Woman's Institute Library of Cookery Volume I Part 16

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 4]

71. ROLLED-OATS JELLY WITH PRUNES.--If an appetizing dish for warm weather is desired, rolled oats may be cooked to form a jelly and then have stewed prunes added to it. Such a dish is ill.u.s.trated in Fig. 4.

When served with cream, this combination of rolled oats and prunes is high in food value and consequently may be made the important dish in the meal for which it is used.

ROLLED-OATS JELLY WITH PRUNES (Sufficient to Serve Six)

1 c. rolled oats 3 c. water 1 tsp. salt 12 stewed prunes

Cook the rolled oats according to the directions already given, and then force them through a fine sieve. Remove the seeds from the prunes that have been stewed by cooking them very slowly until they are soft in a sufficient quant.i.ty of water to cover them well, drain off all the juice, and place two prunes in the bottom of each of six cups, or molds, that have been moistened with cold water. Fill each with the rolled-oats jelly and set them aside to chill. When ready to serve, turn the food out of each mold into a cereal dish and serve with cream and sugar.

72. LEFT-OVER ROLLED OATS.--Every housewife should refrain from throwing away any left-over rolled oats, because all of this cereal remaining from a previous meal can be used to good advantage. For example, it can be made especially tasty if, before it is cold, it is added to fruit, poured into molds and allowed to stand in them until it is cold, and then served with sugar and cream. Fruits of any kind, such as cooked peaches, prunes, and apricots or fresh bananas, may be used for this purpose by cutting them into small pieces. Another way of utilizing this cereal when it is warm is to pour it into a pan or a dish, press it down until it is about 1 inch thick, and then, after it is cold, cut it into pieces of any desirable size or shape, brown these pieces in b.u.t.ter, and then serve them with sirup. If the left-over cereal is cold, a good plan would be to serve it with baked apple; that is, for each person to be served, place a spoonful of the cereal in a dish with a baked apple, sprinkle a little cinnamon or nutmeg over it, and then serve it with cream. Still another very good way in which to utilize left-over rolled oats is to make it into croquettes according to the following recipe:

ROLLED-OATS CROQUETTES (Sufficient to Serve Four)

1/2 c. grated cheese 3/4 c. crumbs 1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. paprika 1 c. cooked rolled oats 1 egg

Work the cheese with 1/2 cupful of the crumbs, the salt, and the paprika into the cold rolled oats; then add the egg, which should be slightly beaten. If more moisture seems to be necessary, add a little milk. Form the ingredients into small croquettes, and then roll them in the remaining 1/4 cupful of crumbs and saute then in b.u.t.ter. Garnish with parsley and serve.

BARLEY

ORIGIN AND USE

73. BARLEY is a grain, or cereal, that grows very much like wheat.

However, it is hardier than wheat or any other cereals and may be grown through a greater range of climates. Barley has been cultivated from the most ancient times; in fact, its cultivation can be traced as far back as man's occupations have been recorded. The grain of this cereal has also played an important part in the advancement of man, for, according to history, some of the present weights and measures originated from it.

Thus, the Troy weight grain is said to have been first fixed by finding the average weight of a barley grain, and the inch of linear measure, by placing three grains of barley end to end.

74. Although several varieties of barley have been cultivated as food from the earliest times, the grain is now used princ.i.p.ally in the manufacture of malt. In this form, it is used for the malting of foods and in the making of alcoholic liquors. To produce malt, the barley grains are moistened and allowed to sprout, and during this process of sprouting the starch of the barley is changed to sugar. The grains are then dried, and the sprouts, which are called _malt sprouts_, are broken off and sold as cattle food. The grain that remains, which is really _malt_, is then crushed and combined with other grains for use as malted cereal food. When barley is used to make malt, or fermented, liquors, it is soaked in water, which absorbs the sugar in it; then yeast is added, and this produces alcohol by causing the fermentation of the sugar.

75. In the United States, _pearl barley_ is the name applied to the most common form of barley used as food. In this form, the layer of bran is removed from the outside of the barley grain, but no change is made in the grain itself. Pearl barley is used for soups and as a breakfast cereal, but for whatever purpose it is employed it requires very long cooking to make it palatable. Very often the water in which a small amount of pearl barley has been cooked for a long time is used to dilute the milk given to a child who has indigestion or who is not able to take whole milk.

RECIPES FOR BARLEY

76. PEARL BARLEY.--As a breakfast cereal, possibly the only satisfactory way in which to prepare pearl barley is to cook it in a double boiler, although after it is cooked in this way it may, of course, be used to prepare other breakfast dishes. Barley is not liked by everybody; nevertheless, it is an excellent food and its nature is such that even after long cooking it remains so firm as to require thorough mastication, which is the first great step in the digestion of starchy foods.

PEARL BARLEY (Sufficient to Serve Six)

1 c. pearl barley 1 tsp. salt 4-1/2 c. boiling water

Look the barley over carefully and remove any foreign particles it may contain. Add it to the boiling salted water, and cook it directly over the flame for 10 minutes. Then place it in a double boiler and cook for 3 to 4 hours. For the barley to be cooked properly, the water should be completely absorbed. Serve hot with cream or milk and sugar.

77. PEARL BARLEY WITH FRUIT.--Cooked barley does not contain very much flavor. Therefore, if a more tasty dish is desired, it is usually necessary to add something, such as fruit, that will improve the flavor.

Various fruits may be used with barley, as is shown in the accompanying recipe.

PEARL BARLEY WITH FRUIT (Sufficient to Serve Eight)

1 c. pearl barley 1 tsp. salt 5 c. boiling water 1 c. dates, figs, or prunes

Examine the barley to see that it contains no foreign matter, and then put it to cook in the boiling water to which the salt has been added.

After cooking directly over the flame for 10 minutes, place it in a double boiler and cook it for 3 to 4 hours. If dates are to be used, wash them in warm water, remove the seeds, and cut each into four pieces. In the case of figs, soak them in hot water for 1/2 hour and then cut them into small pieces. If prunes are desired, stew them as explained in Art. 71, and when the seeds are removed cut them into small pieces. Add the fruit to the barley 10 or 15 minutes before removing it from the stove. Serve hot with cream or milk and sugar.

78. LEFT-OVER BARLEY.--Cooked barley that is left over from a meal should not be wasted. That which has been cooked without fruit may be added to meat stock or used with vegetables for soup. Also, cooked barley that has had time to set and become stiff may be sauted in b.u.t.ter until it is slightly brown. When served with meat gravy, barley prepared in this manner makes a very appetizing and satisfying luncheon dish.

RYE, BUCKWHEAT, AND MILLET

79. RYE is a grain that grows very much like wheat, but it can be cultivated in poorer soil and colder climates than this cereal. It is not used alone to any great extent for anything except the making of bread, but it is particularly well adapted for this purpose, since it contains a large amount of gluten, the food substance necessary for successful bread making, and, like wheat, will make yeast bread when used alone. Bread made of rye flour has a dark color and a peculiar flavor, and while these characteristics make it unpopular with some persons it is used extensively by certain cla.s.ses, especially persons from foreign countries. Besides its use for bread, rye is frequently combined with other cereals in the manufacture of ready-to-eat cereal foods.

80. BUCKWHEAT is used less extensively than any of the other cereals already mentioned, but it has an advantage over them in that it thrives in soil that is too poor for any other crop. The buckwheat plant grows to a height of about 2 feet and blossoms with a white flower. Its seeds, which are three-cornered in shape, bear a close resemblance to beechnuts, and because of this peculiar similarity, this cereal was originally called _beech wheat_. Practically the only use to which buckwheat is put is to grind it into very fine flour for griddle cakes, recipes for which are given in another Section.

81. MILLET as a cereal food finds practically no use in the United States; in fact, in this country it is grown almost exclusively for cattle food, the stalk of the plant being large and juicy and containing a considerable amount of food. The seed of this plant furnishes the smallest grain known for use as food, and because of its size it is very hard to gather. Millet, however, is used extensively by some of the people of Southern Asia and India, who depend on it very largely, since, in some localities, it forms their only cereal food. In these countries, it is ground into flour and used for making bread.

PREPARED, OR READY-TO-EAT, CEREALS

82. All the cereals that have been discussed up to this point require cooking; but there are many varieties of cereal food on the market that are ready to eat and therefore need no further preparation. Chief among these are the cereal foods known as _flakes_. These are first made by cooking the grain, then rolling it between rollers, and finally toasting it. The grains that are treated in this way for the preparation of flake foods are wheat, corn, rye, and rice. It is well to remember this fact, because the trade name does not always indicate the kind of grain that has been used to make the food. In another form in which cereals, princ.i.p.ally wheat, appear on the market, they are cooked, shredded, pressed into biscuits, and then toasted. Again, cereals are made into loaves with the use of yeast, like bread, and after being thoroughly baked, are ground into small pieces. Wheat generally forms the basis of these preparations, and to it are added such other grains as rye and barley.

83. The toasting of cereals improves their flavor very materially and at the same time increases their digestibility. In fact, cereals that have been subjected to this process are said to be predigested, because the starch granules that have been browned in the toasting are changed into _dextrine_, and this is one of the stages through which they must pa.s.s in their process of digestion in the body. However, the housewife should not allow herself to be influenced unduly by what is said about all prepared cereals, because the manufacturer, who has depended largely on advertising for the sale of his product, sometimes becomes slightly overzealous and makes statements that will bear questioning. For instance, some of these foods are claimed to be muscle builders, but every one should remember that, with the exception of rye and wheat, which build up the tissues to a certain extent, the cereals strengthen the muscles in only a slight degree. Others of these foods are said to be nerve and brain foods, but it should be borne in mind that no food acts directly on the nerves or the brain. In reality, only those foods which keep the body mentally and physically in good condition have an effect on the nerves and the brain, and this at best is an indirect effect.

SERVING CEREALS

84. Although, as is shown by the recipes that have been given, cereals may have a place in practically all meals that the housewife is called on to prepare, they are used more frequently for breakfast than for any other meal. When a cereal forms a part of this meal, it should, as a rule, be served immediately after the fruit, provided the breakfast is served in courses. Many persons, of course, like fresh fruit served with cooked or dry cereal, and, in such an event, the fruit and cereal courses should be combined. A banana sliced over flakes or a few spoonfuls of berries or sliced peaches placed on top afford a pleasing change from the usual method of serving cereals. Another way in which to lend variety to the cereal and at the same time add nourishment to the diet is to serve a poached egg on top of the shredded-wheat biscuit or in a nest of corn flakes, especially if they have been previously heated. In fact, any of the dry cereals become more appetizing if they are heated thoroughly in a slow oven and then allowed to cool, as this process freshens them by driving off the moisture that they absorb and that makes them tough.

To add to both dry and cooked cereals protein and fat, or the food elements in which they are not so high, milk or cream is usually served with them. Of these dairy products, which may be served hot or cold, milk adds more protein than cream, and cream more fat than milk. Some persons, however, who do not care for milk and cream or cannot take them, subst.i.tute a little b.u.t.ter for them or find fruit juice a very good accompaniment, especially to a dry cereal. Sugar is generally served with both kinds of cereals, as the majority of persons prefer them slightly sweet; but there is no logical reason for its use except to add flavor.

ITALIAN PASTES

PREPARATION, VARIETIES, AND COMPOSITION

85. In addition to the cereals that have already been discussed, macaroni and foods of a similar nature are ent.i.tled to a place in this Section, because they are made from wheat flour and are therefore truly cereal products. These foods, which are commonly referred to as ITALIAN PASTES, originated in Italy. In that country they were made from a flour called _semolina_, which is derived from a native wheat that is very hard and contains more protein than is required for the making of ordinary dough mixtures. Later, when the manufacture of these foods was taken up in the United States, the flour for them had to be imported from Italy; but it has since been discovered that flour made from the variety of wheat called _durum_, which is grown in the spring-wheat territory of this country, can be used for producing these pastes. In fact, this kind of flour has proved to be so successful that it now takes the place of what was formerly imported.

86. To produce the Italian pastes, the wheat, from which the bran has been removed, is ground into flour. This flour is made into a stiff dough, which is rolled into sheets and forced over rods, usually of metal, or made into a ma.s.s and forced over rods, and allowed to dry in the air. When sufficiently dry, the rods are removed, leaving slender tubes, or sticks, that have holes through the center. Because of the manufacturing processes involved in the production of these foods for market, they are higher in price than some cereals, but their value lies in the fact that they are practically imperishable and are easily prepared and digested.

87. Italian pastes are of several varieties, chief among which are _macaroni_, _spaghetti_, and _vermicelli_. Macaroni is the largest in circ.u.mference; spaghetti, a trifle smaller; and vermicelli, very small and without a hole through the center. These pastes and variations of them are made from the same dough; therefore, the tests for determining the quality of one applies to all of them. These tests pertain to their color, the way in which they break, and the manner in which they cook.

To be right, they should be of an even, creamy color; if they look gray or are white or streaked with white, they are of inferior quality. When they are broken into pieces, they should break off perfectly straight; if they split up lengthwise, they contain weak places due to streaks.

All the varieties should, upon boiling, hold their shape and double in size; in case they break into pieces and flatten, they are of poor quality.

88. Since the Italian pastes are made from wheat, their food substances are similar to those of wheat. As in other wheat products, protein is found in them in the form of gluten, but, owing to the variety of wheat used for them, it occurs in greater proportion in these foods than in most wheat products. In fact, the Italian pastes are so high in protein, or tissue-building material, that they very readily take the place of meat. Unlike meat, however, they contain carbohydrates in the form of wheat starch. They do not contain much fat or mineral salts, though, being lower in these food substances than many of the other foods made from wheat.

RECIPES FOR ITALIAN PASTES

89. In nearly all recipes for macaroni, spaghetti, and vermicelli, as well as the numerous varieties of these foods, the first steps in their preparation for the table are practically the same, for all of these foods must be cooked to a certain point and in a certain way before they can be used in the numerous ways possible to prepare them. Therefore, in order that success may be met in the preparation of the dishes that are made from these foods, these underlying principles should be thoroughly understood.