The Laurel Health Cookery: A Collection of Practical Suggestions and Recipes for the Preparation of Non-Flesh Foods in Palatable and Attractive Ways

For the above reasons, we use no flour or cornstarch in dressings, use lemon juice as the acid, and exclude potato salad. Cold potatoes of themselves are difficult of digestion and combining them with an acid renders them still more so. Secrets of Success Use nuts as a garnish, or as an accompaniment to salads instead of mixed with them, as they become tough quickly after touching the dressing. Coarse chopped nuts may be sprinkled over the salad just as it goes to the table. In beans, green or red French, Lima or California are best for salads since they do not cook to pieces easily. The whites of hard boiled eggs are more digestible when ground fine, or pressed through a wire strainer. When desired for fancy shapes they may be poached separate from the yolks, p. 199. Vegetables for salads must be crisp, tender and dry. Gather lettuce early in the morning, put it into a closed pail or a paper sack and leave in the refrigerator for a few hours; or if it comes from the market slightly wilted, cover it at once with ice water until revived. Never allow the wind to blow upon lettuce. Crisp, by allowing it to stand in ice water after washing until just before serving, then drain and shake in a wire basket or in mosquito netting, cheese cloth or a netted bag. Celery, parsley, spinach, endive and dandelion may be kept fresh the same as lettuce and crisped in ice water before serving. Always cut celery, never chop it. Wipe it dry before cutting and if possible, roll in a dry towel a moment after cutting. Unless cabbage is shaved thread-like it is better to be chopped. In cooking carrots for salads, drain them when about half done and add boiling water to finish cooking. The apple, grape fruit and tomato are the only fruits with which a French or Mayonnaise dressing is harmonious. Dip ripe tomatoes quickly into perfectly boiling water, lift them out and drop into cold water, change the water two or three times if ice is