COOKING MUSHROOMS. 151 



The small, short-stemmed, white-skinned mushrooms 

 ofEered for sale are of the variety known as French 

 mushrooms, and on account of their white appearance 

 are preferred by many ; the longer-stemmed, broader- 

 headed, and darker-colored kind that we also find ofEered 

 for sale is what is known as the English mushroom. 

 The French mushrooms are the most attractive in ap- 

 pearance and preferred in the market, but the English 

 variety is the best flavored and generally the most liked 

 for home use. 



As soon as the frill around the neck breaks apart the 

 mushroom is fit to gather ; keeping it longer may add 

 to its size a little, but surely will detract from its ten- 

 derness. The gills of the mushrooms will retain their 

 pink tinge for a day after the frill breaks open, but they 

 soon grow browner and blacker, until in a few days they 

 are unfit for food. In gathering, the mushrooms should 

 be pulled and never cut, and kept in this way until 

 ready to prepare them for cooking. By retaining the 

 stem uncut the mushroom holds its freshness and plump- 

 ness much longer than it would were the stems removed. 

 Keep them in a cool, dark place, and in an earthenware 

 vessel with a cover or a thick, damp cloth thrown over 

 it ; this will preserve their plumpness. If the fi-ill is 

 broken wide apart when the mushrooms are gathered, 

 the caps are apt to open out flat in a day or two, and 

 the gills darken and spread their spores, just as if the 

 mushrooms were still unsevered from the ground. 



Carefully inspect the mushrooms before cooking them. 

 If the gills are black and the mushrooms are too old do 

 not use them ; if the cap is perforated by insects discard 

 it, as it is very likely there are maggots inside; or if 

 there are dark brown spots ("black spot") on the top 

 of the caps throw the mushrooms away. Old mush- 

 rooms are tough, ill-looking, bad-tasting and indigesti- 

 ble, and those infested by insects, although not poison- 



