’Twould tempt the dying anchorite to eat, Back to the world he’d turn his weary soul, And plunge his fingers in the salad bowl. Rev. Sidney Smith.

[74]

Rev. Sidney Smith.

If the herbs be young, fresh-gathered, trimmed neatly, and drained dry and the sauce-maker ponders patiently over the above directions, he cannot fail of obtaining the fame of being a very accomplished salad-dresser.

ONIONS.

The things we eat, by various juice control The narrowness or largeness of our soul. Onions will make e’en heirs or widows weep; The tender lettuce brings on softer sleep. King.

King.

Peel a pint of button onions, and put them in water till you want to put them on to boil; put them into a stewpan, with a quart of cold water; let them boil till tender; they will take (according to their size and age) from half an hour to an hour.

[75]

[75]

ARTICHOKES.

Whose appetites would soon devour Each cabbage, artichoke, and flower. Cawthorne.

Cawthorne.

Soak them in cold water, wash them well, then put them into plenty of boiling water, with a handful of salt, and let them boil gently till tender, which will take an hour and a half or two hours. The surest way to know when they are done enough is to draw out a leaf. Trim them and drain them on a sieve, and send up melted butter with them, which some put into small cups, so that each guest may have one.

LIMA BEANS.

Now fragrant with the bean’s perfume, Now purpled with the pulse’s bloom, Might well with bright allusions store me; But happier bards have been before me. Shenstone.

Shenstone.

These are generally considered the finest of all beans, and should be gathered young. Shell them, lay them in a pan of cold water, and then boil them about two hours, or till they are quite soft; drain them well, and add to them some butter. They[76] are destroyed by the first frost, but can be kept during the winter by gathering them on a dry day, when full 

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