“The grains, with fruits, nuts and vegetables contain all the nutritive
properties necessary to make good blood.”
“Those who eat flesh are eating grains and vegetables at second-hand;
for the animal receives from these things the nutrition that produces
growth.”
“The life that was in the grains and vegetables passes into the eater.
We receive it by eating the flesh of the animal. How much better to get
it direct, by eating the food that God provided for our use.”
“Grains used for porridge or mush should have several hours’ cooking;
but soft or liquid foods are less wholesome than dry foods which
require thorough mastication.”
When porridges are used, something dry like zwieback or crisp crackers
should be eaten with them to induce mastication.
Foods containing starch should be well insalivated by thorough
mastication before any tart foods are introduced into the stomach, as
acid hinders the digestion of starch.
The large proportion of starch contained in grains is changed to sugar
in the process of digestion, so the addition of more sugar gives
an excess of that element, overtaxing the liver and increasing the
tendency to fermentation, since both starch and sugar are substances
that ferment easily. Then if milk, another easily fermented food, is
added what can be said of the combination? Besides: “the presence
of a considerable amount of sugar actually retards the digestion of
starch.”--_Dr. Kress._
For those who feel that they cannot at once forego the sweet, stir in a
few sliced dates to graham porridge or sprinkle them over the top and
serve with nut or dairy cream. Chopped figs or stewed raisins may also
be used the same with different cereals. A very harmonious combination
is pearled barley cooked with raisins. Nice ripe blueberries or black
raspberries may be served with cereals.
A complete meal may be made of graham or any preferred porridge,
blanched almonds, English walnuts or pecans, with dates, figs or
raisins. The combination will be satisfying without any milk or cream.
My readers will many of them be surprised to find that oatmeal and some
other porridges are delightful served with cream sauce, old-fashioned
milk gravy, macaroni sauce and other gravies; the cooked parched grains
especially so. A poached egg may be placed on each serving of porridge,
with or without sauce.
Raw rice may be ground coarse or fine for different purposes.
The parched grains may be served with suitable, sub-acid fruits.
The toasted breakfast cereals on the market, prepared without malt or
any additional sweet are many of them excellent foods because of the
dextrinization of the starch, and we can easily prepare dextrinized
grains in our own homes.
=Parched Sweet Corn--the Ideal Cereal Preparation=
Put dried sweet corn into a corn popper, iron frying pan or round
bottomed iron kettle; cover, and shake over the fire until the grains
are browned and puffed up nearly round. Served plain, this corn
supplies a complete and satisfying food, as any one will find who sits
down with a nice fresh-parched porridge dish of it and chews it until
it is fine and creamy in the mouth. It is much more delicious than the
finest popcorn. It may be ground and eaten in cold or hot milk, nut or
dairy, and it may have a little salt and sterilized butter mixed with
it while it is warm. A cup of cereal coffee or tea-hygiene with a dish
of parched corn makes a nice luncheon or supper.
The corn may be dried on the cob or shelled and dried. It may often be
bought from dealers in seeds, after the planting season is over.
Parched field corn is a good nourishing food but not so sweet and
tender. It is usually better to be ground.
One doctor says, “I could travel the world around on parched corn and
never want grease of any kind.”
It is well understood that corn and oatmeal are the richest in oil of
any of the grains. In some countries the soldiers carry parched corn in
their pockets on long marches.
=Yolk--Egg=
Put yellow corn meal into an iron kettle or saucepan over a moderate
fire; stir until of an even rich brown color. Serve warm or cold with
hot or cold milk or cream. The donor of this recipe says: “When I was
a child this was considered a great dainty, but I do not know how it
obtained its name or where we learned to make it.”
The different preparations of grains may all be parched the same as
sweet corn and corn meal in the preceding recipes. If more convenient
they may be done in the oven but the flavor is not as good. Some of
them are tender enough to be eaten dry or in milk without any further
preparation; others are better to be ground before adding the milk or
cream, and some need to stand in the milk, hot or cold, for a time,
before serving, while others (rice especially) require cooking after
parching. Some are better cooked in milk.
=Pop-corn=
To pop: “Wet the corn slightly and let it dry on the stove; put it in
the popper while it is hot and in four minutes every kernel should be
turned inside out, crisp and tender.”--_From a clipping._
Serve the popped kernels plain with nuts, cereal coffee, tea-hygiene,
cream or milk, or sprinkle delicately with salt and turn a little oil
or melted butter over, mixing thoroughly.
Put together the poorly popped kernels of corn and all the remains,
cover with cold water and soak until soft, perhaps over night. Then
add milk and cook in a double boiler ½ hour or so. Serve with cream or
more milk if necessary, or, cook in all water and serve with cream.
These left-overs may be ground and soaked in milk until soft.
=Rusk=
Dry slices or pieces of bread in the oven and brown delicately, grind
through the food cutter and serve in milk or with cream.
=Porridges=
“Some people degrade these foods by calling them mushes, a horrible
name, by the way; the good English word porridge is much better, and
porridge is not gruel.”--_An Editor._
Unless cereals are steamed, they should be cooked in a double boiler or
something that answers the same purpose.
A flat or round wire batter whip is the best for stirring the grain
into the water, as that keeps even the finest flour from becoming lumpy.
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.