that ideal of dainty simplicity from which this age of luxury and fuss and
elaboration is so far removed.





"Now good digestion wait on appetite,
And health on both."--_Shakespeare_.


SOUPS.


The following directions will be found generally applicable, so that there
will be no need to repeat the several details each time. Seasonings are not
specified, as these are a matter of individual taste and circumstance. Some
from considerations of health or otherwise are forbidden the use of salt.
In such cases a little sugar will help to bring out the flavour of the
vegetables, but unless all the members of the household are alike, it had
best not be added before bringing to table. Where soup is to be strained,
whole pepper, mace, &c., is much preferable to ground, both as being free
from adulteration, and giving all the flavour without the grit. The water
in which cauliflower, green peas, &c., have been boiled, should be added to
the stock-pot, but as we are now recognising that all vegetables should be
cooked as conservatively as possible--that is, by steaming, or in just as
much water as they will absorb, so as not to waste the valuable salts and
juices, there will not be much of such liquid in a "Reform" menage. A stock
must therefore be made from fresh materials, but as those are comparatively
inexpensive, we need not grudge having them of the freshest and best.