Parsnips contain starch and sugar, a small portion of gluten, and less water than carrots or turnips. They are eaten with salt fish and corned beef. Those which have remained in the ground through the winter are considered the best. They should be washed and scrubbed thoroughly, but are more easily peeled after boiling. Cut them into half-inch cubes, and serve in white sauce.

Parsnip Fritters

After boiling the parsnips, plunge them jnto cold water and the skins will slip off easily, mash them,1 and season to taste with butter, salt, and pepper. Flour the hands, and shape the mashed parsnip into small, flat oval cakes. Roll them in flour, and fry them in butter until brown; or dip them in molasses, and then fry.

1 Parsnips are more digestible if mashed and rubbed through a puree sieve to remove the woody fibre.

Salsify, Or Oyster Plant

Scrape, and throw at once into cold water, with a little vinegar in it to keep them from turning black. Cook in boiling salted water one hour, or until tender. Drain, mash, and season, and fry like parsnip fritters; or cut into inch lengths, and mix with a white sauce; or dip the pieces in. fritter batter, and fry in hot fat.

Beets

Wash, but do not cut them, as that destroys the sweetness and color. Cook in boiling water until tender. Young beets will cook in one hour, old beets require a longer time; and if tough, wilted, or stringy, they will never boil tender. When cooked, put them in a pan of cold water, and rub off the skin. Young beets are cut in slices, and served hot with butter, salt, and pepper, or cut in small cubes and served in a white sauce. They are often pickled in vinegar, spiced or plain, and served cold; or they may be cut into dice, and mixed with other vegetables for a salad.