Dr. Allinson's cookery book, comprising many valuable vegetarian recipes

Let me draw the attention of vegetarians to the use of soaked sago in many dishes. This is a farinaceous food which should be used much more largely in vegetarian cookery than it is. Thoroughly soaked sago should be used in all dishes, savouries or sweets, in which a substitute for suet is required to lighten the mixture; that is, in boiled savouries or sweets which are largely made of wholemeal, as, for instance, in vegetable haggis, roly-poly pudding, and all fruit or vegetable puddings which are boiled in a paste. When soaked sago is used (taking a teacupful of dry sago to two breakfastcupfuls of meal) a light paste will be obtained which would mislead any meat eater into the belief that suet or, at any rate, baking powder had been used. Baking powder, tartaric acid, soda and bicarbonate of soda, are all most injurious to the system, and these chemicals have been left out of this book entirely. In breads and cakes I have used a small quantity of yeast for the rising of the dough; those who once have got accustomed to the use of yeast will not find it any more trouble than using baking powder. It may here be beneficial to give a few hints as to the harm done by the use of the most commonly introduced chemicals, namely, soda, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, tartaric acid, and citric acid. Not only do they delay the digestion of the foods in which they are used, and give rise to various stomach troubles, but also cause rheumatism and gout, and often are the primary cause of stone in the kidney and bladder. Another danger lies in the fact that these chemicals are too dear to be supplied pure to the public, which always demands cheap goods, and the result is that many of the chemicals in the market are mixed with other still worse poisons, like arsenic, for instance. Self-raising flour, which is liked by so many on account of its convenience, is nothing but ordinary flour mixed with some sort of baking powder; in