45. HULLED WHEAT.--Inasmuch as hulled, or whole, wheat requires very
little preparation for the market, it is a comparatively cheap food. It
is used almost exclusively as a breakfast cereal, but serves as a good
substitute for hominy or rice. Although, as has been mentioned, it
requires long cooking, its preparation for the table is so simple that
the cooking need not necessarily increase its cost materially. One of
the advantages of this food is that it never becomes so soft that it
does not require thorough mastication.
HULLED WHEAT
(Sufficient to Serve Four)
1 c. hulled wheat
3 c. water
1 tsp. salt
Look the wheat over carefully and remove any foreign matter. Then add
the water and soak 8 to 10 hours, or overnight. Add the salt, cook
directly over the flame for 1/2 hour, and then finish cooking in a
double boiler for 3 to 4 hours. Serve with cream or milk and sugar.
46. WHEAT GRITS.--The cereal known as wheat grits is made commercially
by crushing the wheat grains and allowing a considerable proportion of
the wheat bran to remain. Grits may be used as a breakfast cereal, when
they should be served hot with cream or milk and sugar; they also make
an excellent luncheon dish if they are served with either butter or
gravy. The fact that this cereal contains bran makes it an excellent one
to use in cases where a food with bulk is desired. The accompanying
recipe is for a plain cereal; however, an excellent variation may be had
by adding 1/2 cupful of well-cleaned raisins 1/2 hour before serving.
WHEAT GRITS
(Sufficient to Serve Four)
1/2 tsp. salt
3 c. boiling water
3/4 c. wheat grits
Add the salt to the boiling water, sift the wheat grits through the
fingers into the rapidly boiling water, and stir rapidly to prevent the
formation of lumps. Cook for a few minutes until the grits thicken, and
then place in a double boiler and cook 2 to 4 hours.
47. CREAM OF WHEAT.--In the manufacture of cream of wheat, not only is
all the bran removed, as has been stated, but the wheat is made fine and
granular. This wheat preparation, therefore, does not require so much
cooking to make it palatable as do some of the other cereals; still,
cooking it a comparatively long time tends to improve its flavor. When
made according to the following recipe it is a very good breakfast dish:
CREAM OF WHEAT
(Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 tsp. salt
4-1/2 c. boiling water
3/4 c. cream of wheat
Add the salt to the boiling water, and when it bubbles sift in the cream
of wheat through the fingers, stirring rapidly to prevent the formation
of lumps. Cook over the flame for a few minutes until it thickens; then
place it in a double boiler and cook for 1 to 2 hours. Serve hot with
cream or milk and sugar.
48. CREAM OF WHEAT WITH DATES.--Dates added to cream of wheat supply to
a great extent the cellulose and mineral salts that are taken out when
the bran is removed in the manufacture of this cereal. They likewise
give to it a flavor that is very satisfactory, especially when added in
the manner here explained.
CREAM OF WHEAT WITH DATES
(Sufficient to Serve Six)
3/4 c. cream of wheat
1 tsp. salt
4-1/2 c. boiling water
3/4 c. dates
Cook the cream of wheat in the manner directed in Art. 47. Wash the
dates in hot water, cut them lengthwise with a sharp knife, and remove
the seeds. Cut each date into four pieces and add them to the cream of
wheat 10 minutes before serving, stirring them into the cereal just
enough to distribute them evenly. Serve hot with cream or milk
and sugar.
49. FARINA.--The wheat preparation called farina is very much the same
as cream of wheat, being manufactured in practically the same manner. It
is a good breakfast cereal when properly cooked, but it does not contain
sufficient cellulose to put it in the class of bulky foods. However, as
has been pointed out, this bulk may be supplied by mixing with it,
before cooking, an equal amount of bran. In such a case, of course, more
water will be needed and the cooking process will have to be prolonged.
Plain farina should be prepared according to the recipe here given, but,
as in preparing cream of wheat, dates may be added to impart flavor
if desired.
FARINA
(Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 tsp. salt
4 c. boiling water
3/4 c. farina
Add the salt to the boiling water, and as the water bubbles rapidly sift
the farina into it slowly through the fingers, stirring rapidly to
prevent the formation of lumps. Then place it in a double boiler and
allow it cook for 2 to 4 hours. Serve hot with cream or milk and sugar.
50. GRAHAM MUSH WITH DATES.--Graham flour is a wheat product that is
high in food value, because in its manufacture no part of the wheat
grain is removed. While the use of this flour as a breakfast cereal is
not generally known, it can be made into a very appetizing and
nutritious dish, especially if such fruit as dates is mixed with it.
GRAHAM MUSH WITH DATES
(Sufficient to Serve Six)
1-1/4 c. graham flour
3 c. water
1 tsp. salt
1 c. dates
Moisten the graham flour carefully with 1 cupful of the cold water. When
perfectly smooth, add it to the remainder of the water, to which the
salt has been added, and boil rapidly, allowing the mixture to cook
until it thickens. Then place it in a double boiler and cook 1 to 2
hours. Wash the dates, remove the stones, and cut each into four pieces.
Add these to the mush 10 minutes before serving. Serve hot with cream or
milk and sugar.
51. LEFT-OVER WHEAT CEREALS.--Numerous ways have been devised for
utilizing wheat cereals that are left over, so that no waste need result
from what is not eaten at the meal for which a cereal is cooked. For
instance, left-over hulled wheat can be used in soup in the same way as
barley and rice, and plain cream of wheat and farina can be molded,
sliced, and sautéd like corn-meal mush and served with sirup. The molded
cereal can also be cut into 2-inch cubes and served with any fruit juice
that is thickened slightly with corn starch. Besides utilizing left-over
wheat cereals in the ways mentioned, it is possible to make them into
custards and soufflés, as is shown in the two accompanying recipes, in
which cream of wheat may be used in the same manner as farina.
FARINA CUSTARD
(Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 c. cold farina
2 c. milk
2 eggs
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
Stir the farina and milk together until they are perfectly smooth; then
add the eggs, beaten slightly, the sugar, and the nutmeg. Bake in a
moderately hot oven until firm and serve hot or cold with any
sauce desired.
FARINA SOUFFLÉ
(Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 c. cold farina
1-1/2 c. milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. paprika
1 c. grated cheese
2 eggs
Stir the farina smooth with the milk, add the salt, paprika, grated
cheese, and egg yolks, which should first be beaten. Then beat the egg
whites stiff and fold them into the mixture. Pour all into a buttered
baking dish, place this in a large pan filled with enough hot water to
reach almost to the top of the baking dish, and bake in a moderately hot
oven until the mixture in the dish is firm in the center. Serve at once
upon taking from the oven.