On looking down this list it will be observed that in many cases cream--or,
at any rate, milk--is recommended. We can well imagine the housekeeper
exclaiming, "I don't call this economy." This is one point about which we
consider a few words of explanation necessary. We will suppose a family of
eight, who have been accustomed to live in the ordinary way, are going to
have a vegetarian dinner by way of trial. Some soup has to be made, and
one or two vegetables from the garden or the greengrocer's, as the case may
be, are going to be cooked on a new method, and the housekeeper is
horrified at the amount of butter she finds recommended for the sauce.
People must, however, bear in mind that changes are gradual, and that
often, at first starting, a degree of richness, or what they would consider
extravagance, is advisable if they wish to _reconcile others_ to the
change. In our dinner for eight we would first ask them how much meat
would they have allowed a head? At the very lowest computation, it could
not have been decently done under a quarter of a pound each, even if the
dish of meat took the economical form of an Irish stew; and had a joint,
such as a leg of mutton, been placed upon the table, it would probably have
been considerably more than double. Supposing, however, instead of the
meat, we have three vegetables--say haricot beans, potatoes, and a cabbage.
With the assistance of some really good butter sauce, these vegetables,
eaten with bread, make an agreeable meal, which, especially in hot weather,
would probably be a pleasant change. Supposing, for the sake of argument,
you use half a pound of butter in making the butter sauce. This sounds, to
ordinary cooks, very extravagant, even supposing butter to be only one
shilling per pound. Suppose, however, this half a pound of butter is used
as a means of going without a leg of mutton? That is the chief point to be
borne in mind in a variety of recipes to follow. The cream, butter, and
eggs are often recommended in what will appear as wholesale quantities,
but, as a set-off against this, you have no butcher's bill at all. We do