easonable_ in August, September, and October; but maybe had, forced,
much earlier.

THE TOMATO, OR LOVE-APPLE.--This vegetable is a native of Mexico
and South America, but is also found in the East Indies, where
it is supposed to have been introduced by the Spaniards. In this
country it is much more cultivated than it formerly was; and the
more the community becomes acquainted with the many agreeable
forms in which the fruit can be prepared, the more widely will
its cultivation be extended. For ketchup, soups, and sauces, it
is equally applicable, and the unripe fruit makes one of the
best pickles.

TRUFFLES AU NATUREL.

1161. INGREDIENTS.--Truffles, buttered paper.

_Mode_.--Select some fine truffles; cleanse them, by washing them in
several waters with a brush, until not a particle of sand or grit
remains on them; wrap each truffle in buttered paper, and bake in a hot
oven for quite an hour; take off the paper, wipe the truffles, and serve
them in a hot napkin.

_Time_.--1 hour. _Average cost_.--Not often bought in this country.

_Seasonable_ from November to March.

[Illustration: TRUFFLES.]

THE COMMON TRUFFLE.--This is the _Tuber cibarium_ of science,
and belongs to that numerous class of esculent fungi
distinguished from other vegetables not only by the singularity
of their forms, but by their chemical composition. Upon
analysis, they are found not only to contain the usual
components of the vegetable kingdom, such as carbon, oxygen, and
hydrogen, but likewise a large proportion of nitrogen; from
which they approach more nearly to the nature of animal flesh.
It was long ago observed by Dr. Darwin, that all the mushrooms
cooked at our tables, as well as those used for ketchup,
possessed an animal flavour; and soup enriched by mushrooms only
has sometimes been supposed to contain meat.

TO DRESS TRUFFLES WITH CHAMPAGNE.

1162. INGREDIENTS.--12 fine black truffles, a few slices of fat bacon, 1
carrot, 1 turnip, 2 onions, a bunch of savoury herbs, including parsley,
1 bay-leaf, 2 cloves, 1 blade of pounded mace, 2 glasses of champagne,
1/2 pint of stock.

_Mode_.--Carefully select the truffles, reject those that have a musty
smell, and wash them well with a brush, in cold water only, until
perfectly clean. Put the bacon into a stewpan, with the truffles and the
remaining ingredients; simmer these gently for an hour, and