method takes less preparation but a little longer cooking time.
2- to 3-pound head of cabbage
Water
Salt
6 tablespoons of melted butter
Clean as for Shredded Boiled Cabbage (see page 395) and cut the head in quarters. Soak in salted water for 20 to 30 minutes. In a large kettle put enough water to cover the cabbage quarters and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring it to a boil and add the cabbage. Cook until just barely tender. If the cabbage is young and green, leave the cover off the pan to help retain the green color. Young cabbage will cook in about 6 to 8 minutes; older winter cabbage in about 15 minutes; Savoy takes only about 6 minutes.
When it is done, drain it, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour the melted butter over it.
If you like a tart or sour taste with cabbage, pass the vinegar cruet.
Note: If you are buying a larger head for more servings, cut it in eighths before cooking.
CREAMED CABBAGE (Serves 4)
2- to 3-pound head of cabbage
1½ cups of Béchamel Sauce (page 349)
Butter
Salt and pepper
½ cup of buttered crumbs (page 53)
Prepare and cook the cabbage as for Shredded Boiled Cabbage (page 395). Butter a large casserole, place a layer of the cooked cabbage in the bottom, season to taste with salt and pepper and add a layer of Béchamel Sauce. Repeat these layers until all the ingredients are used up, being sure the top layer is Béchamel Sauce. Sprinkle with buttered crumbs and bake in a 375° oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the top is browned and the mixture is hot through and bubbly.
VARIATIONS
With cheese: Sprinkle each layer of sauce with grated Parmesan, Swiss or Gruyère cheese and top with grated cheese.
BRAISED CABBAGE (Serves 4)
2- to 3-pound head of cabbage
3 to 4 tablespoons of butter or bacon fat
¾ cup of meat stock (or 1 bouillon cube and ¾ cup of boiling water)
Clean and shred the cabbage as for Shredded Boiled Cabbage (page 395). Soak in salted water for 20 to 30 minutes. In a large skillet melt the butter or bacon fat, add the drained cabbage and gently sauté it in the hot fat. Turn it frequently with a spatula to be sure it is evenly browned. When slightly colored (in about 2 to 3 minutes) pour the hot bouillon or stock over the cabbage, cover it tightly and simmer gently until just done. This should take about 5 minutes.
COUNTRY-FRIED CABBAGE (Serves 4)
2- to 3-pound head of cabbage
1 tablespoon of vinegar
3 to 4 tablespoons of bacon fat
4 tablespoons of heavy cream
Clean and shred the cabbage as for Shredded Boiled Cabbage and soak in salted water (see page 395). In a large skillet melt the bacon fat. Add the well-drained cabbage and brown it in the hot fat, turning with a spatula to be sure it cooks evenly. When browned, cover with a tight lid and continue cooking until tender. Taste for seasoning. If the bacon fat is not salty enough, add salt to taste. Sprinkle with the vinegar and heavy cream, and continue cooking just until the cream is hot through.
SAUTÉED RED CABBAGE (Serves 4)
2- to 3-pound head of red cabbage
3 to 4 tablespoons of bacon fat
Salt and pepper
1 cup of red wine
2 tart apples
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 tablespoon of vinegar
Clean and shred the cabbage as for Shredded Boiled Cabbage and soak in salted water (see page 395). In a large skillet melt the bacon fat. Add the well-drained cabbage and sauté, turning to cook on all sides. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add the red wine. Simmer for 5 to 6 minutes and add the 2 apples, cored and diced but not peeled. Sprinkle with the brown sugar and vinegar, cover and simmer until the apples and cabbage are tender.
This dish is particularly good with pork, duck or goose.
BAKED CABBAGE WITH SAUSAGE (Serves 4)
2- to 3-pound head of cabbage
¼ pound of bacon
Salt and pepper
1 small onion, finely chopped
½ cup of white wine
½ cup of meat stock (or 1 bouillon cube and ½ cup of boiling water)
1 pound of pork sausage links
Clean and quarter the cabbage as for Quartered Boiled Cabbage (page 396) and soak in salted water. Line a large casserole with the bacon strips. Add the quartered cabbage, season to taste with salt and pepper and sprinkle with the chopped onion. Pour over this the white wine and meat stock and top with the sausage links. Bake in a 350° oven until the cabbage is tender and the sausage done and well browned. This will take ¾ of an hour to 1 hour.
COLESLAW—See pages 333–334.
The carrot has long been a favorite of rabbits and donkeys, and also of mine, provided it is the tender young vegetable. Old woody carrots are never tasty, though they do add flavor to soups and stews. Look for the tiniest you can find, young, firm and fresh-looking.
Carrots are sold by the bunch and one bunch usually weighs 1 pound. This amount serves 3 to 4 persons, depending on appetites, but if you are serving 4, it is safer to cook 1½ bunches. (You can use the other half bunch in a meat stew or a casserole or as raw carrot strips.)
Cook tiny young carrots whole without peeling. Larger carrots should be peeled or scraped and cut in long strips. They can, of course, be cut in rounds, but for some reason these are not as tasty.
The frequent combination of carrots and peas is an insult to both vegetables. They do not complement each other. It would make just as much sense to combine turnips and asparagus. Serve them separately.
BOILED CARROTS (Serves 4)
1½ bunches of carrots
Water to cover
Pinch of salt
Salt
Pepper
4 tablespoons of melted butter
If the carrots are tiny, simply wash them well and cut off the tops. In a skillet or saucepan, put just enough water to cover the carrots, add a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Add the carrots whole, placing them flat in the pan. Cover tightly and simmer gently until just tender when tested with a fork. Tiny whole carrots take about 15 minutes.
If the carrots seem too large to cook whole (that is, if they are over ¾ inch thick), split them in half lengthwise. Bigger carrots should be scraped or peeled and cut into strips.
When the carrots are cooked, drain them well, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour melted butter over them.
VARIATIONS
With chives and parsley: Add 1 teaspoon of chopped chives and 1 teaspoon of chopped parsley to the melted butter.
With lemon juice: Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to the melted butter.
With green onions: Add 4 green onions, chopped and sautéed in butter, to the seasoned carrots.
STEAMED CARROTS
For this dish, tiny young carrots are by far the best. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a heavy skillet with a tight lid. Add tiny whole carrots and a bit of salt and pepper. Cover tightly and steam over very low heat until tender when pierced with a fork.
GLAZED CARROTS (Serves 4)
1½ bunches of carrots, cooked and drained
2 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of strained honey
1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
Salt to taste
Dash of lemon juice
Melt the butter in the skillet and add the honey, parsley and cooked carrots. Season to taste with salt. Simmer very gently for a few minutes until all the ingredients are well blended. Add a dash of lemon juice and serve.
BRAISED CARROTS (Serves 4)
1 bunch of carrots
3 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
½ cup of broth or stock
Leave the carrots whole if they are tiny and young. Peel larger carrots and cut in half lengthwise. Melt butter in a heavy skillet and arrange the carrots flat in the pan. Cook them over fairly high heat for a few minutes, seasoning to taste with a little salt and pepper. (Use the salt lightly if the broth or stock you plan to use is heavily seasoned.) Add the broth (you can make this with hot water and a bouillon cube), cover the pan and simmer gently over a low flame until the carrots are just tender when pierced with a fork.
As most people know, Mark Twain said cauliflower was nothing but cabbage with a college education. It is most certainly a refined vegetable and very delicate when treated with respect. It delights us by coming on the market in abundant supply at the time when summer vegetables are tapering off. You will find it in all sizes, from small heads of ½ to ¾ pound, on up to giants weighing as much as 5 or 6 pounds. Allow about ½ pound per person. Choose heads that are snowy white with firm, tightly packed buds. Avoid those that have brown spots or any discoloring.
There is nothing handsomer in the vegetable line than a whole cooked head of cauliflower, white, glistening with melted butter and surrounded with tiny whole carrots and small whole green beans. It is equally elegant cooked and chilled and served with other cooked vegetables and a well-seasoned mayonnaise. This makes a fine salad luncheon.
To clean cauliflower, cut off the stem end and remove the green leaves. Soak the head in 2 quarts of cold water to which you have added 1 teaspoon of salt. Let the cauliflower stand in the water for about ½ hour to draw out any tiny insects. If you do not intend to cook the head whole, break or cut off the small bunches of flowerets. These are the tightly packed bunches, each with a separate stem attached to the main stalk or center of the head. Cut off these stems as close to the head as possible, starting with those around the outside. Soak in cold water with salt added.
BOILED CAULIFLOWER (Serves 4)
2-pound head of cauliflower
Boiling salted water to cover
6 tablespoons of melted butter
Salt and pepper
Cut off the stem end and remove the green leaves. Soak the cauliflower, according to directions above, in cold, salted water for ½ hour. In a deep kettle put enough water to cover the cauliflower and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring this to a boil, put the cauliflower in the boiling water and place a lid on the kettle. Cook gently until the vegetable is just tender when pierced at the stem end with a fork. Do not overcook cauliflower or the head will be mushy and fall apart. Overcooking also tends to turn the white head a dull gray or yellow color. A 2-pound head of cauliflower will take 20 to 25 minutes to cook.
Drain well, arrange on a platter or in a vegetable bowl and pour melted butter over. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Or arrange on a large platter and surround with other cooked vegetables.
VARIATIONS
Cauliflower and buttered almonds: Chop blanched almonds and brown them lightly in hot butter. Pour over the cooked cauliflower head and season with salt and pepper.
Cheesed cauliflower: Place a cooked, drained head of cauliflower in a casserole, dot it liberally with butter, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese, Switzerland Swiss cheese or sharp cheddar. Heat in a hot oven (450°) until the cheese melts.
Crumbed cauliflower: Brown fine toasted crumbs in melted butter. Spread these over the cooked, drained cauliflower head and season with salt and pepper.
Cauliflower with bacon bits: Fry 3 or 4 slices of bacon until brown and crisp. Crumble and sprinkle over the cooked, drained cauliflower. Add melted butter.
Herbed cauliflower: Melt butter and add chopped parsley and chives (1 tablespoon of each to 6 tablespoons of butter). Pour this over the cooked, drained cauliflower and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Cauliflower Hollandaise: Serve hot cauliflower with Hollandaise Sauce (page 351).
BOILED CAULIFLOWERETS
Follow directions for Boiled Cauliflower (page 401) but first break the cauliflower head into flowerets, cutting each individual bunch off as near the center of the head as possible. Cook in boiling salted water to cover until tender but not mushy. This will take about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain thoroughly and serve with melted butter, salt and pepper. Or use any of the variations listed above under Boiled Cauliflower.
CAULIFLOWER AND CHEESE CASSEROLE
Break a cauliflower head into flowerets and cook as for Boiled Cauliflowerets (page 402). Drain and arrange in a buttered casserole. Cover with 1 cup of Rich Cream Sauce (page 349), sprinkle with ½ cup of grated Switzerland Swiss cheese and ⅓ cup of fine toasted bread crumbs browned in butter. Heat in a 450° oven until the cheese is melted and the top browned and bubbly.
COLD CAULIFLOWER
Cook a whole head of cauliflower according to directions under Boiled Cauliflower (page 401). Drain and arrange the head in the center of a large platter. Surround it with any combination of cold cooked or raw vegetables you choose. Or arrange the cauliflower alone on a bed of greens. Serve with Vinaigrette Sauce, mayonnaise, mayonnaise flavored with mustard or chili sauce, or with a sour cream dressing.
Celeriac or Celery Root
This round, brownish root with a rough skin and green tops is sometimes called “knob celery.” Though it is of the same family, it is not the root of the regular stalk celery, as some people think.
Celeriac is usually sold in individual knobs, which vary in size from about 2½ inches to 4 to 5 inches in diameter. One pound will serve 4 persons.
BOILED CELERIAC (Serves 4)
1 pound of celeriac
Boiling water to cover
Salt and pepper
4 tablespoons of melted butter
Wash the roots and cut off the tops. Peel them and place in cold water to which you have added 1 teaspoon of salt. This keeps the vegetables from turning dark. Let it stand in the water until you are ready to cook. In a kettle put enough water to cover the vegetable, add 1 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Cut the roots into slices or cubes and drop them into the boiling water. Cover the pan and cook until the celeriac is just tender. This will take about 10 minutes. Drain thoroughly and dress with melted butter and salt and freshly ground pepper.
VARIATIONS
Crumbed celeriac: Brown fine toasted crumbs in melted butter and sprinkle over cooked celeriac. Season with salt and pepper.
Cheesed celeriac: Drain cooked celeriac and arrange in a buttered casserole. Dot with butter and sprinkle liberally with grated Parmesan cheese and Switzerland Swiss cheese. Run under the broiler flame to melt the cheese and brown lightly.
Puréed: Combine equal amounts of puréed celeriac and potato. Add butter and salt and pepper to taste.
Celeriac Hollandaise: Serve cooked celeriac with Hollandaise Sauce (page 351).
SCALLOPED CELERIAC AND POTATOES
Alternate layers of thinly sliced raw celeriac and raw potato in a buttered casserole. Add beef broth to nearly cover, dot with butter, and bake, covered, at 350° for about 45 minutes, or until tender. Add grated cheese, preferably Swiss, and bake, uncovered, for another 15 minutes.
CELERIAC STEAMED IN BUTTER (Serves 4)
1 pound of celeriac
4 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Wash the roots, cut off the tops and peel them. Soak in cold salted water until ready to cook. Melt the butter in a large skillet. Slice the roots very thin and arrange the slices over the bottom of the skillet in the melted butter. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. If you must put several layers of the slices in the skillet, shift them once or twice during the cooking, moving those on top to the bottom of the pan so they will all cook evenly. Cover the skillet with a tight-fitting lid and steam gently over low heat until the celeriac is tender. This will take 15 to 20 minutes.
VARIATION
Sprinkle the slices with grated Parmesan cheese just before they finish cooking.
COLD CELERIAC
Soak cold celeriac in Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343) and serve on a bed of greens with or without mayonnaise. Combine it with other cold cooked vegetables and serve in the same way.
RAW CELERIAC SALAD (Serves 4)
2 medium-sized celery roots
3 tablespoons of mayonnaise
1 teaspoon of dry mustard
1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
1 teaspoon of finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon of chopped onion
salt and pepper
Wash the roots, trim off the tops and peel them. Put them in cold salted water until you are ready to use. Then grate them or cut in thin strips (julienne) and mix with all other ingredients. Heap on a bed of greens and garnish with hard-cooked egg, raw onion rings and green pepper rings. Serve with additional mayonnaise if you wish.
Rémoulade: Cut the celeriac into fine julienne and toss with mayonnaise flavored with Dijon mustard to taste. Serve as an appetizer.
Celery
There are two kinds of celery available in most markets: the large, hearty green bunches topped with green leaves (this variety is sometimes called Pascal); and the pale, almost white celery with yellowish leaves. This pale color is achieved by bleaching. Some people think it is more attractive, but green celery is far tastier and has more food value. Pascal celery comes in very large, sometimes gigantic, bunches, but extra celery is no problem. It can be eaten plain with salt, added to sandwich fillings, or used in salads, soups, stews, stuffings or sauces. A bunch weighing 1½ pounds will serve 4 persons amply. Look for those bunches that are fresh and crisp.
Celery often has soil clinging to the base of the stalks and must be washed thoroughly. Cut off about 1 inch of the root end, separate the stalks, trim off the green leaves and wash the celery in cold water, rubbing off any dirt. Trim the bottom of the root end, wash the dirt from the crevices and save the root, along with the leaves, for flavoring in soups and stews. The tiny, tender leaves at the heart of the bunch can be left on the stalks as if you are going to eat them raw, or can be added to green salads.
BOILED CELERY (Serves 4)
1 to 1½ pounds of celery
Water
Salt
Pepper
4 tablespoons of melted butter
Cut off the root end of the celery and separate the stalks. Trim off the leaves. Save the heart for salads, the root and leaves for flavoring soups and stews. Wash the stalks well and remove any tough strings. Cut them into 1- to 2-inch pieces and soak in salted water (1 teaspoon of salt to 2 quarts of water) until ready to cook. In a kettle put just enough water to cover the celery, add 1 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Add the celery and cook gently, uncovered, until just tender when pierced with a fork. This will take about 10 minutes. Drain well, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour melted butter over.
VARIATIONS
Creamed: Serve the cooked celery covered with a Rich Cream Sauce (page 349).
Hollandaise: Serve cooked celery with a Hollandaise Sauce (page 351).
With almonds: Sliver blanched almonds and brown them lightly in melted butter. Pour this over cooked celery and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
1- to 1½-pound bunch of celery
4 tablespoons of butter
¾ cup of broth or stock
Salt
Pepper
Clean the celery as for Boiled Celery (page 406) but leave the stalks whole. Cut the stalks into fairly uniform lengths—about 6 to 8 inches long. If any are exceptionally thick through, cut them in half once lengthwise. Melt the butter in a large skillet and place the celery stalks flat in the pan. Brown them lightly in the butter over fairly high heat, turning once. When lightly colored, add the broth (this can be made with hot water and a bouillon cube) lower the heat and cover the skillet. Cook gently until the celery is just tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
VARIATIONS
Add ½ cup of slivered blanched almonds to the celery to brown in the butter and cook in the broth.
COLD CELERY
Soak cold cooked celery in Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343) and serve on a bed of greens or in combination with other cold vegetables as a salad.
RAW CELERY
1. Cut into uniform strips and serve with a good dip sauce (pages 26–28).
2. Add chopped raw celery to green salads.
3. Cut the stalks into uniform lengths and fill the hollows with mashed blue cheese thinned with heavy cream. Use as an hors d’oeuvre or as a garnish on salad plates.
Corn
The sooner corn is cooked after picking, the better it is. If you can’t buy directly from the grower, go to a good greengrocer—one who is supplied daily with fresh corn in season. The ears should be displayed on beds of ice and be kept cold and damp. Open the husks a bit to be sure the kernels are firm and fresh. Look for tiny young kernels. Pierce one with your fingernail; it should be milky inside, not mealy. Corn that is too mature or too old will be tough. Never buy corn already husked.
Keep the corn cold and damp in the refrigerator until just before cooking. Then peel off the outside husk and remove the silken threads. Don’t cut off the stem end unless you own some of those metal com holders. The ears will be easier to hold if you have a stem attached.
Since the season is all too short, make a feast of corn when you can get it. Buy at least 2 ears per person. Personally, I can eat 3 or 4 easily.
BOILED CORN
2 to 3 ears of corn per person
Water to cover
Salt and pepper
Butter
In a large skillet, put enough water to cover the corn. Do not add salt. This tends to toughen the corn. While the water is coming to a boil, husk the ears and remove the silk. Plunge them into the boiling water, let it return to a boil and cook 3 to 5 minutes. Tender young corn needs no more than 3 minutes of boiling. Too much cooking makes it tough and mealy.
Remove the ears quickly and arrange them in a deep bowl lined with a napkin. Fold the napkin over the corn to hold in the heat. Serve with individual dishes of salt, pepper grinders and plenty of sweet butter.
VARIATION
You can put the corn in a kettle of cold water and bring it just to a boil. The corn should then be done.
SAUTÉED CORN
2 ears of corn per person
2 to 3 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Husk the corn and remove the silk. With a sharp knife, cut the kernels off, slicing down from the stem to the tip of each ear. Melt the butter in a skillet, add the kernels and cook gently for 5 minutes, stirring frequently to be sure the corn does not stick. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
With cream: Just before the corn is cooked, add ½ cup of heavy cream and heat it through.
With green pepper: Use an extra tablespoon of butter and cook 1 green pepper cut in thin strips before you add the corn. Let the pepper cook gently for 3 to 4 minutes and then add the kernels. Proceed as above.
With green onion: Use an extra tablespoon of butter and cook 4 chopped green onions before you add the corn. After the onions have cooked gently for 3 minutes, add the corn kernels and proceed as above.
Eggplant
This is the beautiful pear-shaped purple vegetable, often used as a decorative piece in a harvest display. I’m afraid many people buy it only for this purpose and never cook and eat it. Actually, it is a most versatile member of the vegetable family, for its flavor takes well to a variety of sauces and seasonings and it combines nicely with other foods.
Select the smaller eggplants; larger ones are apt to be less tasty. They should be firm, unblemished and shiny. About 1½ pounds will serve 4 persons.
This vegetable is usually peeled and sliced or cubed before cooking. It is fried, broiled or baked. For some reason, it is never boiled, maybe because it would look unappetizing.
SAUTÉED EGGPLANT (Serves 4)
1½ pounds of eggplant
Flour
Salt and pepper
4 to 6 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Peel the eggplant and cut it into slices ½ inch thick. Salt the slices and allow them to stand in a collander for at least a half hour to draw out the bitter juices. Drain and pat dry with paper towels. Dip each slice in flour seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Put enough butter and olive oil in a skillet to make a ¼-inch depth of hot fat. Sauté the eggplant slices until they are cooked through and browned on both sides. If you have a large number of slices, cook a few at a time and as they finish cooking put them in a casserole in a very low oven to keep warm.
VARIATIONS
Cheesed: Sprinkle each slice of eggplant lightly with grated Parmesan cheese a minute or two before it is done. Or arrange sautéed eggplant slices in a shallow, flame-proof dish, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and run under the broiler to brown.
With barbecue sauce: Serve sautéed eggplant slices with a spicy barbecue sauce (page 353).
With tomato and onion: Serve sautéed eggplant slices topped with grilled tomato and sautéed onion slices.
BROILED EGGPLANT
Prepare eggplant as for sautéing (page 409). After dipping the slices in seasoned flour, arrange them on an oiled or buttered baking sheet, dot liberally with butter and run them under the broiler flame to brown. When they are brown, turn, butter the other side of each slice and return to the broiler to finish cooking. Serve as you would sautéed eggplant.
PIQUANT BROILED EGGPLANT (Serves 4)
1½ pounds of eggplant
1 cup of Vinaigrette Sauce
Peel the eggplant and cut it into ½-inch slices. Salt and drain, as for Sautéed Eggplant. Place the Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343) in a deep bowl and put the slices in the sauce. Let them stand for 2 or 3 hours, turning frequently to be sure they are evenly bathed. Arrange the slices on an oiled baking sheet and broil until brown on top. Then turn and finish cooking on the other side. Serve plain or with a sharp barbecue sauce.
1½ pounds of eggplant
2 large onions
Flour
Salt and pepper
½ cup of olive oil or oil and butter mixed
½ cup of fine, toasted crumbs
½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese
Peel the eggplant and cut into ½-inch slices. Salt and drain, as for Sautéed Eggplant (page 409). Peel and slice the onions. Dip the sliced eggplant in flour seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Heat oil (or oil and butter mixed) in a large skillet, brown the eggplant on both sides and sauté the onion slices.
Oil or grease a casserole and place a layer of the browned eggplant in the bottom; add a layer of onion; season with salt and pepper; and continue alternating layers of the two vegetables until they are used up. Top with crumbs and grated Parmesan cheese, mixed. Pour the oil or butter left in the skillet over the casserole and add more if it seems to dry. Bake in a 350° oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until brown and bubbly.
EGGPLANT AND TOMATO CASSEROLE (Serves 4)
1½ pounds of eggplant
1 large onion (or 2 medium)
2 medium fresh tomatoes
Flour
Salt and pepper
Olive oil, or oil and butter mixed
1 teaspoon of basil
½ cup of fine, toasted crumbs
½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese
Peel the eggplant and cut into ½-inch slices. Salt and drain, as for Sautéed Eggplant (page 409). Peel and slice the onion and tomatoes. Dip the eggplant slices in flour seasoned with salt and pepper and sauté quickly in hot oil, or oil and butter mixed, until browned on both sides. Sauté the onion slices quickly.
Oil or grease a casserole and put a layer of the browned eggplant slices in the bottom. Top with a layer of onion and then a layer of sliced tomatoes. Season with salt, pepper and a pinch of basil. Repeat the layers until all the vegetables are used. Top with crumbs and grated Parmesan cheese mixed, and pour the oil and butter from the skillet over the casserole. Add more oil or butter if it seems too dry. Bake in a 350° oven for 20 to 30 minutes, or until browned on top and done through.
FRENCH-FRIED EGGPLANT (Serves 4)
1½ pounds of eggplant
Flour
2 or more eggs, beaten
Fine bread crumbs
Oil for deep frying
Salt and pepper
Peel the eggplant and cut it into slices ¾ inch thick. Then cut each slice into strips about ¾ inch wide. Salt and drain, as for Sautéed Eggplant. Beat the eggs lightly. Heat oil in a deep fryer to 380°. Dip each eggplant strip into flour, then into the beaten egg and finally into fine crumbs. Fry, a few at a time, in the hot fat until golden brown. Recheck the heat of the fat after frying each batch of eggplant strips. Drain the cooked eggplant on absorbent paper and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
EGGPLANT À LA GRECQUE (Serves 4)
1½ pounds of eggplant
⅓ cup of olive oil
2 tablespoons of wine Vinegar
1 clove of garlic, chopped
½ teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoon of pepper
2 sprigs of parsley
Pinch of thyme or oregano
Water
Peel the eggplant and cut it into 1-inch cubes. Salt and drain, as for Sautéed Eggplant. Mix the oil, vinegar, chopped garlic and seasonings with enough water to cover the eggplant cubes. Before adding the cubes, bring this mixture to a boil, lower the flame and simmer for 5 minutes to blend the flavors. Then add the cubed eggplant and cook gently until tender. This will take about 10 minutes. Remove from the stove and let the eggplant cool in the liquid. Drain thoroughly and chill.
This may be served as an appetizer or salad. Add Vinaigrette Sauce if you like.
RATATOUILLE (Serves 4)
⅓ cup of olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped very fine
1 clove of garlic, chopped Very fine
1½-pound eggplant, peeled and cubed
2 medium-sized zucchini, sliced with peel on
3 large peppers, cut in strips
Salt and pepper
Basil
6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded, or 1 16-oz. of solid-pack tomatoes
Sauté the onion and garlic until soft. Add the eggplant (which has been salted and drained, as for Sautéed Eggplant) and zucchini; toss well. Then add the pepper strips, salt and pepper to taste and the basil. Simmer, covered, until the vegetables are soft. Add tomatoes and allow them to cook down with the vegetables until the mixture is thick and well blended.
Serve hot or chilled, with additional oil and lemon juice.
MOUSSAKA—See page 262.
Leeks
This vegetable is not well known in America and is hard to find in the markets in some areas. Its scarcity is regrettable for leeks are the most elegant of the onion family and essential in many a fine dish—the popular cold soup Vichyssoise, for example. You will recognize them by their resemblance to the green onion, or scallion, though leeks are much larger. They vary in size from ½ inch in diameter to about 1½ inches. Size does not affect the taste, but it’s wise to buy those that are uniform in thickness so that they will all cook in the same amount of time.
Besides being delicious in Vichyssoise and other soups and stews, leeks are a delicate and tasty vegetable, served hot or cold. Allow 3 to 4 leeks (depending on size) per person.
12 to 16 leeks
Water to cover
Salt and pepper
4 tablespoons of melted butter
Cut off the root ends and all but 1 inch of the green tops. Peel the thin filmy skin from the white and then soak the leeks thoroughly in cold water for 20 minutes or more. Run water into the tops and down through the stalks to be sure they are well washed. Leeks can be very gritty, and if any soil lurks inside, they will not be tasty.
In a large kettle, put enough water to cover the leeks and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil and add the vegetable. Cook uncovered until the green tops are tender when pierced with a fork. This will take 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the leeks. Drain thoroughly, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and dress with melted butter.
VARIATIONS
With Hollandaise: Serve with Hollandaise Sauce (page 351).
Creamed: Serve with Rich Cream Sauce (page 349).
Cheesed: Drain the leeks, arrange them in a flat flame-proof dish, top with buttered crumbs and grated Parmesan cheese and run under the broiler flame to brown.
LEEKS À LA GRECQUE
Cook leeks in an à la grecque sauce (see Eggplant à la Grecque, page 412) and let them cool in the sauce. Drain and chill. Serve as an appetizer or salad course.
COLD LEEKS VINAIGRETTE
Boil leeks (above), drain and cool. Soak in a Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343) for an hour or so and serve on a bed of greens as a salad course.
Most people think lettuce and similar greens are used only for salads or garnishes. Yet certain varieties, when properly cooked, become delicately flavored hot vegetables. Shop for the following greens:
Boston lettuce: This comes in rather soft heads of smooth, tender leaves. It is more delicate than most greens and is easily bruised, but generally this affects only the outside.
Cos or romaine: This is a hardy lettuce with firm, oblong leaves loosely headed into long bunches. It ships well and is crisp.
Leaf lettuce: This tender delicacy, as its name implies, does not “head.” It comes in separate leaves.
Escarole: This green comes in flared bunches. The leaves are long, firm and smooth with rippling edges.
Belgian endive: The small, elongated budlike bunches of this elegant vegetable are as beautiful as they are tasty. The leaves are flat and firmly folded together. They are white, shading to pale green at the tips.
Here are ways to use these greens as hot vegetables.
BRAISED LETTUCE (OR ESCAROLE)
Any of the above greens, except leaf lettuce, may be used successfully in this recipe. Cook Boston lettuce and Belgian endive whole. If you are using cos or romaine, remove the coarse outer leaves and save for salad. Cook the center of the head whole or halved, depending on size. To cook escarole, trim off the coarse outer leaves and cut the head into serving-size sections.
Greens for 4 servings
4 tablespoons of butter
¾ cup of stock or broth
Salt
Pepper
Wash the greens thoroughly, making sure all of the grit is removed. Separate the leaves slightly, pushing them apart to let the water run between them. Remove outer coarse or crushed leaves. Drain thoroughly and dry on paper towels. Melt the butter in a large skillet and sauté the greens in it quickly over fairly high heat. Add the stock or broth (this can be made with hot water and a bouillon cube), cover the pan and simmer gently just until the greens are wilted and tender. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
BRAISED BELGIAN ENDIVE
Allow 1 or 2 endives per serving. Split the endives lengthwise. Lay them flat in a shallow pan, add broth to just cover, and simmer until tender, turning once. Remove the endives, and reduce the liquid over high heat until it is almost a glaze. Stir in a little butter and return the endives to the pan for another minute to heat through. Salt and pepper to taste.
WILTED LETTUCE (Serves 4)
For this recipe, use any of the above greens except Belgian endive. Break the greens into bite-size pieces, as for tossed green salad.
2 medium-sized heads of Boston lettuce or substitute 1 medium head of romaine, 1 medium head of escarole or the equivalent of leaf lettuce
6 slices of bacon
⅓ cup of mild wine vinegar
Salt
Pepper
Wash the greens thoroughly and break them into bite-size pieces. Cut the bacon in small squares and fry it until brown and crisp. Remove the bacon bits; add to the remaining fat the vinegar and salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. When the mixture boils, add the greens, tossing them in the hot liquid just until wilted and hot through. For Boston or leaf lettuce this will only take a minute or two. Escarole and romaine, having firmer leaves, will take a little longer. Serve with the crumbled bacon bits sprinkled on top.
VARIATION
You may add chopped green onions, a grated onion or 2 tablespoons of chopped chives to the hot liquid before you toss the greens in it.
Like the onion, the mushroom is not only delectable by itself but also valuable for flavoring soups, stews, stuffings and sauces. It is one of the most elegant garnishes for meat, fish or vegetable dishes, and raw, sliced mushrooms turn a plain tossed salad into something very special.
Not too many years ago it was difficult to buy fresh mushrooms in some parts of the country, but “mushroom farms” have sprung up all over and mushrooms are now widely distributed. They come in sizes ranging from about 1 inch across up to huge ones 4 to 5 inches across. The size has no effect on the flavor. Freshness does. Buy mushrooms that are firm and show no signs of deterioration. Whereas markets used to sell only the white button-type, still widely available, nowadays shoppers are offered a choice of shiitake, oyster, Black Forest, cremoni, and other types. These can be used in any of the recipes given here. A pound will serve 4 persons as a vegetable; half that amount will do for garnishing.
Do not peel mushrooms or soak them in water. Simply wipe them off with a damp cloth. Much of the flavor is in the skin and if you wash them vigorously, you will lose part of the goodness. If, by chance, you have old mushrooms with dark wrinkled skins, then peel them. They will be tough if you don’t. Do not discard the stems; though not as tender as the caps, they have excellent flavor. If you are serving guests and wish to use only the caps, for elegance’s sake, break off the stems and save them for the next day; or chop them and add to sauces, stuffings or soups. In most cases, it is preferable to cook the mushrooms, stem and all. If you are slicing them, slice the long way right through the cap and stem.
SAUTÉED MUSHROOMS (Serves 4)
This is a rich and tasty dish and makes a fine main course for a luncheon or supper. It is also an excellent accompaniment to steak, or any other beef cut, and to roast or broiled fowl.
1 pound of mushrooms
5 tablespoons of butter
Salt and pepper
Wipe the mushrooms with a damp cloth and cut them through lengthwise, stems and all, in thin slices. Or cook them whole. Melt the butter in a skillet, add the mushrooms and cook over a medium flame until brown and tender. Stir occasionally to be sure they are cooking evenly. The mushrooms should be done in 6 to 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve on buttered toast.
VARIATIONS
With bacon: Garnish with crisp bacon curls.
With herbs and cream: Just before the mushrooms are done, add 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley, 1 tablespoon of chopped chives (or tops of green onion) and ¼ cup of heavy cream. Heat through, season to taste and serve on buttered toast.
With sour cream: Before you remove the mushrooms from the skillet, add 1 cup of sour cream. Heat through, but do not boil or the cream will curdle. Season to taste and serve on toast.
BROILED MUSHROOMS (Serves 4)
For this recipe, use the caps only, saving the stems for later use. Allow 4 mushrooms caps per person for a first course.
16 medium-sized mushrooms
Melted butter
Salt and pepper
Wipe the caps with a damp cloth and arrange them, cap side up, on a buttered baking sheet. Brush them well with melted butter, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and broil for 8 to 10 minutes, or until tender when pierced with a fork. Serve on hot buttered toast as a first course.
VARIATION
With cheese: Sprinkle the caps with grated Parmesan cheese during the last minute of broiling.
For this recipe, buy good-sized mushrooms, 2 to 3 inches across, so the caps will be large enough for stuffing. Allow 2 per person for a first course at dinner, or 4 per person for a main course at luncheon.
16 mushrooms
Butter (about ¼ pound)
½ cup of fine dry bread crumbs
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon of chopped parsley
1 tablespoons of chopped chives (or minced onion)
salt and Pepper
Parmesan cheese
Broth
Remove the stems of the mushrooms, scrape them and chop them fairly fine. Wipe the mushroom caps with a damp cloth. Heat 2 or 3 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and sauté the chopped mushroom stems lightly. Mix these with the bread crumbs, eggs, parsley, chives or onions and ½ teaspoon each of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Brush the mushroom caps with melted butter and arrange them, cup side up, on a buttered baking dish. Fill each cup with some of the stuffing, sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese (or use Switzerland Swiss), dot well with butter and add a little broth to the pan to keep them from sticking and burning. Bake in a 375° oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender when pierced with a fork. Baste during the cooking with additional butter to keep the mushrooms moist.
VARIATIONS
With seafood: Substitute crabmeat, chopped shrimp or lobster meat for the mushroom stems in the stuffing.
With meat: Substitute any leftover meat, chopped, for the mushroom stems.
With wine: Put a little white wine in the baking dish and baste the mushrooms with white wine during the cooking.
MUSHROOMS STUFFED WITH SNAILS (Serves 4 to 6)
4 dozen mushroom caps, 1 inch in diameter
4 dozen canned snails, rinsed under cold water
4 to 6 tablespoons butter
Snail butter
Chopped parsley
For the Snail butter:
¼ pound slightly softened butter
3 tablespoons shallots, finely chopped
1 to 2 tablespoons puréed garlic, to taste
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
First make the Snail Butter: Cream the softened butter with the shallots, garlic, ¼ cup of chopped parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Sauté the mushroom caps in butter until just cooked through. Arrange on a baking sheet hollow side up. Coat the snails with the snail butter, and place one in each cap. Sprinkle with additional chopped parsley. Heat in a 450° for 10 minutes and serve immediately.
MUSHROOMS À LA GRECQUE
Buy small mushrooms and remove the stems. Wipe the caps with a damp cloth and cook gently in a sauce à la grecque (see Eggplant à la Grecque, page 412). Cool in the sauce and then drain and chill. Serve as an hors d’oeuvre.
Onions
The lowly onion is our best friend in the kitchen. Try cooking without it for one week and see how tasteless your food becomes. It is used in some form for every course except dessert. Besides being versatile, it comes in many varieties and has important near relatives: the leek, the shallot and garlic.
The common, medium-sized cooking onion with the dry, yellow skin is most often used for flavoring boiled dinners, broths, soups, stews and pot roasts. The larger, round, yellow onion, known as the Bermuda or Spanish onion, is milder, with a rather sweet flavor. This is popular, sliced and broiled, with steak and hamburger, or served raw with sliced tomatoes. The red-skinned onion, called Italian onion, has colorful red streaks through the meat. It is mild and a good choice for salad or garnish on cold platters. Then there is the tiny white onion with a dry skin. This is the choice for boiling and serving as a vegetable. Fresh green onions, or scallions, as they are sometimes called, are excellent as a hot vegetable, alone or in combination with other fresh garden vegetables, as well as raw in salads or plain with salt.
The recipes to follow include all these onion varieties. The type of onion recommended for each dish is specified.
BOILED WHITE ONIONS (Serves 4)
Buy the tiny white onions and allow 4 or 5 per person, and even more if your family loves onions.
16 to 20 white onions
Water
Salt
Pepper
4 tablespoons of butter
Cut off the two ends of the onions and peel off the dry outer skin. Plunge into cold water until ready to cook. (If your eyes water while you peel onions, try doing this job while holding the onion under running water.)
In a kettle put enough water to cover the onions and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring it to a boil, add the onions, cover the pan and cook until the onions are just tender when pierced with a fork. Do not overcook or they will turn mushy and fall apart. Cooking time will be about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain them well, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour melted butter over them.
VARIATIONS
Creamed: Serve with a Rich Cream Sauce (page 349).
With cheese: Arrange the boiled onions in a baking dish, dot liberally with butter and sprinkle with grated Parmesan, Switzerland Swiss or cheddar cheese. Run under the broiler flame to melt the cheese.
ONIONS STEAMED IN BUTTER (Serves 4)
16 to 20 small white onions
4 to 6 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Prepare the onions for cooking according to the directions for Boiled White Onions (page 421). In a heavy skillet, with a tight-fitting lid, melt the butter. Arrange the onions in the butter, season them to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper, cover and steam gently over a low heat until they are just tender. This will take a little longer than boiling.
VARIATION
A few minutes before the onions are done, sprinkle them with grated Parmesan cheese.
GREEN ONIONS STEAMED IN BUTTER (Serves 4)
20 to 25 tiny green onions
4 to 6 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Buy bunches of tiny green onions, allowing about 5 or 6 onions per person.
Cut the bunches apart, trim off the root ends of the onions and trim the green tops, leaving about 4 to 5 inches of green on each onion. Remove any outer layer of skin that seems tough. Wash thoroughly. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet with a tight lid, arrange the onions in the butter and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cover and steam gently until the onions are just tender. This will take about 10 minutes.
GLAZED ONIONS (Serves 4)
16 to 20 small white onions
4 to 5 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Sugar
Clean the onions as for Boiled White Onions (page 421). Melt the butter in a heavy skillet and sauté the onions quickly, letting them color a bit. Cover and finish cooking over a low heat. Just before the onions are done, sprinkle them lightly with a little sugar (about 1½ to 2 teaspoons is ample) and cook them uncovered, shaking the pan to let the sugar glaze the onions and brown them evenly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
SAUTÉED ONIONS (Serves 4)
The large Bermuda or Spanish onions are best for this cooking method, although any of the other varieties of dry onions may be used. Allow about 3 large onions for 4 persons. If you use the regular yellow-skinned cooking onions, allow 1 per person.
3 Bermuda onions
5 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Cut off the ends of the onions and remove the dry outer skin. Cut them in thin slices and soak in water with 1 teaspoon of salt added. Let them stand for ½ hour. Melt the butter in a skillet. Drain the onion slices and dry them on paper towels. Then sauté them in the hot butter gently until tender and delicately colored. This will take 10 to 15 minutes. Stir them frequently to be sure they are not sticking to the pan and to cook them evenly. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
GRILLED ONIONS
These are very good with steak or hamburger. Use Bermuda onions and allow ½ onion per person. Cut off the ends of the onions, peel off the dry outer skin and cut them in slices ¼ inch thick. Grease a broiling rack and arrange the slices on it. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and brush well with the melted butter. Cook under the broiler flame or over charcoal until lightly browned. Do not turn. These grilled onion slices will be slightly crunchy and not quite cooked through. But with a hearty meat course they are better at this stage.
FRENCH-FRIED ONIONS (Serves 4 to 6)
4 Bermuda onions
Milk
Flour
Oil for deep frying
Salt and pepper
Use the large Bermuda onions for French-frying.
Cut off the ends of the onions, peel off the outer skin and cut them into slices ½ inch thick. Gently push the slices in the middle to separate them into rings. Heat fat or oil in a deep fryer to 380°. Dip each onion ring in milk and then in flour. Drop a few at a time into the fryer and cook until lightly browned and crisp. This will take about 5 minutes. Recheck the temperature of the fat between each batch of onion rings to be sure it stays near 380°. Drain the cooked onions on absorbent paper and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
BAKED ONIONS (Serves 4)
4 onions
½ cup of beef broth or bouillon
Salt and pepper
Butter
Grated Switzerland Swiss or Parmesan cheese
Allow 1 medium-sized Bermuda onion or red Italian onion per person.
Cut off the ends of the onions and peel off the dry outer skin. Arrange them in a buttered casserole and add the broth or bouillon. (This can be made with hot water and a bouillon cube.) Sprinkle lightly with salt and freshly ground black pepper and dot liberally with butter. Cover the casserole and bake in a 350° oven for about 1 hour, or until the onions are tender when pierced with a fork. Add more broth to the pan if the liquid evaporates too fast. When the onions are done, remove the casserole from the oven, take off the cover and sprinkle the onions with cheese (grated Parmesan, Switzerland Swiss or sharp cheddar) and run them under the broiler or return to the oven to melt the cheese.
Parsnips
This is one of the most neglected and most maligned of vegetables, though why, I don’t understand. Properly cooked they are a very satisfying vegetable, and puréed they are my favorite Thanksgiving vegetable. Despite their poor reputation they are available in the market the year round.
You will need 2½ to 3 pounds of parsnips for 4 persons. Trim and brush them. Boil in their skins in salted water 20 to 40 minutes, depending on their size, or until just tender. Drain and cool, then peel. Cut into serving pieces. Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a pan, add the parsnips, and cook over low heat until hot through. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
PURÉED PARSNIPS (Serves 4)
3 pounds parsnips
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ pound melted butter
¼ cup Madeira
Buttered breadcrumbs
Boil the parsnips as directed above. When cool enough to handle, peel them and put through a food mill or purée in a food processor. You should have 2½ to 3 cups of purée. Add the rest of the ingredients, except for the breadcrumbs, and whip thoroughly. Put into a 1-quart baking dish, sprinkle with the buttered breadcrumbs and bake at 350° 25 to 35 minutes. Serve with roast turkey, chicken or beef.
Peas
According to a cookbook published in the early nineteenth century, green peas must be quite young, picked early in the day while the morning dew is still on them, kept in a cool place and shelled just before cooking. This is still the best advice on the subject. Of course, those of us who do not have green peas growing at our back doors must forgo the pleasure of picking them while the morning dew is still on them, but we can select the freshest and youngest when we buy.
Look for small, shiny pods (never buy peas already shelled) and break open a pod to see if the peas inside are tiny and young. Nibble one. It should be tender and sweet. Don’t buy peas with faded or discolored pods, or pods with such large peas inside that they are almost bursting. Such peas are too old or mature and will be tough and mealy.
Keep peas unshelled in your refrigerator until you are ready to cook them and don’t soak them in water after they are shelled. They lose flavor. Cook in as small amount of water as possible and for as short a time as possible.
Two pounds of peas in the shell will serve 4 persons. Don’t try to stretch them with carrots. This is a poor combination.
BOILED GREEN PEAS (Serves 4)
2 pounds of unshelled peas
1½ to 2 cups of water
Salt
Pepper
4 tablespoons of melted butter
Shell the peas just before cooking and do not soak them in water. Bring a small amount of unsalted water (1½ cups should be enough, but certainly not more than 2 cups) to a boil. Peas should not be drowned in water; in fact, they need not be completely covered. Add the peas to the boiling water and cook uncovered until just barely tender when pierced with a fork. This will take no more than 10 minutes for very young peas and about 5 minutes longer for larger peas. If the peas are overly mature, no amount of cooking will make them tender. Drain as soon as they are done, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour melted butter over them.
VARIATIONS
With onions: Combine cooked peas with tiny white onions boiled until just tender. Season with salt and pepper and pour melted butter over them.
With mushrooms: Combine cooked peas with mushrooms sautéed in butter and season to taste with salt and pepper.
With herbs: Mix chopped chives and parsley with the melted butter before you pour it over the cooked peas.
FRENCH STEAMED PEAS (Serves 4)
This French method for cooking young green peas preserves their fresh flavor and bright color. It takes longer than boiling, but the results are worth the extra time and trouble.
Several large outside lettuce leaves
4 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Shell the peas just before cooking. In a large skillet with a tight-fitting lid put 1 tablespoon of butter. Over this spread 2 or 3 large outside lettuce leaves, well washed with a bit of the water still clinging to them. Heap the peas on top, add the other three tablespoons of butter in small pieces and cover with more lettuce leaves. Put a tight lid on the pan and cook over high heat until the butter is bubbly hot. Then lower the heat and steam very gently just until the peas are tender. This should take about 15 minutes. Discard the lettuce, season the peas with salt and pepper and serve piping hot.
VARIATIONS
With green onions: Add four finely chopped little green onions to the pan with the peas.
With herbs: Stir 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley and 1 tablespoon of chopped chives into the peas after they have finished cooking.
PETITS POIS
These tiny canned peas, imported from France, make an elegant vegetable dish. An American firm also markets canned petits pois, put up in Le Sueur, Minnesota, and the product is just as good as the imported variety.
Prepare petits pois by simply heating them, or flavor with any of the additions suggested for fresh peas (see above). Petit pois are also available frozen.
SNOW PEAS (CHINESE PEAS) (Serves 4)
These pod peas are cooked and eaten pod and all. Allow 1 pound for 4 persons.
1 pound of snow peas
Salted water or broth to cover
Butter
Wash the peas well and remove any stems. Heat salted water, chicken or meat broth (enough to cover the peas) until boiling. Add the peas and simmer gently for 5 to 7 minutes, or until tender. Drain. If you cook the peas in seasoned broth, they will need no additional seasoning. Simply dress them with a little melted butter, if you like. If you cook them in water, add salt to taste to the cooked peas and dress with butter.
VARIATIONS
With almonds: Toss blanched, slivered almonds in a little hot butter until they are heated through but not too brown and crisp. Mix these with the snow peas.
With chicken: Cook snow peas in chicken broth and mix with bits of cooked chicken.
SUGAR SNAP PEAS
Sugar snap peas, a recent arrival in American markets, have both edible pods and fully developed peas. They should be cooked for only a few minutes in rapidly boiling salted water.
Peppers
The beautiful bright green, red or yellow peppers, called bell peppers, are more often appreciated for their appearance than for their flavor. We encounter them too often only in decorative vegetable arrangements, as a garnish on salads or cold meat platters or as containers for hash made from leftover meats. Try using them as a flavoring in soups and stews. You will find their delicate, sweet tang is a great addition. As a hot vegetable they are a welcome change and go exceptionally well with steak, hamburger, and various lamb dishes, such as shish kebab.
Buy fresh-looking, plump peppers with shiny skins. As a vegetable, allow 1 large pepper per person. If you plan to stuff them, buy peppers of uniform size.
4 large peppers
4 tablespoons of butter or butter and olive oil mixed
Salt
Pepper
Wash the peppers, cut them open and remove the seeds, the white membrane and the core. Cut them into strips about ½ inch wide. Heat the butter, or oil and butter, in a skillet and add the pepper strips. Cook gently, stirring occasionally, to be sure the pepper strips cook evenly and do not stick. Cook until tender. This will take about 10 to 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Serve these sautéed peppers with steak or other broiled meats.
VARIATIONS
With green onion: Add 4 tiny green onions, finely cut, to the pan and sauté them with the pepper strips.
With garlic: Add a finely chopped clove of garlic to the pan to sauté with the pepper strips.
With tomato: Cook a chopped clove of garlic with the peppers, and 3 or 4 minutes before they are done add 2 peeled, seeded and chopped fresh tomatoes and a tiny pinch of basil. Cover the pan and finish cooking until the peppers are tender and the tomatoes cooked down. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
With oil and vinegar: Cook any of the above combinations in olive oil instead of oil and butter. Just before done add a dash or two of wine vinegar. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve hot or cold as a relish with broiled meats.
BROILED PEPPER SLICES
Cut peppers through into ½-inch slices. Remove the seeds and core. Brush with oil or butter and grill over charcoal or in the broiler for several minutes. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve with steak or hamburger.
GRILLED (ROASTED) PEPPERS
I find the skin of most bell peppers, either raw or cooked, rather disagreeable, so I prefer to grill my peppers before using them, which can be done on a charcoal grill, under the broiler or over a gas flame. Lay the whole peppers on the grill or on a broiling pan close to to the heat (or hold over a gas flame on a long fork), and cook until the skin blackens on each side. Then carefully scrape off the skin with a knife. It should come away easily. The flesh of the pepper will have cooked during the grilling. Remove the stem and seeds, and cut into strips or quarters. Use in any dish calling for cooked bell peppers, or serve as an appetizer, dressed with Vinaigrette Sauce and garnished with anchovy fillets and chopped parsley.
STUFFED PEPPERS
1 large pepper per person
Stuffing
Butter
Fine bread crumbs
Grated Parmesan cheese
Broth or stock
Use the stuffing suggested for Stuffed Artichokes or for Stuffed Mushrooms (page 380 or page 419), and allow ½ to ¾ cup per pepper, depending on the size of the peppers. Cut the tops from the peppers and scoop out the seeds and core. Fill a kettle with enough water to cover the peppers and bring to a boil. Add the peppers and cook for 2 or 3 minutes to soften them slightly. Remove from the water and drain thoroughly. Arrange them in a buttered baking dish or casserole and fill each with the stuffing. Top with fine crumbs, plenty of butter and a liberal sprinkle of grated Parmesan cheese. Add a little broth or stock (this can be made with hot water and a bouillon cube) to the pan. Put in enough liquid to keep the peppers from sticking. Bake in a 350° oven for about 30 minutes, basting with the pan juices from time to time. When the peppers are brown on top and cooked through, remove them to a hot platter. Serve plain or with a tomato sauce or barbecue sauce.
Potatoes
It might be said that the potato is the “basic black dress” of the vegetable family. It can be served plain or dressed up for elegance. Like good bread, it has an unobtrusive flavor and hearty quality that make it welcome at all meals. It goes with a wide variety of seasonings and flavorings and can be cooked by any method.
When you buy, select the potato best suited to your purpose. Baking potatoes are larger than average and elongated in shape. They have a fine, mealy texture when roasted or baked in the oven. Those from Idaho are considered outstanding mainly because of their gigantic size, but baking potatoes from other states cook just as well. The regular, or Irish, potato, smaller and rounder, is less expensive. It is used for general cooking purposes: boiling, mashing, frying, sautéing, and in soups and stews. Actually, it bakes well too, and is fine roasted with meat in the oven. New potatoes come in two colors: some have reddish skins; others are pale brown. They taste the same. Red-skinned potatoes are popular because they add a spot of color to the table. New potatoes range in size from tiny ones, no bigger than walnuts, on up to those the size of regular Irish potatoes. The smallest are elegant cooked whole with their skins left on and bathed liberally with butter. Larger new potatoes are good sliced and sautéed and are the best choice for potato salad. New potatoes do not bake well.
Allow 1 baking potato per person, or if they are extra large, ½ potato will be ample. The usual portion of the regular potato for boiling is 1 or 2, depending upon size. New potatoes vary so in size that you must judge for yourself the amount you need. Certainly you will need at least 4 and sometimes 8 of the tiny ones for a serving.
Whenever possible, cook potatoes with their skins on. Much of the food value lies just under the skin and is lost if peeled away. After cooking, the skins will slip off easily, if you prefer serving them without their jackets. Wash potatoes thoroughly and scrub them with a stiff brush to remove any dirt or soil. If you do peel them, plunge them into cold water until you cook them, to keep them from turning brown.
BOILED POTATOES (Serves 4)
Good boiled potatoes are dry and mealy, not soggy. Sogginess comes from overcooking, not drying out the potatoes after they are drained, or letting them stand in a tightly covered dish where steam can accumulate. Be sure to use potatoes of uniform size or cut them into uniform pieces. Do not peel until after boiling unless the skin has many blemishes. Allow 1 large or 2 medium-sized potatoes per serving.
4 to 8 potatoes
Water to cover
Salt and pepper
Butter
Wash the potatoes well and scrub them with a stiff brush. If they are large, or if they are not of uniform size, cut them into uniform pieces. Do not cut them too small. The potatoes should be halved or quartered. If the skins have blemishes, peel the potatoes and plunge them into cold water until ready to cook.
In a large kettle, put enough water to cover the potatoes and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring this to a boil, add the potatoes, cover the pan and cook in boiling water just until tender when pierced with a fork. This will take about 20 to 25 minutes. Do not let them overcook and get watery. Drain the potatoes at once, sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper and put back on the stove over very low heat for a few minutes to dry out and get mealy. Serve in their skins with plenty of melted butter.
VARIATIONS
Peeled: If you like the skins removed, peel the potatoes after they are drained, season with salt and pepper and put back on the stove to dry and fluff. Pour melted butter over them and serve.
With parsley: Add 4 tablespoons of chopped parsley to the pan while the potatoes are drying; or add the parsley to the butter.
With chives and parsley: Add 2 tablespoons of chopped chives and 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley to the butter.
BOILED TINY NEW POTATOES
4 to 8 potatoes per person (depending on size)
Water
Salt and pepper
Butter
Wash the potatoes well and cook them whole with their skins on in boiling, salted water to cover. Place a lid on the pan and cook until the potatoes are just tender. This will take 10 to 15 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain well and serve with plenty of salt, freshly ground black pepper and butter.
VARIATION
You may add chopped parsley, or chopped parsley and chives mixed, to the butter; or sprinkle over the potatoes after they are cooked and drained.
MASHED POTATOES (Serves 4)
4 to 8 potatoes
Water to cover
Salt
Pepper
4 tablespoons of butter
4 tablespoons of heated cream or whole milk
Peel the potatoes, cut into uniform pieces and cook as for Boiled Potatoes (see page 431). When done, drain them thoroughly and put them through a ricer or mash with a potato masher. Return the potatoes to the pan, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add the butter. Beat thoroughly with a wooden spoon or wire whisk. (Do not attempt to purée potatoes in a food processor; they become pasty.) Add the heated cream or milk a bit at a time and beat it in well. If the potatoes seem too stiff, add a little extra cream. Reheat over hot water and serve with an extra lump of butter on top.
VARIATIONS
With parsley: Add 4 tablespoons of chopped parsley to the potatoes after they have been mashed.
With chives: Add 2 tablespoons of chopped chives to the mashed potatoes and sprinkle chopped parsley on top when you serve them.
With bacon: Sprinkle the top of the mashed potatoes with crumbled crisp bacon.
With cheese: Sprinkle the top of the mashed potatoes with grated Parmesan or Switzerland Swiss cheese, dot liberally with butter and run under the broiler flame for a minute to brown.
MASHED POTATO PATTIES
Shape cold mashed potatoes into small patties. Dust these with flour and cook in butter until brown on both sides. Serve plain or with a sprinkling of chopped parsley.
BAKED POTATOES
1 baking potato per person
Butter or olive oil
Salt and pepper
Wash and scrub the potatoes. If they are extra large, they can be cut in half. Dry them and rub them well in oil or butter, and slit the top skin with a sharp knife for about ½ inch—just enough to let the steam escape as the potato cooks. Bake in a 375° oven until soft when pierced with a sharp fork. This will take from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on the size of the potatoes.
When they are done, remove them from the oven, split open the tops and add a good-sized lump of butter to each one. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve with additional butter, salt and pepper.
VARIATIONS
With parsley: When the potatoes are done, slit them down the top and press the ends to spread the slit open. Scoop out the insides of the potatoes and put through a ricer or mash with a potato masher. Add 1 tablespoon of butter for each potato, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste and 1 tablespoon of parsley for each potato. Blend well, heap back in the shells, dot with additional butter and return to the oven to heat through.
With chives: Follow directions for the first variation, but add 1 tablespoon of chives as well as the parsley for each potato.
Au gratin: Make either the parsley or the chive variation and sprinkle the top with grated Parmesan cheese and buttered crumbs. Reheat.
With grated cheese: Scoop out the insides of the potatoes, add butter, salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon of sharp, grated cheese for each potato. Return to the shells and top with a sprinkling of paprika. Reheat.
With sour cream: Serve plain baked potatoes with sour cream, salt, freshly ground black pepper and chopped chives; or scoop out the insides and blend with these ingredients. Return to the shells and reheat.
With bacon: Substitute crumbled crisp bacon for the chopped chives in any of the above variations.
SCALLOPED POTATOES (Serves 4)
4 medium potatoes
Butter
Salt and pepper
Whole milk, milk and cream mixed or broth
Butter a casserole well. Wash and peel the potatoes and cut them into thin slices. Put a layer of potato slices in the bottom of the casserole, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and dot liberally with butter. Continue the layers until all the potato is used up. Dot the top liberally with the butter and add just enough milk, milk and cream or broth to fill the casserole even with the top layer of potatoes. Cover and bake in a 375° oven for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and continue cooking until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork and the top is lightly browned.
With cheese: Sprinkle each layer with grated Parmesan or Switzerland Swiss cheese.
With chives and parsley: Sprinkle each layer with chopped herbs.
With onion: Top each layer of potato slices with a thin layer of sliced onions.
With ham: Top each layer of potatoes with a layer of chopped or ground ham; or top with layers or thinly sliced Canadian bacon.
SCALLOPED POTATOES AND CELERIAC—See page 404.
POTATOES ANNA (Serves 4)
4 medium potatoes
Butter
Salt
Pepper
Select a large, shallow baking dish or pie tin and butter it thoroughly. Wash the potatoes, peel them and slice them very thin. Arrange a layer of the potato slices on the bottom of the baking dish in an even pattern. If the dish is round, arrange the slices in a spiral. If it is square or oblong, arrange the slices in rows. Let them overlap just slightly. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and spread with butter. Repeat the layers until all the potato slices are used. Top liberally with butter spread evenly. Bake in a 400° oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender when tested with a fork or toothpick. Turn the baking dish upside down on a platter or large flat plate so the potatoes will come out crusty side up.
VARIATION
Potato Galette: This is a version of Potatoes Anna done on top of the stove. Use a heavy skillet and prepare the potatoes as in the recipe above. Cover and cook over low heat until the potatoes are tender.
OVEN-FRIED POTATOES (Serves 4)
4 medium potatoes
Bacon fat, beef drippings or butter
Salt
Pepper
Use a large, flat baking dish and grease it well with fat. Wash, peel and slice the potatoes. Put them in the baking dish, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and pour a little melted fat over them. Bake in a hot oven (400°) stirring occasionally to see that they cook evenly. Add extra fat, if needed. Test with a fork. They are done when they are brown and tender.
VARIATION
Cut the potatoes in long fingers, as for French-fried Potatoes.
FRIED POTATOES (Serves 4)
4 large potatoes
Butter, bacon fat or beef drippings
Salt
Pepper
Wash the potatoes, peel them and cut them in thin slices. Melt about 6 tablespoons of fat in a heavy skillet, add the potato slices and cook them over a medium flame. Turn the slices often with a spatula or pancake turner to be sure they cook and brown evenly, and season them to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper as they cook. When all the potatoes are tender and browned around the edges, they are done.
VARIATIONS
Soft fried: Some people prefer a softer, less crisp fried potato. For this result, use only 4 tablespoons of fat, add the potato slices, salt and pepper and cover the pan. Cook over low heat for about 20 minutes. Then remove the cover, turn the heat up and brown the potatoes. These will be less bitey.
With green onions: Add 4 to 6 chopped small green onions to the pan to cook with the potatoes.
With sliced onions: Add 2 or 3 sliced onions to the pan to cook with the potatoes.
With parsley: Add 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley to the potatoes just before they finish cooking.
With parsley and chives: Add chopped parsley and chopped chives mixed during the last minute of cooking.
With cheese: Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese, grated Switzerland Swiss or grated sharp cheddar during the last 2 or 3 minutes of cooking.
FRIED OR SAUTÉED NEW POTATOES (Serves 4)
6 medium-sized new potatoes or 16 tiny ones
4 tablespoons of butter
Salt
pepper
Wash the potatoes well but do not peel them. Slice medium-sized potatoes, or cut tiny ones in half. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet. Add the potatoes, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently to be sure they do not stick. When they are browned, crisp on the outside and tender, they are done.
VARIATION
Use any of the variations listed for Fried Potatoes (page 436).
NEW POTATOES STEAMED IN BUTTER (Serves 4)
16 small new potatoes
4 tablespoons of butter
Salt and pepper
Wash the potatoes and trim a thin strip of the skin off around the middle of each potato. Melt the butter in a heavy skillet, add the whole potatoes, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and cover tightly. Steam the potatoes over very low heat until tender. Shake the pan occasionally to be sure the potatoes are not sticking and are cooking evenly. Serve with a sprinkling of chopped parsley or chopped chives and parsley mixed.
FRIED COOKED POTATOES (HOME-FRIED POTATOES)
1 or 2 cooked potatoes per person
1 tablespoon of bacon fat or butter
Pepper
Salt
Peel the potatoes (if they have been boiled with their skins on) and cut them in medium slices. Melt the fat in a skillet, add the potatoes, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook quickly. Turn the slices to brown them on both sides. These fried potatoes will only take a few minutes since the potatoes have already been cooked. When they are hot through and thoroughly browned, they are done. Serve plain or garnished with bacon bits and chopped parsley.
VARIATION
Lyonnaise Potatoes: Sauté 2 sliced onions in butter or bacon fat and add them to the fried potatoes a few minutes before the potatoes are done. Blend the onions in with the potato slices.
HASHED BROWN POTATOES (Serves 4)
6 to 8 boiled potatoes
Salt and pepper
4 tablespoons of bacon fat or butter
Peel the boiled potatoes and cut them into very small cubes or chop them. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Melt the fat in a skillet, add the potatoes and press them down firmly with a spatula. Cover the pan lightly and let the potatoes cook over fairly low heat until a golden brown crust forms on the bottom. This will take 20 to 30 minutes. Check to see if they are brown by lifting the edges gently with the spatula. Turn upside down on a plate, or fold over like an omelet.
VARIATION
Mix chopped parsley or chopped chives and parsley with the potatoes before you cook them.
POTATOES HASHED IN CREAM
Follow the directions for Hashed Brown Potatoes (above) and just before the potatoes are done, add ½ to ¾ cup of hot cream. Let this cook into the potatoes for a minute or so before serving.
FRENCH-FRIED POTATOES (Serves 4)
Use baking potatoes for this dish, and if you like French-fried foods allow at least 1½ large potatoes per person. For the deep fat, use vegetable oil or shortening; or buy beef suet and render it. You will find that suet gives a fine flavor to the potatoes.
6 baking potatoes
1½ quarts of oil or fat, at least
Salt
Pepper
Peel the potatoes and cut them in slices about ½ inch thick lengthwise. Then cut the slices into strips ½ inch wide. Soak these potato strips in cold water for ½ hour. Bring the fat or oil to 375° in a deep-fat fryer. If you have no thermometer, test it with a small bread cube. It is hot enough for frying when it cooks the bread brown and crisp in 30 seconds. Dry the potato strips on paper towels and fry them in the frying basket a few at a time until they are brown and crisp. This should take about 4 minutes. Recheck the temperature of the oil between each batch of potatoes. Drain the cooked potatoes on absorbent paper.
If you can cook these in advance and then recrisp the potatoes for a minute in hot oil just before serving, you will have a crisper, firmer vegetable. The double cooking process keeps them from getting soggy. Season to taste, after draining, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
VARIATIONS
Shoestring Potatoes (Potatoes Julienne) are made the same way. Cut them into very thin strips and cook as for French-fried, allowing about 1 minute instead of 4 in the hot oil.
Potato Chips: Cut the potatoes into extremely thin slices and proceed as for French fries, allowing 1 minute cooking time in the hot oil.
POTATO PANCAKES (Serves 4)
4 medium potatoes
1 medium onion
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons of fine, dry bread crumbs
1 teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoon of pepper
Butter or bacon fat
Wash the potatoes and peel them. Grate with a fine grater and drain off all the liquid that collects in the bowl. Wash and peel the onion. Grate the onion into the potato and mix in the egg, the bread crumbs and the salt and pepper. Heat the butter or bacon fat (you will need about 1 tablespoon at a time) in a large skillet or on a griddle. Put 4 large spoonfuls of the mixture on the griddle to make 4 pancakes. Cook gently until brown on the bottom, turn with a pancake turner and brown the other side. Add more fat to the griddle and continue cooking until all the mixture is used.
Buy spinach young, fresh and crisp. Two pounds will serve 4 persons. Wash spinach thoroughly to be sure it is free of grit and soil. Hold it under running water, separating the leaves to let the water wash each one. Pile it in a pan with cold water and swirl it around a bit. Then lift it out, discard the water and rinse the pan of grit. Repeat. Then break off any wilted or discolored leaves and any coarse stems or roots. If you buy the already cleaned spinach sold in plastic packages, you will save yourself a lot of trouble. But be sure it is fresh and crisp.
Don’t drown spinach in water and don’t cook it to death.
BOILED SPINACH (Serves 4)
2 pounds of spinach
Salt and pepper
Butter
Wash the spinach thoroughly. (If you use the packaged variety, you need only rinse it lightly.) Put the spinach in a saucepan or kettle without water. The water clinging to the leaves is enough moisture for cooking. Sprinkle with a bit of salt and cook gently, uncovered, until the greens are thoroughly wilted and tender. Drain well, season to taste with salt, freshly ground black pepper and plenty of butter.
Serve with lemon sections or a cruet of vinegar. Some people like a tart touch to their spinach.
VARIATIONS
Italian style: Dress with grated garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper.
With onion: Add a grated onion to the butter before you put it on the spinach. Serve garnished with sliced hard-cooked egg.
With herbs: To the butter add 2 tablespoons of chopped chives and 1 teaspoon of dried tarragon, or 1 tablespoon of fresh tarragon. Dress the spinach with this herbed butter, salt and freshly ground black pepper, and serve it with lemon quarters.
Chopped: Chop the spinach coarsely before seasoning and serving.
Creamed 1: Chop the spinach coarsely. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and add 4 tablespoons of heavy cream. Blend the chopped spinach into this mixture, season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.
Creamed 2: Chop the spinach coarsely and fold into 1 cup of Rich Cream Sauce (page 349).
With mushrooms: Chop the spinach coarsely and mix with ½ pound of mushrooms, sliced and sautéed in butter. Season to taste.
Puréed: Put the cooked spinach through a food mill and season with any of the flavorings suggested above.
Wilted: Cook according to directions for Wilted Lettuce (page 416).
Note: Any of the following greens can be cooked according to the directions for spinach:
Swiss chard |
Dandelion greens |
Beet tops |
Mustard greens |
Turnip tops |
Chicory |
Collards |
Kale |
Squash
There are two general sorts of squash: summer and winter. The best known varieties of summer squash are the round white scalloped, the yellow crook-necked and the long green zucchini. They cook quickly and have a delicate flavor. When you buy them, look for ones that are young, with tender skins; select the smallest and freshest. Large summer squash has tough skin, too many seeds, and is not tasty.
Allow about 2 pounds for 4 persons, but you can usually judge the amount you need by the size of the squash: 3 or 4 very small scalloped squash will serve 1 person; one 8-inch crook-necked will serve 2; 2 or 3 small 6-inch zucchini will serve one. Summer squash are cooked and eaten with their skins on.
The most popular varieties of winter squash are the Hubbard and the acorn. The acorn is a small round vegetable with a tough green and orange skin. It is generally cut in half and baked, one half an acorn squash a serving. The flesh of the squash is scooped out of the shell (the tough skin) and eaten. The Hubbard resembles the acorn but is very large. It averages 3 to 6 pounds and one will serve at least 6 persons. It is cut in serving-size pieces and baked with the skin on. As with the acorn, it is served in the shell, but only the flesh is eaten.
BOILED SUMMER SQUASH (Serves 4)
The best choice for this dish is the yellow crook-necked variety, though the scalloped white squash may be used too. The latter has less flavor and really needs the addition of a little onion.
2 pounds of crook-necked or scalloped summer squash
Water
Salt
Pepper
Butter
Onion (optional)
Wash the squash. Leave tiny scalloped squash whole. Cut yellow crook-necked squash into very thick slices—about 1½ to 2 inches thick. In a kettle put enough water to cover the vegetable and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil and add the squash. (Add 1 minced onion for additional flavor, if you wish.) Cook, uncovered, until the squash is tender. This will take 10 to 15 minutes. Do not overcook or the vegetable will be watery. Drain thoroughly, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add a liberal amount of butter.
BOILED ZUCCHINI (Serves 4)
2 pounds of zucchini
Water
Salt
Pepper
Butter
Wash the zucchini and be sure to remove any grit or rough spots on the skin, but do not peel. Cut into slices about ½ inch thick. Bring a very small amount of water to a boil and add 1 teaspoon of salt. The zucchini does not need to be covered with the water; it will steam done. Add the vegetable, cover the pan and simmer gently just until the zucchini is tender. Do not overcook. The slices should still be a little firm. Drain thoroughly and season with salt, freshly ground black pepper and plenty of butter.
SUMMER SQUASH CASSEROLE (Serves 4)
2 pounds of summer squash, crook-necked or zucchini
2 onions
1 green pepper
Salt
Pepper
Butter
Wash the squash and cut it in slices about ½ inch thick. Peel and slice the onions and cut the green pepper into strips. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a skillet and sauté the onion and green pepper lightly until about half tender. Butter a casserole and put a layer of squash in the bottom. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and dot with butter. Add a layer of onion and pepper slices. Repeat these layers until all the vegetables are used up. Pour the butter from the skillet over the casserole and bake in a 350° oven for about 30 minutes, or until the squash is tender and bubbly.
VARIATIONS
With cheese: A few minutes before the vegetables are done, sprinkle the top of the casserole with grated Parmesan cheese. Finish cooking.
With garlic: Add a minced clove of garlic to the onion and green pepper when you sauté them.
With green onion: Substitute 8 tiny green onions, chopped, for the onion slices.
SAUTÉED ZUCCHINI (Serves 4)
2 pounds of zucchini
Butter or olive oil (or both)
Salt
Pepper
Wash the zucchini and cut it into ½-inch slices. If very tiny, cut it in slices the long way or on the diagonal. In a large skillet heat enough butter, olive oil, or butter and oil mixed, to cover the bottom of the pan well. You will need about ¼ cup. When it is hot, add the zucchini slices and sauté them gently, turning to cook on both sides. Do not let them get mushy. Cook just until slightly browned and tender. Add more butter or oil, if needed. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
With garlic: Add 1 minced clove of garlic to the skillet.
With onion: Add 1 large onion, cut in slices, to the skillet.
With tomato: When the zucchini is half cooked, add 2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped.
With cheese: Just before the zucchini is done, sprinkle it with grated Parmesan cheese, cover the pan and finish cooking.
FRENCH-FRIED ZUCCHINI
Wash and slice zucchini as for Sautéed Zucchini (see above). Dip each slice in flour and fry in deep fat (see French-fried Potatoes, page 438) until brown and crisp. This will take only about 2 minutes. Drain on absorbent paper and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
BAKED ACORN SQUASH (Serves 4)
2 acorn squash
4 tablespoons of butter
Salt
Pepper
Cut the squash in halves and scoop out the seeds. Arrange the halves on a baking sheet, cut side up. Spread each liberally with soft butter leaving a good-sized piece in the hollow of each half. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bake in a 350° oven for 45 minutes, or until tender when tested with a fork. Serve the squash in the shell with additional butter, salt and pepper.
VARIATIONS
With bacon: Substitute 1 slice of bacon cut in small squares for the butter in each half acorn. Do not salt.
With brown sugar: Brush each half with butter and season with salt. Add a rounded teaspoon of brown sugar to the hollow and a good lump of butter. Bake as above.
With bacon and sugar: Put 1 cut-up slice of bacon and 1 teaspoon of brown sugar in the hollow of each squash half. Bake as above.
Cut Hubbard squash into serving-size sections. Arrange on a baking sheet and season in any of the ways suggested for acorn squash. Bake according to directions for Baked Acorn Squash (see above).
MASHED HUBBARD SQUASH
Bake Hubbard squash sections according to directions for Baked Acorn Squash (see page 444). When done, scoop out the flesh, add 4 to 6 tablespoons of melted butter, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste and beat until smooth. Serve topped with crumbled bacon bits.
Sweet Potatoes
There are two sorts of sweet potatoes: the yam with the orange-colored flesh: and the plain, or Jersey, sweet potato with the yellowish flesh. The yam has a more decided flavor and is very oily. The plain sweet is dry and firm and needs to be served with an extra amount of butter. Both are cooked in the same manner. Allow 1 medium-sized sweet potato per person.
BOILED SWEET POTATOES (Serves 4)
4 medium-sized sweet potatoes
Water to cover
Salt
Pepper
4 to 6 tablespoons of butter
Wash the potatoes, cut off the tips and cut them in quarters. Do not peel. In a saucepan put enough water to cover the potatoes and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring this to a boil, add the potatoes and cook, covered, until just tender when pierced with a fork. This will take 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes and remove the skins. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with butter, allowing plenty for Jersey sweets.
Boil sweet potatoes as above, drain, skin and mash with a potato masher. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add 4 tablespoons of butter for yams, 6 for Jersey sweets.
VARIATION
Top the mashed sweets with crumbled bacon bits.
FRIED SWEET POTATOES
Boil sweet potatoes as above, drain and skin. Cut into slices about ½ inch thick and fry in hot bacon fat or butter until brown on both sides. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
VARIATIONS
Crisped: Dust the potato slices with a little flour for a crisper finish. Serve these with Fried Apple Rings (page 145) and crisp bacon slices.
Sugared: Fry the potatoes in butter and after you have turned them to brown on the second side, sprinkle with a little brown sugar and dot with extra butter.
CANDIED SWEET POTATOES (Serves 4)
4 quartered boiled sweet Potatoes
Salt and pepper
6 tablespoons of butter
4 tablespoons of brown sugar
Peel the boiled sweet potatoes. Butter a casserole and put a layer of the quartered potatoes in the bottom. Season to taste with salt and pepper, sprinkle with brown sugar and dot liberally with butter. Repeat these layers until all the potatoes are used. Bake in a 375° oven until hot through, brown and bubbly.
Some people like this dish with baked ham.
BAKED SWEET POTATOES
Wash sweet potatoes and rub the skins with oil or butter. Bake in a 375° oven for 30 to 45 minutes, or until done when tested with a fork. Serve with plenty of butter, salt and pepper.
This beautiful member of the vegetable family is one reason we should all be thankful we weren’t born before Columbus sailed across the Atlantic. Along with some other interesting foods (notably the potato, the green pepper, com and beans) the tomato is the gift of the Americas to the world.
Strangely enough, many of our forefathers thought tomatoes were poisonous and refused to eat them, though they grew them for decorative purposes. They called them “love apples,” and perhaps the puritanical background of some of the colonials led them to suspect the innocent vegetable of having sinful effects.
Europeans, on the other hand, accepted tomatoes at once. They were sent to Spain from the Spanish colonies and spread from there to southern France and Italy. At least one variety of tomato has traveled back across the Atlantic since then to become popular in this country—the Italian plum tomato. This small plum-shaped tomato has a strong, rich, sweet flavor. It is delicious plain and is by far the best choice for making sauces.
Other well-known varieties are the beefsteak, a large meaty tomato that is excellent sliced raw or broiled and served with steak; the tiny marble-sized cherry tomatoes that are so tasty with hors d’oeuvre; and the regular, or garden, tomato used for all purposes.
Hothouse tomatoes are widely distributed in the winter months. I find them a disappointment. They never seem to ripen into the firm red vegetable that a good tomato should be. They tend to get mushy and always seem a little bitter. Another bad choice is the tomato picked too green and shipped too far. Green-picked tomatoes never become meaty and sweet.
To peel tomatoes: For most cooking methods, tomatoes should be peeled. There is a simple way to do this job. Spear the tomato at the blossom end with a fork and hold it in a gas flame turning it quickly around. Do not cook it. Heat it for only a minute to loosen the skin. You will find the skin then slips off easily. Or plunge the tomatoes into boiling water for 1 minute. Then drain and plunge at once into cold water. Slip off the skins.
STEWED TOMATOES (Serves 4)
6 to 8 medium-sized tomatoes
Salt and pepper
Sugar
4 tablespoons of butter
Peel the tomatoes (see above) and cut out the cores. Then cut them in quarters. Put the tomato quarters in a saucepan, season to taste with salt, freshly ground black pepper and a tiny pinch of sugar to cut the acid. Cook very gently until tender. Add the butter and let it melt into the tomatoes.
VARIATIONS
With onion: Grate 1 onion and add it to the tomatoes as they cook.
With basil: Add a few leaves of fresh basil or 1 teaspoon of dried basil to the tomatoes as they cook.
With croutons: If you like your stewed tomatoes thicker, add small cubes of bread that have been fried in butter. Stir them in at the last minute.
BAKED STUFFED TOMATOES (Serves 4)
4 large beefsteak tomatoes
2 cups of stuffing (page 419)
Salt
Pepper
Butter
Grated cheese
Broth or water
Wash the tomatoes, but do not peel them. Remove the core at the stem end of each tomato and cut out the seeds and some of the pulp, making a hollow large enough to hold ½ cup of stuffing in each tomato. Season the inside of the tomatoes with salt and pepper and arrange them in a greased baking dish.
Select any of the stuffings suggested for Stuffed Mushrooms (page 419) and prepare 2 cups. Fill the tomatoes with this mixture, dot them with butter and sprinkle liberally with grated Parmesan, Switzerland Swiss or sharp cheddar cheese. Add a little broth or water to the baking dish to keep the tomatoes from sticking. Bake in a 375° oven for 30 minutes, or until hot and cooked through.
SCALLOPED TOMATOES (Serves 4)
6 to 8 medium-sized tomatoes
2 onions, sliced
Butter
Salt and pepper
Sugar
Buttered crumbs
Prepare the tomatoes as for Stewed Tomatoes (page 447). Peel and slice the onions and sauté them in 2 tablespoons of butter until about half done. Butter a casserole and put a layer of tomato quarters on the bottom. Top with part of the onions, dot liberally with butter and sprinkle with salt, freshly ground black pepper and a tiny pinch of sugar. Repeat the layers until all the vegetables are used up. Top with a layer of crumbs that have been browned in plenty of butter. Bake in a 375° oven for 30 minutes, or until the tomatoes and onions are thoroughly tender.
VARIATIONS
With cheese: A few minutes before the tomatoes are done, sprinkle the top of the casserole with grated Parmesan cheese. Finish cooking.
With additional crumbs: Add a layer of buttered crumbs in between each layer of vegetables. This will be a thicker casserole, as the crumbs absorb some of the liquid from the tomatoes.
FRIED TOMATOES (Serves 4)
These fried tomato slices go excellently with sausage or bacon and are a nice change from the usual fried apple ring.
4 tomatoes
Flour
Salt and pepper
Butter or bacon fat
Wash the tomatoes and core them but do not peel. Cut them in slices about ½ to ¾ inch thick and dip each slice in flour. Melt butter or bacon fat, allowing about 1 tablespoon of fat for each tomato. Fry the slices in the hot fat until brown on the bottom, then turn, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and brown on the other side. Add more fat as needed.
PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH FRIED TOMATOES (Serves 4)
4 tomatoes
Flour
Salt and pepper
Butter
Brown sugar
½ cup of heavy cream
Prepare the tomatoes as for Fried Tomatoes (above). Dredge the slices in flour seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper and fry them in hot butter. When they are brown on the bottom, sprinkle with a little brown sugar and turn to brown on the other side. Sprinkle the top of the slices with a little more brown sugar. Keep the heat very low so the sugar and butter will not burn. Just before the tomatoes are done add about ½ cup of cream to the pan and let it heat through. Remove the tomato slices to a hot dish, blend the juices in the pan and pour them over the tomatoes.
BROILED TOMATOES (Serves 4)
4 large tomatoes
Salt and pepper
Butter
Buttered crumbs
Wash the tomatoes and core them but do not peel. Cut them in half and arrange them cut side up on a baking sheet or rack. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper, sprinkle lightly with fine buttered crumbs and top with a liberal dab of butter for each tomato half. Broil under the broiler flame until browned and bubbly. This will take about 5 minutes.
VARIATIONS
With onion: Mix grated onion with buttered crumbs.
With cheese: Mix grated Parmesan cheese with the buttered crumbs.
With chives and parsley: Mix chopped chives and chopped parsley with the buttered crumbs.
With basil: Mix chopped fresh basil or a bit of dried basil with the buttered crumbs.
Turnips
Both the small white turnips and the large yellow turnips, known as rutabagas, have a definite flavor and are considered excellent additions to stews and boiled dinners. They go exceptionally well with game, and the mashed yellow turnip is traditional in some regions with stuffed roast turkey.
Buy 1½ pounds of either variety to serve 4 persons.
BOILED WHITE TURNIPS (Serves 4)
1½ pounds of young white turnips
Water
Salt and pepper
Butter
Wash and peel the turnips. In a kettle put enough water to cover the vegetables and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring it to a boil, add the turnips whole, cover the pan and cook until the turnips are tender when tested with a fork. This will take 15 to 20 minutes. Drain thoroughly, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and dress with plenty of butter.
MASHED RUTABAGA (Serves 4)
1½-pound yellow turnip
Water
Salt
Pepper
Butter
Wash and peel the rutabaga and cut it into slices or cubes. Put enough water in a kettle to cover the vegetable, add a teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Add the rutabaga, cover the pan and cook until the vegetable is tender. This will take about 15 minutes. Drain the cooked rutabaga and mash thoroughly with a potato masher or put through the ricer. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add a generous amount of butter—at least 6 tablespoons. Blend well. Return to the pan and reheat over hot water.
VARIATIONS
With cream: Add ½ cup of heavy cream or sour cream and beat it through the mashed rutabaga.
With bacon: Serve mashed rutabaga sprinkled with bacon bits.
With potatoes: Combine with an equal amount of mashed potatoes and add butter, cream and seasoning to taste.
Dried Beans, Lentils and Peas
The word “legume” means any vegetable that grows in a pod. In cooking, however, “legumes” generally means the dried peas or beans that go into soups and casseroles. These hearty foods are among mankind’s oldest standbys. Even the most primitive people knew that dried vegetables would keep through the long winter months and could be eaten as substitutes for fresh vegetables or in place of meat.
As with pastas and grains, legumes have such a bland flavor that successful cookery depends on your skill in seasoning and flavoring them. Onion, garlic and cured, smoked or salt meat are the most popular additions to legumes. Various national or regional groups have special ways of flavoring them. Mexicans like to add garlic and chili; Mediterranean peoples like garlic and oregano; the British like mustard and bay leaf; New Englanders like brown sugar and molasses. Whatever seasonings you use, be sure to cook legumes slowly until they are thoroughly done. Long, slow cooking blends the seasonings and intensifies the flavors.
You can buy packaged dried beans and peas in the markets today labeled “quick-cooking.” These have been cleaned and processed and need only be cooked. If you do not buy the “quick-cooking” variety, be sure to pick over the legumes to remove any bits of pod or any damaged beans, and then soak them in plenty of water for 5 or 6 hours before cooking.
PLAIN WHITE BEANS (Serves 4)
White pea beans cooked in the basic fashion may be dressed or flavored in a variety of ways before serving.
2 cups of white pea beans
1 bay leaf
1 onion, peeled and stuck with 2 cloves
1½ teaspoons of salt
½ teaspoon of pepper
1 clove of garlic, peeled
Pick over the beans and discard any that are damaged and any bits of pod or stone. Put them to soak in 8 cups of cold water for six hours. (Or use the “quick-cooking” beans.) Drain off the water, put the beans in a deep kettle and cover with fresh water. Add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover and simmer gently until the beans are tender. Unprocessed beans will take about 1 to 3 hours; “quick-cooking” ones will be done in about ½ hour.
Drain the beans and discard the onion, garlic and bay leaf. Dress in any of the following ways:
With herbs: Add 3 tablespoons of butter, 4 tablespoons of finely chopped parsley and 3 tablespoons of chopped chives.
With bacon and onion: Fry 6 slices of bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan and sauté 2 large onions cut into thin slices in the hot bacon fat. Crumble the bacon and mix these bits and the sautéed onion with the beans. Top with chopped parsley.
With onion, green pepper and tomato: Sauté 2 thinly sliced onions and 1 chopped green pepper in 6 tablespoons of butter. When soft, add 3 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, and cook down. Mix this with the cooked beans and top with chopped parsley.
Casserole, with pork or ham: When you drain the beans, save the liquid. Arrange ½ of the drained beans in a buttered casserole, add a layer of leftover cooked pork or ham, and then the rest of the beans. Mix the bean liquid with ½ cup of tomato purée and enough stock from the meat (or stock made with boiling water and bouillon cubes) to cover the beans. Pour this into the casserole and top with buttered crumbs or crumbs mixed with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake in a 350° oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until the liquid is cooked down and the beans are browned on top.
With ham: Cook as for Plain White Beans, but omit the garlic clove and add a ham bone, ham shank, or two or three slices of ham. Drain the beans, dress with chopped parsley, sautéed onion and the meat from the ham, cut into bite-size pieces.
With Roast Leg of Lamb: Cook the beans as for Plain White Beans, but add ¼ cup of tomato purée halfway through the cooking. Drain the beans and mix them with the pan juices from the roast. Add ½ cup of chopped parsley and serve with the meat.
WHITE BEAN SALAD
Cook the beans as for Plain White Beans, drain and chill. Mix with 3 tablespoons of chopped green pepper, 4 tablespoons of chopped parsley, 3 tablespoons of chopped chives and Vinaigrette Sauce (page 343). Serve in a large bowl lined with romaine.
BOSTON BAKED BEANS (Serves 4)
2 cups of white pea beans
1 scant teaspoon of salt
1 medium onion, peeled
¾ pound of salt pork
⅓ cup of brown sugar or molasses
2 teaspoons of dry mustard
1 teaspoon of black pepper
Boiling water
If you use “quick-cooking” beans they need no sorting or soaking. If you use unprocessed beans, look them over and discard any bits of stone or pod. Put them to soak in 2 quarts of water for 6 hours. Soak the salt pork for 2 or 3 hours in cold water. When the beans have soaked, drain them and put them in a large kettle. Add a bit of salt and enough water to reach 2 inches above the beans. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer gently until the beans are just barely tender. This will take about 30 to 40 minutes for unprocessed beans and about 20 minutes for the “quick-cooking” variety. Drain well.
Place the onion in the bottom of a large earthenware casserole or bean pot with a tight lid. Top with a layer of the drained beans and add half of the salt pork cut into pieces about 1 inch square and ½ inch thick. Add the rest of the beans and top with the rest of the salt pork. Mix the brown sugar (or molasses), mustard and black pepper and add this to the beans and pork. Add boiling water to cover, put on the lid and bake in a 250° oven. Add boiling water frequently to be sure the beans are always covered. Bake 4 to 5 hours. Then remove the lid and let the beans finish cooking, uncovered and without additional water, for about ¾ hour.
VARIATION
With spareribs: Some New Englanders like to use pork spareribs in place of the salt pork. Place 4 to 6 spareribs in the bottom of the casserole with the onion. Add the beans and proceed as above.
PUNGENT BEAN CASSEROLE (Serves 4)
2 cups of kidney beans or pinto beans
Scant teaspoon of salt
½ pound of hot sausage (Italian or Spanish)
½ pound of smoked ham
1 teaspoon of oregano
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 large green pepper, chopped
½ cup of chopped parsley
½ cup of red wine
Grated parmesan cheese
Use the “quick-cooking” beans that need no sorting or soaking. If you use the unprocessed beans, be sure to look them over carefully and discard any bits of pod or shriveled or discolored beans. Then soak them in 8 cups of water for 6 hours. Drain the beans, put them in a kettle and pour over enough fresh water to cover them well. Add the salt, bring to a boil, lower the flame and cook gently until the beans are thoroughly tender, but not mushy. “Quick-cooking” beans will be done in about 30 minutes. Unprocessed beans take from 1½ to 2 hours. Drain and save the liquid.
Sauté the sausage until browned and done, turning to cook on all sides. Cut the ham into bite-size pieces. In a casserole place a layer of the beans, then a layer of the meat and a bit of the oregano, minced garlic, chopped green pepper and chopped parsley. Repeat these layers until all the ingredients are used. Mix the bean liquid with the red wine and pour this over the beans and meat. Bake in a 350° oven for 45 minutes. Sprinkle the surface of the casserole with a liberal amount of grated Parmesan cheese and continue baking for another 15 to 20 minutes.
VARIATIONS
With chili: Add 2 tablespoons of chili powder to the bean broth and red wine before you pour it over the casserole.
With onion and tomato: Add layers of sautéed onion slices to the casserole, and substitute tomato juice thickened with a little tomato paste for the bean liquid.
2 cups of lentils
Pinch of salt
1 onion, peeled and stuck with 2 cloves
1 bay leaf
4 to 6 knockwurst
Butter or bacon fat
Bacon strips
Chopped parsley
Use the “quick-cooking” lentils that need no soaking. Or, if you use the unprocessed lentils, pick them over carefully to remove any bits of rock or grass. Soak for several hours in 6 to 7 cups of water. Drain and put in a kettle with water to cover and the pinch of salt. Add the onion and a bay leaf to the lentils. Bring to a boil, lower the flame and simmer gently until the lentils are tender. Do not let them get mushy. The “quick-cooking” variety will be done in about 25 to 30 minutes. Unprocessed lentils take about twice as long. Drain and save the liquid. Discard the onion and bay leaf.
Split the knockwurst in half the long way and sauté it in butter or bacon fat until nicely browned on both sides. In a large casserole put a layer of the cooked lentils, a layer of the knockwurst, more lentils and the rest of the knockwurst. Top with the rest of the lentils. Pour the lentil liquid over the casserole and bake in a 350° oven for 40 minutes. Cover the top of the casserole with strips of bacon and continue baking until the bacon is crisp and brown.
VARIATIONS
With pork chops: Substitute browned pork chops for the knockwurst.
With cheese: Omit the bacon and sprinkle the top of the casserole with grated Parmesan cheese during the last few minutes of cooking.
With lamb: Substitute cooked, leftover lamb for the knockwurst and sprinkle each layer with minced garlic, chopped parsley and a tiny pinch of oregano. Add 2 peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes to the top of the casserole. Bake for 40 minutes and then sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and buttered crumbs, mixed. Finish baking until browned on top.
With ham: Substitute pieces of ham for the knockwurst.
LENTIL SALAD
Prepare lentils as for the Lentil Casserole (above) and cook in water to cover with an onion stuck with 2 cloves, a bay leaf and a little salt. Drain, discard the onion and bay leaf and set the lentils aside to cool. When chilled mix them with 1 bunch of little green onions or scallions chopped, 1 cup of chopped parsley and oil and vinegar dressing.
BEAN SOUP—See Variations, page 369.
LENTIL SOUP—See page 370.
SPLIT PEA SOUP—See page 369.