Simple Italian Cookery

Take one-half pound of salt codfish that has been soaked, cut it up into squares, but not small. Prepare in a saucepan four tablespoons of good olive-oil, and one small onion cut into pieces. Cook the onion in the oil over a slow fire, without allowing the onion to become colored, then add a small bunch of parsley stems, a small piece of celery, a bay-leaf, and a small sprig of thyme. Cool for a few moments, then add two tomatoes, skinned and with the seeds removed, and cut into slices, two tablespoons of dry white wine, and one medium-sized potato, peeled and cut into slices, and, lastly, one cup of water. When the potato is half cooked, add the codfish, then one-half tablespoon more of olive-oil. Remove the parsley stems, and put in instead one-half tablespoon of chopped-up parsley; add a good pinch of pepper, and some salt, if needed. When the vegetables are thoroughly cooked pour the soup over pieces of toasted or fried bread, and serve. LENTIL SOUP (_Brodo di Lenticchie_) 3 tablespoons of dried lentils 1/2 tablespoon of butter 2 tablespoons of cream Meat stock Cover the lentils with water and boil until they are quite soft. Pass them through a colander or a sieve. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the lentils and cream, mixing well, then add a ladleful of the stock, and boil for a few minutes; then add the rest of the desired amount of stock, a ladleful at a time. VEGETABLE SOUP (_Zuppa alla Primaverile_) Take some cabbage, carrots, celery, onions, turnips, lettuce, squash, potatoes, beans, and peas. Chop each into very small pieces, wash and drain. Take a saucepan, put in a heaping tablespoon of butter; chop up another small piece of onion and add to butter and fry until onion is golden; then add all the vegetables, salt, and pepper, and cover the saucepan. When the vegetables are half cooked, and their juice has become absorbed, dissolve one tablespoon of tomato paste in one-third of a cup of hot water, and add. Instead of the tomato paste there