Part 29

The very most important thing in making porridges is to have the liquid boiling when the cereal is put in. If it stops boiling while the grain is being added there will be a raw taste to the porridge, no matter how long it cooks.

Put the required amount of water, with the salt, 1 teaspn. to a quart of water, into the inner cup of a double boiler. Heat the water to bubbling boiling, sprinkle the measured grain in so slowly as not to stop the boiling of the water, stirring continuously. Let it boil up well, and if a coarse grain, cook over the fire until it thickens, then set into the outer boiler containing perfectly boiling water and keep it cooking rapidly the required length of time.

Do not stir after the grain thickens. Watch that the outer boiler does not become dry. Grains for breakfast may be cooked while you have a fire the day before, then all that is necessary in the morning is to set the inner boiler into the outer one containing boiling water and heat it through. If there should be water standing on top of the porridge, pour it off before heating, but under no circumstances stir the porridge, or add any more water while heating, or a pasty, tasteless dish will be the result.

When the porridge is to be re-heated, a slightly larger proportion of water should be used, and for steaming, a smaller quantity.

One advantage in steaming is that the cereal (after being started over the fire in some suitable utensil) can be turned into an earthen dish and set into the steamer, warmed in the morning and sent to the table in the same dish.

Farina, cream of wheat and similar cereals are more palatable and nourishing if cooked in part milk. These finer preparations may have milk or cream stirred into them just before serving.

=Proportion of Water and Length of Time for Cooking Different Cereals=

Graham Flour 1 part to 2 or 3 of water cook 1-2 hrs. Rolled Wheat 1 part to 2 or 3 of water cook 3-4 hrs. Cracked Wheat 1 part to 4½ or 5 of water cook 4-6 hrs. Pearled Wheat 1 part to 4 or 4½ of water cook 4-6 hrs. Whole Wheat 1 part to 6 of water cook 6-8 hrs. Rolled Oats 1 part to 2 or 3 of water cook 3-4 hrs. Oatmeal 1 part to 4 or 4½ of water cook 4-6 hrs. Pearled Barley 1 part to 5 of water cook 4-5 hrs. Hominy, coarse 1 part to 5 of water cook 6-8 hrs. Hominy, fine 1 part to 4 or 5 of water cook 4-6 hrs. Corn Meal 1 part to 3 or 5 of water cook 2-5 hrs. Rice 1 part to 3 or 4 of water 25 m.-1¼ hr. Farina 5 tablespns. to 1 qt. liquid 1 hr.

Different lots of graham flour and rolled oats vary, so that it is not possible to make an exact rule for them, but graham flour should be stirred into water until the mixture is quite stiff because it grows thinner by cooking.

Rye meal makes one of the most delightful porridges. Stir the meal slowly into boiling salted water, the same as graham flour, and cook for 1 hour at least.

Whole wheat is a very satisfying and inexpensive food. Some families buy it by the bushel and use large quantities of it in different ways. Some put the boiled wheat into bread sponge before mixing it up.

Different kinds of corn meal vary, too. Only about ⅔ or ¾ as much granular meal is required for a given amount of liquid as of other kinds.

Oatmeal is difficult of digestion, is apt to cause fermentation and should be partaken of sparingly even when well cooked, except by those of strong digestive powers. One young man said in my presence, “I never know I have a stomach except when I eat oatmeal.”

Cracked wheat is very nice cooked with an extra quantity of water, molded and served cold.

With a Vegetarian Society mill delightful cracked wheat and many other cereal foods can be made.

Cracked corn--samp grits--hominy, is a valuable food. Besides the package preparations I have bought it at feed stores in the East and obtained it from the mills in the West, and with a mill it can be made at home. It should be thoroughly cooked. The old-fashioned way is to put it into a round bottomed iron kettle with salt and plenty of water (adding more water when necessary) and cook it all day. It may be served with milk, butter or gravy, or with any of the sauces used for macaroni, and may be cooked with tomato and onion the same as pilau, p. 131.

RICE

“Rice is the most easily digested of all the cereals. The Japanese, famous for their athletic superiority and wonderful endurance, use rice unpolished. The rice of commerce is not only stripped of much of its most desirable qualities, but in order to make it attractive it is coated with glucose and talc to produce the pearly appearance. Persons using such rice should be careful to wash it thoroughly. After once eating unpolished rice, the rice of commerce will never again be accepted. To eat polished rice is like eating shavings instead of real, satisfying substance.”--_Henry S. Clubb, President Vegetarian Society of America, in “Life and Health,” and “The Vegetarian.”_

Wash commercial rice in several waters, scrubbing it thoroughly with the hands, in a colander set in a pan of water, rinsing the colander up and down. Then put it over the fire in cold water, boil for 5 m. and drain, before cooking after any of the methods.

To Boil Rice

After washing and parboiling rice, throw it into 3 or 4 times its bulk of boiling salted water, stir it over a hot fire until it rolls up in the rapidly boiling water. Let it boil in this way until it swells, then set into the outer boiler or on the back of the stove on a pad until it is perfectly tender. If rice is cooked in a double boiler, use the smaller quantity of water, and the larger if cooked altogether over the fire. Do not stir after it begins to swell. This is practically the Japanese method.

Another Japanese way is to soak the rice over night, drain and put to cooking in an equal quantity of boiling water, keeping closely covered all of the time.

Chinese Way of Cooking Rice

After washing, put rice over the fire in double its bulk of cold water, let it boil up well, carefully lift cover to see if water is all absorbed; if not, drain, sprinkle salt over if desired (the Chinaman does not use it), return to fire closely covered and watch, listening until a faint crackling of parching grains at the bottom is heard; then remove to the back of the range where the rice will just steam--“steam fragrant.” When ready to serve, carefully stir the grain with a wooden skewer or some small round stick, when the snowy mass should crumble apart into indistinct kernels. “Try the Chinaman’s way and be convinced that plain boiled rice is a palatable, substantial food.”--_Adapted from Mrs. J. N. Anderson, Canton, China, in “Life and Health.”_

The Indian Way

Wash the rice, put little by little into 8 times its bulk (2 qts. to a cup) of rapidly boiling salted water. Stir occasionally at first with a fork until the rice is rolling up continuously from the rapid boiling. Cook until tender, 15-25 m., according to the age and quality of the rice. Be sure to cook it until it is tender but not a moment longer. Drain in a fine colander, pour cold water over to separate the kernels, put into the dish in which it is to be served and set in a steamer or in the edge of the oven for a half hour. The water drained from the rice may be used for soup.

To Steam Rice

After washing, soak 1 cup of rice in 1¼ cup of warm water for an hour or longer, in a dish suitable for serving it in. Add 1 level teaspn. of salt and 1 cup of milk and steam, without stirring, for just 1 hour. Serve at once, or if it has to stand, cover close so that the top kernels will not become hard.

All milk may be used by taking 2¾-3 cups. If the milk fills the dish so that it is just ready to run over, the rice when steamed will stand snowy white above the top of the dish.

=★ Baked Rice=

A nice supper or luncheon dish or dessert.

½-¾ cup rice ½ teaspn. salt 2 qts. rich milk

Parboil rice 5 m. and drain, add it to milk in pudding dish, stir even in bottom of dish, set in slow oven, cover and bake 2-3 hrs. without stirring, or until milk is all thickened and creamy with rice; if the milk boils over under the cover, the oven is too hot. This is so delicious that it does not require anything additional in eating but it may be served with sugar, maple sugar or syrup.

=Parched Rice=

Wash if commercial rice, spread on tin and put in warm place to dry. When thoroughly dried, put in slow oven and color to an even light brown. Soak for 1 hour in an equal quantity of lukewarm water, then add 3 times the quantity of rich milk, with or without 1 level teaspn. salt to the cup of rice; steam, or cook in double boiler for 1 hour. Serve plain. The rice may be ground.

=Granella--to Serve=

Pour just enough hot water over granella to moisten it a trifle. Mix lightly and serve with cream. Granella is nice in hot milk.

=Baked Hominy=

1 cup cold, fine hominy porridge 1 teaspn. butter 1 teaspn. sugar 1 pt. milk salt 3 eggs

Mix hominy and yolks of eggs thoroughly; add melted butter, then sugar and salt and the milk gradually, mixing hominy to smooth paste. Chop in stiffly-beaten whites and bake in buttered dish in moderate oven. Serve as vegetable for dinner or as principal dish for luncheon or supper.

=To Hull Corn=

2 gallons cold water, 1 tablespn. concentrated lye or potash, 4 qts. corn, white corn if possible. Dissolve lye in water, add corn, and boil (adding water to keep covered) until the hulls will rub off. Wash and rub in several clear waters until the hulls are all off. Soak over night or for several hours in cold water; drain and put to cooking in boiling water. Cook until tender, all day if necessary. Add salt a little while before it is done, then cook until as dry as possible without scorching. Serve as a vegetable, plain, or with cream or cream sauce. Eat in milk or with nut meats.

The hulled corn may be dried. Hard wood ashes may be used to make the lye for cooking the corn, or a bag containing 2 cups of ashes may be boiled in the kettle with the corn. By boiling for 4 hrs., the hulls may be removed by using 1 tablespn. of soda to each 4 qts. of corn. Some prefer strong lime water for hulling.

Instead of soaking over night, the corn may be parboiled in 2 waters before cooking.

=★ Granella No. 1--wheat, corn and oats=

½ lb. (2 cups) bread flour 1 oz. (scant ½ cup) rolled oats ½ oz. (1½ tablespn.) common yellow corn meal trifle salt about ⅝ cup cold water

Mix dry ingredients and to ¾ of the quantity add water for a stiff dough, then work in the remaining ¼ until almost too stiff to knead; roll and pound out to ¼ or ⅓ inch thick, cut in round or square biscuit and set in cold place for 2 hours or more. Bake in a slow oven until a rich cream color or golden brown all through. Then grind coarse or fine as desired.

When oat _flour_ is used, ⅓ of a cup only will be required.

It will take 2 tablespns. of Rhode Island meal to make ½ oz. and 1 only of yellow granular meal. The granular meal will need to be scalded with a part of the water or it will feel sandy in the granella.

The weights for a larger quantity are:

8½ lbs. bread flour, 1 lb. oats, ½ lb. corn meal, 1½ oz. salt.

=Granella No. 2--rice, wheat and barley=

¼ cup rice 2¼ cups bread flour ¾ cup barley grits salt water

Cook rice in one cup water, cool, add salt, flour and grits, knead to very stiff dough, adding a trifle more water if necessary. Finish as No. 1.

½ cup rice _flour_, 1½ cup bread flour and ¾ cup barley grits may be used instead of the above combination.

=Granella No. 3--rye, wheat and barley=

½ cup rye meal 2 cups bread flour 1 cup barley grits salt

=Granella No. 4--rye, wheat and corn=

½ cup rye meal 2 cups bread flour 1-2 tablespns. corn meal salt water

MACARONI (ITALIAN PASTE)

Macaroni is one of the most important of cereal foods. The best--Italian--is made from a wheat rich in gluten, so to a great extent it supplies the place of meat.

One of the first things we do when we go into a new place is to hunt up an Italian macaroni store, as that is the only place where the genuine article is to be found. That made in this country, put up with a foreign label on the package, is inferior.

The Italian pastes come in a great variety of shapes and are named according to the shape. Macaroni, spaghetti and vermicelli are well known; then there are lasagne (broad and flat), rigatoni (large corrugated), da natali, ditali rigati, cannaroni rigati and reginnetti with mostacioli bianchi, soprafini (fine vermicelli), ditalini and acini di pepe--a few of the many. There are some small fine pastes put up in dainty boxes, especially for invalids, that are very delicate and digestible.

Those who have visited macaroni factories in Italy where macaroni is made for exportation, say that everything in connection with the food is neat and clean and that the macaroni is dried in closed rooms entirely removed from the dust of the street. That which travellers see drying by the roadside, exposed to the dust, is from small or private factories for home consumption.

To Cook Macaroni

Do not wash or soak it. Break it when necessary and put into perfectly boiling salted water, 8 parts water to 1 of macaroni. Stir as soon as it is put into the water and often, until it begins to roll up, from the rapid boiling. Keep over a hot fire where it will continue to roll in boiling until well swollen and nearly done, then set back to simmer slowly. When perfectly tender (which will be in from ½ to 1 hour according to the size, age and quality, the better quality taking longer) turn into a colander and when drained, turn cold water over it, or, let it stand in cold water until ready to use.

Vermicelli and the other small varieties for soup require only twice their bulk of water, and some of them require 10 m. only for cooking. They will usually just absorb the water.

When preferred, macaroni may be cooked in just the amount of liquid it will absorb, which will be about 4 times its bulk. It may be cooked sometimes in a rich consommé, sometimes in milk in a double boiler, or in milk and water. It is often partly cooked in water, drained and finished in milk.

The “traditional” way of cooking spaghetti is to put the ends into water and coil it around in the kettle as it softens, cooking in full lengths and eating it the same, but the propriety of this method is questionable. In the first place, its sauce is apt to spatter in the effort to introduce the coil into the mouth, and mastication is sure to be incomplete.

The measurements of macaroni vary according to the size. For a large open variety, a cup and a half will be required where it would take only a cup of a small kind, or of the ordinary pipe-stem macaroni broken into inch lengths.

There is nothing that gives such character to macaroni as to cook a little garlic with it, a very little for some tastes, not more than ½ a clove to each cupful, less even, if the macaroni is not to be drained and the cloves are large. We seldom cook any preparation of macaroni without it, and people wonder why our macaroni has such a good taste. Not enough should be used to give a positive garlic flavor.

Pine nuts and sour cream give the cheese flavor. A good quality of macaroni is good without any sauce, just cooked in salted water and eaten slowly with nuts; but it may be served with any desired, tasty sauce. The mushroom sauces, Italian or Boundary Castle are especially delightful with it, but many others are excellent, olive and nut butter, old-fashioned milk gravy, lentil gravy, a good cream sauce, cream of tomato sauce, or any of the nice, meaty flavored sauces, or parsley butter.

Sometimes return macaroni to the fire after draining, and add a little butter, with or without chopped parsley, for those who use butter, or a little milk and butter or a few spoonfuls of cream. Then another time, put this cream or butter macaroni into a vegetable dish and pour a few hot stewed tomatoes over it.

=Baked Macaroni in Cream Sauce=

1-1½ cup macaroni, according to size 2 small onions 1-2 small cloves of garlic 1 qt. water 1½-2 teaspns. salt

_Sauce_:--

1½ tablespn. oil 1½ tablespn. flour 1 large pt. milk salt, crumbs chopped parsley

Make cream sauce in the usual way with the oil, flour, salt and milk and pour into baking dish, turn into it the macaroni which has been cooked in the salted water with sliced onion and garlic until tender and the water absorbed, and press down into the sauce; sprinkle with crumbs and parsley and bake in moderate oven until bubbling and delicately browned. If preferred, ¼ cup of flour may be used in the sauce.

Make enough of this dish for two days, and another day stir salted tomato into what is left and bake as before for Macaroni in Tomato Sauce.

=Macaroni--Pine Nuts=

Add ½ cup of pine nut butter or meal to the sauce in the preceding recipe (by mixing a little of the sauce with it) and sprinkle with chopped meats and crumbs.

=Macaroni--Corn=

¾-1 cup macaroni 3 cups boiling water 1-1½ teaspn. salt 1 small onion ½-1 small clove of garlic if wished 1 cup canned, or stewed fresh corn

_Sauce_:--

1 cup rich milk or thin cream ½ tablespn. flour ½ teaspn. salt

Add corn and cooked macaroni to sauce, turn all into baking dish, sprinkle with crumbs and pour a little melted butter over if sauce is made with milk. Brown in oven.

=Browned Macaroni and Granella=

1 cup macaroni, ¾-1 cup granella, 3 cups rich milk (more if necessary). Dry and delicately brown macaroni in oven and cook the same as unbrowned. Put into baking dish in layers with granella, turn milk, slightly salted, over and heat in moderate oven. It should be quite moist when done. Unless the milk is about one-fourth cream, there may be a little oil or butter poured over the top.

=Macaroni--Tomato and Onion=

Simmer onion in oil or butter, add stewed tomatoes and salt; simmer a few minutes and add cooked macaroni; set back where it will heat slowly for a short time and serve.

Tomatoes, onions and macaroni may be put into baking dish in layers, with a sprinkling of pine nut meal; with tomatoes, crumbs and chopped nuts on top, and baked.

=Vermicelli--Asparagus=

Cook vermicelli in salted water, drain, spread on platter, lay stalks of cooked asparagus on it and pour egg cream sauce over. Cut asparagus into inch lengths if preferred.

=Macaroni in Milk=

Heat 1 qt. of milk in inner cup of double boiler, add 1 cup of macaroni and cook until tender, perhaps for 2 hrs. Serve plain as side dish or for luncheon or supper. It may also be served with stewed raisins, with or without cream.

=★ Cream Mold of Macaroni=

Cook ½ cup of macaroni with or without a few slices of onion and a suspicion of garlic, in 2 cups of water with ½ tablespn. of butter until tender and well dried out; drain, add ⅔ cup milk, 1 large egg and salt. Turn into well buttered mold and bake covered in pan of water in moderate oven until egg is set, ¾-1 hour. Serve with Boundary Castle or any suitable sauce.

=★ Macaroni--Sour Cream=

2-3 cups macaroni 1 pt. sour cream (or sour milk with butter or oil) 1 teaspn. salt 1 egg

Add beaten egg and salt to cream and pour over cooked macaroni in baking dish; sprinkle with crumbs and bake until egg is set.

Rice may be used in place of macaroni, tomato also may be added sometimes with chopped onion; a delicate flavoring of sage gives another variety.

BREADS--LEAVENED

Yeast

Yeast is a plant and success in bread-making depends upon its growth.

Plants require warmth, food and moisture and thrive the best when not too warm nor too cold.

A temperature of from 75 degrees to not over 90 degrees is the most favorable for the growth of the yeast plant.

Compressed yeast is the most convenient to use when it can be obtained fresh, but the bread made from it lacks the sweet rich flavor of that made from a good soft yeast; so from the great number of good recipes for liquid yeast I give two with which I have had excellent success.

Use only mature, well ripened potatoes for yeast. Hops may be omitted but the yeast keeps better and the bread is lighter and sweeter when a few are used.

Keep yeast in several small jars rather than in one large one, so as not to disturb the whole when using from it.

Bread rises slowly from yeast that is less than 48 hours old. When liquid yeast is used, let it count as part of the wetting. Compressed yeast is meant when dry is not specified in recipes calling for cakes of yeast.

To use compressed yeast, slice it in rather thin slices, sprinkle sugar between the layers and pour just enough lukewarm water over it to moisten the sugar, not enough to cover the yeast. Let stand until foamy and use at once.

One cake of compressed yeast equals 4 tablespns. of either grated or mashed potato yeast.

=Grated Potato Yeast=

2 qts. water 2 tablespns. hops 6 medium sized or 3 very large potatoes ½ cup sugar ¼ cup salt 1 cup soft yeast, or 2 cakes of good dry yeast (yeast foam when obtainable)

Dissolve yeast in warm water with part of the sugar. Simmer the hops in water for half an hour, strain, add enough water to make 2 qts. and keep at boiling point. Put sugar and salt into a large granite or porcelain kettle, quickly grate the pared potatoes over them, set the kettle over the fire and pour the boiling hop water on to the mixture, stirring; let boil until thickened, remove from fire, cool to lukewarm, add the yeast, beating it in well and let stand on table or shelf in warm kitchen; as it rises, stir it down once in a while; when well risen, set in a cool place and stir down occasionally until it does not rise any more. Fill clean cold jars about ⅔ full and when settled, fasten covers on and put in ice box.

Use 1 tablespn. of yeast to each pint of water when setting bread over night, and double the quantity for starting in the morning.

=Mashed Potato Yeast=

1¼ cup smooth mashed potato 1 tablespn. loose hops 1 tablespn. sugar 1 teaspn. salt

¾ cup of water in which potatoes and hops were boiled, 1 cake of dry yeast dissolved in ¼ cup of water with a little of the sugar, or, ½ cup of hop water and ½ cup of liquid yeast.

Tie the hops in a piece of cheese cloth and cook with the well washed but not pared potatoes (the yeast is lighter if the skins are left on); when done, drain and peel potatoes and rub through colander on to the salt and sugar; beat well, pour water on gradually, add yeast, beat, put into a clean glass jar, lay the cover on without fastening down and let stand in a warm room until full of bubbles, no longer; then set in a cold place. When thoroughly cooled, fasten the cover tight and keep in refrigerator.

Use ¼-½ cup of yeast to a pint of liquid, according to the time you wish to give the bread to rise.

=Dry Yeast=

1 cup loose hops 2 qts. water 1 qt. pared potatoes in small pieces flour 1 cup corn meal

Boil potatoes with hops tied in cheese cloth until tender; remove hops (squeezing bag when cool), put potatoes and water through colander, and stir into the liquid while scalding hot, enough flour to make a rather stiff batter. Beat well, add ½ cup of yeast or 2 dry yeast cakes dissolved in water. When light, add the cup of corn meal or enough to make a dough stiff enough to roll; roll ⅓-½ in. thick, cut into small square or round cakes, dry in the sun or in a slightly warm oven (they are sometimes dried between two boards covered with corn meal) until so much of the moisture is expelled that they cannot ferment.

If kept dry the cakes will retain their strength for a long time. The small pieces of dough may be crumbled and dried.

Flour