The general tendency in cooking vegetables is to use altogether too much water so that they become soaked and tasteless. The ideal way to cook most vegetables is to use as little water as possible; just a little in the bottom of the pot so that the vegetables will not stick and burn, but steam through in their own juices until thoroughly tender and full of their own flavor. The fire should not be too hot; the pot should be tightly covered; a sufficient amount of butter must be added when the vegetable is about half done; and plenty of time given to allow it to simmer and steam until thoroughly flavored. Onions, beans, carrots, and cabbage are most delicate when chopped fine, cooked until tender in a very little water, seasoned with salt, pepper, and butter, covered with milk, and allowed to stand on the back of the stove for twenty minutes until the flavor is thoroughly developed. _Boiled Potatoes._--Potatoes should not be peeled before boiling, but should be thoroughly washed and rinsed. They should be put in an abundance of boiling water, well salted, and covered tightly. When tender pour off all the water, cover the pot with a towel and let it stand on the back of the stove for ten minutes. _Baked Potatoes._--If baked potatoes stand they lose their flavor. A baked potato, eaten as soon as done, is sweet, dry and mealy. Allow them to stand even for ten minutes and the flavor is lost, and they become wet and tasteless. A pleasant change is to peel the potatoes before baking. These must be eaten as soon as they come from the oven or they lose their crispness. _Beans._--Nothing is more valuable for winter food than beans. They give as much strength as beefsteak and are far less expensive. Soak them in plenty of water over night; add a generous piece of unsmoked bacon; let simmer on the back of the stove until they are tender and the water is well cooked away; cover with milk, and either let them stand on the back of the stove until the milk is thickened, or put them into a shallow baking-dish and bake until nearly dry. Serve either hot or cold. SOME CAPITAL DESSERTS. _Apple Pudding._--Peel and slice enough apples to nearly fill your pudding-dish, sugar to taste, and grate over them a little nutmeg. Also add a little water. Now make a batter as follows: Three quarters of a cup of sugar; a piece of butter the size of a small egg, one half-cup of milk, one egg, a pinch of salt, a teaspoonful of baking-powder, and one and one-eighth cups of flour. This is an extremely nice, wholesome pudding, which can be served with either cream or hard sauce. To make hard sauce take a half-cup of butter and cream it with a fork; add a cupful of sugar and beat until nicely mixed and creamy. Flavor to taste and sprinkle a little nutmeg over it.