String Beans

Make a bouquet of a small green onion, some parsley, a laurel leaf, a very small bit of thyme. Tie all together with a long string, add your string beans, and when the bouquet has boiled fifteen minutes, take it out, leaving the string beans to boil fifteen minutes longer. Let them, like spinach, dance around in plenty of hot water. When cooked, strain them in a colander at once. Do not let them get cold. Let them drip in a clean piece of cheesecloth that has been well washed: never use it new. Then put the beans in a frying-pan with a little butter, pepper and salt. Serve hot. Do not let them stand.

From page 45 of the 1904 edition.

Original pages from the book