WOMEN'S REALM.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVII, Issue 87, 11 April 1906, Page 8

WOMEN'S REALM.

WHY VEGETABLES ABE SO HEALTHFUL.

PART 11.

(By Mrs. S. T. Rorer.)

EAT GREEN VEGETABLES EVERY DAY.

Green vegetables.do not contain, from , our standpoint, true nourishment, but they are of equal value as waste and. should be taken .at least once.a day. j Vegetables not containing starch may I be eaten raw; but such roots as turnips, carrots and beets must be scraped or i grated. The dense fibre renders them I difficult of digestion. The green vegetables, watercress, the cabbage family, turnips, radishes, celery, lettuce, spinach, green peas, beans, cucumbers, parsley, onions, leeks, carrots, shallots and asparagus all contain a volatile principle which gives them flavour, and which when they are boiled too long or too rapidly is driven off, leaving the vegetables rather tasteless. any of these may be eaten uncooked, ■with a little salt or with a French dressing. They prevent constipation. : Another group of vegetables usually classed as succulent are roots, as parsnips, carrots, turnips and- Jerusalem artichokes. These contain'sugar and some starch, but do not take the place of potatoes or rice. Turnips and Jerusalem artichokes contain a material known as inulin, which belongs to tbe starchy group, but is not converted during the processes of digestion into the same form of sugar; hence, these and all succulent vegetables may be eaten by diabetic people. Onions are stimulating. Even a suspicion of garlic in the salad will give a quick sense of warmth. CAREFULLY-COOKED POTATOES ARE WHOLESOME. The fibrovascular layer of the potato just underneath the skin contains nearly as much nourishment and mineral matter as the remaining portion of the potato; hence the necessity of paring sparingly. Carefully-cooked potatoes constitute a wholesome and easily-digested starchy food. Do not use them every day, however, as variety is the. spice of appetite. They contain seventy-five per cent of water and one per cent of prbteids, with eighteen per cent of starch and one per cent of mineral matter- as compared to .rice, with' its seventy-six per cent of .starch, seven , per cent of albuminoids, and only fourteen per cent of water, they rank low in nutritive value. . In boiling, rice takes up water to the volume, of fifty-two per cent., loses two per cent, of proteids and twenty per cent, of starch. Save rice-water for soups or for starching fine laundry. Hominy, frequently served as a starchy food, contains sixty-seven per cent, of starch with twelve per cent, of proteids, and one and a-quarter per cent,,of mineral matter. When we use hominy we must cut down the quantity of meat. WHAT MAY BE SUBSTITUTED FOR POTATOES. Sweet potatoes,. yams, and pumpkins contain, in addition to their starch, a notable amount of sugar. The ordinary sweet potato yields seventy-five per cent, water, -fifteen.. per. cent., starch, and about two per cent, sugar, with one per cent, mineral matter; these may always be substituted for white potatoes; they' are more difficult to cook on ac-, count of the sugar,. ' ,y In China and Japan the soy 1 bean forms the most important article Of food; in fact, it is the richest of all vegetables in nitrogenous constituents. It has more tnan meat value. It is also grown to a considerable extent in India and takes the place of meat; served with rice and a flavouring Of onion, it makes a most delightful dish. This oean also ranks high in fats. The Chinese make from soy beans a cheese, much resembling our own. The Japanese make-them into a sauce for rice and fish. In fact, this sauce, known as suey or soy, is the base of most of our bottled meat sauces. Well-selected soy beans yield tuirty-five per cent, of muscle-making or. proteid foods, eighteen per cent, fat, and nearly five per cent, mineral matter; vney drop, however, in the quantity of starch to twelve per cent.; with an added twelve per cent, of sugar. With rice they form a typical food.

MUSHROOMS ARE DIFFICULT OF DIGESTION.

We have another group of nitrogenous vegetables, mushrooms, but they scarcely rank as nutrients. To obtain the proper amount of nitrogen from these foods one would be obliged to eat large quantities, and as they are difficult of digestion it would be both impracticable and dangerous. They must be looked upon as food auxiliaries, appertisers and flayourin S s - New peas, young beets and green corn contain sugar. Sugar is very prone to fermentation. People subject to .flatulency, should not eat- these, vegetables. It is the sugar that they contain that makes them difficult to can;, they ferment more easily than string beans', or asparagus. \ The sweetness of both corn and peas depends entirely upon careful cookihg. Throw them into boiling water. Salt the peas, but not the corn. Boil slowly in an uncovered vessel, the peas for twenty minutes, the.., corn for five. Both should, be served quickly and not allowed to stand in the water. All pickled vegetables, such as cucumbers and beets, are . intugestible. Salads should be used in their plaice. The green vegetables, as well as corn and peas, lend themselves easily, to combinations of milk, or milk and stock, for the "making;"of cream soups. The milk adds the necessary nitrogenous food. The butter and flour give - the heat any energy food, and. the green vegetable the necessary waste. The water in which spinach, cahbage, or onions have been boiled should' be jarod Mid o«ed for fiouna.

IN CASE CERTAIN VEGETABto CANNOT BE HA3X ."■ln summing up, we find that starchy vegetable may U enS? l " for that vegetable may he substituted^? 0 * other. In reading hflls-of-fare; ** have a meat, sweet potatoes and <J- ** and neither .sweet potatoes arc- accessible in your tute white potatoes for the sweet" toes, and cabbage or spinach... Spinach contains a r °* : amount of nitre; onions are more i?" 11 Mating, but nevertheless one take the place of the other Ttel keep the lower bowel in good eS^ Vegetables and are summer foods; they havH^Sj-°* to cool the blood, while theroolsT'T canjsasily he preserved take : their m the winter. : ..f I ?** With a Ptle forethought "and Btnfl. ■ one may have a very dainty table T? only use such vegetables are .accessible in the locality »«* in season. V na m«