The Boston cooking-school cook book

and lemons especially valuable for their citric acid. It is of importance to those who are obliged to exclude much sugar from their dietary, to know that plums, peaches, apricots, and raspberries have less sugar than other fruits; apples, sweet cherries, grapes, and pears contain the largest amount. Apples are obtainable nearly all the year, and on account of their variety, cheapness, and abundance, are termed queen of fruits. Thoroughly ripe fruits should be freely indulged in, and to many are more acceptable than desserts prepared in the kitchen. If possible, fruits should always appear on the breakfast-table. In cases where uncooked fruit cannot be freely eaten, many kinds may be cooked and prove valuable. Never eat unripe fruit, or that which is beginning to decay. Fruits should be wiped or rinsed before serving. VEGETABLE ACIDS, AND WHERE FOUND The principal vegetable acids are: I. Acetic (HC_{2}H_{3}O_{2}), found in wine and vinegar. II. Tartaric (H_{2}C_{4}H_{4}O_{6}), found in grapes, pineapples, and tamarinds. III. Malic, much like tartaric, found in apples, pears, peaches, apricots, gooseberries, and currants. IV. Citric (H_{3}C_{6}H_{5}O_{7}), found in lemons, oranges, limes, and citron. V. Oxalic (H_{2}C_{2}O_{4}), found in rhubarb and sorrel. To these may be added tannic acid, obtained from gall nuts. Some fruits contain two or more acids. Malic and citric are found in strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, and cherries; malic, citric, and oxalic in cranberries. CONDIMENTS Condiments are not classed among foods, but are known as food adjuncts. They are used to stimulate the appetite by adding flavor to food. Among the most important are salt, spices, and various flavorings. Salt, according to some authorities, is called a food, being necessary to life. =Black pepper= is ground peppercorns. Peppercorns are the dried berries of _Piper nigrum_, grown in the West Indies, Sumatra, and other eastern countries. =White pepper= is made from the same berry, the outer husk being removed before grinding. It is less irritating than black pepper to the coating of the stomach. =Cayenne pepper= is the powdered pod of _Capsicum_ grown on the eastern coast of Africa and in Zanzibar. =Mustard= is the ground seed