1906.] DIETETIC V.\LUE OF FOODS. 27I 



ciently long press it between the hands, and if it yields readily 

 to the touch and bursts its jacket in the pressing, this condition 

 has been reached. It should then be taken from the oven 

 placed in a hot tureen and kept, until served in a manner simi- 

 lar to the boiled potato. The bursting of the jacket of the 

 baked potato is as necessary as with that of the boiled, as this 

 enables the water it contains to pass out and off as vapor. If 

 this steam condenses, or is unable to escape, the potato na- 

 turally becomes heavy and soggy and in such a condition unfit 

 for food. We thus see that science applied even to the cooking 

 of a potato is well worthy of consideration. When we go still 

 further and analyze the potato, finding that the albuminoids 

 and the most nourishing parts lie next to the jacket and that 

 these nourishing parts have been ruthlessly cast away, or fed 

 to the live stock, then will we begin to appreciate the fact and 

 to understand that the preparation of food to yield nourish- 

 ment is not a small thing to consider. The consideration of 

 such should be the delight of every housewife. The kitchen is 

 the laboratory of the home. As such it should be considered, 

 for it holds much within its environs. The health of the fam- 

 ily, to a great extent, depends upon the one who prepares the 

 meals, and with a full appreciation of these duties no wife or 

 mother should ignore them. 



But not only will we consider the food value of the potato 

 but that of other vegetables. Take, for instance, cabbage. 

 Usually in cooking, or even in using the vegetable raw% the 

 coarse outer leaves are used in connection with the tender inner 

 portions. All this is wrong, for the tough outer leaves of any 

 plant or vegetable are always difficult, if not impossible, to 

 digest, and are productive of digestive disturbance whenever 

 the attempt is made. Feed these coarse outer leaves to your 

 live stock, to your domestic animaJs. for their ner^^e energy 

 will not be depleted in digesting them. Conditions of life are 

 such that you have no nerve force to spare in the effort. 



Not only is it necessary to observe the preliminary prepara- 

 tion of cabbage, but its cooking. It should be boiled in plenty 

 of water in an uncovered kettle, and as soon as the vegetable 

 pierces tender, drained of the poisonous acids which the water 

 contains and then placed in a hot dish. Vegetables should 

 never be served underdone, neither should they be served over- 

 done. One condition is about as bad as the other, for neither 



