DIVISION SEVEN HEALTH AND GROWTH-PROMOTING FOODS,--RICH IN VITAMINES LESSON LXXIX VITAMINES--VEGETABLES OF DELICATE FLAVOR

VITAMINES.—In determining the proper diet for perfect nourishment, scientists long since came to the conclusion that the body needed a certain quantity of carbohydrates, fats, protein, ash, and water. They were all agreed that all these foodstuffs needed to be represented in the foods making up a day's diet. Scientists also found that these foodstuffs must exist in a certain proportion in a day's food,—that there should be enough of each of the foodstuffs to meet the needs of the body. A diet made up of foods in which all the foodstuffs were represented in the proper proportion was termed a balanced ration.

Investigations of recent years, however, show that these foodstuffs alone do not afford perfect nourishment. Much valuable scientific work is being done on the question of adequate diet. It is found that certain substances contained in foods in small amounts are absolutely essential in diet. When animals are fed foods containing only the foodstuffs mentioned above and none of these other substances, they cease growing, become diseased, and eventually die.

These materials so necessary to the growth and maintenance of animal life are termed Vitamines by some authorities. There are three classes of Vitamines, called Fat-soluble A, Water-soluble B, and Water-soluble C. It is now believed that there is at least one more vitamine.

Although vitamines exist in foods only in minute quantities it is necessary to use foods containing all the kinds of vitamines to promote growth and to keep in health.

Fat-soluble A, especially with certain minerals, is thought to prevent rickets and a disease of the eye called xerophthalmia. During the war, because of inadequate diet, many cases of these diseases developed in Europe.

Water-soluble B is called the anti-neuritic vitamine because it is necessary to prevent a disease called polyneuritis or beri-beri (see Polished and Unpolished Rice).

Water-soluble C is called the anti-scorbutic vitamine because it is necessary to prevent a disease called scurvy.

FOODS CONTAINING FAT-SOLUBLE A are milk, eggs, and leafy vegetables. Leafy vegetables include: spinach, lettuce, celery tops, beet tops, Swiss chard, collards, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and onions. Milk products, such as butter and cheese, and cod-liver oil also contain fat-soluble A. It is also thought to be present in certain vegetables such as carrots, which are not leafy vegetables. Not all fat foods contain fat- soluble A. It does not exist in the vegetable oils.

It has been demonstrated that foods rich in fat-soluble A, especially milk, eggs, and leafy vegetables, are most essential in diet. According to McCollum, dry leaves contain 3 to 5 times as much total ash as do seeds; the former are also especially rich in the important elements calcium, sodium, and chlorine, in which the seed is poorest. Hence leafy vegetables not only abound in the growth-promoting vitamine but in certain essential minerals. Cereals, root vegetables, and meat need to be supplemented with milk and leafy vegetables. Because milk, eggs, and leafy vegetables are so valuable and essential in diet, these foods have been termed protective foods. Fresh milk contains fat-soluble A and a small quantity of water-soluble B and water-soluble C. Its value as a food has been previously discussed. Doubtless the leafy vegetables are not as generally and as constantly used as they should be. Root vegetables and cereals seem to be a much more popular form of vegetable food. The pupil should realize the importance of these foods and when possible explain their use in her home. Learning to prepare leafy vegetables so as to retain their nutriment and to make them appetizing would doubtless do much in promoting their use.

FOODS CONTAINING WATER-SOLUBLE B.—Water-soluble B is more widely distributed in foods than is fat-soluble A. It occurs for the most part, however, in vegetable foods. Plants containing this vitamine include seeds, root, stem, and leafy vegetables. Whole grains, legumes, spinach, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, onions, turnips, beets, and tomatoes and all other commonly used vegetables contain water-soluble B. It is thought that the germ of whole grains, rather than the bran, furnishes water-soluble B. Compressed yeast contains some of this vitamine, but none of the other two.

FOODS CONTAINING WATER-SOLUBLE C include both animal and vegetable foods, but fresh fruits and green vegetables contain the largest quantity. Orange juice, lettuce, cabbage, and spinach are valuable sources of this vitamine. Milk and meat contain only a very small quantity of water- soluble C.

SAVING THE NUTRIMENT AND FLAVOR.—It was mentioned in Suggestions for Cooking Fresh Vegetables that a saving of ash in vegetables meant a saving of both nutriment and flavor. If vegetables of delicate flavor are to be made tasty, it is especially necessary to lose none of the ash constituents. Note that in the methods of cooking the vegetables of delicate flavor in this lesson that either the vegetables are cooked in such a way that no moisture needs to be drained from them, or the vegetable stock drained from them is used in making sauce for the vegetable. By these methods both nutriment and flavor are retained.

SPINACH

1 pound or 1/2 peck spinach 1/2 tablespoonful salt 1/8 teaspoonful pepper 2 tablespoonfuls butter

If the spinach is at all wilted, place it in cold water until it becomes fresh and crisp. Cut off the roots, break the leaves apart, and drop them in a pan of water. Wash well, and then lift them into a second pan of water; wash again, and continue until no sand appears in the bottom of the pan. Lift from the water, drain, and place in a granite utensil, and add the seasoning. Steam until tender (usually about 30 minutes). Add the butter, cut the leaves with a knife and fork. Turn into a hot dish and serve at once.

Spinach is most pleasing if served with a few drops of vinegar or a combination of oil and vinegar. If desired, the pepper may be omitted and 1 tablespoonful of sugar added. Spinach may also be garnished with slices of hard-cooked eggs, using 2 eggs to 1/2 peck of spinach.

Spinach may be cooked directly over the flame, as follows: wash the spinach as directed above. Then drain, and place in a saucepan or casserole. Do not add water unless the spinach is old. Add the seasoning, cover, and cook for 10 minutes, pressing down and turning over the spinach several times during the cooking. Cut with a knife and fork in the saucepan or casserole. Add the butter, and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve at once.

SCALLOPED SPINACH WITH CHEESE

1 pound spinach 1 cupful thick White Sauce 1/2 cupful cheese, cut in pieces 2 to 3 hard-cooked eggs, sliced 2 cupfuls buttered bread crumbs

Wash the spinach and cook it by either of the methods given above. Season it with 1/2 tablespoonful of salt.

Drain the moisture from the cooked spinach. Use this liquid combined with milk for the liquid of the White Sauce. Season the sauce with 1/2 teaspoonful of salt and add the cheese to it. Stir the mixture until the cheese is blended with the sauce.

Divide the spinach, sauce, and eggs into 2 portions and the bread crumbs into 3 portions, as directed for Scalloped Corn. Place a layer of crumbs in a baking-dish, add a layer of spinach, sauce, and eggs. Add another layer of each material and finally the third layer of crumbs. Bake in a moderate oven until the materials are heated and the crumbs browned. Serve hot.

DRIED CELERY LEAVES [Footnote 58: The stems of celery from which the leaves are cut, should be utilized. They may be used in a salad or cooked and served with White Sauce as Creamed Celery. If the vegetable is cooked, it should be steamed or cooked in a small quantity of boiling water. In case the latter method is followed, the celery stock should be combined with milk and used in the preparation of the White Sauce.]

Wash celery leaves and remove the stems. Place the leaves on a platter or granite pan, cover with cheese-cloth, and set aside to dry. When perfectly dry, crumble the leaves and place them in a covered jar. Use for flavoring soups and stews.

QUESTIONS

In what kind of soil does spinach grow?

What is the advantage of using two pans in washing spinach?

What is the advantage of cooking in steam green vegetables of delicate flavor?

If green vegetables are cooked in water, what is the advantage in using a small, rather than a large quantity of water?

What is the price of spinach per pound or peck? How many persons does one pound or peck serve?

What is the price of celery per bunch?

What vitamines are present in spinach and celery leaves and stems?