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 Spinach Soup

4 cups broth 2 qts. spinach 3 cups boiling water 2 "   milk ¼ cup butter ½  "  flour Salt and pepper

Wash the spinach and cook thirty minutes in boiling water to which 1/8 teaspoon soda has been added. Drain and chop fine. Add stock and butter and flour cooked together, milk and seasoning.

Cauliflower, mushrooms, lettuce, string beans, onions and other vegetables may be used for soups in the same way. In all of these recipes milk may be substituted for the stock. The soups will be more nourishing, many like them better, and they are more easily prepared. If canned vegetables are used they may be added to the thickened milk, which should be made in the proportions of one quart of milk to two tablespoons butter or substitute and two tablespoons flour. One can of beans, peas, asparagus, or corn, may be added to three pints of thickened milk. If fresh vegetables are used, they should be boiled in as little water as possible and this water added with the vegetables to the hot, thickened milk. The addition of one-half to one cup of cream to these soups improves their taste but is not necessary. If the cream is whipped and added just before serving, the appearance is also much improved. The vegetables may be pressed through a sieve or not, as preferred. If the soup is to be served in cups it is better to do this or chop the vegetables very fine, but if the soup is to be served in soup plates it looks attractive and is more substantial if the vegetables are cut in inch pieces and left in the soup. All cooks are familiar with cornlet soup, tomato