13 



To Cook Dried Sweet Potatoes. — Pour boiling water over them 

 the night before they are wanted, next day boil, peel and dress with 

 butter. For the preparation of dried sweet potatoes (see page 20). 



YAMS. 



Yams take longer to grow than sweet potatoes but they keep much 

 longer and can be stored for many months. With proper care in their 

 cultivation Yams are one of the best crops to grow on a garden or 

 the estate scale. Begin preparations early. See page 5. 



Roasted Yams, — Lay a yam before the grates of the stove or in the 

 oven, turning it occasionally until cooked. Scrape off the outer skin, 

 cut into pieces or mash with butter and serve hot. 



Baked Yams.— Pare a yam, bake until soft. Take it out of the skin 

 and mash with butter ; put back into skin, cut in pieces and serve hot. 



Boiled Yams. — Pare a yam, put it into boiling water, cook until 

 tender ; serve whole or sliced. 



Yam Chips.— Pare and boil until tender. Out in chips, fry in boiling 

 fat and serve hot. 



Yam Bakes. — Grated fresh yam mixed with a small amount of flour 

 make excellent bakes. 



Yams keep so well that there is no point in converting them into 

 dried chips or meal for storage purposes, 



DASHEENS. 



The dasheen is far too little used locally. On the other hand its 

 cultivation and use are extending rapidly in the United States of 

 America where it is appreciated. The United States Department of 

 Agriculture some years ago collected together many varieties of dasheen 

 from different parts of the tropics and found the Trinidad dasheen the 

 best. Dasheens are more nutritious than ordinary potatoes. The 

 following notes are taken from a recent publication of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture : — 



If uncooked dasheens are scraped they should be handled in water 

 to which sodium carbonate (washing soda) has been added— a level 

 teaspoonful to the quart. This prevents the stinging irritation to the 

 hands that often arises from the action of the acrid juice of the outer 

 layer of the raw dasheen when mixed with water. This irritating 

 property is destroyed by cooKing. In ordinary paring, most persons do 

 not find it necessary to use the soda. 



The following recipes, suggested by various experts in cooking, 

 have been put into their present form after being thoroughly tested. 

 However, they are not regarded as being necessarily the best possible, 

 and suggestions from anyone will be welcomed. 



Baked Dasheens. — In baking dasheens a moderately quick oven is 

 required. Do not bake so quickly nor so long as to char the outside. 

 The time required for cooking dasheens is usually a little less than that 

 for potatoes of the same size ; those weighing more than a pound may 

 be cut in half from top to base before cooking. The dasheens may be 

 (1) baked in the skin, or (2) scraped, though it is generally better to 

 bake in the skin. 



