American Cookery

page 10

Cheese--the red smooth moist coated, and tight pressed, square edged Cheese, are
better than white coat, hard rinded, or bilged; the inside should be yellow, and
flavored to your taste. Old shelves which have only been wiped down for years,
are preferable to scoured and washed shelves. Deceits are used by salt petering
the out side, or colouring with hemlock, cocumberries, or safron, infused into
the milk; the taste of either supercedes every possible evasion.

Eggs--Clear, thin shell'd, longest oval and sharp ends are best; to ascertain
whether new or stale--hold to the light, if the white is clear, the yolk
regularly in the centre, they are good--but if otherwise, they are stale The
best possible method of ascertaining, is to put them into water; if they lye on
their bilge, they are good and fresh--if they bob up an end they are stale, and
if they rise they are addled, proved, and of no use.

We proceed to ROOTS and VEGETABLES--and the best cook cannot alter the first
quality, they must be good, or the cook will be disappointed.

Potatoes, take rank for universal use, profit and early acquirement. The smooth
skin, known by the name of How's Potatoe, is the most mealy and richest
flavor'd; the yellow rusticoat next best; the red, and red rusticoat are
tolerable; and the yellow Spanish have their value--those cultivated from
imported feed on sandy or dry loomy lands, are best for table use; though the
red or either will produce more in rich, loomy, highly manured garden grounds;
new lands and a sand foil, afford the richest flavor'd; and most mealy Potatoe
much depends on the ground on which they grow--more on the species of Potatoes
planted--and still more from foreign feeds--and each may be known by attention
to connoisseurs; for a good potatoe comes up in many branches of cookery, as
herein after prescribed.--All potatoes should be dug before the rainy seasons

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