Parsley-Butter Sauce

Parsley-Butter Sauce

Ingredients:
1/2 c. butter
1 Tb. chopped parsley
1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:
Dash of pepper
Heat the butter in a saucepan until it is well browned, and then add
the parsley, salt, and pepper. Allow the sauce to become hot, but not to
boil. This is an excellent sauce to use over new potatoes or diced
vegetables, such as turnips or carrots.
ASPARAGUS AND ITS PREPARATION
41. ASPARAGUS is a vegetable that consists of the shoots of the plant,
which are eaten before the blossoms develop. It grows quickly and is
very tender if the shoots are clipped at just the right time after they
appear above the ground. It comes early in the spring, being about the
first green vegetable that gets into the local market, but its season is
comparatively short. It does not keep long after it is purchased and is
better when it is used at once. If asparagus must be kept for any length
of time, it should be stored in a cool, damp place.
42. In selecting asparagus, it should be remembered that there are two
varieties, one of which is green and the other white. The stems of the
green asparagus should be green to the bottom, and should not be hard
nor woody where they are cut from the plant. However, if a part of the
stems is found to be woody, the hard ends should not be rejected, for
the outside may be peeled off and the center used, or the hard ends may
be cooked with other vegetables for the making of soup. The white
asparagus will have slightly green tips, while the rest of the stem
will be white.
Asparagus is one of the succulent vegetables comparatively low in food
value. It contains, as Table I shows, only one-fourth as many calories
to the pound as potatoes. Its food value, however, may be increased by
dressing it with butter after the vegetable has been cooked or by
serving with it a sauce made with milk, butter, flour, etc. Then, too,
asparagus is sometimes served on toast, which is another means of making
a more nutritious dish out of this vegetable.
In its composition, asparagus contains a diuretic, that is, a
substance that has an effect upon the kidneys, and that is known as
asparagine. Because of the presence of this substance, asparagus is
thought to be injurious to those who have kidney trouble, but it need
not be avoided except in some forms of this disease. 43. PREPARATION
FOR COOKING.--To prepare asparagus for cooking, strip the tiny scales
from the sides of the stems by means of a small paring knife. These hold
sand and are responsible for the presence of the grit that is sometimes
found in a cooked dish of asparagus even when the housewife feels