BREAKFAST MENU

99. A well-planned breakfast menu is here given, with the intention that it be prepared and used. This menu, as will be observed, calls for at least one of the dishes that have been described, as well as some that have not. Directions for the latter, however, are given, so that no difficulty will be experienced in preparing the menu. After the recipes have been followed out carefully, it will be necessary to report on the success that is had with each dish and to send this report in with the answers to the Examination Questions at the end of this Section. The recipes are intended to serve six persons, but they may be changed if the family consists of fewer or more persons by merely regulating the amounts to suit the required number, as is explained elsewhere.

MENU

SCRAMBLED EGGS

Beat the eggs slightly and add the salt, pepper, and milk. Heat a pan, put in the butter, and, when it is melted, turn in the mixture. Cook this mixture until it thickens as much as desired, being careful to stir it and to scrape it from the bottom of the pan, so that it will not burn. Remove from the pan and serve hot.

BUTTERED TOAST

Bread for toasting should as a rule be 48 hours or more old. Cut the desired number of slices, making each about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Place the slices on a toaster over a bed of clear coals or on a broiler under a slow gas flame. Turn the bread frequently until it assumes an even light brown on both sides. Remove from the heat, spread each slice with butter, and serve while hot and crisp.

COCOA

Scald the milk in a double boiler. Mix the cocoa, sugar, and salt. Stir the boiling water into this mixture gradually, and let it boil for several minutes over the fire. Then turn the mixture into the hot milk in the double boiler, and beat all with an egg beater for several minutes. A drop of vanilla added to the cocoa just before serving adds to its flavor.

BOILED COFFEE

Scald a clean coffee pot, and into it put 12 level tablespoonfuls of ground coffee. Add several crushed egg shells or the white of one egg, pour in 1 cupful of cold water, and shake until the whole is well mixed. Add 5 cupfuls of freshly boiling water and put over the fire to boil. After the coffee has boiled for 5 minutes, pour 1/4 cupful of cold water down the spout. Allow it to stand for a few minutes where it will keep hot and then serve.

CEREALS

EXAMINATION QUESTIONS

(1) (a) Mention the eight cereals that are used for food. (b) How may the universal consumption of cereals be accounted for?

(2) (a) Explain why cereals and cereal products are economical foods. (b) What factors should be considered in the selection of cereals?

(3) (a) Why are cereals not easily contaminated? (b) What care in storage should be given to both prepared and unprepared cereals?

(4) (a) Explain briefly the composition of cereals. (b) Describe the structure of cereal grains.

(5) What food substance is found in the greatest proportion in cereals?

(6) What characteristics of cereals make them valuable in the diet?

(7) What material, besides the food substances, is always present in cereals, and what are its purposes?

(8) What is the purpose of cooking cereals?

(9) (a) What occurs when starch is cooked in a liquid? (b) Describe the process of setting a cereal.

(10) (a) Mention the various methods of cooking cereals, (b) What are the advantages of the double-boiler method?

(11) (a) What influences the proportion of water required and the length of time necessary to cook cereals? (b) Is it an advantage to cook cereals for a long time? Tell why.

(12) Mention the cereals that you would use in winter and tell why you would use them.

(13) (a) Of what advantage is it to add dates to cream of wheat? (b) Mention some of the ways in which left-over wheat cereals may be utilized.

(14) (a) Explain the three methods of cooking rice, giving the proportion of water to rice in each one. (b) How should rice grains look when they are properly cooked?

(15) Mention several ways in which to utilize left-over rolled oats.

(16) (a) What advantages have ready-to-eat cereals over unprepared ones? (b) Tell why cereals that have been toasted are said to be predigested.

(17) (a) What is the advantage of serving milk or cream with cereals? (b) How may variety be secured in the serving of cereals?

(18) (a) How are Italian pastes made? (b) Mention and describe the three principal varieties of Italian paste, (c) What tests can be applied to judge the quality of these foods?

(19) (a) Explain the first steps in cooking macaroni, (b) How much does macaroni increase upon being boiled?

(20) (a) Why may macaroni be substituted for meat in the diet? (b) What foods used in the preparation of macaroni make it a better meat substitute?

REPORT ON MENU

After trying out the breakfast menu given in the text, send with your answers to the Examination Questions a report of your success. In making out your report, simply write the name of the food and describe its condition by means of the terms specified in the following list?

Cream of Wheat: thin? thick? lumpy? smooth? salty? well flavored?

Rolled Oats: thin? thick? lumpy? smooth? salty? well flavored?

Scrambled Eggs: dry? moist? watery? salty? well flavored?

Buttered Toast: thin? thick? crisp? soggy? browned? not sufficiently toasted? unevenly browned?

Cocoa: smooth? strong? weak? thick? scum formed on top?

Coffee: strong? weak? muddy? clear?